Wednesday 31 August 2011

Scotland Exclusive Wedding Event - Beauty Weddings

Well last weekend was Scotland's Exclusive Wedding Event and the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow, and what a weekend that was.   We had so much fun over the weekend meeting brides, grooms, their families and friends, we just wish we had more time to spend with you all.  


We also had our amazing Prize Draw with the First Prize being a Wedding Day Photography by Julie Vance Photography, the winner was Jennifer Wagner.   I found out from Jennifer's lovely fiance that they were just going to get friends to take their photo's as they couldn't really afford a professional.   Well now they don't have to they have Julie to capture the precious moments of their wedding day next May.   So a massive congratulations to Jennifer.


Our other prizes and winners were:



A Free Live Wedding Stream of the Ceremony & Reception from Events Live.  Winner:  Louise Weir

Case of Wine from Discovery Jobs.  Winner:  Ashley Long

Handmade bespoke Guestbook from Wanderlust.  Winner:  Dawn Ramage

Gift Voucher from Hastings Crystal:  Winner.  Kerry Noon

Beauty Voucher from Lomond Beauty :  Winner.  Stacie Conden

Bridal Bouquet & Buttonholes from Ribbons n Roses.  Winner: Katrina Leer

Engagement Photo shoot and Desk frame my McAvoy Photography.  Winner: Julie Robertson

40 Wine Glass Charms Created by Wine Glass Charms by Tracey Taylor and donated by Beauty Weddings.  Winner:  Diane McGill

Gorgeous Crystal Tiara by Inizi Dolce Bridal.  Winner:  Lynn Sweeny

£250 towards a wedding cake by The Sweetest Thing.  Winner:  Nicola Thomson

A huge Congratulations to all our winners.

Many of our visitors would have got to taste the amazing marshallows that we were giving away if you are interested in these for wedding favours contact Anne at Vanilla Buffets 

I also got to catch up with some of amazing suppliers that I speak with on both Twitter and Facebook, it was really good to put faces to you all, and you are all so lovely :D 

Our Stand was opposite One Fine Day & The Finer Detail who were such a lovely family run business.  Their cakes were gorgeous and their bridesmaids dresses and tiara's were just amazing.   Definitely worth a visit to their website.

We also had a lot of interest in our table centrepieces that we have available for hire and I will do a separate blog on them later in the week. 

To contact us either visit our website at Beauty Weddings,  Email us or find us on Facebook or Twitter.

I am sure we will back again in February for the next show at Scotland's Exclusive Wedding Event.

Wednesday 24 August 2011

Julie Vance Photography


     

I want to introduce to you Julie Vance Photography.   Julie produces some really beautiful work, capturing the essence of the moment perfectly.   Julie has generously donated Wedding Day Photography worth £995 which is First Prize in our Free Prize Draw at Scotland's Exclusive Wedding Event at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on the 27th and 28th August 2011. (Visit Beauty Weddings on Stand 98 to enter)


Here is an insight into Julie and some of her amazing images.




I took my first photography course at school, in Paris, in 1989.  I spent the majority of that summer shooting photographs of my friends on black and white film in one of the most beautiful cities in the world and my love of photography was born... The rest, as they say is history!


21 years on I still love photography, having the ability to capture images of little (and big) moments in time, is for me, such an amazing thing.  Weddings are by far, my favourite thing to photography; nothing beats the emotion and sense of occasion that you experience at a wedding.  I always feel very privileged when a bride and groom choose me to play such an important part in their big day, I never take my job for granted.  Every wedding for me is just as exciting as the first one was.






I would say that my photographs are stylish and romantic with a hint of vintage elegance :) 






On a personal note.  I am a 36 year old mother of 3 (1 boy and identical twin girls) I've been married to my wonderful husband Stephen for 6 years... My live pretty much revolves around my family, my photographs and Cath Kidston goodies!  Nothing more exciting than that!! :):) 







As you can see Julie isn't just a very talented photographer but a lovely person too.  You can see more of Julie's work on her website www.julievancephotography.com 







Visit her on Facebook and Twitter 
          

Sunday 21 August 2011

Scotland Exclusive Wedding Event


The countdown is now on for Scotland Exclusive Wedding Event at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on the 27th and 28th August 2011.



We are going to be at Stand 98 and getting very excited now.   As well as being on hand to offer advice to Brides and Grooms to be, we have an amazing Free Prize Draw with some really fantastic prizes donated by our incredible suppliers.

Not only that we have details on how to join the brand new club exclusively for couples planning their weddings by Ice The Cake, where you will be able to access some really amazing discounts and offers, and the best thing is membership is FREE.



One of our clients is also going to be there and you can hear first hand how we helped them to plan their wedding and what their personal experience was of having a wedding planner.



Some of our amazing prizes are: 

First Prize:  Wedding Day Photography by Julie Vance Photography worth £995 

2nd Prize:    You can have your wedding & reception streamed LIVE over the internet by Mark at Events Live, and incredible prize especially if you have friends and relatives who are unable to attend your special day.  worth £500

3rd Prize:    An exclusive engagement photoshoot and 8x4 desk frame by Moments by McAvoy worth £350

We also have a beauty treatment by Lomond Beauty, a bespoke Guestbook by Wanderlust, 40 Wine Glass Charm favours created by Wine Glass Charms by Tracey Taylor, A case of Wine byDiscovery Jobs, a beautiful crystal tiara by Inizi Bridal, Gift Voucher for Hastings Crystal, plus much more.

The show runs from 10am to 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday, there are some amazing suppliers going to be at the event ready to offer excellent advice and give you many ideas and inspiration.



Why not purchase one of our wedding planner notebooks to write down your ideas an inspiration as you browse.  These can be purchased from our stand for £5

Look out for our other blogs this week who will feature Julie Vance and Mark at Eventslive so you can learn more about them.

We look forward to seeing you next week ! 


Friday 19 August 2011

Bridal Designs Wedding Jewellery


I am constantly on the look out for amazing suppliers that provide something that little bit different for the wedding market, and today I have a real treat for you.   I have been speaking to Tracey Phillips of Bridal Designs Wedding Jewellery, who makes absolutely stunning jewellery that any bride would be proud to wear on her wedding day.  I asked Tracey to tell me a bit about herself and her company.


The company was formed when, after working for many years in the jewellery retail trade, I decided to see if I could make jewellery myself and with lots of practice and instruction started to produce pieces that I was proud to put my name to.



My sister then asked me if I would make her wedding jewellery for her. I ended up designing and making many sets for her to choose from and wondered what I was going to do with the surplus! I decided to approach a few local wedding shops to see if they’d be interested in selling them for me and to my surprise they all said yes, after a while selling through shops I made the decision to start the website www.bridaldesignsweddingjewellery.co.uk and I’m glad to say it’s gone from strength to strength.



We specialise in handcrafted Sterling silver bridal jewellery using Swarovski crystal and Swarovski pearls. we have a wide range of different styles to suit every wedding from the delicate Angelic range to the darker gothic influenced Black Rose. Brides are choosing a wider range of wedding themes than ever before so we try our hardest to stock designs to suit all of them.



One of our latest designs is 'Wildheart' which features a brand new crystal shape from Swarovski, the beautiful heart pendant has such a tactile feel and the facets make it eyecatching, especially when teamed with the oval Swarovski crystals and round Swarovski pearls. Another new addition is the LittleBigDay range, comprising of interchangable charms/pendants which make an ideal gift for bridesmaids or flowergirls.



At Bridal Designs we pride ourselves on our customer service and as every item is handcrafted we are able to accomodate a wide range of variations in colour and size, if you would like something completely different we can work with you to design a bespoke piece of bridal jewellery especially for you, just email us on info@bridaldesignsweddingjewellery.co.uk

       
       

Friday 5 August 2011

Captured Memories

This week I want to showcase something with a difference.   When I first saw this product, my first reaction was WOW!   To me there is a real gap in the market for something so special and bespoke as these Memory Books by Illustries. 


I had a chat with Emma about Ilustries,and I was truly inspired by her story and I am delighted to be able to share that with you today.





Just to explain where we came from, when I looked for something for my own wedding, I couldn't find what I wanted - a less formal album where we could also add text and keepsakes. Sam is a fab designer and I am a  seasoned copywriter and we'd worked on other projects together, so we had a go at creating that elusive 'memory book', and some time later, here we are - with a really exciting new company and a great friendship! We live a couple of hours  away from each other so Skype and dropbox are our best friends, and when we meet up, tequila joins the party almost every time, leading to some really creative ideas...

We describe our Illustries as memory books, but really, they are a repository for all the fabulous details of the big day - we see them as a great alternative to a traditional album, which so often gets left to gather dust on the shelf. We find that Illustries get passed around families and friends, and every Illustries customer has said that just opening their Illustry puts them right back in their special day. We include everything - vows, speeches, readings, menus - so all those bits and pieces are centre stage rather than lying forgotten in a box somewhere.

The Illustries themselves take a fair amount of time to create - I write every detail of the couple's story, from when they met to 'happy ever after' including plenty of interviews and Sam makes sure that the design reflects their day in every way possible. We don't have wordcount limits, we don't use any template software, and all the ideas have been developed from scratch - with elements like our 'Life Map' (a flow chart of their relationship), 

Recipes for Love (Jamie, Nigella and even Gordon style), and our 'Wedding by Numbers' and 'A-Z' features (that capture all the quirky little details). 





We have a style to suit most couples - Classic, which is elegant and modern.










Avant Garde, which is quirky and fun





and our CELEB magazine, which lets the couple start in their very own celebrity magazine.





We are absolutely delighted with the feedback so far and we already have expansion plans. We're really focusing on networking as we would love to work with like-minded photographers so that our books can be built into their photography package, we have Illustries for all of life's memorable moments in the pipeline, and we're looking forward to launching our new website and hitting our first wedding fair season in September!

So, that's our story - in a rather large nutshell! 

I am sure you will be as taken with these as I was, I think it is an absolutely fantastic innovation and something that can be treasured forever.
To contact Emma and Sam click on the links below.