< PreviousBentley HotelT: 01522 878000 E: conf@bentleyhotellincoln.co.uk www.bentleyhotellincoln.co.uk The Bentley Hotel, Leisure Club & Spa, Newark Road, South Hykeham, Lincoln LN6 9NH With many packages available we cater for a small family affair or a grand event. Priding ourselves on our experience, professionalism and friendliness, we are on hand at all times to make sure that your big day goes off without a hitch. Rest assured there are no hidden charges or venue hire. If you require any further information or should you wish to view the hotel, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our management team who will be happy to assist you. Will you Marry Me? If the answer is YES book our 20th Anniversary Additional Package for only £999 * Buffet for 65 * Room Hire * Red Carpet Arrival * Bridal Suite * Disco & Private Bar until Midnight * Ivory Cloths & Chair Covers * Master of Ceremonies * Discounted accommodation rates * Free Parking Available on selected dates throughout 2020 Diamond Wedding Package only £6,250 for * 50 Day Guests - 100 Night Guests * Room Hire * Red Carpet Arrival * Bridal Suite * Wedding Co-ordinator * Disco & Private Bar until Midnight * Ivory Cloths & Chair Covers * Personalised Menus * Silver Cake Stand & Knife * Master of Ceremonies * Discounted accommodation rates * Free Parking Available throughout 2020 10-23.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:38 Page 11www.lincolnshiretoday.net VENUES 21 you can enjoy all the convenience of a top hotel with food and drink on tap while also having the flexibility to transport your guests into a host of imaginative settings. They’re also safely enough away from the accommodation to ensure the party can carry on into the night without annoying those who aren’t attending. Making use of a marquee also allows for a change of scenery, meaning your guests won’t spend the whole day staring at the same four walls. You could, of course, plan © Shutterstock / Ostap Davydiak 23 Á © Shutterstock / infinity21 10-23.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:38 Page 12Weddings at The Lincoln Hotel are an exclusive affair, we only host one wedding per day as we believe that you deserve our undivided attention. Let us host your perfect wedding day, whether it be a small intimate wedding or a large reception up to 140 guests. We are licensed for civil ceremonies and partnerships, or if it's a church wedding you're looking for, we'll have the red carpet rolled out awaiting your arrival. For further information please visit www.thelincolnhotel.com or call 01522 520348 email weddings@thelincolnhotel.com The Lincoln Hotel, Eastgate, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, LN2 1PN 10-23.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:38 Page 13www.lincolnshiretoday.net VENUES 23 the event to take place at a number of different venues to have the same effect but then you run the risk of guests getting lost when travelling – and you can be sure that if there’s any chance of that happening, someone almost certainly will. As long as you don’t overwhelm the setting with too much design, and make guests feel like extras, being creative and imaginative will certainly ensure your big day sticks in people’s minds. Take inspiration from wherever you find it, from Hollywood to Bollywood, and Lincolnshire’s wedding specialists and picturesque venues will help you make it a reality. © Shutterstock / IVASHstudio © Shutterstock / aastock 10-23.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:38 Page 14Lincolnshire Today Wedding Guide FINISHING TOUCHES 24 Some of the best ideas arrive unexpectedly, whether a sudden epiphany in the middle of the night, a flash of inspiration walking down the high street, or a brilliant idea for your wedding when driving down the motorway. These and other final flourishes will add pizazz to proceedings, leaving photos you’ll want to flick through for years to come and memories to revisit again and again. By their very nature, finishing touches don’t make the wedding, but they do enhance it, and some simple additions can turn an otherwise standard affair into something truly special. It’s amazing how big a difference banners and bunting can have, especially if they’re personalised and conform to the set colour scheme. Confetti or dried flower petals can likewise add a fun touch that looks dazzling when filmed and will no doubt leave guests with a smile. If there’s any kids in attendance, frolicking in confetti may just be the highlight of the evening. A step further is to use a bubble machine, just make sure it’s pointed away from the buffet table! It’s probably ill advised to leave seating arrangements to a free-for-all scenario; after all, the church is usually divided up into the bride and groom’s family so why not follow with the reception? Name cards are a fun way to establish a seating arrangement, as well as giving guests a little keepsake along with any favours. When it comes to seating arrangements, it’s worth sparing a thought on any Setting things off There’s plenty of finishing touches to add a final flourish to your reception from the usual name cards and table decorations to something a bit more out there. S PECIAL E DITION C HOCOLATE Award winning handmade chocolate for everyone to enjoy, including those on special diets such as diabetics, coeliacs, vegetarians, vegans and some allergy sufferers like nuts and dairy. www.specialeditionchocolate.co.uk Tel: 01673 844073 24-25.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:40 Page 1www.lincolnshiretoday.net FINISHING TOUCHES 25 © Shutterstock / Antoine2K © Shutterstock / Robert Lessmann © Shutterstock / CL-Medien potential pairings. It could be a wonderful opportunity to introduce friends and let the newly joined families get to know one another a bit better. As well as having one or more photographers documenting the event from all angles, having a photo booth is an inspired idea to involve guests in a more informal way. Alternatively, the photographer might have several backdrops to pick from, as well as accessories to pose with. Or there’s the green screen option, leaving the couple free to choose whatever they want to incorporate. It might be that they’re both fantasy fans and having a backdrop of castles and dragons might be their idea of romance. Even with smart phones and photo apps at our disposals, disposable cameras are still hugely popular for weddings. They’re cheap, easy and fun to pass around, letting everyone get in a few snaps. For a quirkier alternative, Polaroid cameras print snaps instantaneously, giving guests something to take home or leaving you with plenty of pictures for a wedding-themed scrapbook. The imagination doesn’t just stop because a date’s been set in stone. Inspiration will come thick and fast right up until the big day, and many of these finishing touches can be easily implemented in the right hands, and with the talent across the county, the right hands are at your disposal. 24-25.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:40 Page 2Lincolnshire Today Wedding Guide CAKES 26 While some couples have taken to making and decorating their own wedding cakes, professional companies are offering ever more elaborate and experimental offerings. The compromise is a bespoke option, where a talented professional can take a couple’s shared interest and create a showstopper. A twist on tradition doesn’t have to mean out with the old, but the popularity of themed and designer cakes is offering new and unusual ways to add pizzazz to the cutting ceremony. It might have been that the cake was once topped with effigies of the lovely couple that bore little to no resemblance to their counterparts, but now the cake is a playground for the imagination to run wild. Cunning and creative bakers across the county are able to make dreams a reality, from concept to delivery. Deciding on any one theme can be difficult, and more and more couples are opting to divide the wedding cake down the middle. Going down this route means that both the bride and groom can literally have their cake and eat it, as well as having something unique for the photos. For bigger weddings it’s advisable to invest in complementary cakes as you wouldn’t want anyone to go without. If the wedding cake wasn’t one of the most highly anticipated parts of the proceedings, then it certainly is now. With cookoffs and cake decorating shows converting Britain into a nation of bakers, the cake also must deliver on taste. As we continue to embrace more exotic flavours and combinations, and with the growth in veganism, simply going for sponge might not cut it. Opting for a different cake every tier adds variation as well as providing alterative options. From fruit cake to red velvet, the combinations are endless, but liaising with a baker is probably a good idea – not every combination is necessarily a good one. It’s also worth bearing in mind your guests’ dietary requirements and ensuring there’s options available for everyone. For some, marriage is a time for tradition, and a tiered cake robed in white icing and wrapped in ribbon is still a sure-fire way to wow guests. For a more modern approach, a display of cupcakes is a fun way to mix and match without compromising on charm or flavour. The long tradition of freezing a piece of the cake for the christening or first anniversary, means that it has to look and taste the part for the second time around. Making sure that it meets flavour and aesthetics is easy with Lincolnshire’s baking elite, so that’s less of the stress and more of a mouthful. Whether or not the happy couple cake-smash is entirely up to them. Taking the first slice A wedding without a cake? Inconceivable. But that doesn’t mean you need to stick with tradition. 26-27.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:41 Page 1© Shutterstock / Eric Limon 26-27.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:41 Page 2Lincolnshire Today Wedding Guide ENTERTAINMENT 28 Stripped down to their basic components, there really isn’t all that much to a wedding. The church ceremony may feel long with guests on tenterhooks and the bride and groom a ball of happy/nervous energy, but it’s over pretty quickly. Guests will then usually make their way to the reception for the speeches, but unless everyone rambles on with soliloquies of Shakespearean proportions, the expected events only make up a small portion of the day. It falls on entertainment to fill up the remainder of the schedule. Since ancient China, fireworks have been associated with celebration and prosperity, and the explosive technicolor display can still fill onlookers with glee. The difference between what can be bought commercially and what can be put on by a professional company is plain as the night sky they illuminate. You want to make some lasting memories and having a beautifully choreographed and dazzling firework display is a great place to start. Live music is guaranteed to impress guests, and a better means of getting relatives up on the dance floor than a DJ from the school disco circuit. Though you might have a family member in a band, it might not be advisable to humour them for your wedding. Sure, it might be cheaper (or even free), but having a group that can’t hold a tune or forgets the lyrics is going to put a damper on proceedings. No one says you have to go for a rock covers group, with the live music scene in Lincolnshire From first to last dance © Shutterstock / Sergii Sobolevskyi Everyone loves a wedding, so after the ceremony it’s critical to make sure there’s plenty of entertainment for guests to enjoy. 28-29.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:42 Page 1www.lincolnshiretoday.net ENTERTAINMENT 29 alive and well. There are also orchestras and classical options to consider or perhaps even taiko drummers. If either of the happy couple play an instrument, this would be a great opportunity to showcase their skill and serenade their loved one. In a bid to keep cost down, some couples are even turning to music streaming platforms and curating a playlist for the event, though that invites all manner of technical glitches. Others might want to break with tradition and opt instead for something a little different, such as performance artists or entertainers. You don’t have to be limited to inside entertainment either, with fire breathers and other such performers available to wow guests. It’s best to bear in mind that people do enjoy a dance, and having music of some kind will always go down well. Depending on the venue you’ve booked, there’s always the option to utilise different rooms. If the central hub of the reception is a live band and dance floor, then orbiting rooms could be used for chilling out with a stand-up comic, or something for any little ones in attendance. Cake cutting and speeches aside, the crowning glory of the reception is the bride and groom’s first dance. It’s a pivotal moment in their coming together as one, and depending on their abilities, will no doubt provide some entertainment for guests. The benefit of having a live band or professional DJ is for moments like these, as dancing to a live rendition of a song that means the world to you will no doubt be the icing on the cake. © Shutterstock / Irina Alexandrovna NEON SKY FIREWORKS Professional Firework Displays Make your day extra special: celebrate with FIREWORKS! For Weddings, Civil Partnerships, Prom Nights, Birthdays or any occasion For enquiries call Andy on 01526 833 288 or mobile 07970 100240 - email neonsky_98@yahoo.com 28-29.qxp_Layout 1 27/01/2020 09:42 Page 2Next >