Betsy Does

Crowd 6 at TROVE; The Infinite Combinatorium Part 0.

betsy — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:57:56 +0000

Betsy Does has been helping with the coordination of an Art event that will be taking place next month.

The Perfect Sandwich

betsy — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:00:47 +0000

If you’re thinking about having a tea party for your hen party / special occasion / corporate event or even as part of your wedding day the best sandwich to include on your plates, has got to be the finger sandwich.

Why you might ask? Well, not only do they look elegant but they will also satisfy most people’s requirements for crust vs non crust and you can have quite an array of fillings without using a lot of space.

Not only is the finger sandwich more elegant looking than your normal sandwich but it can be dressed up to fit in with a vintage theme by placing on a cake stand or look smart by placing on a large platter.

There are plenty of companies that are able to make specialist sandwiches for events which Betsy Does can help to source for you, or if you have the time why not DIY.

Real Weddings – Fancy Dress theme

betsy — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 10:00:49 +0000

This was a wedding I had the pleasure of being involved in. Betsy Does helped choose and organise the groom and best man’s outfits for the wedding and helped set up the gingerbread man cake (image below)! Naomi (the bride) was very kind to answer some questions below that I asked her about the special day.

Date of wedding: 15 / 08 / 2009

Location of wedding: Cricklade, Whiltshire

Venue: St Sampson’s Church, Cricklade

Weather: sunny spells

What was your wedding theme: Fancy Dress

What did you enjoy most about your day: Getting married, and being able to share the day with all our friends and family.

What do you think your guests enjoyed most about your day: Dressing up and the dancing in the evening.

What did you eat: a variety of appetisers, a selection of currys and fruit salad.

Brides Dress: Oxfam (Jo-Ann Hall Bridal Gowns)

Brides Shoes: Coast

Brides Tiara and jewellery: Tiara was made from fresh flowers by Claire Lomas. Jewellery was family hand-me-downs. Wedding rings from Hammonds in Southampton.

Grooms Suit: Hired from Costumia, Birmingham

Grooms Shoes Hired from Costumia, Birmingham

Bridesmaids Dresses: From Monsoon, Coast, and Karen Millen

Bridesmaids Shoes: Various

Flowers: Claire Lomas

Entertainment: The Variety Club

Photographer: Simon Winchester Photography

The Alternative Stag

betsy — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:00:40 +0000

Is there anything more exhilarating than waking up in um, a tent?!

Stag parties needn’t be a night out in a city centre, drinking to much and getting a cab home at 2am but can be a bonding weekend for you and your mates.

Why not go camping? It’s the idea place to bond, drink and cook some kind of tripe sandwhich for the stag for dinner.

The brilliance of going camping is that it often involves some kind of canoeing, cycling or boating adventure to get to your desired location where stop off’s at real ale pubs are mandatory!

So if you’re into real ale, chilling and having fun with your mates before the big day, this could be the perfect alternative stag weekend for you.

The Vintage Hen

betsy — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 10:00:03 +0000

Nights out, weekends away and hen parties go hand in hand but what can you do if the bride wants a vintage themed day in?

Games are great to play at hen parties and get everyone involved, interacting and most importantly having fun.

Here is my list of possible games that would work well (please note that all of the below should be considered to be adult versions with dares or drinks tailored to the guests needs!):

Hopscotch

Card games

Board games

Hoopla

Domino’s

Dice

I think when organising a range of games for the party it’s important to get a few games going at once to really get a good atmosphere going along with some swinging tunes, cakes and drinks (served in vintage tea pots and vintage cups!), such as Pims or a refreshing gin and tonic.

Amuse bouche

betsy — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 10:00:16 +0000

So you’ve got an engagement party to plan including some food for your guests but you’re not quite sure what to do.

I personally am a fan of amuse bouche as it looks really pretty, stylish and contemporary.

The beauty of amuse bouche is that you can pick as many different types of finger food as you would like for your guests to try, taste and fill up on which will keep everyone happy.

This type of finger food also allows you and your guests to mingle without the restrictions of sitting down at a table and allows you to move around the room and thank everyone for attending.

It’s also a brilliant compromise if you have different tastes to your partner as you can mix and match anything that takes your fancy from savoury dishes to sweet treats.

Stunning Stationary

betsy — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 10:00:48 +0000

Stunning stationary is something to be admired, worshipped and used.

Maemae Paperie is a wonderful brand that make stunning stationary to match any occasion, including the cloth envelope below.

Using something as tactile as cloth as an envelope can give your invitation a touch of unconventional luxury and set it apart from others.

You can make a DIY version if you’re on a tight budget or if you’re short of time source a stunning stationary supplier.

‘Home, Identity and Citizenship’ Event

betsy — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 10:00:51 +0000

I’m currently working on the coordination of ‘Home, Identity and Citizenship’ Preserving, Using and Making a Regional Screen Heritage.

The event itself is free to the public on Saturday 5th March from 11am at Margaret Street Campus of Birmingham City University.

Maybe see some of you there!

The Write Type

betsy — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 10:00:58 +0000

Sometimes the amount of correspondence that is needed with guests in order to make your event run smoothly, can be overwhelming. Especially if you feel like you just haven’t got the time.

It is of course important that you invite all the people that need to be invited along with all those people you want to attend, but it’s not something that you need to stress about but more something that you need to plan and keep on top of.

Planning is key when it comes to correspondence. Do you want your guests to “save the date” before you send out invites? Do you want to send out a paper invitation or set up a dedicated paper free website where guests have their own login details?

Figuring out how to contact your potential guests is important, but first the most crucial thing you need to do is sit down and write is a list of all of the people you really want to attend. Once you’ve done that you can keep in control of your planning and more importantly your event budget.

If you’re feeling a little overwhelmed by it all or just need a little bit of help, Betsy Does can help you with your correspondence needs. Just in get contact or email betsydoes@gmail.com

No paper? No problem…

betsy — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 10:00:13 +0000

So you have run out of paper and sellotape to wrap your birthday present, wedding present, client gift or wedding day favour in? Why not make your gift unique and wrap it up in a scrap of vintage material or even a beautiful vintage scarf?

The art of Japanese Furoshiki does just that!

By wrapping material around the gift instead of wrapping it in paper you can created something as unique as the person that you are giving your gift to. Certainly if I was given a Japanese Furoshiki wrapped present I would be so excited!

Visually this type of wrapping is just so elegant and beautiful but also and most importantly environmentally friendly as the material can be reused, recycled and maybe if it’s a pretty vintage scarf, even worn! This type of wrapping lends itself to pretty much anything. You can wrap bottles, books, boxes, plants and probably even a gift hamper in this way.

There are many tutorials online and on YouTube, where you can find out exactly how create beautiful Japanese Furoshiki wraps. The art of Furoshiki is so popular in Japan that the government have even produced a pdf document on how to create all kinds of wraps.

http://www.minitoko.com/minitokoville/?p=138

I personally am a fan of embellishing the wraps to make them even cuter like the image above!