For years, the wedding calendar had a fairly predictable shape. Couples fought for June, July and August dates, venues were booked out eighteen months in advance for high summer, and autumn was treated as the fallback option for anyone who'd left it too late. That's no longer the case, and honestly, I couldn't be happier about it.

London is one of the world's great cities for a wedding but it is also one of the most competitive, most expensive, and most logistically demanding places to plan one. With hundreds of wedding planners operating across the capital, finding the right one can feel overwhelming.

A wedding budget of £200,000 or more is a significant investment and it deserves to be treated as one. Not in a transactional sense, but in the sense that every pound should be working hard toward an experience that is genuinely extraordinary.

At One Oake, we plan a number of weddings each year at this level of budget. What follows is an honest and detailed guide to what a £200k+ wedding involves, where the money goes, and how to ensure the result is truly unforgettable.

Essex is, in the most wonderful way, full of surprises. Mention Essex weddings and many people still picture the clichés but the reality is a county of extraordinary variety: rolling countryside, ancient barns, sweeping coastal views, grand country estates and some of the most beautiful private land in the south east of England.

As a luxury wedding planning company based in Essex, One Oake has an intimate knowledge of what this county has to offer and we believe it is one of the finest wedding destinations in the UK.

Something has shifted in how the most discerning couples think about their wedding. For years, the traditional formula held: a ceremony, a reception, a party, a farewell. One day. One chance.

But increasingly, couples who want their wedding to feel truly meaningful particularly those planning at a higher budget are moving toward a different model entirely. The weekend wedding. The multi-day celebration. A gathering that doesn't just happen; it unfolds.

There is something undeniably magical about a marquee wedding. The soft glow of festoon lights against pale canvas. Guests spilling out onto a lawn as the sun dips below the treeline. A space created entirely from scratch designed for you, shaped around you, existing for one extraordinary day.

Hiring a wedding planner is one of the most meaningful decisions a couple can make yet it's also one of the most misunderstood. Many people assume a planner is a luxury reserved for celebrity weddings or eye-watering budgets. The truth? A great wedding planner saves you money, time, and an enormous amount of stress, whatever the scale of your celebration.

This is one of the most common questions I'm asked, and it's such an important one — because the answer surprises a lot of couples.

"But our venue has a coordinator, so do we really need a planner?" I hear this regularly, and I completely understand the logic. If the venue is providing someone to help, surely that's the same thing? The short answer is: not quite. Let me explain the difference, because it could genuinely change how your wedding day feels.

Every year without fail, I get asked the same question: "What's trending in weddings right now?" And honestly, as a planner who immerses herself in this industry every single day, I love talking about it. There is so much creativity and beauty in what couples are choosing to do with their celebrations right now.

Let's talk about the question nobody quite wants to ask out loud but everyone is thinking: how much does a wedding planner actually cost?

With the right timeline in place, wedding planning doesn't have to feel frantic. Here's my expert guide to exactly what to book, and when, so you can approach your planning with calm and confidence.

One of the very first questions I get asked by newly engaged couples often in our very first conversation is: "How much is this all going to cost?" And honestly, it's the right question to ask early. Understanding the realistic cost of a UK wedding before you start booking anything is one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself from stress, overspending and disappointment down the line.

As a wedding planner I get asked lots of different questions about the wedding planning process, the role of a wedding planner and just general questions about weddings! Therefore I decided to ask on Instagram for any questions that people would like answers to about any of the above topics! Here are the top 10 questions I was asked.

Maddie and Amir brought 8 of their closest friends and family over from Canada to London to have a true London Wedding and what a day they had! I adored working with them from start to finish, they are two of the loveliest humans you could meet and we have such a wonderful time planning their intimate wedding day. They had a true London wedding, open top London bus and rain included!

This is a question that is asked a lot from couples when they have someone who works at the venue as a coordinator who is there to help with their wedding. Confusingly a lot of venues will portray to their couples that they will carry out the same service as an independent wedding planner but too often this isn’t the case. Having previously worked as a venue coordinator I can confidently say these two roles are very different but can work very complimentary of each other.

Your wedding day is all about you, all of your family and friends have gathered to celebrate you both so why not make it an occasion that's extremely personal, to both you and your guests. Here are my 10 favourite ways to personalise your wedding day.

Booking your wedding venue is the most time consuming and budget swallowing part of your wedding planning. So when you are researching your perfect wedding venue you need to know the right questions to ask. Below are 15 questions that you need to ask your wedding venue to make sure you are happy you have found the venue for you before you sign on the dotted line!

Your wedding photo album is how you can remember your day and relive those special memories, so it is vital you choose the best photographer for you. Make sure you do your research and look at photographers you can afford but aim to get the best you can. These 15 questions will help you to get the information you need at your from your potential photographer at your initial consultation.

When deciding that you need to enlist the help of a wedding planner to bring your dream wedding to life, you would usually have a consultation before booking to get to know each other better and talk all things wedding. All planners have their own way of conducting consultations but below is a step by step of what would happen in a consultation with me. From initial enquiry to sending your contract, this is what to expect in your first consultation with One Oake.

Your wedding suppliers are going to be your dream team on the day, the ones who make your Pinterest board come to life, who make your dream a reality. You want the best of the best and you want to make sure that they are there to work for you and always putting you first. Unfortunately there are some suppliers out there who are just out to make money and not to give you the best service. In this blog post I give you some hints and tips in how to choose your wedding dream team of suppliers!