Your Devon and Cornwall Wedding news and ideas from around the area

Weddings Wrapped 2023 - wedding special

With Spotify Wrapped 2023 having just dropped, Encore Musicians, the UK's largest musician bookings platform has analysed 2,300 song requests by newlyweds to see the most requested songs and artists for weddings in 2023. They also surveyed 1,000 of its customers and musicians to discover the UK's favourite and least favourite songs to hear at weddings. Although Ed Sheeran's "Perfect" ranked as the most common song for first dances, it also ranked as the second least popular song to hear at weddings with one in seven ranking it as their least favourite.

Could you have to pay inheritance tax on a wedding gift?

Before the big day comes around, whether you are a guest giving a present or contributing to the cost of the honeymoon, or perhaps a relative considering helping towards the cost of the wedding itself, you ought to consider the inheritance tax implications of making such gifts. James Mabey, partner at law firm Winckworth Sherwood advises on the inheritance tax implications of wedding gifts. In the UK, if you die within seven years of making a gift, inheritance tax may be payable on the value of the gift after your death. This is because gifts are considered to be part of your estate for inheritance tax purposes.

Experience the magic of Christmas at Newquay's 'Miracle on Fore Street'

On Friday the 8th of December, from 4 pm until 8 pm, local businesses will host the Miracle on Fore Street, a late-night shopping event. This inaugural celebration promises to immerse you in the magic of the season, bringing the entire community together for an unforgettable Christmas experience. Prepare to have your senses overwhelmed as you stroll down Fore Street and Alma Place as local shops and eateries come together with delightful activities and offerings to get you in the Christmas mood. Browse through independent craft stalls for gifts and participate in festive activities such as face painting by Little Rainbows and biscuit decorating at Beach Shack or see a demonstration from Coastal Flowers and Gifts on how to create a traditional moss-filled Christmas wreath so you can bring the festive charm into your own home.

Propress launches the MINI Clothes Steamer - perfecting for wedding dresses!

Professional and long-established British fabric steamer manufacturer, Propress, has unveiled the Propress MINI Handheld Clothes Steamer. A revolutionary product that combines over 40 years of steaming expertise with cutting-edge technology, the MINI allows users to say goodbye to the days of wrestling with an ironing board and hello to the future of garment care with beautifully crease-free clothes, whether at home, in the office, or on-the-go.

The Propress Mini Handheld Clothes Steamer (£110) is available in Arctic Grey, Idol Blue or Vintage Pink from the Propress website. It heats up in under a minute offering the convenience of crease-free clothes with a simple touch of a button. Its efficiency and ease of use make it a must-have for every fashion-savvy individual, plus it is versatile enough to treat various home fabrics from curtains to bedding, and is ideal for weddings or even hoteliers.

Food Drink Devon reveals top picks for Christmas

Whether you're searching for foodie gifts for family and friends or treating yourself this festive season, then you need to look no further. Food Drink Devon has selected the best food and drink in the county from their recent 2023 Awards. All given the seal of approval by the esteemed panel of judges, these products were all recipients of a Platinum Award, achieving a faultless score of 100%. If you love nuts, Andrew King Chocolates - Signature Nine Nut Selection is the box of treats for you filled with delicate, crispy chocolate encompassing flavours including roasted pistachio and raspberry jelly, hazelnut praline with a whole roasted hazelnut and caramelised almond flavoured with a banoffee ganache.It was awarded 'New Food Product of the Year'.

Winter wedding inspiration from leading wedding planner

Matthew Shaw, founder & creative director at sauveur. shares his winter wedding inspiration for those looking to tie the knot at this time of year. Winter weddings have grown hugely in popularity. The festive season can be a truly magical time of year to host a wedding and stand out from the crowd but it does bring its own set of considerations for the planning. Whilst the key areas of your wedding planning will be the same as a wedding in any other month, there are a few different elements to consider to create an incredible winter wedding celebration.

How to kick-start your wedding planning

Samantha Gilchrist, Co-Founder and CEO of the UK's largest wedding venue collection, The Gilchrist Collection, shares her top tips on how to kick-start your wedding plans, taking away any unnecessary stress and disappointment in preparation for that special day. Set a Date - possibly the most important aspect of planning as getting this date in the diary will allow you to move forward with your plans. When choosing a date, it's worth carrying out a simple checklist to help you nail that day down such as: Think if there is a time of year you both always wanted to get married in? A season you both love or a month that is special to you is a great starting point.

Find County Wedding Magazines on YouTube

We're never satisfied when it comes to providing our readers with enough wedspiration, which is why we've created our very own County Wedding Magazine YouTube channel! You'll find tons of big-day ideas, from venue tours to dream dresses, then take a peek behind the scenes of styled shoots featured in our titles past and present. We're adding more content all the time, so why not hit SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a thing? Simply head to YouTube and search for 'County Wedding Magazines' now

5 unique winter wedding trends for 2023

From décor inspired by the season's natural beauty to creative ways to keep your guests warm, wedding supply experts Aura Print have searched TikTok to bring you the top five quirky winter wedding trends for 2023.While traditional wedding fayre often includes champagne toasts and wine, a hot chocolate bar offers a warm, decadent, and customisable alternative for the colder months. As the evening progresses and temperatures drop, guests can enjoy a sweet treat to keep them going on the dance floor. For younger guests or for those who don't drink alcohol, a hot chocolate bar also provides a great non-alcoholic option. With over 112.7 million TikTok hashtag views, the hot chocolate wedding bar trend is set to take the winter wedding season by storm!

A more sustainable, ethical, and zero-waste approach to weddings

Reports suggest that 4,910 tonnes of unrecyclable plastic was used up and left behind at British weddings last year, with this in mind, 77 Diamonds has released a planning guide to promote a more sustainable, ethical, and zero-waste approach to weddings. Individually, one wedding can produce as much as 20kg of plastic waste. What's more, the black bags used to collect the rubbish are themselves potentially harmful. They can take as many as 90 years to break down under the ground. But it's not just plastic which has an impact. Food wastage is also a common theme for most weddings.

The Mole Resort in Devon announces Winter Wonderland Festivities

Santa is coming to North Devon along with cocktail and wreath-making workshops, Christmas carols, festive cheese and wine tasting, Yuletide campfires and more! Christmas has arrived at The Mole Resort Devon, with the announcement of a jam-packed season of festive fun, food and frolics for families, friends and couples to enjoy. From now until the 26th of December, the luxury resort destination will be transformed into a countryside wonderland for guests burrowing down for a one-of-a-kind Christmas experience. Festive-themed additions and activities included in breaks at The Mole Resort include cocktail and wreath-making workshops, festive quiz night, local carol singing with mulled wine, festive entertainment, magician and a disco for the little ones, a beautifully decorated Christmas trees inside all lodges and Christmas story time orchestrated by local theatre company, Rattlebox Theatre. Plus, there's a fully-stocked chestnut cart!

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.

PoB Hotels unveil Black Friday Special Offers with luxury stays

PoB Hotels unveil Black Friday Special Offers with luxury stays in their exquisite properties in Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Devon and Cornwall. The finest collection of independent hotels across the British Isles unveils an exclusive special offer. Running from now until the 2nd of December, any guest purchasing a PoB gift voucher exceeding £250 will be gifted a Gusbourne Estate voucher worth £100. PoB Hotels' Gift Vouchers are available to buy online and can be personalised as part of a luxury gift pack including a reusable travel bag, a copy of The Handle – PoB Hotels' elegant print magazine - and a stylish gift wallet. The voucher can be sent digitally to guests getting to embark on a staycation, dining experience, or spa retreat.

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.

Bedruthan in Cornwall reveals coastal Christmas Breaks

Escape to the enchanting Cornish coastline this festive season for a relaxing getaway. Bedruthan's curated Christmas Breaks offer the perfect cosy time out, including delicious dinners, artisan bakery breakfasts and time to unwind in the Atlantic-view spa. Guests can choose between a three or four-night Family Christmas Break, and for couples looking to spend a romantic festive season together, there's a three or four-night Grown-Up Christmas break. Dining options include the recently launched Ogo restaurant or the Wild Café, both featuring menus using locally sourced produce. The Cornish delicacies continue at breakfast, with pastries and savoury treats freshly made by head pastry chef Georgia Mugford. There's also an exclusive festive experience with Father Christmas, making the stay even more special for the younger guests!

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.

Luxury Lodges offer Christmas availability and Black Friday deals

This Black Friday, guests are invited to secure a last-minute stay across Luxury Lodges locations by making the most of their irresistible Black Friday deals running from the 20th until the 27th of November 2023. Escape to a world of ultimate, cosy relaxation at one of the five-star self-catering properties across Britain's most loved holiday destinations including Cornwall. Each lodge provides stylish, beautifully designed and comfortable self-catering accommodation including Clowance Estate and Bude Coastal Resort both in Cornwall. Each resort offers guests the opportunity to take part in a range of wellness-boosting activities from surfing on spectacular beaches to coastal walks.

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.