About Me

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Hi, I'm Laura and I'm a self confessed perfectionist, wedding addict, OCD list maker, foodie and tea-time-tea-and-cake enthusiast with lots of ideas! I love working with people and am a serial organiser, always planning something, always on the go! I live with my wonderful boyfriend at his parents house and am totally in love :o) This blog will be filled with all my ramblings about love, life, inspriation, people and, of course Perfect Choice Planning - set up 2011. Please feel free to comment and contact me about anything you want to and I hope you enjoy reading! Love & Hugs, Me x

Thursday 29 December 2011

{Sneaky peek} from the Ice Maiden Photoshoot

Yesterday was a busy but fabulous day.


That's because my visualisation of the Ice Maiden Photoshoot that I had been organising for several months finally came to be.


The stunning venue of The Monastery in Manchester leant itself beautifully to the incredible hair & make up, dresses, suits, accessories and flowers for the styling.


I took a few "backstage" pictures on the day, as did my other half, which I will be sharing with you in the near future.


For now, I just want to show you some AMAZING sneak peeks from the two wonderful photographers who brought everything that I imagined to life through their stunning images; Joanne Spencer Photography and Neil Redfern Photography.


A huge thank you to all of the amazing suppliers who came together on the day to create exactly what I wanted from the shoot through their own amazing talents.


Dresses - Pearl Bridal Boutique
Suits - Groom Hire, Manchester
Hair & Make Up - Harry Jon
Flowers - Laura Coleman Flowers
Shrugs/Wraps - Wrapor
Accessories - Laurel Weddings


And the two photographers of the day: Neil Redfern Photography and Joanne Spencer Photography


Thanks to The Monastery for allowing us the full run of their amazing venue and for being very accommodating throughout the whole organisation and on the day, thank you to the three amazing models (Mark, Nikki and Leanne) for dealing with everything that was thrown at them and finally, a big thank you to my man who stuck it out for the whole day, helping lifting, carrying, setting up, tidying away, filming and generally being wonderful!


Enjoy the images and keep an eye out for my back stage report, coming soon.


Laura x






Monday 19 December 2011

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

I'd like to start by apologising for the radio silence on the blog over the last month or so.






I have been SO busy (as have a lot of people) with the up-coming festivities that is Christmas as well as my next photoshoot that will be taking place on 28th December at the amazing venue, The Monastery in Manchester. Since I saw this venue on the internet I have loved it, and when I went to visit for the first time, I was head over heels! If you haven't visited, you definitely should.


I hope everyone is in good festive spirits, or in great spirits whether you celebrate or not.


I will hopefully be blogging over the Christmas period but I just wanted to say a HUGE


MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR


to everyone and especially would like to mention the wonderful suppliers who I have met this year, and who have helped, guided and supported me in my first few months as Perfect Choice Planning - some who have become very good friends not just wonderful supplier contacts.






SO, here goes (in no particular order)


Emma B Photography - a true, genuine friend and wonderful photographer
Joanne Spencer Photography - beautiful person, inside and out with photography to match
Neil Redfern Photography - stunning photography and genuinely nice person
Pearl Bridal Boutique (Nicole) - Stunning dresses, friendly, smiley and newly engaged - all the best for 2012
Rachael McNeela - brilliant hair & make-up artist, a pleasure to work with
Vintage Twee (Joanne) - Creative and bubbly person with a heart of vintage gold
Brides Up North (Julia) - Supportive and friendly person, always a pleasure to talk to
Very Inviting Stationery (Verity) - Lovely person with creative brilliance, always with a smile
Laurel Weddings (Laura) - Warm and onviting person with so many fabulous ideas
Laura Coleman Flowers - Wonderful, friendly and intelligent woman with the warmth of a winter fire
Harry Jon MUA (Clare) - Lovely, creative person who I am looking forward to working with and sharing ideas with
Ivy Clara (Catherine) - Genuine and kind-hearted person who I hope to work with soon
Love Gets Sweeter Moving Images (Charlene) - Open, friendly and lively person with a wonderful caring spirit
Wrapor (Kay) - Always a pleasure to work with, hard-working and lovely
Lancashire Bride/Simply Bows NW (Joanne) - My friendly associate at the NW Tweet Ups and such a wonderful, kind person
Cakes By Beth - extremely talented and lovely person, glad to know you
Pomp & Ceremony - wonderful advice from two wonderful people


I have met many more that I haven't mentioned who are all wonderful suppliers and I look forward to meeting even more in 2012!


I'm really looking forward to the next year and all the unknown wonders that await me in the future. I have big plans including more photoshoots, a refreshing of my website, wedding inspiration and I will also be accepting guest bloggers, submissions of shoots and all things wonderful! I'll leave you for now with the highlights and favourite parts of this year.


 - Kate & Will's Wedding!
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THAT engagement picture by Mario Testino
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The Royal Couple and the royal bride wearing THAT dress
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THAT kiss!
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The Royal Portrait
 - Launch of Perfect Choice Planning website
 - First photoshoot (Fairy Inspired) blogged on Brides Up North




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Stunning images by Joanne Spencer Photography
 - Red, White & Blue Patriotic Wedding on Rock N Roll Bride
 - Hollywood Vogue Icons Revived on Love My Dress
 - Top 5 Glamping Destinations on Boho Events
 - Brides Up North Tweet Ups NW & Yorkshire


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Pictured here with the lovely Charlene from Love Gets Sweeter
 - Counting My Blessings
 - The stunning succulent bouquets featured on Whimsical Wonderland Weddings
 - Vintage Advertisements (that they didn't want us to see) on Rock N Roll Bride
 - A 1950's Inspired Love Shoot on Love My Dress
 - Autumn Inspiration on Bridal Musings - just LOVE it!
 - The shoot swap between Emma B Photography and Joanne Spencer Photography


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The incredibly lovely Emma, image by Joanne Spencer Photography


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The gorgeous Jo, image by Emma B Photography
 - Boho Event's Words of Wisdom about being a planner
 - Autumn Vintage Country Bridal Shoot on Whimsical Wonderland Weddings - huge inspiration for my own wedding (whenever that happens!)
 - A beautiful Northern Styled Photoshoot on Brides Up North by the fabulous James Melia


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Amazing image by James Melia
 - Seven Deadly Sins Rock the Frock Shoot on Boho Events
 - "The Big Fat Bloggers Photoshoot"
 - This gorgeous Autumn Engagement shoot on Whimsical Wonderland Weddings
 - My "Retro Day Out" photoshoot experience in front of the camera with Emma B Photography


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Me and my sister - Retro Day Out Photoshoot
Image by Emma B Photography
 - Alison Staples genuine guest blogging on Brides Up North "Up For Discussion"
 - "The Wedded Dead" Film on Boho Events - comical & creative even if I hate zombies
 - How to Avoid Bad Wedding Suppliers on Love My Dress - don't let anyone get you down!
 - Invitation Etiquette on Rock N Roll Bride
 - VW Beetle Engagement Photoshoot on Love My Dress - I heart VW bugs :o)


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Source
 - Zombie Engagement Photoshoot on Bridal Musings and Rock N Roll Bride  - even though I'm definitely NOT a zombie fan!
 - HomeFashion and Life inspiration from Joanne Spencer Photography
 - "Dear Wedding Bloggers - You Suck" and the subsequent reponses: Love My Dress, Lancashire Bride and others.


Have a gander, keep visiting my blog and I wish you all the best for this festive period.


Merry Christmas Everyone
Laura x


Tuesday 8 November 2011

Seasonal Love

I thought I'd share a little bit of happiness with you all :o)
I love October and Autumn, almost as much as I love Winter and Christmas. I love the colours, the change of season, not so much the change in weather to rain, but I especially love the build up to Winter.
                                   
I generally don't mind any season, but there are things about certain times of the year that get me excited!

October brings gorgeous colour changes in leaves, the winter wardrobe outfits appear and the heating comes back on (unless you decide that November is soon enough for the heating!) We are lucky enough to a fire - albeit it being gas and not a real one - but I love nothing more than snuggling up on the couch with a hot drink of choice and my man in front of the fire, watching a film. It's that cosy, homely feeling that makes me happily reminisce and reminds me that after yummy hot pot and stew on Bonfire night, Christmas isn't that far behind!




November brings cooler nights, early Christmas shopping (unless, like me you started in January!) and Bonfire Night. Treacle toffee, toffee apples, hotpot, pumpkins and soup-making for my dinners at work. I love wrapping up in warm jumpers, the hat scarf & gloves combo comes out and the build up to Christmas gets even more exciting. I have very fond memories of fireworks and bonfires whilst eating chilli or even hot dogs in the freezing temperatures, but to me, that's all just part of the fun.




December I think has to be my favourite time of the year - because it's Christmas. I am very family-orientated, which has to be a good thing seeing as I have a rather large family! Through family marriages, I have gained further family members through the years and the best time to have an excuse to visit is December. I also make sure I take them time to visit my friends to hand deliver Christmas cards where possible. Sometimes that may be the first time in a few months that I have seen them but at least we get to have a catch up over a hot beverage.


I love the atmosphere of bustling town centres in December, and even though it's total chaos I just love visiting somewhere to experience the Christmas Spirit. It's very entertaining if you grab yourself a window seat in a cafe on the main street so you can people watch!

I'm not particularly religious but to me, there is something special about going for the midnight service at your church. I remember the first Christmas that I spent with my boyfriend and we went to his family Church. I don't think he had stepped in there for years but we went anyway and it was so magical. After the service we went back to his where he lives with his parents (and where I now live) and decorated our first Xmas tree together, until 2am on Christmas morning! We still laugh about that every Christmas Eve.






 I love the Christmas hymns (I don't think there is much about Christmas I don't like!) and it brought memories of my primary school years when I was in the School Choir. We used to take one day out a year in December to visit the 4 old people's homes in the village where my school was based and sing them hymns.







Is there anything particular about this time of year that makes you happy? I know that the weather can be miserable but I look forward to seeing if it'll be a white Christmas, watching classic movies like "It's a Wonderful Life", "Miracle on 34th Street" and many others, and making mulled wine, not forgetting an annual trip the the Manchester Xmas markets. I also love New Year - the perfect excuse for one big party with friends and family to celebrate a new year.






No matter what is going on in life, as long as you have something to look forward to then nothing can bring you down.
I have something to look forward to this year as part of Perfect Choice Planning. After the amazing images from the Fairy Inspired Photoshoot that I styled and organised in September, I am in the process of organising one in December with some amazing suppliers and an equally amazing location. I can't wait to share these with you in the New Year and hopefully this will give you something to look forward to seeing :o)



For now I will leave you with a sneaky bit of inspiration about my next styled shoot.....


Until next time...
Me x