Whether you are getting married in a church in a big white wedding dress, having a civil ceremony in a vintage bridal gown or purely renewing your vows in an elegant evening dress, there is becoming more opportunities in being able to personalise and add your own touch to your wedding vows.

Writing your own vows enables you to include others, such as children, friends and family, when you exchange your love and commitment to one another. The options are yours as a couple and allows you the chance to declare your love to one another in a more meaningful way, adding your unique personalities into the wedding. They can help make the day more memorable for all involved.

You may be after something a bit more modern for your civil ceremony, or if it is your second wedding wanting to make it a bit different. Your wedding vows should be sincere and written from the heart. You may want to include a special poem, some words from ‘your song’, a thoughtful quotation or something about each other. If you are stuck for ideas writing a letter of the reasons why you love each other may help.

For an even more personalised wedding ceremony you could consider a humanist wedding. This is a non-denominational celebration of a couple’s love for each other and the bride and groom can write, or have control over every word of the ceremony. You will be required to have a legally binding civil ceremony earlier or at the same time.

Before you start to put pen to paper, there are some rules to understand. By law a civil ceremony cannot contain any religious reference in vows, readings or music. The following are the vows required to be said by both of you during your ceremony to make it legally binding. Generally you can add your own choice before or after the statutory ones.

In England and Wales the statutory declaration is:
I do solemnly declare that I know not of any lawful impediment why I, __may not be joined in matrimony to __

It is followed by these contracting words:
I call upon these persons here present to witness that I, __do take thee, __, to be my lawful wedded husband/wife.

There are also two legal alternative declarations.
Declarations: I know of no legal reason why I, __, may not be joined in marriage to __.
Or by relying ‘I am’ top the question: Are you, __ free lawfully to marry__?

These are followed by the contract:
I, __, take you,__ to be my wedded wife/husband.
Or
I, __ take thee, __ to be my wedded wife/husband

In Scotland the couple say:
I solemnly declare that I know of no legal impediment why I, __, may not be joined in matrimony to__. I accept.

In Northern Ireland the statutory declaration is:
I know of no lawful impediment why I, __, may not be joined in matrimony to, __, to be my lawful wedded husband/wife.

Do ensure you have checked any vows or readings with your registrar beforehand. It is a good idea to give them a copy of your music, vows and readings two weeks before your wedding day.

The wedding day is all set to be a wintery affair, so now you need to decide on your colour theme. In order to ensure the colour works successfully it is a good idea to select something that works well with the season you are marrying in. The colours you choose will determine the mood and style of the wedding day itself as they will be incorporated into everything from your flowers, bridal wear, the cake and even the detail on your invitations.

With such a huge array of colours to choose from it can be a bit daunting as to where to begin. Think about where your wedding ceremony is taking place. As you are having a winter wedding it is likely that for the comfort of you and your guests the large majority is going to be centered indoors. This means that you don’t necessarily have to reflect the cold weather outside when choosing your colours.

What colours are your personal favourites? What colours does your husband to be like? It may be that he would like the colours of his football team! How do different colours make you feel? The types of flowers you want to use may have an influence on your colour choice so it may be worth researching what is available during winter. Depending on how many bridesmaids you are having you may want to take into consideration their skin coloruing as some will look fabulous in certain colours whilst other will look not so great in them.

Rich colours look fantastic for a winter wedding. Midnight blues, striking purples, crimson reds, burnt oranges and forest greens create instant elegance. Adding a metal, such as silver, gold or copper adds a striking contrast against the colour palette and looks particularly beautiful for the evening ceremony. They will add a magical ambiance with candlelight creating a warm cosy atmosphere.

With a winter wedding you have the opportunity to be more wild, dramatic and indulge in fantasy. Will you go for a Narnia inspired wedding day, full of ice blue, frosty white and dazzling silver, or perhaps a nostalgic day filled with warm rich deep greens, striking reds and shiny gold. Or if you’re feeling minimalism is the way forward how about a black and white themed wedding day – James Bond style. Whatever colours you choose the next step forward is to track down your dream dress. Come and visit us and find ’The One’ at the Wedding Dress Factory Outlet. We look forward to meeting with you soon and finding out what colours you have decided on for your special day.

Nothing beats a good wedding in a chick flick! Lots of oohing and aahing over the bridal gown, tears during the ceremony (tissues at the ready!) and laughter at the antics of the guests and in some cases the bride or groom. Here we list some of our personal favourite wedding dresses featured in movies.

Mamma Mia! – Even though things didn’t work out for this couple there is no denying how stunning the bride looked in her grecian wedding dress complimented by her long golden curls and sun kissed tan.

Sweet Home Alabama – Reese Witherspoon oozes Southern charm in her vintage fishtail style wedding gown with cap sleeves and a birdcage veil.

Funny Face – The start of the inspiration for shorter style bridal gowns, Audrey Hepburn has pure style and grace in her sassy tea length Givenchy wedding dress.

27 Dresses – Katherine Heigl looks amazing when she finally becomes the bride rather than the bridesmaid in a sleeveless v neck wedding dress with an A line skirt made by Amsale.

Runaway bride – How can anyone not love this movie just for its huge array of beautiful wedding dresses? Of course she stops running in the end….I personally can’t make my mind up which bridal gown is my favourite in this movie!

Father of the Bride – Elizabeth Taylor is the epitome of class in an exquisite long sleeved satin and lace creation made by Helen Rose, later made public by Alfred Angelo.

Marley and Me – Jennifer Aniston looks elegant in a floating satin gown designed by Carolina Boulton Couture for their snowy winter wedding in this movie.

Sex and the City - There are not many brides who could carry off wearing a blue bird on their head for their wedding day! The amazing Vivienne Westwood creation wowed women all over the world and suited the character’s personality to a tee. Just a shame she never made it down the aisle.

Bride Wars – Kate Hudson looked like a princess in a Vera Wang wedding dress which featured a huge tulle skirt and lace bodice finished off with a purple sash and cathedral veil. Anne Hathaway wore a simpler taffeta gown which was off the shoulder by the same designer.

Time Traveller’s Wife – Rachel McAdams wore a Lee-Ann Belter Bridal wedding dress made of silk organza. It featured a strapless sweetheart neckline and a floaty A line skirt.

So which wedding dress from the movies is your personal favourite?

You can find your perfect wedding dress right here at the Wedding Dress Factory Outlet – the UK’s largest supplier of discounted wedding dresses. We look forward to meeting with you soon and helping you find your dream bridal gown!

Musician, model and presenter Myleene Klass fulfilled every girl’s dream of  wearing a bridal gown when she married her long term partner Graham Quinn in a top secret wedding on Friday 21st October. The intimate ceremony was held in St John’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in the city of Norwich in Norfolk and was attended by just 16 guests.

Myleene, who came second in’ I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here’ in 2006 first met her new husband when he worked as a security guard for the Hear’Say the band she was then in. He proposed in 2005 ,however the wedding was put on hold when they discovered they were pregnant. The couple have two daughters, Ava, aged 4 and Hero who was born earlier on this year, both of whom were bridesmaids.

According to reports, her wedding dress was designed by celebrity stylist Kate Halfpenny and was based on an original idea of Myleene’s. The exquisite strapless fishtail style bridal gown featured ruffles and layers of tulle and lace to the bottom of the skirt and train. Choosing to wear her hair down in loose curls with a long lace edged veil, a large bouquet of roses completed her look. The groom kept it simple in a classic tailored suit with a shirt and tie.

The M&S model first announced the news on a social networking site and revealed a picture of them as happily smiling newlyweds the following day.  Previously revealing that she had always planned a small wedding, she was quoted as saying to her partner “All I want is no fuss, the vows and a burger afterwards, and I’ll be happy” and “To me, marriage is about commitment, not the wedding. It’s about the relationship between the two of you that you build your whole life upon.” We are not certain if they had burgers on the wedding breakfast menu but we wish them all the best for the future.

On purchasing your wedding dress it is likely that it will require some form of alteration to achieve the perfect fit. What requires altering varies depending on the dress and the bride herself. It can be as simple as having the length adjusted to having the bridal gown restructured and designed.

A first fitting is generally done about two months before your wedding day. It is advisable not to have your fitting done too early as you could end up with a dress that does not fit, especially if your weight fluctuates. However, if you leave it too late there may not be enough time for the seamstress to carry out all the work that is needed. As bridal wear is unique it is important to use someone who is experienced in altering these types of garments.

Ideally you should have the lingerie and shoes that you are going to be wearing on your big day when you go along to your first fitting. If you are going to be wearing a hoop or underskirt underneath your dress then take this too. It is surprising how much these items can change the shape and look of you in your bridal gown. Underwear can take inches off (or add on if you prefer!) to your upper half and your shoes and hoop will lift up the overall length of the skirt.  This will enable the seamstress to fit the dress as it should do on your big day and possibly prevent further fittings which would incur further costs to you. By taking along your other accessories you will be able to preview what it all looks like together, prior to your wedding day!

The price of your alterations varies, however once your seamstress sees you in your wedding gown and you have discussed what you would like doing she will give you an estimate of the cost. Most work is carried out on a per hour basis, therefore if you have a simple one layered skirt gown that requires shortening this would cost less than a skirt of several layers with lots of tulle.

Your final fitting is usually a week or two before your special day. This allows time should any further adjustments be needed. Don’t forget to take your shoes and lingerie to see the complete package! Once you are happy with the fit she’s all yours to take home. The next time you will be putting it on will be your wedding day!