With the wedding organisation pretty much taken care of, our bride-to-be Claire Adams is getting ready for her honeymoon. And that means finding the perfect bikini...
Lee and I quickly figured out our "roles and responsibilities" after his proposal, especially when we decided we wanted to get married in the same year.
I was to be the "do everything wedding planner" and he was to take care of the honeymoon.
So far that has been what we've done. I've been in overdrive ordering boxes of random eBay finds and liaising with caterers and hotels while he's been casually surfing the net booking our three week break with a cup of tea in hand.
Occasionally he'll come up for air and ask me "what date are we leaving on again?" but aside from that he seems to have it all in hand.
However, recently I've started to feel like I need to dedicate a bit more of my time to the honeymoon. Although I can't take my eye off the wedding "ball", I also need to remember after that one day is over we'll be jetting off on an amazing holiday I need to feel prepared for!
Regardless of where we go, one thing I'm certain of is I will need a bikini - or at least I better do! Going in December is pretty out of season so I've found it quite hard to find any decent ones in the shop (unless you specifically want a bright neon yellow set from the Topshop sale rack).
Then a friend told me about a new bikini she recently bought from Bikini Fling as she too is off for some winter sun and couldn't find anything on the High St. She said they can tailor the size, shape and colours to your body and style and because a lot of girls (including her and me) are different sizes on the top to the bottom found them perfect.
I popped along to one of their stores and when I was fitted they also asked me what I would be using it for (a sunbathing holiday or more activity led – SUN OBVS) and if the sea was likely to be calm or rough (safer to opt for rough I thought). All so the bikini picked would be completely right for my special break away. Plus I could mix and match the colours and style which I actually ended up doing (mainly because I could).
Now being fully immersed in the holiday mood I decided (on a bit of a whim) to buy a new camera. Admittedly it did feel slightly extravagant - especially considering we're planning a wedding and I could have probably got it cheaper at the airport! But I reasoned these will be the most important holiday photos we'll ever take and as I don't already own one, it was well deserved.
Typically I use my phone to take the odd snap of what I'm eating but I definitely don't want my mobile with me much on our break away! I tried to find one that was a cross between my old (but reliable) camera and the big, professional, scary looking objects that creative, arty looking people seem to use. It also needed to be easy to use as I am rubbish with technology and a pretty colour would be a bonus. This one ticked all the boxes (and luckily my camera expert friends tell me it's good too).
My final honeymoon dilemma is deciding when to pack. Part of me is tempted to do it now, before the four week countdown begins and I start to get reeeallly stressed. I can predict if I leave it until closer to the day I'll be frantically throwing my clothes and shoes into my case before we need to leave for the flight.
But after a few deep breaths I decide that would be ridiculous; Lee hasn't even started to buy all of my holiday clothes yet – well that is a key part of his "Honeymoon Preparation" role isn't it...?
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Read all the latest about Claire's wedding planning and being a bride-to-be here.