GROOMS Drink Matters

Before booking booze, take on board some expert advice on selecting wine for the wedding from Peter Stewart, Glasgow Director of Inverarity One to One.

Research! Taste as many wines as possible in your preferred price range. You are looking for "crowd pleasers", fruity wines that most people will be happy quaffing. Merlot, especially from the New World is a banker.

Keep it simple. You can't possibly please everyone, and it's madness to go down the route of getting in a single bottle of Puligny because it's all that Aunt Millie drinks. Ideally one white and one red, possibly with something special for the top table.

How much is enough? You get 5 decent glasses of fizz to a bottle...so take the number of guests, multiply by two (if you want them to have a glass on arrival and one for the toasts) and divide by five to give you the number of bottles required. I would also round it up a wee bit as a safety net...you don't want to run out and most wine merchants do sale or return. So for 80 guests having two glasses each, you would need 32 bottles, which I would round up to 36. For the table wine, roughly half a bottle per head is a decent estimate.

Champagne or sparkling? There are some excellent sparkling wines on the market, so you don't have to go crazy...although some people prefer to do both, starting with champagne and moving on to fizz. Again, try as many as possible beforehand!

Food matching. Worth thinking about as the right wine with the menu will increase everyone's enjoyment of the day. The dominant flavours in the dish are the important ones, don't worry about the garnishes. Ask your wine merchant what he or she would recommend.

Money. Pick a price range and stick to it, whatever you are happy spending. Remember to factor in any corkage charges.

Photo © Freeman Photographics, iStockphoto

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FASHION Oooh-la-lingerie!

It has to be the perfect lingerie - and no compromises. Katy Bensley (formerly of Playtex Wonderbra) gives some style and shopping advice.

We all want to look fantastic on the big day and finding the perfect fitting lingerie is key to looking good. With a huge range to choose from, it can be difficult to find the right style to flatter your figure and make the most of your wedding dress.

Katy says, ‘You need to get professionally measured, there are too many women wearing the wrong bra size! Having found the bra size that suits and fits you with no red strap marks in sight, you need to decide what lingerie style complements your figure - and your dress’.

Balconette Bras are generally half or quarter cup style bras and create a flattering look, best suited to A-D cups. Triangle Bras are becoming more popular and are soft cup bras which are great for A-C cups. Full cup bras provide maximum support and coverage and are great for larger sizes with a D cup and above.

‘Lingerie Designers are finally offering a greater range of bigger sizes, including those for smaller backs - which is a growing size trend' says Katy.

Now to the bottom half. Men are still buying thongs as gifts, while women are generally opting to buy the brief or French knickers. Either way, ladies want a flattering look for their 'derrieres'! French knickers suit most figures and give a flattering fit with their short style cut, suited to most style dresses. Full or bikini brief gives more coverage at the back and again provides a flattering fit. Thongs need no introduction and provide a cheeky, minimum coverage!

'The golden rule is to avoid the VPL. Your choice of pant should flatter the style of your dress while the perfect bra set should complement your silhouette', says Katy.

‘Finally, accessorise with suspenders and stockings - follow your dress size for a good suspender fit. And remember to pack a 'baby doll' for the first night!'

All that’s left is to choose the colour of your lingerie!

Photo © Knickerbox, Panache, Chantelle

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RECEPTION Paper Petals

We know that WP brides are d.i.y clever when it comes to making favours and wedding invites. We think you'll love this paper-pretty place!

Ann-Marie Edmondson has designed a gorgeous range of stationery, cards, favours, gifts and decorations for weddings, now available online at Natural Design. Perhaps best known for their paper petals, Ann-Marie supplied 300,000 petals for the film Alexander and also had her petals featured on Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire. Using Saa paper, derived from the bark of the mulberry tree, it is a great option for 'green' weddings.

A sustainable resource, the mulberry tree naturally sheds its bark 1-2 times a year and can therefore be made into a natural paper without destroying the tree. The pretty hand made and hand coloured petals are £6.95 for 200 - enough to scatter on three or four round tables.

We also love these litte heart wreaths (around 25cm hight) made with hand made paper roses (£16.95) and these paper roses in mini terracotta pots (£3.50 each). The little pots make great place settings or favours with a name tag attached.

For D.I.Y. brides, you can buy a range of individual stems, including these medium paper rose stems (£1.75) which look lovely placed on a napkin with a name tag. You'll also find pretty ribbons and little essentials such as dry oasis block and dried moss.

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