Amalie Loves... TASTE OF THE VINE

I was recently very lucky to be invited to an event at the lovely Lythe Hill Hotel near Haslemere in Surrey. Now I don't normally mention venues on the blog however I have to admit I was impressed by this country house hotel due to the shear range and versatility of it's facilities. Not only does it have a huge array of licenced rooms to choose from (including the only licenced gazebo in Surrey and a dungeon room!); a lovely spa, modern and character bedrooms, immense grounds including a rather picturesque lake and (and if that's not enough) an award winning restaurant. Manager Marsha Goodwin and the team are more than welcoming and are truly providing clients with a personal and bespoke service when it comes to weddings, or any event for that matter.

After the grand tour myself and some other guests were invited to stay for dinner (well it would have been rude to say no!), but before Marsha had organised a little ice breaker: wine tasting! I adore a little drop of 'grape juice' now and again and I've been to numerous wine tasting events, however none were as informative or as fun as this one. Firstly we were taught by the amazing Taste of the Vines chief sommerlier Francis Gimlett on how to taste the wines properly. I won't give this part away as this is what I believe stands this company out from the crowd; but Francis was thoroughly entertaining, informative and he truly helped us to understand the wines better when it came to trying them.

Over an hour or so we tasted a variety of wines from around the world both brought in by Francis and also snaffled from Lythes well stocked cellar. These were accompanied by various cheeses and nibbles so we could fully appreciate what went well with what (and to obviously not get us too drunk!). We each had to score the wines separately and as part of a team; nothing like bonding with strangers when in a competition! At the end some fab prizes were given out and everyone took something to take away with them, for me it was I'll never look down my nose at a Riesling again!

I found out afterwards Taste of the Vine had been going for over 13 years and have accomplished more than 2300 events. This is phenomenal and a testament to their professional approach, knowledge and passion about wine (they've even written books for goodness sake!). These guys are fabulous for any event, especially for a rehearsal dinner or hen and stag parties. They can also hold tasting events for beer, whiskey and even cocktails - now that's what I'm talking about!

Amalie Loves... WEDDING ENTERTAINERS

My Fab Friday blog continues and this week it’s all about the fabulous 'Wedding Entertainers' Alison Russell and her partner in crime (well slight of hand anyway) Adam Keisner. I met this amazing London based duo at a wedding show a few months ago and was absolutely blown away by their talent and skill and urge anyone who has a little bit of budget left over to invest in these guys; they truly will not disappoint.

Alison is one of the few silhouette portrait artists left in the country (if not the world) and she can cut out a silhouette which not only is scarily accurate (see mine on the right) but in a matter of minutes too (while having a laugh with you at the same time I might add!). Adam also showed me some of his magic and while I don’t wish to divulge the magic circles secrets (yeah right like he told me!) I can honestly say it’s one of the best pieces of magic I’ve seen in a long time and truly leaves you wondering “how the hell did he do that!”

Being a team means you can have both of their talents and super lovely personalities to help entertain guests for a reasonable fee and they are more than happy to travel to venues outside of the London area.

*Love* them!

Video stand v's Photo booth

As a wedding planner I’m a firm believer it’s the 'little extras' which can make your wedding stand out from the crowd. Surveys have shown after a few months most guests sadly won’t remember what they ate (unless it’s really bad of course!) or which fragrant blooms graced their table. What guests do remember is the entertainment and whether it was unique, fun and err entertaining! In this vain I’ve researched two novel ways of creating pictures or videos for the couple but not from the professional photographer or videographer.

Now Photo booths have been around for a number of few years and established companies such as Boothnation, Party Photobooth Hire & The Photo Booth Company will travel around the country setting up a bespoke booth for a wedding. Boothnation for example has the choice of both a glitter and a retro booth while The Photo Booth Company styles the photos produced with bespoke wording. Most of them have different packages one can select however most of them will offer props, a booth attendant and an interior curtain to match your colour scheme on the day.

The brilliant thing about the photo booths is guests end up having a fun and unique memento of either themselves or with their close friends or family (see picture to the right, I couldn’t resist popping in the one at the Designer Wedding Show!). The photos produced are given to the guests who 'pop in' and will also be copied onto a disc or placed on an on-line gallery for the happy couple to have a chuckle at afterwards. It creates a far more relaxed and fun record of the day with the photographer taking the 'proper' family pics and candid shots. Prices start from £500 for a basic package to £1500 for a very comprehensive one.

Video stands or kiosks (pictured left) is a relatively new concept with companies such as The Celebration Station and Wish You Well being able to travel a great area for not more than £400. These companies set up a stand in a quiet location at the reception venue, hit 'record' and let friends and relatives come and leave their well wishes to the camera. Obviously when alcohol is around things will become highly entertaining and slightly ruder as the evening progresses; however it takes the pressure off the videographer in having to drag people away from the party to give proper speeches to the camera. Most companies will then professionally edit the video messages onto a personalised DVD for the couple to cherish (or laugh at!) for a long time.To round up, photo booths are slightly more expensive but worth it for the pictures and the fun it creates for the guests. Video stands are great for couples on a budget and they have a brilliant selection of candid well wishes from family and friends they can keep forever.

Verdict: Love them both!