News

I feel bad that I haven't updated for a few days but a lot has been going on.

Tuesday was spent giving advice to people on a forum - one girl in particular had expressed an interest in becoming a professional wedding planner whilst others kept telling her that there isnt any work and that she shouldn't follow her dream. One person in particular really rattled me as she based her knowledge on attending 50 weddings in the last 2 years as a photographer and not one bride (according to her) had used a wedding planner. 50 weddings isnt a good representation of the number of weddings that take place every year where wedding planners have been involved. Thankfully I sent a private message to the girl asking the question and gave her loads of information about the course as it is the same one that I have just completed.

Wednesday - well that dawned wet and cold so I had to put a mac on to go to a meeting at the Radisson (I have a horrible feeling that I have thrown out my umbrella). I met with a company that hires out sound and audio visual equipment and they also run an entertainment agency - it was the entertainment business that I was interested in. As I have experience of organising corporate events too I have now ended up with a reciprocal arrangement with regards to work - this is something that I am very excited about. When I left the meeting the weather had undergone a huge change - no longer was it wet and cold but it was sunny and unbearably hot. Rather than waiting for the bus to carry me one stop, I walked and as I went past the men's shop High & Mighty I spotted a little sign in the window telling me that they now do wedding hire so in I trotted and exchanged a business card for a brochure - hopefully, I will get some referrals. I then walked to Selfridges where I had lunch and a quick whizz around Fenn Wright & Manson - I left £616 lighter having bought 2 silk skirts, 2 silk scarves to match the skirts, 2 jackets - 1 a deep purple to co-ordinate with one skirt (in fact I can wear it with both) and a silver/grey silky jacket to wear with the skirt bought there and then and the skirt and trousers that I already have in my wardrobe (both jackets also look good with jeans) and a deep ferny green top (this was reduced in the sale) and it goes well with the one skirt and dare I say it the deep purple jacket - I would never have thought of putting those colours together.

Thursday - I had to go to Birmingham again to see my solicitor and I remembered to pick up some Waterstones vouchers so I headed there too and came away with 3 books - one is about change called Who Moved my Cheese? I used to have a copy of this book and lent it to someone who never returned it, a huge book about event planning and Deborah Meaden's book about commonsense rules for business. I picked the event planning book to give me more of an insight to organising really large events such as those that take place at the NEC. I resisted the temptation to buy more clothes and settled on a sofa within Starbucks in Selfridges with a caramel macchiato and some toasted fruit bread with butter and jam - I used one of the books of luncheon vouchers that I get as payment for doing surveys for a particular survey site - I dare not mention their name as they will banish me :(

I also submitted my first assignment for my event planning course and already I am looking at the second one - I shall have to wait for them to be marked as my tutor (who was also the tutor on my wedding planning course) was rushed into hospital on Sunday with appendicitis and she has only just been sent home after being operated upon on Monday. I sent her a lovely Jacquie Lawson e-card to cheer her up.

Tomorrow I need to contact Wedding Professional as I havent received a copy of their magazine for ages - its another free trade magazine but I find it invaluable as it allows me to see what other planners are doing and then I can learn from them. I also need to write a couple of paragraphs for the sound equipment hire company to put on their website - here's hoping that I get lots of business :-)