All You Need to Know About Wedding Decorations

No wedding feels truly complete without wedding decorations. However simple they may be, your decorations can turn a special event into the magical, once-in-a-lifetime celebration that you've always dreamed of. Now, wedding decorations don't come easy, they requires a lot of thought and deliberate preparation. So before you go out there and scout your wedding decorations, equip yourself with some basic décor knowledge.

First things first, what should you decorate? You don't really have to decorate every single nook and cranny to make a huge impact, as long as you focus on these basic wedding decoration elements.

 Let's begin with the ceremony. The ceremony lies at the very core of a wedding, as it's the moment when two lovers are united in the sacred bond of marriage. Such an endearing moment in one's life should be completed with a breathtaking set-up, don't you think? So, be sure to not overlook these elements to create an alluring backdrop that complements your solemn vows.

 Entrance

 

 Depending on your venue, there are different alternatives for the wedding ceremony entrance area. Your entrance can be marked by church doors, a simple gate, or even two huge flower vases. Whatever kind of entrance it may be, make sure it won't look plain. Decorate your entrance with flowers, ribbons, garland, or any other elements you can think of. 

 Aisle

 

This is actually optional, but we can tell you that a decorated aisle looks better than a plain one. Scattered flower petals and a red carpet are only a few of the many ways you can decorate your aisle. As you walk down that path, you'll be happy that you decided not to leave it empty.

 Pew decoration

Pew decorations are put on the sides of chairs at your wedding ceremony venue. Aside from making the chairs look more interesting, pew decorations will complement your aisle décor and connect the entrance with the arch in the deeper part of the room. 

Altar/arch/chuppah
Brides are getting more and more creative with their wedding arch decorations. Whether it's romantic or modern, a lovely arch will make a wedding ceremony so much more memorable. Your wedding arch will also make a great backdrop for the wedding kiss photo!

Wedding Reception Decorations
Up next is the wedding reception. Being the celebratory part of the wedding, the wedding reception naturally has more areas to decorate. Go through the ones listed below slowly and make sure to not miss any spots. 

Stage
The bridal stage is the focal point of every wedding reception. In fact, many professional decorators have suggested to allocate the biggest chunk of your decoration budget for the stage. This comes as no surprise, as your stage will be the main focus of the event and the backdrop of almost every wedding photo.

Lighting
Lighting is an essential element, as it enhances the atmosphere of the whole venue and makes all the decorations look alive. Have your lighting designer and decorator work together to add little touches of light here and there to make your decorations look amazing.

Table settings
This is particularly important for a sit-down dinner. After you've arranged seating arrangements for your guests, make sure that they have pretty table settings readily waiting in front of them.

Written by Tokunbo

Putin calls for foreign experts to handle Russian doping issue

                                      

Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged the creation of an independent commission, with the inclusion of foreign experts, to address problems with the anti-doping system in Russian sports. 

 

"I think it would make sense to address the Russian Olympic Committee with a proposal to establish an independent, I want to emphasize, an independent public commission, which, besides the Russian specialists, would include foreign experts in the field of medicine and law as well as respected public and sports figures," the Russian president said.
Putin added that the main task of the proposed commission would be "strict control over the efficient implementation of the national plan for the fight against doping."
“There is no place and can never be a place for any doping in sports,” the Russian president said, telling Russia’s Olympic Committee to work closely with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

IT'S OFFICIAL: Sunderland appoint Moyes

                                    
Sunderland have confirmed the appointment of David Moyes as the club's new manager after Sam Allardyce's departure to take the England job.

Moyes has signed a four-year deal at the Stadium of Light, with the role his first in the Premier League since being sacked by Manchester United in April 2014.

“We are absolutely delighted to welcome David Moyes to Sunderland, who was by far and away our first choice," chairman Ellis Short said. 
“He is a man whose football pedigree speaks for itself and is someone I have long admired. I have spoken with him on many occasions and I have always been hugely impressed.
"He was my number one managerial target for the last five appointments, but his desire to honour existing contracts meant we were not able to bring him to Sunderland previously. To be able to finally welcome him as our manager is fantastic news for the club.

Kidnappers of Lagos monarch:Give us N500m

                                  

One week after the kidnap of the Oniba of Ibaland, Oba Yushau Oseni, his abductors have demanded N500m for his release.

The kidnappers did not fail to offer a reason for the kidnap.

One of the monarch’s sons, Saheed Oseni, who confirmed that the kidnappers had made contact, told reporters that they said they could not longer make money from pipeline vandalism.

Saheed called on the state government to rise to the family’s help and rescue their father.

He said, “Even if you sell the whole community, we can’t raise N500m. The men finally called on Thursday and said they wanted N500m. They said Baba is a part of the government and he should be able to raise that money. They said they had no pipeline to eat from and so they must survive.

“They said the Yorubas and Hausas stopped their means of livelihood and they needed to find another means of survival. All our pleadings fell on deaf ears. We have conveyed the update to the state government and we believe something will be done. We are seriously concerned about Baba’s health.

“We know the government is on top of the situation and we are hopeful.”

Oba Oseni was abducted from his palace on Saturday, July 16, 2016 around 8.30pm.

Munich Shooting: Gunman Identified As 18-year-old German-Iranian

                                
An 18-year-old German-Iranian gunman who apparently acted alone opened fire near a busy shopping mall in Munich on Friday evening, killing at least nine people in the third attack on civilians in Western Europe in eight days.
The pistol-wielding attacker, identified by Munich Police Chief Hubertus Andrae as a dual national from Munich, was later found dead of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Authorities said it was too early to say whether it was a terrorist attack, and said they had no immediate evidence of an Islamist motive.
Chancellor Angela Merkel is due to meet her chief of staff, Peter Altmaier, and Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere and a host of intelligence officials on Saturday to review the incident.
Police, citing witnesses, had initially said they were looking for up to three suspects and were treating the incident as a suspected terrorist attack.
But authorities told a news conference early on Saturday the shooter was believed to have staged the attack alone, opening fire in a fast food restaurant before moving to the mall.
Andrae said authorities did not see similarities to an attack in southern Germany last Monday in which an axe-wielding 17-year-old asylum-seeker killed five people in an incident claimed by the Islamic State group.
Andrae said it was premature to say whether the Friday incident was a terrorist attack, as French President Francois Hollande said, or the work of a deranged person.
There was no known motive for the shooting in Germany’s third largest city, which went into lockdown with transport halted and highways sealed off immediately after the attack.
U.S. intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said initial reports from their German counterparts indicated no apparent link between the shooter and Islamic State or other militant groups.
It was the third major act of violence against civilians in Europe in eight days. Previous attacks in France and Germany were claimed by Islamic State.
At least 16 people, including several children, were in hospital and three were in critical condition, Andrae said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but supporters of Islamic State celebrated on social media.
“The Islamic state is expanding in Europe,” read one tweet.
The gunman, whose body was found on a side street near the mall, was not identified but Andrae said he was not previously known to police.
Police, equipped with night vision equipment and dogs, raided an apartment in the Munich neighbourhood of Maxvorstadt early on Saturday, but a police spokesman declined to comment on whether the raid was focused on the man’s home.
He said police did not release names of suspects, even if they were killed, due to privacy concerns.
The mall is next to the stadium where the Palestinian militant group Black September took 11 Israeli athletes hostage and later killed them during the 1972 Olympic Games.
Friday’s incident snarled traffic as authorities blocked highways, closed the main railway station, and shut down public transport.
A police spokesman initially said up to three gunmen were on the run after the shooting. The Bavarian capital was placed under a state of emergency as police hunted for them and special forces were deployed.
Two individuals were seen driving quickly away from the scene, but they were later cleared of any wrongdoing, the police chief said. (Reuters)

BREAKING NEWS:Hillary Clinton picks Tim Kaine as her running mate

                                     

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has selected Tim Kaine, a centrist senator from Virginia, as her running mate.

Mrs Clinton broke the news early hours on Saturday.
Mrs Clinton passed over more left-leaning candidates in favour of the 58-year-old senator, who is a strong supporter of free-trade agreements.

 Who is Tim Kaine?
Serving in Congress since 2012, he was elected after serving as Virginia's governor for four years - a title he won in part by getting support in areas of the state usually dominated by conservatives.
As governor, Mr Kaine supported expanding early childhood education, digitising historical records, and smoking bans.
While in the Senate, he has served on committees for Armed Services, Aging, Budget and Foreign Relations. He is a former head of the Democratic National Committee.
Before Mr Kaine began his career as a lawyer focused on housing rights, he spent a year volunteering alongside Jesuit missionaries in Honduras. There, he became fluent in Spanish - a skill that could help Mrs Clinton's Hispanic outreach.
He is popular with the White House, and was on the short list for Barack Obama's running mate in 2008. Bill Clinton was said to push for Mr Kaine's appointment to be Clinton's VP.
However, his support for free trade and deregulating local banks make him unpopular with more progressive members of the party.
A practising Catholic, he is personally opposed to abortion. While he is committed to the broader tenets of Roe v Wade, including a woman's right to choose, he supports restrictions on certain types of abortion, parental consent laws and "informed consent" practices.
Although he has lived in Virginia for most of his adult life, he is originally from Minnesota and was raised in Kansas. He has a Midwestern appeal that Mrs Clinton could rely on to help gain voters in the Rust Belt.
Virginia is considered a swing state, and Mr Kaine's popularity could improve Clinton's chances there.
Should Mrs Clinton win the election, Virginia's Democratic governor would appoint someone to temporarily fill Mr Kaine's Senate seat, and a special election would be held in 2017.

Source: BBC