Your Yorkshire Wedding news and ideas from around the county

Spotify data reveals the most popular wedding songs

Luxury engagement ring retailer, Diamonds Factory, has scraped Spotify to find the top 100 most popular wedding songs to include in your playlists. To do this, Diamonds Factory analysed over 100 Spotify playlists containing the word 'wedding' and found the most featured songs across all playlists. These playlists included 3500 unique songs, and the data scrape also used additional keywords to reveal the top wedding ceremony songs, wedding party songs and top wedding artists, too.

New planner reveals when you can afford to tie the knot

With wedding costs rising by 3,000% since the 1950s, and set to reach an all-time high in the 2020s, making and sticking to a wedding budget can be a real headache for couples. To help would-be newlyweds with the complex task of budget planning their big day, the wedding finance team at money.co.uk have created a new wedding budget planner, to help couples account for all their costs for each stage of their dream wedding. The new planning tool also helps you calculate the earliest date you should set for your big day, based on how long it will take you to save up enough money to pay for your dream wedding. The wedding budget planner page also has lot of tips to help couples save cash, including:

Win a ‘One Night Luxury Four Poster Hotel Break for Two’ in Essex

County Weddings Magazine has teamed up with The Rose and Crown Hotel to give our readers the chance to win a 'One Night Luxury Four Poster Hotel Break for Two' in their 700 year old hotel. The lucky winner will receive a voucher which can be redeemed any time in the next 18 months. Also included is a bottle of champagne waiting in your room on arrival, breakfast in the morning, early check-in and late checkout, and a delicious three course dinner in their onsite restaurant

Wedding weekend at The Coniston Country Estate Hotel & Spa

On Saturday 14th & Sunday 15th January 2023, The Coniston Country Estate Hotel & Spa is hosting its wedding weekend. With beautiful, modern and contemporary event spaces, delicious dining, and a breathtaking location in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales, there's no better place to host your special occasion. With private spaces accommodating up to 120 guests, you can really go to town with your guest list. Similarly, if you are looking for a more intimate get together for up to 15 guests, AA Rosette The View Restaurant could be the venue of choice for your celebrations.

The most popular wedding foliage 2022 revealed

Wow, 2022 was quite the year for weddings with a bumper amount taking place. Looking back at what was trending last year, perhaps inspiration for those tying the knot in 2023, wedding insurance specialists Protectivity have researched the most popular wedding flowers, based on UK Google Search Volume. The most popular wedding bouquet foliage was Eucalyptus, with 585,000 searches! Followed by, Ivy 495,000, Jasmine 458,200, Rosemary 374,600, Ferns 351,200, Monstera 319,500, Silver Birch 219,600, Philodendrons 219,400, Olive branches 143,000 and Myrtle 133,300.

Honeymooning in your married name

If you are dreaming of jetting off to sandy shores with your sparkling new ring, spouse and matching passports...then this guide from NameSwitch will tell you how to make your dreams come true. Please do have a proper think about whether having matching passports straight away is really that important to you because, trust us when we say, it's not an easy thing to pull off! With recent changes to how processes work, effects of the Pandemic, and added complications like not being handed your marriage certificate on your wedding day, or needing the name on your NHS records to be the same as the one on your passport, an already stressful undertaking just got even more nail-biting! Now it's not mission impossible, but you do need 3 key things to be aligned (and nerves of steel) if this is going to work...

The Gamekeeper's Inn Wedding Showcase!

Taking place on Saturday 25th February, 2023, the Yorkshire based Gamekeeper's Inn will be showcasing its stunning Netherside Suite venue, which will be set up in both a ceremony style and a wedding breakfast style, to allow you to picture your perfect day. The wedding showcase will be running between 11am and 3pm, so do pop by the see it for yourself!

The rise of double-barrelled surnames

n the past couple of years, there's been a continued increase in the number of people wishing to join their names. For example, in November, research by The London Mint Office to mark The Queen's platinum wedding anniversary shows that 11% of married couples between the ages of 18 and 30 joined their names. As the UK's leading Name Changing Service, NameSwitch has also seen an 18% year-on-year growth in couples wishing to adopt a double-barrelled surname, which accounts for 12% of the thousands of name changes we've assisted over the last 12 months. So, why are more of us opting to double-barrel their surnames?

Blooming gorgeous blooms!

Jill Alexander from The Little Flower Hut, based in West Yorkshire, brings weddings to life with the most beautiful British blooms. 2022 was a wonderful year for weddings for The Little Flower Hut with some totally stunning weddings right across Yorkshire, Cumbria, and Northumberland – and 2023 is going to be an even more exciting year working on lots of absolutely, beautiful weddings for the most wonderful couples.

Your wedding, your way

With the Pandemic derailing wedding plans since 2020, the next few years look set to be a busy time for couples celebrating their union. But couples themselves are evolving – from individuals who feel shoehorned into traditions or cultural expectations they don't feel comfortable with, to those who feel more confident creating their own idea of how a wedding should be, encompassing a far wider range of preferences, traditions, and cultures. When NameSwitch was invited to speak on diversity at a recent industry event, Bridelux Symposium, the overwhelming consensus of wedding professionals was that they, too, are seeing a change in how weddings are becoming more individually unique; created to celebrate the heritage (often blended) and preferences of each couple.

GREAT! romance to Launch on Thursday 5th January 2023

Dreaming of cosying up with some love-ly film entertainment in the New Year? GREAT! romance, a new, free-to-air, TV channel dedicated to bringing feel-good, romance films to TV screens, all day, every day, is launching on Thursday 5th January 2023. If you have a soft spot for romantic movies and are looking to indulge in escapist entertainment this winter, then look no further! Romantics across the UK can fall head-over-heels with the only TV channel that promises back-to-back love stories all day every day - for free! - and the curated selection of movies is guaranteed to melt anyone's heart at the start of 2023.

Top 10 engagement ring styles from 2022

With a seemingly endless stream of celeb flashy engagements this year (hello, Kourtney Kardashian, Megan Fox & J.Lo), it's no surprise that proposal-fever has gripped us all in 2022. From enigmatic emeralds to perfect princess cuts, it seems we've been privy to every cut and colour suited for a ring finger, but what were the most popular engagement ring styles? Independent and Ethical jeweller Nightingale has uncovered the top 10 most popular engagement ring styles in 2022, according to Google search results. But what was the coloured gemstone that nearly took classic diamonds off the top spot? And which cut dominated our Pinterest feeds? Nightingale's General Manager, Claire Beatson has revealed which engagement ring styles reigned supreme in 2022 and why.

Christmas winter wedding music

Getting married at Christmas doesn't mean that you have to plan a Christmas-themed wedding. Here, roaming band The Travelling Hands, suggest songs that would work well for a Christmas winter wedding and the songs to avoid! When it comes to music, the same rule applies. Just because you want to get married at Christmas it doesn't mean that your musical playlist has to be full of Wizzard & Cliff Richard if you don't want it to be there. When our acoustic roaming band The Travelling Hands perform at winter weddings we see a wide variety of decisions when it comes to Christmas songs. Some want to embrace the Christmas classics - adding these into their day. Others like a few placed in here and there, whilst some want to just stick to their favourite songs without any Christmas numbers added in at all.

Dreaming of a White Christmas with Nudea

Sustainable underwear brand, Nudea, (stocked at Frillies Boutique located in Penistone in Sheffield) is this month adding a timeless off-white to its signature Sheer Deco collection. Featuring Nudea's sheer geometric pattern, delicate Italian recycled lace meets supportive silhouettes to create elevated everyday essentials with an added feminine touch. Beautiful bridal or festive underwear to make you look and feel your best!

Outdated wedding laws need to change

In an article earlier this year there was discussion and praise aimed towards the Government's plans to allow outdoor weddings to be made permanent. The article also highlighted the eagerly awaited Law Commission report into marriage laws, which was due to be published in July. Now it has been published and we have had some time for the dust to settle, Kate Van Rol, Barrister at 4PB has looked into these recommendations, "Are wedding laws at present 'confusing, outdated and restrictive' as the Commission suggest, or would the implementation of their suggestions trivialise weddings and commercialise the ceremony?". Kate continues...

Late date availability wedding package!

A Kelham Island Museum wedding is steeped in Sheffield's history. Located in the city's coolest quarter, the authentic industrial spaces are the perfect setting for your special day! The venues exciting wedding package offer is for 80 day guests and 100 evening guests for spring, summer and autumn dates in 2023.The late date availability, £10,000 wedding package is on selected dates only. So, what are you waiting for!?

Christmas activities from The QHotels Collection

The festive season is almost upon us, bringing with it all that sparkles, from decorative baubles to candles, crackers, and colourful lights. But as December approaches, it's easy to let the time run away. So, The QHotels Collection list their top five ways to keep the sparkle alive, bring a little twinkle to your eye and warmth to your heart in the run-up to the holidays. 1.Start a countdown to Christmas - who says advent calendars are just for the kids? Extend the Christmas fun over the whole of December by finding a special way to countdown to the big day. Why not play a different Christmas song each day on your commute? To really get in the festive spirit why not book a festive activity for every weekend in December? It could be anything from making homemade wrapping paper to heading out to see the panto or enjoying a festive-themed afternoon tea with your mates.

Festive dining at GuestHouse

A quaint, traditional treat that we wholeheartedly believe in. Here's GuestHouse's take on the English institution that is afternoon tea with a festive twist or two! You can expect turkey, stuffing and cranberry sandwiches, fruit cake and Wensleydale cheese and of course, a mince pie or two! No.1 York, is ready to get you in the festive spirit! Visit the website for more Christmas party ideas.

Pantone’s Colour of The Year - we love it!

Pantone's Colour of The Year, Viva Magenta, is oh-so gorgeous and perfect for wedding colour palettes whatever time of year. Claiming, 'It's a shade rooted in nature descending from the red family and expressive of a new signal of strength. Viva Magenta is brave and fearless, and a pulsating colour whose exuberance promotes a joyous and optimistic celebration, writing a new narrative,' how very appropriate for weddings!

New Wedding Planner Journal & Keepsake collection

Just in time after the influx of festive proposals, Paper Crane Unique has announced the release of its Wedding Planner Journal & Keepsake collection launching January 2023. A bride- or groom-to-be's perfect planning companion; organise your wedding plans, write about your personal story and keep your photo memories safe altogether in one place that you can keep forever. The planners are 200 pages of wedding planning tools, inspiration boards, notes and journal sheets featuring a beautiful eucalyptus design inside, cloth cover and gold gilded edges. Priced at £32.95, the collection has a choice of four colours: classic ivory, blush pink, luxe gold and dusty blue.