I came accross these great Cufflinks from Cuffs n Collars today. I was surprised to see that they do Cufflinks specifically designed for every male member of the bridal party…

For the Groom…

For the Best Man…

For other members of the bridal party…

All these wedding Cufflinks are priced at £8.99 or £9.99 which I think is great value for money.

Check out the full range at http://www.cuffsncollars.co.uk

It is the end of another week here at Savvy Cinderella, in the heart of the Cambridgeshire Fens. (Our week finishes on Sunday, and starts again on Monday.) We started off the week with one of the most loveliest brides I have ever met, Helen, who came with her best friend. Helen moved to the Highlands of Scotland 2 years ago, and it sounds like the most incredible change of pace and life style imaginable. Helen first got in touch after she heard me on the Jeremy Vine show on BBC Radio 2, with Claire Young from the Apprentice. She liked the idea of hiring her wedding dress, and we started communicating by email first. She told me what she was looking for, and she flew down from Scotland last July to have a look at dresses. We had a great time then, and she tried on lots of dresses, all of which looked lovely on her, but none of which were quite right. Some were close contenders, but we didn’t find the one until the very last dress she tried on. It had caught her her when she first came in, but she had discounted it because of the colour – deep burgundy red, but her eyes were always drawn to it. So she had almost settled on another dress, when she decided to try on the red dress.

I always think you can tell in a brides face if the dress is the right one, they can all look stunning, but with the right dress, there is a change in her face, where she literally lights up, and you just know that she has found ‘the dress’. This is exactly what happened with Helen. She looked lovely in all the dresses, but with this one her face lit up and her personality just shone through, and she came alive. She changed her mind about hiring, and decided to buy the dress, although she hadn’t a wedding date set in stone. So this week, with a date in June confirmed, she flew down again, for a fitting, and the alterations that she wanted to do. The dress was originally a zip up back, but she liked the idea of a lace-up, and she also wanted it to be shorter at the front, just below the knee, to show off her boots. The setting for her wedding is going to be on her own land, up in the Highlands. She has the sea with a great beach and a mountain too choose from, and I think she will be starting at the beach where the wedding party will be piped by a Piper up the hillside, where the wedding ceremony will begin. So dainty little bridal shoes will not be an option. She will need good boots to get her up the hill in one piece, as hobbling on a twisted ankle is not a good look when walking towards your husband to be.

So, Dyl my seamstress and I were with Helen and her friend at the beginning of the week, making this wonderful dress absolutely perfect and unique for a perfect and unique wedding. With all the alterations discussed, agreed and recorded, Helen flew back to Scotland, and Dyl set to work. Yesterday Dyl brought the dress back to me, and I have to say it is absolutely stunning. We are both so thrilled with the way it has turned out, it looks incredible. The lace-up back has completely transformed the back of the dress, and the way the dress is shorter at the front then flows into this magnificent frothy train is breathtaking. If Kathy from Wuthering Heights had asked Vivienne Westwood to create the perfect wedding dress, this would be it. Dyl and I are so excited about this wedding, because Helen is such a fabulous lady, her passion and zest for life is truly catching. An hour with Helen is equal to an hour on a massage table – you come away feeling full of life and ready for anything. She has created the setting of her wedding ceremoney in our minds, and it is magical – we can almost taste the sea air. The Highlands of Scotland are going to have the most amazing Wedding Party in June, with a true celidh with traditional musicians, songs and dances, and lots of the Scottish falling down water on hand. How fabulous it that.

The week progressed with more lovely brides, and more wonderful settings. We have gorgeous bride getting married in a stunning dress in Monego Bay. Dyl and I have been working on how to keep the shape of the dress, without keeping all the layers of netting, to keep it cooler for her, and without trapping any sand, and also to keep the size to a minimum for packing – I have come up with a top idea, even if I do say so myself. We are going to add the banding for the hoop to the petticoat, but allow her to thread it herself when she gets there, so the dress will pack flatter. We have also had a bride getting married in Gretna Green, one in a Cathedral and one in a beautiful tiny church, big enough for only 20 guests.

On Friday our new collection of Prom Dresses arrived. I think that everyone should have a prom dress, no matter how old. For school reunions we should turn up in prom dresses. We need to bring back fabulous ball gowns. Not many take place any more, so I never have an excuse to put on a fabulous dress. I may wear one around the office,and introduce the Savvy Cinderella Dress-up Tuesday. (tiara optional!) Or perhaps not. I can’t say Dyl would appreciate pinning dresses up whilst wearing a ballgown, but just think how fabulous we would look. The dresses we have got in, have all been chosen to make the most of your waist – even if you don’t have one, the lace-up makes one magically appear. I think lace-up backs should be available in every day clothes. I know it would add a few extra minutes to getting dressed in the morning, but it would add some extra excitement to getting undressed too, as you can’t do it alone. Yesterday I had lots of lovely brides in, and one couple especially were really great. They are having a civil partnership and were so nervous about coming to try on dresses. They have chosen two beautiful gowns, and they were telling me about the planned ceremony, and it sounds like it is going to be a really lovely and emotional day. Often brides to be who are in a civil partnership are nervous about how they are going to be treated in a bridal store, and I find that so sad. Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life, and every bride deserves to feel special from the very beginning. I am here to help you find the dress you want, to give advice if you would like me too, and hopefully help you have a fun and enjoyable time whilst you are here with me. I helped two wonderful ladies choose their dresses a couple of weeks ago, and they were two of the nicest brides2be you would ever wish to me, and they sent me a lovely letter saying how much fun it was, and how relaxed and comfortable they felt. That really meant a lot to me, but it always surprises me how so many brides2be feel apprehensive when they are making the appointment. It is important to me that you enjoy your time here, and that you are able to try on as many dresses as you want, without feeling pressured or judged. After all, the dress is central to your whole day (apart from the groom, who I admit is slightly more important). Get the dress right, and you feel comfortable, special and ready to be centre of attention.

Today is Sunday, and we have had a lovely bride and her bridesmaids in today, who have found the perfect dresses for them all, with the bridesmaids choosing Eggplant, which I love, especially in taffetta. The bride has just phoned me to say how much they enjoyed their morning here, and how excited they are, as now the wedding feels more real. I love that she called to tell me, it really makes a difference to me to know how happy they are. The next bride today has been before, and can’t make up her mind between two dresses. One is traditional with a magnificent train and she looks gorgeous, the other is more ‘art deco’ and very sleek, with a frothy train, and again she looks stunning. She is considering hiring both, one for the church and reception and one for the evening, so she is bringing her mum with her today to help her make up her mind.

Our competition winner Ashley gave me a really great present recently, a pin cushion safely protected in a beautiful box. This is such a lovely present, as she knew from reading my previous blogs that I had been involved in a hideous workplace accident. Whilst pinning up a wedding dress, I sat on my pin cushion. A needle I had placed in there for safe keeping, turned into a harpoon, and shot through my jeans and embedded itself so far in my calf that I didn’t even know what had happened. After an hour of indescribable pain I decided to go to A&E where they didn’t believe it was possible for a sewing needle to pass through denim, and highly tuned muscle. The x-ray later showed it had also gone through bone, and I underwent a long operation to remove it, and had weeks crashing around on crutches. All this was bearable only because the needle went through my calf – if it had gone up into my bottom, I would have eventually died of embarrassment, as I would never have gone to A&E to have my backside x-rayed. So my new pin cushion is safely protected and unable to penetrate any part of me, thanks to the thoughtful Ashley.

Enjoy the week ahead, summer is just around the corner.