Battersea Designer Wedding Show

I’ve been assisting my good friend Katie in the hunt for the perfect wedding dress… and as of last Friday the search is over – we found it and it’s fabulous! We’d penciled in the diary, a trip to the Battersea Designer wedding show, to get a good over-view of frocks. However, instead of having to pour over every single gown we were able to relax and just enjoy the show (www.designerweddingshow.co.uk)!

I’ve not yet planned a wedding, so haven’t had to experience the “joy” of picking the exact shade of ivory napkins or deciding whether to spend £5 per head for a bag containing 5 silver sugared almonds…what a bargain?? But something hit me whilst walking around the show – I pity whoever gets to marry me, because at my wedding I’m going to want everything! The flowers were stunning; the cakes were works of art… It’s quite a terrifyingly over-whelming experience. Not only does a bride have to worry about the dress, the venue, the food etc. But important issues such as, what will the invitations say about me as a person? Does one go “classic” or “contemporary” bride? Hair up or hair down?? So many decisions… If I ever meet someone I want to marry – I think I might be a demented bride!

Also, I know why so many people hire personal shoppers to help them when wedding dress shopping, it’s very little to do with locating the perfect dress, it’s more to assist them with overly-pushy wedding dress sales assistants. Now I understand some people need help narrowing down a gazillion off-white strapless dresses to find the perfect one  – but the use of the “elimination” technique that I witnessed was really annoying. So what if my friend had ”eliminated” a particular style dress during their last appointment, if she wants to try it on again then she blinking well can!!

Anyway, rant over… if you want to get some really good ideas in a laid back and glam setting and be serenaded whilst sipping your champagne, then head to BWS. Even though as a “non-bride” I’ve never felt so invisible in my life… as soon as approaching a stand the exhibitor would say “Are you the bride??” “Er no, my friend…” That was it, you no longer existed!  

Here are some things that caught my eye at the show…

By Appointment Only Design (www.byappointmentonlydesign.com) – honestly, I’ve never seen floral displays like them… they were amazing! They help you “create the wedding of your dreams”, assisting from wedding planning to event styling, no two weddings are the same.

By Appointment Only Design

 

Linda Fripp Design (www.lindafrippcakes.com) make bespoke wedding cakes “individually created using sensational hand-baked recipes and inspirational techniques”. The cakes at the show really blew me away they were so stunning…

An amazing cake by Linda Fripp Design

 

Emmy Custom Made Wedding Shoes (www.emmyshoes.co.uk)  - I had seen them before at Fashion Press Week and I loved the twinkly toed shoes then… They offer custom made wedding shoes “offering a choice of toe shape, heel height, material, colour and detail”. Vintage-y and fabulous if you ask me!

Emmy Custom Made Wedding Shoes

 

Matthew Williamson needs little introduction (www.matthewwilliamson) but people may not instantly think bridal when they hear his name, but I was seriously impressed with what they had to offer…

Matthew Williamson

 

The cafe at the entrance to the show…

 

 The bride and bridesmaid Rachel enjoying a well deserved glass of bubbly in the champagne bar… how civilized (notice I have a peppermint tea with my champers – I’m such a lightweight!!)!

Katie and Rachel “resting” in the champagne bar!

 

P.S. A couple of other exhibitors worth noting:

David Fielden (www.davidfielden.co.uk) – his dresses have been worn by Liz Taylor, Julia Roberts and Kate Moss… a fairly impressive line up!

Emma Hunt (www.emmahunt.co.uk)  makes made-to-measure and bespoke dresses which are timeless and elegant.

The Magpie Vintage  stand (www.magpievintage.co.uk) was mobbed after the catwalk show and we could barely get a look in but the bespoke jewellery we could near looked fab!

Rosalind Miller Cakes (www.rosalindmillercakes.com)… these were so stunning I couldn’t believe it. They are renowned for their “delcious exquisite couture cupcakes, described as edible works of art”.

Temperley London (www.temperleylondon.com) offers some of the most elegant, romantic dresses around. For the best selection go to their bridal suite in Notting Hill, I’ve only had good experiences with clients in there…

And last but by no means least, The Utterly Sexy Cafe (www.utterlysexycafe.co.uk) are a “highly original catering company offering delicious food creatively served using an extensive range of fabulous vintage china for hire, as well as amazing wedding cakes”. This stand was probably my favourite!

Fashion Press Week S/S 11

Last week I attended Fashion Press Week and it was fantastic (www.fashionpressweek.com). I was there for work but it didn’t really feel like it… there were cupcakes, mini make-up sessions and blow dries – and it was all located in the stunning Saatchi Gallery on the Kings Road. What more could one want on a dull November afternoon? The idea behind FPW is to give editors and industry people like me a relaxed setting to view brands such as Pandora, Mikey and Superdry under one roof, so as not to have to trail all over London to view individual collections (the collections were mostly for next S/S11). It’s such a brilliant idea…

Anyone for a cupcake??

I spotted so many things that I loved including this Elizabeth Lau knit, mainly because I adore giant bows! Elizabeth debued at London Fashion Week in 2007 and has never looked back – her collection epitomises the quirkiness and diversity of London, the city she was born in and is simply an extension of her personality and outlook on life and love. I’m looking forward to the opening of the Elizabeth Lau pop up shop on Carnby Street on the 26th November (for 4 weeks). Until then have a look at their website – it’s so cute (like their knitwear!!)… www.elizabethlau.com

My favourite Elizabeth Lau knit... don't you love the bow?

I came across a jewellery brand that I’d never heard of called Konplott, which was founded in 1986 by the award winning designer Miranda Konstantinidou. She was born in Thessaloniki and grew up in Germany – but she now spends most of her time between the Philippines and Luxembourg. Have a look at the company’s website for further information at www.konplott.de/english/.  I thought this bracelet from her newest collection was really eye-catching and chunky yet still very feminine. Many of my customers struggle with solid bracelets as sometimes they can’t get them on, but this was like a cuff so it would fit anyone.

Stunning KONPLOTT bracelet from designer Miranda Konstantinidou

I also met the absolutely lovely Monica and Joe Wahla who are launching a fantastic on-line boutique in the New year called Monica&Joe (www.monicaandjoe.co.uk). They have a huge amount of fashion industry experience between them and came up with the idea after a trip to Paris last year. The contemporary online boutique will be showcasing some of the hottest new brands and designer collections for S/S 11. The focus is on bridge collections and designer brands offering affordable luxury to 30 plus women who want to something very different to what the high street offers. They have handpicked some of the best established (by Marlene Birger, Cacharel) and less established  labels(By Zoe, Designers Remix) from Europe and have some that are completely new to the UK. Price points range from £100 upwards for a dress to about £400. I am very excited about the launch!!

www.monicaandjoe.co.uk

 

 

“You’re very critical aren’t you?”

That was what a girl said to me a couple of Fridays ago in a very well known beauty store and I was fuming! What’s wrong with having high standards, I asked myself and so what if I am critical? Was she implying that after applying several layers of primer, foundation, concealer, powder, blusher etc… that I couldn’t look any better? Did she feel that she’d worked her magic and that was it, the only option being for me to buy every product now, no questions asked?

© Catalin Plesa | Dreamstime.com

To set the scene, I’d chosen this location for my make-up shopping as they have a good selection of brands and in my eyes they are therefore not biased to any one product – and I asked an assistant to help me locate the “perfect” foundation. I kept mentioning a certain brand that I really wanted to try but, because there were 5 make-up artists from a different brand standing around (who I found out were there for an event later on in the day and were clearly bored to death) – she made it very clear that I should be “assisted” by one of them, even though I’d already said I’d tried this particular brand before and I wasn’t that impressed.

Anyway, after applying all the layers of make-up as above, I looked in the mirror…and, embarrassingly, I wasn’t that happy with what was staring back at me. You know when you go “Oooh… (furiously scanning your face like The Terminator would do)… Mmm, yes that looks nice”. Well, this was exactly what I was doing… but at the same time what I was actually thinking was that I looked a bit yellowy and matt – when I’d specifically said that I wanted a “glowing” (youthful) look! Now call me picky, but if I’m spending money on something like foundation then I actually want some “vaguely evident” results. I don’t want to look as though I’ve gone to Boots and spent £10! What’s the point in spending the extra £50??

 So I had a choice: either say, “Yes it’s lovely I’ll have it”, or dare to be honest and say “Actually I’d like you to start again and try something else!” That’s the problem with make-up shopping, once the assistant has found you, in their opinion, the “perfect” match of foundation for example, you’re made to feel as though you have to automatically buy it. It’s not the norm to go from counter to counter getting them to make you up and then go to the next place to try again.

However, once the girl helping me had uttered the “You’re very critical” comment, I made my mind up – I was going to try something else and I didn’t care how long she’d spent making me up! So a little sheepishly, I approached another girl in the shop (who worked for the store and not a specific brand) and told her what had happened and she said the make-up did look a bit mask like! OMG – I’d nearly spent £40 on that!!! And it took her 3 attempts to get off the under-eye concealer the other girl had used, it was so thick! Anyway, cutting a long story short she selected several products from different brands, which was exactly what I wanted and I left happy and “glowing”. If I’m honest, the youthful “glow” I’m after is probably only achieved after using several jars of exceedingly expensive face-cream or something altogether more “industrial”… like a chemical peel! But as I’m not into bee-keepers hats (do you remember the episode of SATC where Samantha had a chemical peel before Carrie’s book launch party and because her face was peeling so badly after she’d had it done, she had to wear a black veil over her face in bee-keeper fashion – and was told to stay away from the food at the party as she was putting people off!). On second thoughts I might put that off for a little while…!!

© Kydriashka | Dreamstime.com

I was mentioning my make-up experience to a good friend of mine and she said a similar thing had happened to her when wedding dress shopping the other week. She’d booked viewing appointments in several stores and in one very well known bridal shop. After being given their “book” to browse through, she said that there weren’t any that caught her eye. The assistant then replied, “You’re very fussy aren’t you!” Er… yes she is very fussy!!! She’s deciding on the dress that will be worn on one of the most important days of her life, spending possibly the most she’ll ever spend on a single item of clothing and she wants it to be absolutely right! My friend didn’t want someone simply stuffing a book in front of her and basically saying “Pick one!” She did end up however, having the most wonderful experience in Browns Bridal shop in London (www.brownsfashion.com). She was pampered and taken around the whole store, being shown exquisite dresses (with exquisite price tags too though, unfortunately)…. She hasn’t made her final decision but she did fall in love with one dress there – it sounded amazing!

At the end of the day I think we’re well within our rights to say, “I’d like to try something else please” or “No, I don’t like any of those dresses” and not feel awkward or guilty about it. We’re all thinking more about how we spend our money at the moment and if we decide to part with it, we want to know we’re getting the best for our hard-earned cash.

So I think here’s one for my list of New Years resolutions: next time I’m in a situation where I’m feeling pressurized to buy something and I’m not 100% convinced (especially when the refund policy is slightly questionable), I’m simply going to smile and say “Thank you so much, I’ll think about it!” – Well that’s the plan anyway…