What have we gained from all this….. well we have met some lovely people along the way, and made some good friends & forged professional relationships .

Rachel ( Radisson) & Ian Harvey

Mark from "The Bridge" radio

Our friend - Llewella Bailey

 From the outset people have been willing to help and give their support, which goes to show the great admiration  the British people have for our troops . It would have been lovely to have helped the many people who wrote in and entered our competition, but unfortunately we couldn’t, but we would like to state that we at Chocorococo  give ALL the British Armed Services a discount on any of our services.

On a more personal note, we have received some lovely flowers , cards & messages , here are a few:

” Thank you for giving Sarah & Aaron the wedding of their dreams” Kevin & Margaurite Browne.

” Thank you so much for giving Sarah & Aaron a wedding most people can only dream about. The whole day was wonderful, we were treated like royalty & felt very priviledged – a day none of us will ever forget. A very big thank you to all involved.”  Judith & Tom Buckley.

Nick Owen & Myself

” Fantastic Lesley, so glad it all went well, good luck if you get involved again”  Nick Owen, BBC Midlands Today.

” I wish to congratulate you both on the success of the event, i know how much work was ionvolved in planning the event & you are to be commended on all your planning & efforts in making the day so special for the couple”.  Danielle Wilkins –  Civic Catering , Council House Birmingham.

” What a star you are! your efforts for the wedding were truly great , you should feel a great sense of achieveiment. A lot of hard work & energy well done for a great charity effort”  Dr. H. Hill & Mrs D. Hill

So, that brings everything to a close… it has been a wonderful 14 months, and who knows we may possibly do it all again, (on a some what smaller scale) so just keep watching this space. (c) chocorococo

CHOCOROCOCO & SUPPORT OUR SOLDIERS WEDDING OF THE YEAR.

Welcome to the wedding of Sarah & Aaron that took place at the Birmingham Council House Banqueting Suite, August 8th 2010.

clare working her magic

When we arrived at the venue at 10.30am, Clare was busy working her magic, and soon put us to work, My husband Danny was made an honorary flower arranger for the morning , yes folks this is true, he carefully carried the beautiful tall flower arrangements and placed them on the tables, with us all shouting , “Don’t Drop them” in his ears. Our son-in-law Nick and myself were given the job of scattering Lilac, purple & Ivory petals on the tables, and doing odd jobs along the way. Very soon the room was transformed into a stunning vision, with the cutlery polished, glasses neatly arranged, place cards set , chair covers on and bows neatly tied, petals scattered & the beautiful floral arrangements taking centre stage….there was only one word to say… WOW!.

Banqueting suite looking fabulous. (c) abby stonehall

The Banqueting Suite looking stunning. (c) Abby Stonehall

the stunning floral arrangement on top table (c) Abby stonehall

The colour theme was just lovely, deep purple, lilac, pale pink & ivory.. and i was right all along in my thinking, the grand room wanted big, beautiful arrangements, to give the room more of an impact, and not small centre pieces.

the beautiful White Chocolate Wedding Cake (c) abby stonehall

Cassie arrived with her stunning 3 tier wedding cake, covered in white chocolate curls, with a drape on one side to simulate the brides train &  Lilac, Pink & Ivory chocolate roses placed around & on top of the cake. I think you will agree how lovely it looked, and it tasted nice too!!!

As the clock ticked away ever closer to midday, more and more of our suppliers arrived, armed and ready for action.Our ToastmasterSteve McTeigue , commented on how beautiful our room looked, and it was one of the nicest rooms he had seen in a long time, our  dear friend & Registrar Geoff Edwards arrived ready to afficiate and our Pianist Margaret Croucher  set up her piano, and limbered up those fingers.

Geoff & Margaret chatting before the ceremony

Aaron & Niall talking to the Toastmaster, Steve.(c) chocorococo

Margaret at her piano. (c) Abby stonehall

Aaron & Niall his best man & brother  arrived shortly after midday, with Dan the grooms man . Dan & Niall were wearing pale grey morning suits, with lilac waistcoats complimented with a deep purple cravat, supplied by Slater’s of Birmingham. The bridesmaids followed shortly  looking gorgeous in their deep purple skirts & bodice with matching wraps, supplied by Debbie of Wedding World, hair by Debbie & Becky of Francesco  group, & make up provided by my lovely daughter, Louise .

Dan & Niall, looking very smart in their suits supplied by slaters of Birmingham.(c) chocorococo

Our three lovely bridesmaids, (c) chocorococo

As Aaron went for his interview with the registrar, which i understand is a legal requirement before a civil ceremony, i joined our photographers down stairs to welcome the brides mother Judith & the grooms mum Margarite, who were a little stressed at this point, and while the vintage wedding car went to collect our bride & her father Tom, our good friend, (Doc) the piper  arrived, looking very smart. ( other wedding vehicle supplied by David Humphries.)

The Piper Malcolm (doc) & yours truly

I still do not know what a Scotsman wearsunder his kilt! …I’m liking the man-bag..oops! sorry…. sporran .

As we all made our way back upstairs, our piper went to tune up…. Incidentally how does a piper tune up?  Our Toastmaster ushered the guests into the drawing room to take their seats, where Margaret entertained us with her piano playing & the giant oak doors were closed , ready to await the arrival of our bride. Very shortly we heard the piper playing, this alerted us all to the arrival of the bride, as we all stood up , the doors were opened to reveal our stunning bride.

Doc our piper tuning up, (always said he was a bag of wind)

Sarah & her father Tom by the wedding car (C) Abby stonehall

Because there is so much to show you all, we are going to have to split the blog  into sections , plus i would be at my computer for day’s….   second part of our wedding blog….  ” THE CEREMONY”   coming soon . (c) chocorococo 2010

we have ordered a brand new light surround today, can not wait to see it in operation, by all acounts it changes 7 different colours, so we should be able to match a colour to our wedding couples colour theme.

Everything going to plan so far for our forces wedding of the year, chasing up final details from our suppliers, then it will be a case of check and re check everything…….. what is the betting that the nearer it gets to D – Day … or should i say W- day, i will be a nervous wreck!!

Don’t forget it is U.K forces day on Saturday June 26th 2010, show your support for our brave men and women of the Armed Forces. (c)chocorococo

A big thank you to Mr Steve McTigue ,who has kindly offered to take the place of Mr Richard Jackson as our master of ceremonies at our  competition winners wedding, Richard will  be  undergoing an operation the week of the wedding., and will be unable to perform his duties. We wish Richard well, and thank him for his support.

After a long chat with Steve this morning, i am more than happy we are in very capable hands,  we look forward to working with you . (c) chocorococo

We met with Aaron & Sarah on a beautiful sunny April afternoon for their first visit to their wedding venue, The Birmingham Council House Banqueting Suite.

Aaron & Sarah outside the Birmingham Council House

I got the impression they were very keen to look inside, as Sarah had mentioned earlier that she had only viewed pictures of the venue on the Internet , this i have to say does not do it justice.

 We introduced our winners to Danielle, who was going to show them around this lovely venue, and answer any questions they were sure to have.

Once through the main doors, you immediately stand in front of a magnificent marble staircase, as you walk up the first flight of stairs, your eyes are drawn up to the beautiful, domed , almost cathedral like ceiling .

The stairs then divide into two , where you start to appreciate even more the splendour of the building, with its huge windows & even bigger carved oak doors, I kept glancing over to our couple to try and gauge their reaction to the venue, did they like it?

I held my breath as i asked Aaron what he thought of the venue, i was releived when he said he thought it was lovely, the kind of place they would have chosen themselves , (Phew!) he went on to comment on the beautiful features etc, this was all before we even got in the main room…. The Banqueting suite.

inside the council house

 There was a hive of activity going on, the day we went to view the venue, but at least they could get an idea of what the rooms would look like.

Danielle explained to them all about the actual wedding ceremony &  how the room will be laid out .

Danielle, Aaron & Sarah, in the glass corridor.

We were keen for them to see the glass corridor in case they wanted to use this space for photographs. Aaron & Sarah loved the contrast between this and the main room, and enquired if they could use this as a drinks area on arrival, we all thought this was a fantastic idea.

They viewed several more rooms before making their way back to the Banqueting room , where Danielle gave them a list of menus to view for their wedding breakfast &  Canapes, etc.

talking through the menus .

there had been such a lot to take in , but Aaron & Sarah were delighted with it all, and no doubt talked about it on the way back home, but not before they paid a visit to the jewellers to choose their wedding rings. (c) chocorococo.

Here we are about to embark on a fabulous & exciting journey with our competition winners Aaron & Sarah. We will be working closely with our couple, and where ever possible i will be there with my  trusted little camera in tow taking pictures for our photo diary.

We had a busy & very productive day yesterday with visits to the bridal shop, bridesmaids outfits picked & even the male members of the wedding party being measured & their outfits chosen…. but i would like to start with our first visit of the day the Bridal shop

Above from L to R : Mrs Buckley, brides mum, Laura brides sister & Mrs Browne, Grooms mum.

When i arrived at Gatehouse Brides of Worcester, Sarah had already arrived, very eager to get started with her mother , sister & future mother-in-law in attendance, all keen to give their verdict on the 8 dresses Sarah had chosen to try on, only to be informed by Jackie who works at Gatehouse Brides that she had another appointment at 2pm ! 

Above: Mrs Buckley viewing dresses chosen by Sarah.

Sarah, had chosen some lovely gowns to try on, would the dress she had in mind for so long be the dress she eventually went for?……. i couldn’t possibly tell, my lips are sealed. After trying on all the gowns put to one side, there were 2 clear favourites.. Jackie asked Sarah to try on a” wild card “, a dress that she personally liked, even if it was just to eliminate it , reluctantly she tried it on, emerged from the dressing room, looked in the mirror, and without any hesitation said ” no, don’t like it”… then went back to the changing room to try on the two that were shortlisted….. Sorry Jackie, you tried!

A bride will always have an idea in mind of the kind of dress she would like to wear on the most important day of her life, whether or not she finds that dress is a different matter, but you have to try on several styles & shades to find the one that feels right, and a bride will instinctively know when she has THAT dress on…….. it will feel right, look sensational, and make her feel a million dollars……. Sarah finally came to THAT dress… she looked sensational, she said it felt wonderful, and it certainly looked a million dollars, of that we all agreed. So that was it job done, all in an hour and a half, pretty good going i thought.

 Above: Jackie of Gatehouse Brides & Sarah signing the order for her dress.

That’s it then Sarah, your dream dress is chosen, it was i am told the kind of dress she had in mind, regarding to the style, figure hugging in all the right places, very Rita Hayworth looking. Both Mum’s were delighted with the chosen dress, her sister on the other hand would have liked one in a hint of pink…. your time will come Laura !

With an hour and a half before our next appointment at 1pm at Wedding World, to view bridesmaids outfits, it was back to Sarah’s for a welcome  coffee break & meet up with her bridesmaids, who were excited to start trying on their outfits.

We finally arrived at Weddingworld in Barnt Green, after a magical mystery tour….. my trusty little sat nav decided to send us down every little back road known to man, at one point i thought we were lost , and here they all were… following me …….in convoy, at one point i wished i had one of those electronic signs that flashes messages across your rear screen, ” don’t follow me I’m lost”… but then to my sheer relief a sign post that said Barnt Green Village…. Hurrah!  …. at last we had finally arrived.

Pictures and diary of the Bridesmaids outfits will follow soon.

We are pleased to announce the new winners of the Chocorococo & support our soldiers wedding competition.

The lucky winners are Lt Aaron Browne & his fiancee Sarah Buckley. Aaron has been mentioned in despatches for his bravery during his first tour of Afghanistan with 2 Mercian, survived a mine explosion which destroyed his landrover,  and has recently returned from his 2nd tour of duty. Their  wedding will take place in August.

We look forward to meeting our couple very soon.

the council house at night

We regret to announce that  the winners of the Chocorococo & Support our Soldiers wedding competition , Alex Lewis  & Dale Leach, from Penarth in South Wales, have decided for personal reasons they no longer wish to get married. We are saddened by this news, but wish them both well.

We are now working flat out to turn this competition around, we feel to much hard work & good will has gone into organising  this fantastic prize, and are in the process of talking with all our suppliers to get the best possible outcome . As soon as a decision has been made we will announce it here first.

fountain presentation

 We have put together a presentation party for our chosen winning couple of our competition, to meet all our suppliers, who have graciously volunteered their services & time . This is a marvellous opportunity for our couple to thank everyone personally.

The press have been notified, and my local radio station hope to do a live broadcast with our winning couple , along with a bridal magazine who are wishing to feature their eventual wedding , all very exciting for them. Our winning couple will not only have the happiest day of their life, but will have one amazing wedding, with lots of memories to cherish.

Above is a picture of our fountain, beautifully presented by the Rococo cheeky girls , with our hand dipped strawberries. Our winning couple will get the special Chocorococo treatment.

the cheeky rococo girls

Well, things are quite hectic here at the competition HQ, it is now only 4 weeks until the end of the wedding competition we are running for Support our Soldiers, and entries have been coming in thick and fast over the last few day’s.

Some of the entries have been amazing, but we are still receiving some that are not quite as informative as we would like, so please if you are entering please put as much information about you as a couple as you can, it does help us a great deal.

Above is a picture of myself (on the right) and my canny assistant Lynne, otherwise known at the Rococo Cheeky Girls ! The picture was taken at a wedding we attended recently at the Mill Hotel, Alveley, where we provided hand dipped strawberries for the first time, and chocolate lollipop favors for the children, both very well received, in fact everyone loved them….. So we will be having them as a permanent feature from now on.

We will be offering Rococo Berry Arangement,  chocolate favors for the children , and wedding favors for the older guests, details will follow soon.