A personal post – blog shake up and plans for world domination in 2019!

Published by Claire Gould on September 4, 2018September 4, 2018

Hey everyone! It’s been so long since I wrote anything really personal on the blog – I can’t even remember! So I thought today would be a nice opportunity to stop and take stock, and share my thoughts and plans for the coming year with you. The world domination thing is a joke… as always, I just want English Wedding to continue with all the beautiful weddings and styling inspiration we share with you every day, and to keep growing and getting bigger and better with every couple whose day we feature.

But as many of you will know, I’m also a wedding calligrapher: I have my little business with wedding stationery, prints and poems and calligraphy workshops, which I love equally! I wonder if I spend more time writing things on my keyboard or with my old school dip pen and ink pots?! I’ve spent the summer months wondering if I can somehow bring the two sides of my work life closer together… and next year I really want to make this happen a little more.

I quietly launched the English Wedding Shop earlier this year, selling wedding stationery and a few little accessories… but I didn’t have time to really launch it with a big fanfare, and I feel a little sad that I didn’t pour my heart and soul into it. Next time around, I will… and I’m spending the next few months working on a core collection of wedding stationery which will really fit the style of English Wedding. I’ll also be selling more handwritten and printed calligraphy wedding readings as well as… ah, well I think I’ll keep the last little details a secret for now – but there’ll be bridesmaid goodies, wedding gifts and anniversary presents and so much more.

The English Wedding Bible is changing, and rather than publishing in September I want to put together a yearly digital publication full of advice, checklists and beautiful inspiration, along with a FULL supplier directory for 2019. I’ve loved working on our digital mags, but the ‘Bible’ name implies something essential and even more special – so I’m bringing it closer to my heart and rethinking the whole thing to make it better – a publication to really treasure and shout from the rooftops about!

I’d also love to focus more on the beautiful wedding venues we have all around the country, showcasing our favourites (with the help of my lovely blog sponsors) and – just perhaps – planning a little tour to discover new and exciting wedding venues. If I can take my calligraphy pens along, or hold little workshops along the way, then I will be a very happy wedding blogger indeed!

I owe a few folks a thank you too – lovely Dom and Liam at York Place Studios for their interview online at Nine Dots, which is hugely inspiring! Jenny Jones – my lovely photographer friend from Kendal, who’s been kind enough to cast her expert eye over my little business and help me get planning new things for 2019, and gorgeous Tasha from the Hampshire Wedding Club, whose suggestions for me to embark on a massive road trip might just turn into something really exciting.

For now though, I’m spending the day covered in calligraphy inks, writing a couple of batches of wedding place cards and a family tree, while I plan for Friday’s intimate calligraphy workshop in Manchester. Oh, and if my vampire red hair dye arrives… ;-p

My garden is full of builders, playing Wet Wet Wet on their radio (might need to drown that out later!), and the sun is shining on the Cumbrian coast… it’s a happy day and I hope wherever you are, you have a wonderful day too!

All pics by Jenny Jones Photography, who I love because she said my calligraphy studio looks like something out of the Guardian, and she takes amazing pics of the things I make!