Checking back some previous posts, it seems our inclement summer weather is no new thing (see last year’s A Summer to Remember…), so let’s just park the weather topics for now and talk about something new.

New trends are always interesting since, often as not, they’re not really new at all, just new to a generation – as in the recent ladies’ fashion for geometric designs and 60’s colour-ways a la Twiggy and Co.

Now, some ladies out there will recall those days with a bit of a tremor in the voice – a bit like blokes discussing their first cars – as they reminisce over the lengths of the skirts and how successful (or not) they were at getting out of the house before their fathers got out of their chairs quick enough to vet the outfit for decency. No daughter of mine is going out wearing a PELMET a typical comment from one household in particular.

We at Bracklin see all sorts of fashion styles and, even, see some returning after a (sometimes) decent interval of a few years, just long enough for the new generation to claim it for themselves. Bring back Mary Quant!

However, it’s not dress-sense or styles we’re thinking about here, it’s wedding styles.

Nothing much changes in the events of the BIG DAY do they? Or do they?

Fair enough, brides’ dresses tend to follow a distinct trend, although we haven’t seen many recent brides following the style of the super-slim Duchess of Cambridge’s bridal gown. Perhaps her’s was determined more by modesty of the future monarch’s wife than fashion. We couldn’t imagine Katherine gliding down the aisle of Westminster Abbey wearing a bustier-style gown, which seems to be the favoured style of the moment – great for summer weddings but the bride’s body temp soon becomes apparent on the photos after a more commonly cool wedding day!

Still, that’s a small part of the BIG DAY and, once the party retires indoors for the eating and dancing, the bride’s only worry is keeping up her modesty while taking part in the more strenuous dances!

Many brides (and grooms) will tell you that they hardly ate a thing at their wedding. This is a great pity, since they had probably gone to great lengths to see that the food offered to their guests was not only different but unique and a meal they wanted talked about for ages to come…or, at least, until the next wedding their guests attended.

In this respect, there’s a new trend in the meat course – the hog roast!

Now, I don’t mean that all the guests decamp to the manicured lawns of the fancy hotel to dig up the grass with their high heels, or leave scorch and grease marks like a scout camp had had their bonfire and ging-gang-goolie singalong there.

No, there are companies available who offer to spit-roast a hog to whatever stage you want and bring it along to your celebration. Obviously, the process takes many hours, so they can start it off, bringing along the part-roasted hog to your event in an oven that looks like an over-turned drum (doubles up for the calypso dancing once the hog has been roasted) trundling along at the back of their van.

Or, they can bring the whole thing ready-prepared – great if anyone is a little squeamish about seeing what they’re to be eating roasting on a spit – sliced to perfection on huge banqueting platters a la Henry VIII’s dining halls.

Andy has covered two events recently where this has been done and he says it goes down a treat …and the hog tasted very nice too!

So, as the saying goes, there’s really nothing new under the sun.

Of course, it would be nice to see some sun too….