Your Yorkshire Wedding news and ideas from around the county

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Bawtry Hall given a new lease of life

Award-winning South Yorkshire wedding venue, Bawtry Hall near Doncaster, has redeveloped its facilities with support from HSBC UK. Large areas of the 18th-century site including wedding reception rooms and the grounds have been updated following the investment, with further works planned later this year. The owners have also hired 15 new staff members in order to meet increased demand following the renovations. Jason Cooper, one of Bawtry Hall's shareholders says, "We're thrilled with this latest round of renovations completed with HSBC's backing. Although the building was already incredibly special, these updates will ensure that Bawtry Hall remains an exceptional venue for all our customers.

AI creates the ultimate first dance song

There are over 217,000 first dances in the UK every year (1,950,000 in the US) yet couples usually pick the same handful of songs. Have you ever wondered why tracks like Etta James' At Last and Just You And I by Tom Walker are so popular at weddings? And what makes them so timeless? Function Central, a platform for finding and hiring musicians and bands for events, have answered exactly that! By analysing the most popular first dance songs to find the top 10 that couples choose, they have used AI to create the world's ultimate first dance song based on their findings, showing couples that they can have a timeless first dance song that is unique to their wedding.

Ales and Cocktails launch exciting new collaboration with Wressle Grange

The team at Ales and Cocktails are proud to be collaborating with Wressle Grange on a new Cocktails and Graze package. Located in the quaint village of Wressle on a working arable farm, the hen party venue boasts a stunning garden, patio area, firepit and large lawns, not to mention the exquisite décor and furniture inside the farmhouse itself. Wressle Grange Farmhouse is ideal for group celebration, with plenty of indoor and outdoor space. Guests can play games, walk or simply relax. Three days here is the perfect amount of time to fully relax into the festivities with your besties. While you're there, why not enjoy Ales and Cocktails' new Cocktails and Graze package?

How to make your engagement ring shine for wedding day

Between shampoo, hairspray, moisturiser and hand cream – we can all agree that our beautiful engagement rings go through a lot on a daily basis. After all, many of us wear them every day without ever taking them off! But if your big day is just around the corner, it's crucial to keep your ring looking its best for those all-important wedding photos and to ensure your nearest and dearest see it in all its glory. With this in mind, experts at family-owned jewellers and diamond merchants, Chisholm Hunter, offer their specialist advice on how to get your ring gleaming before your big day... Max Brown, Retail Director at Chisholm Hunter, shares their top tips for ensuring your engagement ring is sparkling ahead of your wedding day: "If you want your precious jewellery to look its best on the big day, we recommend taking your ring to a professional jewellers for both ultrasonic and steam cleaning and using fine emery paper followed by a full polish to remove any surface scratching.

Venues for the perfect autumnal ceremony

New research conducted by ethical jewellery brand Sacet has revealed the top country wedding venues across the UK that would make the perfect location for an autumnal ceremony. By analysing a number of factors (including guest capacity, number of reviews, professionalism, quality of service and value for money) of over 30 wedding venues that offer barn, country and forest-style weddings in the UK, the top 10 were revealed. Brinsop Court Manor House and Barn, in Hereford, has been crowned the overall winner, with top ratings across all factors (quality of service, response time, professionalism, value for money flexibility and average rating). It also had the most number of reviews and can hold between 30 to 250 guests.

Find out how to choose your big-day beauty team with The Style Lounge

With more than 19 million results showing up when you Google 'Yorkshire wedding hair and make-up,' finding the right team for you can be a daunting task. So, we turned to Lisa Kramer at The Style Lounge (https://thestylelounge.uk) for some advice: Lisa says: First, have a clear idea of what you want – do you need an individual hair stylist, make-up artist, or someone to do both? Where you will be getting ready, what time you need to be ready for, and how many people are in your wedding party, are all other questions to consider. The reason for this is that your glam squad will need to establish whether they've the time to get you all ready on the morning of your wedding, as well as if they're prepared to travel to your location.

Are these popular 2023 wedding song cursed?

Research from wedding entertainment providers Function Central shows couples are taking risks choosing songs for their weddings with shockingly high divorce rates. Function Central used existing data on the songs most likely to end in divorce to see whether couples were still taking risks by adding these songs to their upcoming nuptials. This data was then cross-referenced against existing wedding playlists of engaged couples to see whether couples were still choosing these songs for their weddings. The results were concerning for any superstitious couples worried about whether certain tracks were deemed bad luck for long lasting marriages.

Create a dreamy ambience with a harpist at your wedding day

We asked Rhian Evans Harpist (www.rhianevansharpist.com) to explain the virtues of harp music on a wedding day. This is what she had to say... Imagine a wedding without music. Impossible, isn't it? Music is a vital part of your celebration, and the harp creates a dreamy fairytale atmosphere, transforming your ceremony and adding that extra-special wow factor. You'll also be surprised by how many of your guests have never seen or heard a harp before! It's probably the most romantic musical instrument for your ceremony, drinks or wedding breakfast – or a combination of all three. I suggest for your ceremony you select songs that mean something to you as a couple.

5 reasons couples fail at sticking to their wedding budget

With the cost of living on everyone's minds, budget expert Isabel Smith, offers some insight into how couples can set (and stick to!) their wedding budget. The number of couples who are going overbudget on their wedding is dropping, from around 2/3 in 2018 to somewhere around 50% this year. This may be due to savvier couples setting more realistic budgets, or people simply refusing spend a penny more than planned owing to future financial uncertainty, but either way, I am all for it! I've never been an advocate for getting in debt over your big day, no matter how special you want it to be.

The perfect couples advent calendar

Couples looking for that x-factor idea to get them in the Christmassy mood this festive season need look no further than A Twist Of Date's personalised couples' advent calendar. This personalised QR-code collection of romantic, fun and creative couples' activities adds a spark of magic that is sure to make 2023 a December to remember. Perfect for long-term busy couples looking to reconnect through heart-warming moments, it's a no-brainer alternative to the typical chocolate-filled Christmas countdown. Whether it's an impromptu trip to your local ice rink, engaging in an act of kindness together or writing each other a romantic letter to be opened on Christmas, each day brings something new and exciting to share together.

How to master taking the perfect engagement ring photo

Proposals are often one of the most memorable, special and magical moments in a couples life, so it's only natural they want to share this joyous news with their friends, family and colleagues. In 2023, one of the most common ways for couples to share the news of their engagement is through social media. Couples often post gorgeous pictures in real time of themselves along with the dazzling engagement ring. Sharing the news via social media is a quick and easy way of telling your loved ones the news without having to individually call everyone, which can be overwhelming and time consuming. However, taking the perfect photo can be a bit of a challenge. Whilst it's not a competition to see who has the biggest ring and whose ring sparkles the most, a lot of people want their ring to look as desirable and shimmering as possible.

Raise a toast with Martin the Toastmaster

We asked Martin Moorhouse, Martin the Toastmaster (www.toastmastermartin.co.uk) to explain the role a toastmaster plays in a wedding day. Read on to find out more... Firstly, a toastmaster brings the style and presence of that famous red tailcoat, which adds colour to your wedding. They also manage all the stress and anxiety of organising your day – no matter how big or small. This is done by meticulously planning for your exact requirements, ensuring what you want happens when, where and with whoever you wish. They also liaise with other professionals involved in your wedding such as photographers, videographers, musicians, DJs or catering staff – meaning you can relax and enjoy your celebration.

Sober hen parties are on the rise

While hen parties are often characterised by celebratory cocktails, drinking games and wild night outs, the hen-do could soon be shrugging off its booze-fueled persona. Global searches for 'sober hen do ideas' have doubled over the past year while 'sober bachelorette party games' has also seen a 50% increase. On TikTok, #soberliving has seen a surge in popularity, with videos including the hashtag boasting over 650 million views. If you're a bride-to-be looking to celebrate your 'last night of freedom' tee-total-style, party planning expert, Amy Greenshields at cardfactory has shared her four top tips.

Tadcaster hat shop shortlisted in the Nation’s Wedding Awards 2023

Simply Devine does it again! The destination hat shop is a finalist in the Nation's Wedding Awards 2023 – formerly the English Wedding Awards and The Great British Wedding Awards - in which the Tadcaster hat shop has previously won awards since 2017 with its collection of hats, fascinators and hatinators for weddings, race days, garden parties and special occasions. This year the shop is a finalist in the Specialist Supplier of the Year category. Liz Devine-Wright, owner of the shop, of York Road, Tadcaster, has run the designer-led hat shop for the past 20 years. Said Liz: "It is always such an honour to be a finalist in professional awards.

Is lasting love magic, logic or luck?

Does it matter how a couple met? Contented Couples, a new guide to long-term relationships, features candid, intimate interviews with eighteen couples, based in the UK and USA. Each pair tell of how they met, how they formed a relationship and how they've thrived to become a truly happy union. One couple met and married within a month, whilst another two were thrown together repeatedly by a matchmaker who refused to give up - and it is not only guy meets girl either. The couples speak from an array of circumstance, culture and sexual orientations, including arranged marriage, friends-to-lovers and dating apps.

The five best weather apps to keep your eye on it leading up to the big day

Wedding jewellery experts Austen & Blake have listed some of the best weather apps to keep an eye on in the lead-up to your big day. The UK weather has been anything but predictable lately, with September set to be a particularly rainy and unsettled month, according to The Met Office. Top-rated apps help to track and plan your wedding day accordingly. Weather apps are invaluable when it comes to planning your nuptials, but sometimes there's no avoiding the inevitable. That's why, along with listing the best apps for tracking grey skies, the jewellery experts have teamed up with a professional wedding photographer to provide tips on how to get the best rainy snaps.

Even when the weather's a washout, it doesn't mean your wedding photos have to be! Here are some of the best weather apps to keep an eye on and how to strike the perfect pose if rain is predicted:

Don’t like your engagement ring? Relationship experts reveal what you need to do!

A marriage proposal is filled with an overwhelming amount of emotion and is a moment both you and your partner will remember forever. But once the initial rush fades, what if you come to terms with the fact that the ring placed on your finger isn't what you envisioned it to look like? Leading diamond jewellers, Diamonds Factory, teamed up with relationship experts Georgia Sturmer and Sharin Shafer, who have shared their top 3 tips on how to handle this delicate situation in the best way possible.

Fraser Hart launches its stunning lab-grown diamond collection

Fraser Hart, one of the UK's leading purveyors of fine jewellery, is redefining affordable luxury with the launch of its Born Lab Grown Diamonds collection in 10 new stores nationwide. Optically, physically and chemically identical to an earth-grown diamond, here cutting-edge technology is used to create timeless diamonds in a laboratory setting. Blending craftsmanship with innovation, Born Lab Grown Diamonds are breathtaking in their clarity, delivering the same sparkling wow-factor as traditionally mined gems, but with a more accessible price tag. The Born collection includes a stunning choice of "buy now, treasure forever" heirloom jewellery pieces. With exquisite diamond rings starting at just £799, diamond and white gold stud earrings from £799, classic diamond encrusted tennis bracelets from £5,250, and diamond pendant necklaces from £850, investing in luxurious, exceptional quality and utterly timeless diamond jewellery pieces has never been more attractive.

The wellness journals from Lovendu you need in your life

With Mental Health Awareness day falling in October, and as we approach the end of the year, take positive steps to improve your wellbeing in 2024 through journaling. The benefits of daily journaling are huge, from reducing stress and improving your mental health to boosting productivity and providing an opportunity to get in sync with your emotions. It's the ultimate act of self-care – and Lovendu makes it easy to take control of your life and truly thrive.