Trello…the ultimate wedding planner

I’ve discussed Trello before, and to me, it is the ultimate organiser and FREE. I’ve got it on my computer and on my phone and they integrate with each other.

I’ve just been catching up on a lot of reading (knowledge is power and all that) and I came across a bride to be Trello list. I’ve just done a few screen shots for you to have a nosey at.

If it helps just one bride or groom in their wedding prep, then it’s all good, if you ask me!

Check it out you groovy wedding peeps!!

Nance x

LINK: Trello Wedding Planner

 

A ‘Good Point Well Made’…

A few days ago I saw a friend’s wood-working site and noticed he was making handmade wooden knives for brides and grooms to use, keep and treasure. They are beautiful and I wish I’d seen these before I got married. Maybe I could still get one?

Jims Wedding Cake Knife gifts are beautifully handcrafted from 100% reclaimed timber. They are made of solid English Oak, Brazillian Mahogany and Beech. They are also finished off in a food-safe oil.

Jim takes commissions for these ideal wedding gifts with a difference.

Check out Jims Facebook site here and show it some love or go one better and order one of his beautiful creations!

 JIMS WOODSHOP

 

One size doesn’t always fit all…

In the last year or so, I’ve seen a distinctive shift towards Brides asking their bridesmaids if they can follow the colour theme but not the style. I actually think it’s a super idea and it seems to be getting more popular. I’ve been a bridesmaid a few times and every dress has felt like ‘an eternity in something close to a fabric hell’ haha!

It’s nice to see that we are not a ‘one size fits all’ but we’re all ‘one colour’ basically.

Some bridesmaids have even gone for different colours and styles altogether, which I’ve got to say, they looked totally awesome. They rocked their differences and strutted their styles…kudos to the bride who lets them be their selves.

Food for thought…

If You Want To Get Ahead – Get A Hat…

…or you can be really savvy and check out Helenae – Couture Millinery Wedding Hats in Preston, Lancashire. If any of my clients’ mothers, aunts, sisters etc, or would be clients extended family members are looking for headwear, then check Helenae out. She has the most beautiful bespoke hats & fascinators and then some…

Want to know a little more, then read on…

‘Inspired by classic 1950s cocktail hats but with a modern twist, Helenae Hats are individually designed and made by hand in windswept Lancashire using traditional millinery techniques. We’ve been designing and creating occasions headwear for Brides, Bridal Parties, Weddings Guests, Ladies’ Days, Race Days and day wear since 2001. Our hats are one-offs, so there’s no chance of someone else wearing the same piece.

We use traditional millinery methods to produce the highest quality hats and fascinators in a range of fabrics to coordinate with your outfit. We consider your face shape and hairstyle when designing a hat for you to ensure you have something that’s both comfortable to wear and makes you feel amazing wearing it! Our ready to wear collection aims to provide something for everyone, but alterations can be made to ensure they’re perfect for you. We also offer an alteration service for hats, adding extra colours, feathers, a bit of sparkle or a full re-trim. We can make both big and small alterations to existing hats so you can re-use an old favourite. Or, have something new designed and made to suit your personal style.

We’re exhibiting in Preston at the Harris Museum as part of The Alternative Wedding Fair on April 7th, 2018, and we’re travelling to York Racecourse on March 18th for The UK Wedding Event. You can also find us at “Moments in Time Bridal” in Blackpool.”

Find us online here:

WEBSITE

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

PINTEREST

Free Wedding Organisation

If you are:

• A soon to be bride
• A soon to be groom
• A mum of a bride or a groom for that matter
• An organised person
• Wants to be organised, haha!
• A photographer who wants to be organised
• A budding cook with recipes
• A start-up company
• A so-on-and-so-for-fer 😉

Maybe you should check out Trello (who, what, where…yeah, I’d never heard of it too. I adore reading about the latest gizmos, software, business tools, apps and anything remotely wedding-ly, haha. Bring all these together and you have an app and a smart piece of desktop software which talk to each other (not literally, but you know where I’m coming from).

I came across this because I was looking for some business software which originally was going to cost me mega-bucks. I couldn’t quite believe Trello was free, but it is. It’s really intuitive and I love how it works with the app version on my phone. There is a super write-up further down and there are stonking video tutorials online if you’re not that computer savvy.

I still like to be a dinosaur and save hard copies in a box, I don’t think that will ever leave me. But, I’ve got to say, Trellos organisation has really impressed me. The FREE bit just nailed it, haha! Go show it some love and make your wedding planning and life a bit easier. Check out the lady who organised her wedding on the link too…super stuff!!!!

Peace out from, Nancy Lisa Barrett Photography – “From Lancashire With Love”

TRELLO

Snap Happy…

I’ve just come across a great article written by a photographer a few years back and I thought it was a perfect example of the old adage, “buy cheap, buy twice!” I sell quite a few prints and I remember the very first customer who balked at my pricing. I explained that I outsourced to a fantastic company (I have 2 sources now) and I used really expensive, good-quality, paper, beautiful mounts and they were also a limited edition!

She said she could get it done cheaper at her local supermarket…

It is what it is…

I like things to last, I like things to look good and would rather save up my pennies to get that. If you’re seriously looking at prints of your wedding, baby shoot, family gathering etc, then read on…

Is 2 Better Than 1?

 

A strange title, hhmmm…

For anybody who knows me and my wedding photography, they will know I always have a second shooter. I did this for many reasons. In the beginning (not as far back as Adam & Eve beginnings I’ll have you know though, haha) I was scared to do a wedding on my own. It was back up, it was reassurance, it was company. Nowadays, it’s to get extra photos, it’s to get a different perspective, it makes it easier when the bride and groom are in 2 very different locations, it’s also a good eclectic mix of classical photographer and quirky photographer…

Take, for example, my second shooter…he is an awesome Landscape Photographer in his own right, but what a lot of people didn’t know is that he is a fantastic portrait photographer and details man…very important in a wedding!! I truly believe that his landscape photography qualities help in lining up shots, seeing lead-in lines up to the bride and groom, verticals and horizontals when the B&G are outside a church or venue, he is precise and an expert at composition.

He is, in fact so good, that the other week I got a booking based on his Landscape skills (the B&G want photos in the countryside…think big landscape and bigger vista). It got me thinking is 2 really better than 1…and the honest truth is – I don’t know (ah ha that fooled ya). I know many photographers who go it alone and are most splendid. I think it’s something you need to look at, think about but not obsess over. To me…feeling comfortable with your photographer is everything…and it helps if they have a camera too 😉

Here’s my second shooters site btw…he is a teeny weeny bit awesome x

Andy Phillips Landscape Photography

and here is some of his portrait work:

Some of Andys Portrait Work

Not a Lot of People Know That…

Attention Brides & Grooms:

Did you know…that if you go to the Trip Advisor landing page and type in the magnifier search tool top right:

Find: Wedding Venues

Near: Lancashire

It will come up with a whole host of wedding venues around Lancashire with all the reviews you could wish to find…Trip Advisor, it’s not just for holidays and it’s not just for Christmas haha.

Most of the venues I knew, but some I didn’t and a few I’d totally forgot about…and a few more were totally lovely surprises. It covers every price, every type of building and I guarantee you’ll be looking through the pages for ages.

It’s nice to see Beeston Manor getting fab reviews and the Shireburne Arms too. Anyway, I hope this helps you on your ‘nuptials fact-finding missions’…peace out, from Nancy, somewhere in Lancashire…with love x

From ebb&flo with love…

Love books…book love, call it what you want…or you just want a beautiful wedding gift about love, well read on…

I came across a little local book shop the other day in my adopted town of Chorley and what a little gem it was. Tucked away in a street just off the main shopping are of Chorley it had a quaint, quiet and quirky ambience. It was stocked full of…well…books, haha.

The wording in italics is from the book shop web site itself.

“Each of our books is hand-picked. We want to offer a selection of interesting reading to our customers and for you to discover books you didn’t know you wanted or, perhaps, that even existed. Like all bricks and mortar bookshops, ebb & flo is a place to browse, hold a book, smell that new book smell, have a sit-down and chat about books.

With our speedy ordering service, we can order a book and usually have it for you within a day or two. We can also search for out-of-print books.

We will try to answer your bookish questions straight away, but if we can’t we will try to find the answers as quickly as possible. We like a challenge.

The bookshop is an exciting place for children to explore. We have a den, crafty things to do, story time, events and lots of beautiful children’s books to fire imaginations. We love Chorley and want to be an important part of the community. We have reading groups, workshops, events and meetings, both in the shop and in our upstairs room, which is available for hire. If you’re looking for an unusual gift, card or wrapping paper, we have a great selection in the shop, including Djeco, Melissa & Doug, Shreds and hand-made crafts by Darcey Fleur.”

I have no affiliation with the shop, I just really, really liked the little independent store, it was a delightful emporium of books, gifts, crafts and beautiful cards. I also liked their motto on their Facebook cover photo about independent businesses! I don’t know about you but I find it so refreshing to actually handle a book, smell it and look at the lovely colours and designs of books. For anybody who knows my ‘Behind The Lens’ on my Photography Wedding Site, I have a saying, well I have 2 to be precise.

“Libraries are for getting lost in literally

I love the smell of books…”

As much as I love online ordering (and I do) I’m actually at the point where I see the High Street in decline and I think I would like to do something about it. I saw a FB article late last night about just that. I said years ago that we would hit a point that we would go back to the Independent Shops. Saying that I think there is room for both. I adore the independents, I think they try so much harder and give a better service…that’s just my humble opinion, though?

Anyway if you’re in or near Chorley and love books, then check ebb&flo out.

Peace out for the mo…Nance x

Be Fearless…always

Apologies, I’ve been extremely busy designing web sites and logos and my tinternets has been at Vex Con 1…but that’s another story, haha.

Anyway, on to my blog which stems from going to visit a lovely wedding client the other night. We were talking about the photography (haha, no surprises there then) and how if you’re willing to try something different, think outside of the box, a different pose, a different look…it makes for some super-cool-wowzer photos. Dare to be different is one of my favourite phrases!

I started telling her about a photography site for Wedding Photographers and how the shots were awesome, crazy, mad, funny and evocative. This is not Pinterest or Fluffy Images Ltd…it’s serious stuff, fantastic photography and a site I will hopefully be on one day.

Anyhow, I’m waffling…the site is Fearless Photographers and I just thought that you lovely B & Gs would love it. Btw, I have no affiliation with the site, it’s just what I love.

The photo above is by my awesomely (so chuffed that ‘awesomely’ is a proper word haha) talented second shooter Andy. Peace out for the mo…Nance x