When you are hunting for your wedding venue, the bridal suite often isn’t at the top of your list to go and investigate. Despite this, your bridal suite will play a vital role in your wedding. Some brides choose to get changed into their wedding dress and make up in the comfort of their own home, others choose to use the bridal suite at their chosen venue.
If you are getting married at a venue quite a distance from home, having a bridal suite makes the transition into your wedding ceremony a lot easier to manage. Assuming you are having the ceremony and the reception at the same venue, a bridal suite enables you to get changed and ready at the venue, cutting down on the amount of time you spend outdoors in your dress (mud splatter would be a disaster). Asking your venue to open your bridal suite for you well ahead of your ceremony, gives you plenty of time to get ready for your wedding with minimal stress.
Getting all the bridesmaids ready, to say nothing of the bride can be a laborious task. Every bride wants to look perfect on their wedding day, often hiring make-up artists and hair stylists to make sure the whole bridal party comes out looking fabulous.
Getting ready for the big day
Having a specific room set up at the venue for all the brides and bridesmaids outfits and flowers to be set up before the ceremony makes co-ordinating the event a lot easier. Having the wedding party arrive at the venue well ahead of time makes for a more leisurely start to the day, far preferable to finding out last second that either the bride or groom has ended up stuck in traffic on their way to the wedding venue.
With a crowd of bridesmaids and the bride herself being put through the wringer by the make-up artist and hair stylist, having a spacious room to help organise all your last minute wedding preparations makes everything calmer, making sure each person is made up to perfection before they head of for the aisle.
Following the wedding rehearsal everyone should know what they have to do for the wedding to go smoothly. That said having a last minute checklist before you have to go will take a load of your mind.
A dressing room
Some brides are now choosing to wear two separate dresses for their wedding day. An elaborate affair for the actual wedding ceremony where all that is required is for the bride to walk in a straight line down the aisle and stand while reciting the vows (even this can seem an age in a huge skirt, and killer heels). Another, less restrictive gown will be chosen for the reception. Usually something you can actually dance in!
Having a separate room for quick change overs is a boon for busy wedding change overs. Whether your bridesmaids need to run out to the bridal suite to retouch their lipstick, or change out of their heels after the photos and slip on some flats for dancing; having a separate room for any little changes is a godsend on the day.
Having floor length mirrors for any last outfit checks is also a must!
Space
Your bridal suite should have space for all of your bridesmaids, various relatives, the mother of the bride, a photographer and their equipment, your make-up artist and hair stylist. As well as any other well-wishers that want to sit and watch the bride get ready. It is a chaotic mixture in a large furnished bridal suite – trying to get everything done with little to no wiggle room is a recipe for a nightmare.
Photography
Your wedding photographer as well as your make-up artist will thank you for selecting a room with lots of natural light and posing opportunities. When standing in natural light it is much easier for the makeup artist to see how your make-up look will appear once you go outside. It also lends a lovely ambiance to any photographs taken with your bridesmaids.
Here at One Warwick Park Hotel we have some beautiful photography moments in our venue. With a wealth of wonderful interior locations for you to choose from as well as a quick walk to the historic pantiles for some gorgeous scenic shots.
Privacy
Having a separate room for the bridal party is a must. Having a few cheeky pre wedding drinks of champagne with the mother of the bride or organising a pre wedding bridesmaids only party all take place in the bridal suite. Your wedding is an event many couples will have spent months planning and will remember for the rest of their lives. Emotions and stress levels will be high throughout the day. Having a quiet area set aside for when it all becomes too much can give you space to breathe.
Acting as the command centre
The bridal suite becomes the command centre for the bridal party’s wedding preparations. The dresses, the shoes and flowers should all be arranged in the bridal suite ahead of time, all that is left to do is for the bride and her entourage to arrive.
Having a look at the bridal suite ahead of the ceremony to ensure you have everything you need in the room is a great way to calm yourself down, from a mini-fridge well stocked with prosecco, to a stash of mars bars for peckish bridesmaids.
Here at One Warwick Park Hotel, our Kent Wedding Venue has a beautiful bridal suite for our guests to relax in before the ceremony. If you are currently searching for a hotel wedding venue in Kent, we would love for you to get in touch with us. Whatever your dream wedding looks like, we would be honoured to help you make it become a reality.
