Afternoons in August

The weather might be turning chilly and Autumnal but let's reminisce on the events that took place at Sutton Bonington Hall in August.

Afternoon tea was incredibly popular this August, instead of a more formal wedding breakfast we served afternoon tea.  Three-tiered cake stands piled high with cucumber sandwiches or a delicious selection of cakes for guests to enjoy.  This style of wedding seems a very English style of wedding that really suits Sutton Bonington Hall, an English Country House with games of croquet taking place on the lawn!  The couples below even hired in vintage crockery and table cloths from Lily & Rose China hire to really add to the theme.

 

 

As lovely as Afternoon tea is, it is worth mentioning that throughout August our chefs created many fantastic three course wedding breakfasts.  The quality of the food they produce is very high, and so a real treat for all the guests who attended the weddings.

 

 

 

 

August also gave us one of the more unusual bands that were booked to entertain guests in the gardens after the wedding ceremony.  These were the ski band, their colourful shirts and fun music created a brilliant atmosphere.  Even people living in the village had commented on how brilliant it was to hear on a sunny summers day.

For us it was even funnier to watch them rehearsing in our office (which isn't huge!) while MJ was trying to catch up on the emails!!!



July at the Hall

We have a a brilliant, yet busy, summer - hence why I'm writing about July now!

Sutton Bonington Hall hosted several weddings throughout July but also a Ruby Wedding Anniversary lunch.  It was really special to see a long and happy marriage celebrated.  There were photos dotted around the Hall of their wedding day, and the Best Man had to do another speech! 

Of the weddings that took place at the Hall I have listed a few highlights below to give you an idea of the variety of the different weddings we have enjoyed this summer.

We were in awe of Gemma, one of our brides, who organised her wedding in just 2 months, while caring for her 3 year old son and twin baby daughters.  It was a fantastic day, and thankfully she did hire a nanny to help!

Rebecca's Aunty Pam had a busy time in the lead up to her niece's wedding as she had been tasked with making the wedding cake.  As you can see below we think she did a fabulous job and deserved the glass of champagne ...

 

July also saw one of the more unusual wedding themes we have seen - Squirrels!  This was a really fun idea to tie different aspects of the wedding together.  There was a message tree for guests to tie there messages to in the shape of acorns.  But to top it off here is the fantastic wedding cake!

 

 

We have also seen an unusal mode of transport to take the bride to the church in Sutton Bonington.  Luckily the bridesmaid owned a fun beetle

 

Getting hitched in style...

Wedding receptions are a great opportunity for friends and family to come together to celebrate. However with the average wedding costing £15,000 couples can feel the pressure to get everything right.

 

After the dress, where to host the wedding reception is probably the most agonised over decision. Finding a venue which can cater to the wedding party’s needs and help create the dream wedding is essential.  For many a bride and groom the wedding reception is the time when they start to relax; the nerves and jitters of the ceremony and speeches behind them.

 

When choosing a venue to host a wedding reception there’s a wide choice; everywhere from pubs to hotels to castles are available to hire. Before choosing, the bride and groom should consider whether the space available will work for their party; too large and the reception will feel empty; too small and guests will feel overcrowded and cramped.

 

For many the main consideration when choosing their wedding venue is costs. The price to host a wedding reception can vary wildly from venue to venue, though many places offer an ‘all-in’ package deal which includes catering, evening entertainment (such as disco) and bar staff included. For places which don’t have package deals, the bride and groom should be sure they know exactly what is included and the associated costs with any extras.

 

For some a deciding factor when choosing a venue is the location itself; beautifully manicured lawns and borders create a stunning background for wedding photos and help create cherished memories. For this reason many couples choose locations such as country houses, stately homes or other grand buildings to host their wedding.

The bride and groom may also want to consider whether their chosen venue offers accommodation; some guests may have travelled to attend the wedding and therefore need somewhere to stay overnight.

Our Ice Cream Tricycle

We have had brilliant fun preparing for our first outing of our Ice Cream Tricycle!  Our chefs enjoyed test driving it around the car park on a lovely sunny afternoon.  On the wedding day we set up the tricycle in the gardens here at Sutton Bonington Hall, complete with large sun umbrella and straw boaters for the staff.

The Guests loved the Ice Creams, choosing from Choc Chip, Vanilla, Toffee Crunch and Raspberry sorbet.  We found that Toffee Crunch was the most popular flavour! 

We will be using the Ice Cream Trike again on Tuesday and have since had several enquiries for future weddings. 

Latest News from Sutton Bonington Hall

Sutton Bonington Hall has entered The 2013 Wedding Industry Awards and so we are hoping to receive lots of votes from past couples. Couples who were married or held their wedding reception at Sutton Bonington Hall since 1^st November 2011 are eligible to vote.  You might also find that your other suppliers (i.e. your photographer) have entered.  Last year we were shortlisted in our category, and we would really like to do one better this year.

Sutton Bonington Hall is now on Facebook (www.facebook.com/suttonbhall) and Twitter (@suttonbhall), this is a fantastic method for us to keep everyone up to date with what’s happening at the Hall.

We are planning two Christmas Dining Evenings at Sutton Bonington Hall on Wednesday 19^th and Thursday 20^th December 2012.   Further details and menus will be released in the Autumn, but we are hoping to create two really special fine dining evenings that we hope you would enjoy.  To book tables please email us enquiries@sutton-bonington-hall.com

Dining Evenings 2013 – We will be holding Dining Evenings in the New Year.  The dates are still to be confirmed although one of these will be Valentine’s Day Thursday 14^th February.  These events are a perfect opportunity for you to return to the Hall for a romantic meal for two, or a special family dinner. 

Special treats at Sutton Bonington Hall

Over the last few weeks we have had several new and different ideas that our brides and grooms have brought to the Hall to make their wedding day special.  We always love to see the different ideas people have, it means each wedding here is different to the last.

For the jubiliee weekend our couple were lucky enough to have a very talented violinist in the family, who entertained wthe guests while they were on the lawn having photographs and drinking Pimms.

More recently in June we have a fantastically pink wedding, where the conservatory was decorated with lots of Pink Pom Poms and beautiful flowers from Fleurs en Fleur based in Loughborough.

Finally, last weekend our bride and groom had ordered an absolutely fanstic looking #weddingcake from Your Unique Day The cake fitted in perfectly with their 'Tea' theme and was a real talking point

April Showers

The gardens at Sutton Bonington Hall have been throughly enjoying the rain we have been having this April, although it definitely makes Will's, our gardener's, job a lot harder!

This last weekend we were delighted to host the wedding reception for Louise and Steve.  Fortunately they were able to dodge the showers and even had photos taken in the garden.

On Sunday Deana and Jim celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary at Sutton Bonington Hall. They invited 50 of their closest friends and family to attend, and they all struggled through the rain to reach us.  It was raining so much we lit the log fires in the Library and Drawing Room so the Hall was warm and welcoming.