Hello peeps,
It’s Friday afternoon, no doubt you’re itching to finish work and can’t wait to get the weekends festivities kicked off.
I do miss that Friday feeling now that I work for myself as I don’t really have ‘office hours’ I just work when I can, which more often than not is all the time. I am getting better though at giving myself time off to enjoy the good things in life, and this evening I shall be doing just that. I am heading to a gorgeously cosy country pub, set within a picture-postcard village to enjoy hearty food, fine wine and great company by a roaring open fire. What could be better?
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
It’s probably a million miles away from how I spent last Friday which was of course my visit to the Designer Wedding Show in London. The day started with a train journey from Manchester to London during which I managed to get lots of work done, nothing like minimal distraction to focus the mind. I made my way on the tube to Sloane Square where I was greeted by the always warm and friendly Louise of B.Loved Weddings and Funmi of FO Photography as we excitedly caught up after boarding the free shuttle bus outside Sloane Square, which I must say is a genius idea by the organisers. Minimal fuss, maximum enjoyment and chatting time.
The drive up to the venue, a contemporary structure in Battersea Park, was so pretty as the wonderful riverside location was sprinkled with a light dusting of snow, everything looks prettier in the snow doesn’t it?
The Designer Wedding Show brings together both high-profile designers and less well-known names (those hard-to-find but brilliant-to-discover specialists) presenting a collection of companies whose sole focus is on design, style and of course luxury. With a designer fashion show taking place several times a day, a champagne bar and restaurant not to mention all those exceptional exhibitors the ambience at this show is decadent and refined yet still so very friendly. I found the whole experience very relaxed and enjoyable.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
I have to say a huge thank-you to Emma Lucy Photography who has kindly provided a number of images of the day which you will see credited throughout this post.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
So on with the roundup….
Show Highlights
♥ Paul Antonio Scribe My absolute highlight of the show was having the chance to meet the legendary calligrapher Paul Antonio Scribe and watching him scribe my name. Having asked him just a few days earlier to contribute to my Love Is post it was so lovely to finally meet him in person and listen to him recount the meaning behind his beautiful submission. I honestly have never felt so mesmerised by someone both from watching him work and hearing him speak so passionately and poetically about Love. I just wish I had filmed it so you could all share in the moment too. Instead all I have is these dodgy iPhone snaps which really do not do it justice at all!
Image Credit: Pocketful of Dreams
The other stands and exhibitors that stood out to me included:
♥ By Appointment Only Design ~ I was utterly lost for words at the beauty of their breathtaking tablescape, Javier Salvador and Tony Marklew are the gentlemen behind this exquisite creation. Seriously I could have cried with delight when I saw it, with a runner of fresh pastel-hued flowers hugging decadent crystal drop candelabras and cut-glass candle lanterns, the whole table was like a magical twinkly fairytale. The deep purple tablecloth and silver chairs were a perfect contrast to the delicate flowers and oh my, the place settings. Charger plates made from real flowers, the most stunningly detailed chinaware and of course more beautiful calligraphy detailing the days menu completed the look.
I actually want to live in their studio, can you imagine getting to create things like this every day, wow!
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ Donna Crain ~ Her stand was just oozing with old Hollywood glamour, with eclectic headbands and bespoke pieces crafted by the lady herself using genuine vintage treasures, quality freshwater pearls and swarovski crystals from around the world. It was sparkly heaven.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ The Raj Tent Club ~ Laid-back lounges in the most eclectic designs from Bollywood, to English country garden to Chinese glamour. The Raj Tent Club offers an extensive range of exclusive canopies, pavilions and tents available to buy or to rent for parties, celebrations, corporate events and weddings. The perfect way to add style and colour to your party, create your own exotic mini paradise.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ GC Couture Luxury Cakes ~ a Hertfordshire based luxury wedding cake supplier serving 5-star wedding venues, I sampled their chocolate and orange sponge and literally fell in love. Talk about melt in the mouth.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ Hello Lucky ~ I do rather love paper-pretty, from the design to the feel to the smell. And these guys are ones I’ve loved since I very first started blogging all those months ago, which you can read about here. Quirky and creative, their stand was a perfect reflection of them.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ Magpie Vintage ~ A veritable treasure trove of loveliness, can you tell I like all things sparkly? Their collections feature lots of it, as well as pearls, quirky detailing and reworked vintage materials for one off eclectic designs. They have an online shop as well as being stocked by many bridal designers.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
♥ Not on The High Street ~ This is my absolute favourite site which is full of charming, unique and carefully-made finds. The type of things you would stumble across in cool urban markets, village fairs and tucked-away boutiques, all available to discover in one easy online portal. Their stand was brimming with unusual and quirky finds, from favours to name tags, gift-boxes to signage. I loved it.
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Image credit: ©emmalucyphotography.com
Sadly I don’t have any images of the following stands (only dodgy and rather blurry iPhone snaps which just would not do them justice, so I won’t)….
♥ Cutture ~ Their stand looked amazing, I can honestly say every time I see their paper creations in the flesh I am literally blown away. Such stunning craftsmanship I can’t even begin to describe how much I love their work.
♥ Great Hire ~ This one got me very excited as I feel there is a lack of really great event hire furniture out there, well these guys certainly hit the mark with their gorgeous selection. Very colourful and refined.
♥ Ideas Box ~ Fun ideas to add a quirky and entertaining element to your event, including ice-cream, popcorn and candyfloss tricycles.
♥ Ricky Paul Flowers ~ A floral design company with a London based studio but working throughout the country. The stand was rustic chic with a beautiful laid-out tablescape of vintage-inspired flowers sat amongst shabby-chic birdcages and delightful wooden stands. I had a great chat with Ricky about all things floral, a thoroughly lovely bloke.
♥ Louise Richardson Stationery ~ A designer of bespoke stationery, I loved many of her designs from the soft muted greys to the vibrant pinks, each one looked so textural with great use of typography.
Catwalk
The catwalk had a strict no photography rule so again sadly I don’t have images to share with you, I saw some incredible collections glide down the catwalk from Pronovias, Matthew Williamson, Charlotte Casadejus, Sassi Holford, Louise Selby, Emma Hunt, Ritva Westenius, Lisa Redman, Temperley London.
I was almost weeping with joy at the glamorous creations from Ritva Westenius, so much feathery detailing and delicate sparkly detailing the models looked like elegant swans. Charlotte Casadejus also had a feathery skirted number as did Matthew Williamson but in a shorter style. Another key trend I noticed was movement, as in skirts in delicate organza and tulle, that literally floated down the catwalk and looked gorgeous all flowing and billowing. Matthew Williamson had the most eclectic selection from appliqued flower details, to the amazing gold grecian number as well as a cool sophisticated column dress with a cowl back draping top. So beautiful.
Hello’s
And once I’d made my way around the entire show my weary feet needed a little rest. It was time to meet up with my blogger friend Elizabeth of Bridal Musings for an evening of retro bowling fun. Just time for a quick tipple or two before we headed off and during this time I was also so pleased to finally meet a many number of people who I’ve tweeted and emailed with over these last few months including:
- Emma of Miss Bush Bridalwear ~ regaling us with fascinating stories of Barcelona fashion week
- Andri of Always Andri ~ such a friendly lady I just wish we’d had longer to chat
- Annabel of Love My Dress ~ always a pleasure catching up with the lovely Annabel, again we just did not have enough time
- Anna of Anna and the Ring ~ who I was lucky enough to chat more with over our evening of dinner and bowling, I cannot begin to describe how lovely she is
- Neda Lahrodi-Blake – I first met Neda when I hooked up with her for the Love My Dress soiree last year so it’s wonderful to hear how her photography business has grown, Neda is a lot of fun and the line of the evening shall always be “Everything in Sweden looks like porn”
- Jenna of Lucky Sixpence Events ~ A fellow wedding planner and all-round lovely lady
On that note I bid farewell, I am sure there will be people I have missed from this list and for that I can only apologise, it was an incredibly brilliant but long day.
I wish you a wonderful weekend folks, whether you are living it up in a big City somewhere or cosying up at home, have a fab one.
Michelle xx
