Richard and I are always trying to improve our Honey Bug service to ensure our couples receive the best possible customer service, value for money and the best wedding day ever (well at least the bit with the cars).

Next year Richard and I are getting married, I will no longer be Sarah Turner, I will be Sarah Honey. Like most brides I spend my time browsing the bridal magazines and pinterest. I've spent hours upon hours of looking at amazing photos and photos shoots thinking, 'Id love to do that', or 'wouldn't it be great if we could have one of those'. I look at the photos of the couples with their thank you plaques or Mr and Mrs bits and pieces, but then actually, I start to think 'well where am i going to keep them?' Then I think, its too much hassle, so I wont bother.

After considering these little details and my own wedding, it made me think about improving our wedding car service. It then struck me that we should include and carry these small additional items in our cars. At most weddings the bride and groom often go off for photos alone (just them, the photographer and our car). If it was my wedding day I would love to have the option of adding a bit of fun to my photos with the use of props in the car. So that's what we have done! All our 2015 bookings now come with several small photo props and signs you can use with your photographer. Of course, you don't have to if you don't want to, but its nice to have the option.

Over the last few weeks, I have begun collecting bits and pieces to include with the campers and beetles. The latest has been a just marred parasol. During our last wedding fayre at Tregenna Castle in St. Ives, the organisers and photographer loved it so much, they used it during one of their shoots! Yay!

The wedding industry is a very small place and we love meeting and working with new suppliers. 

Today we had the pleasure of working with Darren from Cornwall VW Wedding Hire. The bride and groom (Jocelyn and Gary) hired Bella as the main bridal car and Juliet the camper  (driven by Damian)  for the bridesmaids. Prior to the wedding we liaised with Darren to coordinate timings, ribbon colour and even try and match the drivers' suits!

On the day of the wedding Rich met Damian in the morning to  ribbon up their vehicles before setting off for the wedding.  As Bella is white and a blank canvas, she will match any vehicle, even vehicles hired from other companies. 
During the course of the day, Bella and Juliet received many admiring glances from passers by, and the white paint on Juliet's roof went perfectly with Bella's own body work! :)
We look forward to working with with Darren, Damian and Juliet again in the future.

A massive congratulations to David and Sarah who got married in St Agnes on the 16th August.  Its been a long old summer for Nell. As you know, Nell is one of the self drive campers that belongs to our sister company Fistral Bays and as a very popular old gal (she rarely gets any time off to do weddings in the summer). However, today was different!

During the morning I set to work preparing Nell for the wedding. This involved hoovering, cleaning the windows and upholstery and decorating her in ribbons and bunting. I always like to explore new decoration ideas and with the wedding being a country feel marquee wedding I thought the boho  flower look on the front bumper may be a nice idea.

Once the fizz and glasses along with the wedding playlist were loaded into the camper, Richard set off to St. Agnes to collect the bridesmaids followed by Sarah the bride and her dad and delivered them all safely to the church in St. Agnes. Being peak season and a honey pot for tourism, you can imagine how busy St. Agnes was. As Nell slowly drove through the narrow village, passers by all stopped and waited to catch a glimpse of the bride as she arrived at the church. Sarah's dad became a fan of the wedding play list and as we approached the church, clearly one of his favourite songs (Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl) came on. Instantly Rich was instructed to turn it right up and keep it playing to accompany the bride getting out of Nell and to play as she walked down the path to the church door (much to the amusement of people sat outside the St. Agnes Hotel).

After the ceremony, the music fired up again to meet the bride and groom (this time Nina Simone). Traffic backed up as the entire street filled up with guests pouring out of the church. Whilst everyone grabbed a quick drink from the St. Agnes Hotel, Rich drove Sarah and David off to a quiet spot near the Beacon for photos.

After photos' back at the reception marquee, Laura the photographer spent some time taking photos of the bridesmaids and bridal party with the camper. Our aim is to make you day as memorable and  fun as possible. With this in mind, Rich suggested that the couple may like to have some quirkier and memorable photos by posing on top of the van and other fun photos. This went down a storm and everyone relaxed and enjoyed themselves. Nell also attracted much attention from the wedding guests who also came over to have their photos taken with the van and in the van itself. Once again my notorious play list blasted out, much to the enjoyment of everyone in the area. 

Finally, Rich suggested that David and Sarah may like to have a little drive of Nell themselves (being on private land). Both bumped into the front seats and David took Nell for a little spin around the field with his new wife. Who knows, maybe they will come back next year to take her out for a self drive anniversary!

I'm so glad David and Sarah had a wonderful day! And I hope their afternoon and evening continued to be full of smiles and laughter just like those they shared with Nell!

A lovely day for a lovely family! Yesterday, Miss Molly attended Claire and Ben's wedding in Perranporth. For a couple of months I had been corresponding with Mike, the brides dad. Mike booked Miss Molly as a surprise wedding car for his daughter Claire. During the months leading up to the wedding I had spoken to Mike several times, answering general questions and discussing the car. Several days before the wedding, I met Mike and his wife to show him Molly in person and discuss details for the big day. Meeting the family before the big day was great! We chatted and found out more details about the wedding and got a greater insight into the theme of the wedding and Claire's tastes. 
Now, Miss Molly is a beautiful car (or at least I think so) however, she is super lovely with her roof down.  With days to the wedding, Rich and I watched the weather anxiously, hoping we could go topless for the beach side wedding.
The day finally came and the weather was over cast, but thankfully warm... hooray!! We weren't due to pick up the bride until approx 1.30, so at 9 O'clock, I ran down to Clintons to get my helium balloons filled with gel and blown up. Just as I set off for home, doh.... it started to rain! Luckily, it only turned out to be a shower.

Unbeknownst to the bride and groom, Claire's dad had booked the car as a surprise to take them to the church and later onto their reception. 
Mike had cleverly kept his wedding gift to his daughter a surprise for months. On the morning of the wedding Molly and Rich arrived at the Ponsmere Hotel in Perranporth to collect Claire and her dad. Molly was decorated in ivory ribbons, ivory balloons and flowers. Claire had thought she was going to walk to the church, but no, we had other plans! Claire loved Molly and all the way to the church kept asking if she could have a drive lol.

Whilst Rich collected the Bride and her dad, I decided to go onto the church armed with my camera, hoping to get a few shots of them arriving. I'm not the worlds best photographer but luckily I managed to get one or two nice ones. Whilst the congregation were in the church, Rich and I quickly whipped on the 'Just Wed' bunting onto the back of Miss Molly to greet them after the ceremony. Then when the church service was over, the congregation along with Ben and Claire, filtered out of the church and were met with Molly. Everyone loved her! Whilst photos were taken and guests mingled, Rich quietly played 'White Wedding' in the background which added to the already happy and chilled atmosphere. Eventually Claire and Ben went for some time out alone and for some pictures over Perranporth Beach, whilst everyone else sauntered over to the watering hole for the reception.

When I met up with Rich after the wedding, he was in a great mood! He told me how fab Claire and Ben were and the whole time in the car had been filled with laughter and jokes. Claire even liked the special wedding compilation CD i had put into miss Molly (so of course we gave her the disc so she relive those happy memories again and again).

We have been doing weddings now, for over five years and I can truly say Mike and his family were one of the nicest families we have ever come across. We were even invited back to their evening do (which we went to later that evening). We wish Claire and Ben, a long and happy life together xx

A big congratulations to Alison and Dan who got married on the 3rd May 2014 at St Breock church in Wadebridge.

Alison and Dan had chosen a yellow theme for their wedding, so Miss Molly matched perfectly. On the morning of the wedding we kept our fingers crossed for a dry day (hoping that Molly could go topless).

When Rich pulled up outside the house he met Alison's dad Roger and as it wasn't raining, Molly was indeed able to go topless. Now us at Honey Bugs try to predict all eventualities however, we couldn't predict that Richard would need a wee whilst picking up the bride. Roger kindly let Richard use the facilities, which gave him the opportunity to meet Alison in a relaxed atmosphere and looking beautiful,surrounded by her bridesmaids and family.

Alison and Traveled to the church, taking the long route through Wadebridge town centre. Both car and bride got many admiring glances from pedestrians and motorists alike( although traffic etiquette needs to be addressed in Wadebridge as nobody would let them cross the mini round about!) Further along the journey to the church, there was a comedy moment which involved a pair of old ladies and a mobility scooter. One elderly lady cheered as Alison and Miss Molly drove past however, her friend in the mobility scooter (deliberately holding us up) didn't look so impressed, never mind you cant please them all! As we neared the church, we stopped for a small pause so the bride did not arrive too early.

This was our first wedding at St Breock and with its beautiful surroundings it really was the perfect place to get married. As we pulled up (with guests still arriving)  this was a perfect opportunity for the bride to have some photographs before she entered the church.to become Mrs Dan :)

After the ceremony the newly weds came out of the church. Until now, Dan knew nothing about the wedding car and Miss Molly was an utter surprise! Armed with a glass of fizz each, Rich drove Alison and Dan to a photo stop for pictures with with photographer. During this time Rich gave Dan and Alison some much needed time out and a few minutes alone time to savour the moment.

Finally after all the photos were taken, Richard drove the happy couple to their reception venue at the Royal Cornwall grounds. 

We wish Alison and Dan our best wishes and a long and happy life together.

I love the world of weddings. I particularly love getting out there, getting to wedding fayres and meeting couples, suppliers and venue owners.However since I set the date for my own wedding I have started to look at weddings from a different perspective. What strikes me most is the sheer amount of choice and the many options available for wedding venues. Gone are the days of having a nice simple choice of church or registry office. Now you are faced with endless options for your ceremony...beach or field, marquee,hotel or church. With so many people choosing to have have their ceremony and reception at the same venue and staying there as well, then the need for functional wedding transport is reduced. However thinking back to my first marriage, wedding transport is more than just functionality. I can still remember the thrill of being driven through town in my wedding car. The electric atmosphere and the admiring glances from the public, that feeling almost like being royalty.

Rich and I have realised that in the last 10 years weddings have evolved and therefore wedding transport needs to evolve also. At Honey Bugs, we have come up with the photo only package. If you are getting married in the Newquay, Crantock, Cubert, Perranporth or St Agnes area and do not require a wedding car for a full wedding package, then the photo only package may be for you. We will arrive at your venue and take the couple to a local beach or location for photos with their photographer. You will have use of the vehicle for up to 1 hour. In this time, you could have pictures with your VW wedding camper/beetle, enjoying a little time out from what can be a very hectic day. 

The photo package is a great alternative gift idea for unsuspecting newly weds. Our lovely vehicles can hep to create Wonderful memories which are far more precious and longer lasting than a toaster or fondue set.

Yesterday we attended our first wedding fayre of the year at the wonderful Carbis Bay Hotel in St Ives, Cornwall. The fayre had been organised by the lovely Tiffany at Super Duper Vintage Events. 

Armed with our vintage suitcase and beautiful VW convertible wedding Beetle (Bella), we set off down the A30, hoping the sun would stay out and that we could have a day of going topless (Bella the Beetle).

We have done lots of wedding fayres in the past but this particular fayre was brilliant. With a vintage theme, the day was filled with vintage props, candy floss, pasties, live music..... oh and sun!!!  We really couldn't have asked for a better day. 

The actual venue (The Carbis Bay Hotel) was stunning. Over looking the beach with its crystal clear waters it made the perfect place to get married. Bella the wedding car made the ideal wedding vehicle for the venue and matched the beach location perfectly.
During the day we met lots of couples planning their weddings for this year and next. Couples got the chance to sit in Bella with her top down and try her out for size. 

As a future bride to be myself, I found this particular wedding fayre a breath of fresh air. It was full of quality suppliers, with plenty of practical and helpful planning ideas. I think I lost count of the number of times I found myself commenting on and liking the many beautiful vintage wedding dresses that passed by on the models :)

Richard and I look forward to future Super Duper Vintage Event wedding fayres (which we recommend everyone goes to) and we look forward to our next wedding fayre at the Hotel Bristol in Newquay next weekend with its Art Deco interior.

Last night we attended our first Cornwall wedding meet up event at the Eden project. Despite the terrible weather many of the top Cornish wedding suppliers met up to network, share ideas and learn a few tips and tricks. During the evening there were several guest speakers, but none as interesting as Lester the wedding planner from London. His talk was certainly an eye opener! He gave us an insight into what was in trend for top London and US weddings. He spoke about ways that Cornwall could use some of these ideas in order to provide the very best quality services. Rich and I learnt so much and it has made us even more determined to provide Cornwall with a premium wedding car service where the bride and groom come first!

This week Rich has been working his socks off on our original vintage rickshaw. Our 1972 original Indonesian rickshaw will soon be available to hire as a wedding prop for photos or for hire as quirky wedding transport in Cornwall. 
Although it was in full working order when we acquired it, we thought that for the purpose of weddings it needed a wedding make over. So this week it has been shot-blasted back to bare metal and been given several coats of primer ready for new paint. Eventually we will be giving it a lovely new canvas hood. 
As far as we know, this is the only vintage Rickshaw available to hire in Cornwall and so we cant wait to get it finished and photographed ready for lots of lovely weddings. In good old Honey Bugs tradition, the rickshaw will need a name! So far we have come up with Ricky, Betty (the Betjak rickshaw) or Jack. Personally I  would like something more a little original so watch this space.