With a wonderful season drawing to a close, it was only right we sat down with Le Papillon for a cup of tea and slice of delicious cake.

We caught up with Neil for an insight into his baking world and to discuss all those delicious flavours!

What first made you fall in love with baking?

Baking has always been a big part of my life, I knew from school age that I wanted to be a pastry chef, and studied patisserie at college straight after school.

How would you describe your style of cakes? 

We have a pretty broad range of styles, usually more natural looking with modern twists.  Our main focus though is flavour, being from a chef background, our foundation has always been great tasting cakes!  Too many cakes look nice but are let down with taste and texture.  This is where we are different.

What made you decide to work in the wedding industry?

This happened organically for me. Weddings were always a side part of the business but eventually over took everything else!  Now we are almost exclusively weddings.

Can you explain a little about what couples can expect when they book with you? 

I like to think our process is really relaxed and stress free.  I’m not one for over complicating a process.  We generally will help find you a style you like and then work from there.  You will get to taste our full range as part of the process too.

What is your favourite part or parts of a wedding day? 

Definitely the reception!  The Ceremony is obviously really important, but I love the buzz of the drinks reception, canapés, champagne and then the party!

What top tips and advice do you give to couples ahead of their wedding day? 

Try to relax!  People overthink way too much.  Quite honestly if your guests are well fed and watered they will have a great time.  Don’t sweat the details.

What do you love most about Millbridge Court? 

Well recently the pizza oven!  I’m a bit of a pizza enthusiast myself and have a wood fired oven at home.  I just think this is such a nice addition to the venue.

What cake trends are you seeing for 2023?

Taller, slimmer cakes for sure, lots of natural details and simplicity.

And lastly…what is your favourite flavour of cake?

My favourite cake is probably carrot cake.  I love the spice!  I do also love our chocolate hazelnut cake which reminds me a lot of Nutella.

Image: Hannah Duffy Photography

 

Here at Millbridge Court, we currently have a few Wedding Dates available in late Summer & Autumn of this year for those couples who would love to get married in 2019.

With the build-up to a Wedding typically being a year or more in advance of the Big Day, organising a Wedding in a matter of months can seem intimidating to some, so we’ve been chatting to luxury Wedding Planner Louise Perry Weddings, co-founder of Planning Redefined, about her Top Tips for couples who wish to plan a ‘last minute’ Wedding. We’re also sharing some information on the offers we currently have for our remaining dates here at Millbridge Court, so without further a do, these are the fabulous Louise Perry’s Top 10 Tips:

 

1. Write a guest list and collate contact details for them. Keep these on a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet is king when it comes to wedding planning.

2. Create a budget, always. Put on the spreadsheet when all your payments are due, that way you can keep on top of everything.

3. Make sure you let the important people, like bridesmaids and family know immediately.

4. The big advantage when you have a short lead time, is that you have to make decisions quicker and this can make the planning less stressful.

5. If the lead time is short, use something like paperless post for your invites as it will be quicker and guests can RSVP back to you straight away online.

6. If you are having a civil ceremony, make sure you contact your local registrar as soon as the venue is booked to make sure they are free.

7. Look for sample sales for your dress. All of the big designers and boutiques have them, you can save a fortune this way

8. Ask friends and family for help.

9. Hire a wedding planner. It will be worth its weight in gold, as they will know where to go to help you find your suppliers and pull your wedding day schedule together.

10.You will often get great deals from venues when you book only a short time ahead, as venues want to fill any remaining dates.

 

For those couples wishing to enquire with us regarding remaining Wedding Dates for 2019, please do not hesitate to get in touch on team@millbridgecourt.co.uk or call us on 01252 792572 to receive our last minute Wedding Package rates which include The Hideaway (our Bridal Suite) as complimentary, as well as Kalm Kitchen’s brand new Food Stall, Cookie Corner, as a complimentary & fabulous addition to your day. Xx

 

For information regarding ‘Planning Redefined 2019’, a 2 day workshop hosted at Millbridge Court for new & aspiring Wedding Planners, click the link https://planningredefined.co.uk/our-workshops/redefined-2019/

Throughout April, there was something rather exciting going on at the end of the Millbridge Court grounds. After months of planning, landscape gardeners got to work planting Laurel hedging, ferns & installing an incredible pair of vintage gates in front of our Bridal Suite, the Hideaway… & now that all of their hard work is complete, we’re excited to introduce to you all, The Hideaway Secret Garden!

A botanical sanctuary just beyond our flower meadow that creates that extra bit of magic & privacy for our couples on their Wedding Day & the morning after the celebrations. A tranquil & peaceful space to be able to enjoy all to themselves.

We hope that all of our MBC Couples love it just as much as we do! Here are a few sneak peeks to give you a taster of whats beyond the gates. Xx

And we love that we have already received pictures of photographers using the Secret Garden as a backdrop for gorgeous couples shots… here are L&S captured by The Springles last week.

And J&T captured beautifully by Joanna Nicole Photography earlier in May!

We can’t wait to see many more over the course of the Summer!

In August of last year, we hosted the utterly stunning Wedding Day of Mr & Mrs Levey & we’re very excited to be sharing a selection of images from E+L’s special day below.

The vision that they had for their Wedding Day was so romantic; a vision that was optimised in their Ceremony flowers which were created by Seventh Heaven Events. Two beautiful floral urn arrangements, abundant with blowsy white, peach & blush flowers framed the Ceremony Barn, they also had delicate floral pew ends & rose petals lining the aisle for E’s entrance. The sensational arrangements didn’t end there, as Seventh Heaven also made abounding centrepieces for each table, the soft colour palette of which went perfectly against the white table linen & metallic vases & candle holders.

The Wedding Cake, which was such a gorgeous focal point in the Dining Barn, was created by Rachelles Cakes. A three tiered, marble effect cake with gold leaf & stunning handmade flowers. Such a delicate, show-stopping design & oh so elegant.

The Bride & Groom thought of every little detail when planning their day & their stationery really took centre stage. Particularly the incredible acrylic engraved ‘Welcome to our Beginning’ sign hung by our bi-fold doors, which was later replaced with their exquisite seating plan, all created by the talented duo that are Two Little Birds.

In charge of capturing all of the beautiful details & the love & emotion of the day was Leanne Jade, who did so perfectly from those special getting ready moments, all the way through until the the first dance. Thank you to Leanne for allowing us to share Mr & Mrs Levey’s day & the biggest thank you of all goes to E+L for allowing us to be a part of what was such a special day. Wishing you so much happiness in your married lives together!

Xx

** Love the look of an August Wedding Day at Millbridge Court? Well we have a newly available August Wedding date here at Millbridge Court this Summer, Friday 10th August 2018, so if you’re yet to find your dream Venue & would like to find out more information, please do get in touch with us on team@millbridgecourt.co.uk. **

 

Suppliers:

Leanne Jade Photography

Seventh Heaven Events

Rachelles Cakes

Two Little Birds (Stationery): Website coming soon. Can be found on Instagram under @2littlebirds_

Berkshire Events (Light Up Letters)

 

As we move in to this chilly time of year, we thought we would take a look back at J+D’s wonderful August Wedding Day; a Wedding Day which involved a sunny Arbor Ceremony with most romantic blooms, a gorgeous Patisserie Bar, a show stopping balloon installation & so many happy, smiling faces.

J+D had a really beautiful vision for their day with an elegant colour palette of whites, greys, soft greens & peaches. Creating the floral arrangements that would help to bring their vision to life was the super talented Bloomin Gayles who adorned the Arbor with a sensational cascading eucalyptus & foliage installation, along with two pillar arrangements bursting with delphiniums, roses & white hydrangeas. The beautiful floralising continued within the Dining Barn with Gayle creating gorgeous alternating centrepieces which were complimented perfectly by the soft grey table linens & white napkins chosen by the couple. And adding even more wow factor to the Wedding Breakfast setup was Bubblegum Balloons who created a phenomenal hanging installation along the beams using peach & metallic pink giant balloons.

The Bride & Groom chose to make the most of the interactive menu options that the fabulous Kalm Kitchen offer to Millbridge Court couples & had carve at the table Lamb as their Main Course & a rather gorgeous looking Patisserie Bar, made all the more beautiful by Gayle’s flowers, for dessert. The perfect menu choices to allow guests to mingle & interact throughout the Wedding Breakfast.

Capturing every styling detail, personal touch, spectacular floral arrangement, gorgeous couples shots & all of the happy moments in-between was the wonderful Philippa Sian; a photographer that we have had the pleasure of working with on multiple occasions over the course of the past year & who always brings the most wonderful energy to any Wedding Day.

Thank you to Philippa for letting us to share a selection of her beautiful images & thank you also to J+D for allowing us to play a part in what was such a beautiful celebration! We wish you both so much love & happiness in your married lives together.

Xx