Wedding Wonder of the Week! Juicy Occasions

Today I have a really fab Wedding Wonder of the Week: Juicy Occasions. I've known Lucy for a while now, we 'met' through the wonders of social media. And today is their 1st birthday! So here's my present to you Lucy - a little blog post all about the amazing Juicy Occasions......

• Tell me a bit about yourself and your company.

My name is Lucy, I am an Events Management graduate who decided to take the plunge and start her own company. My company is called Juicy Occasions (after my nickname Juicy Lucy) and we are wedding and event specialists based in Berkshire.

• Are you married? If not: do you have a secret wedding wish list?

I am not married, however I do have a boyfriend who I have been with for a long time. I would love a summer festival themed wedding – so outdoor tent, camping, wellies etc. I would love a huge circus tent for the reception, with candy floss, dodgems and fair rides etc.......I suppose the other thing on my list would be the budget to match this!

• What attracted you to working in the wedding industry?

I love working on events from start to finish, and being with the customer on the day. I have worked all types of events but Weddings are the most fun, most rewarding and I get a bigger sense of achievement when everything goes well!

• What is your favourite part of working with bride & grooms (to-be)?

Capturing their ideas on paper and turning them into reality!

• What is your most favourite wedding theme at the moment?

It has got to be Autumn themed. I don't know why but I am really liking the rustic orange and burnt red look at the moment. I think it is because I was watching an old episode of Glee where a couple got married and I just really loved the theme.

• Top wedding tip?

Dont mention the word Wedding unless you have to! Suppliers and venues can hike up the price just because they know its a wedding.

• What do you think the next big wedding trends might be?

Well currently its vintage......so I think the next one could be Carnival?!

• Where can we find your fabulous company? 

www.juicyoccasions.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/#!/JuicyOccasions1

https://twitter.com/#!/JuicyOccasions

• What are your plans for the future?

I am hoping to expand and branch out into a new area of the wedding and events business with my Aunty. At the moment we are having rennovation works for this so I cannot let the cat out of the bag just yet!

Thank you so much to Lucy for sharing all of this with us. I hope you're having a great 1st Birthday!

Love Kate x

Wedding Wonder of the Week! Adore Photography

Happy Wednesday all! Today I have a cracker of a 'wonder' for you.......Mike from Adore Photography™. I first 'met' Mike in Twitterland and he's always been very supportive of my work, so I wanted to share some of his fantastic work with you!

• Tell me a bit about yourself and your company.

Hello! My name is Mike Litchfield and I run adore photography™. I studied photography and design 14 years ago. It was a great education and enabled me to spend a lot of time in studios and in darkrooms. Away from college I assisted various wedding and portrait photographers in Nottingham and Derbyshire. But my career headed down the design route, where I spent 10 years working as a graphic designer in studios and agencies. The photography skills often helped, as I shot a lot of images for the studio's clients. But 3 years ago the desire for self-employment proved too strong, I left the design agency and set up adore photography™ and Litchy™ - for graphic and web design services.

• Are you married?
  • If no: do you have a secret wedding wish list?

No I'm not married. No I can't believe it either (tongue firmly in cheek!), but the only wish I have is that it is a nice and relaxed affair. Cheery, well designed little touches and decorations around the place. But most importantly that my bride, family and friends all have a good time. I know I will.

• What attracted you to working in the wedding industry?

There are multiple reasons really. The biggest buzz, I think, is providing a couple with images that they are delighted with. Images that they feel have captured the spirit of their wedding, especially the bits they may have missed themselves.

• What is your favourite part of working with bride & grooms (to-be)?

You're in a very privileged position, close to what's happening at a very important time in people's lives. I shoot mostly reportage style; I hide myself in the background usually, so I can enjoy seeing the emotions of the bride and groom and how they change throughout the day. It's great to observe!

• What is your most favourite wedding theme at the moment?

I love the vintage feel that some people are going for at the moment. Either all the way, or just vintage influenced. It makes for a nice relaxed atmosphere too.

• Top wedding tip?

Bach's Rescue Remedy!!

• What do you think the next big wedding trends might be?

Good question! I tend to keep an eye on what happens in the States, where I have a few contacts, as I feel that has a big influence on trends over here. With the Jubilee happening and the way the economy is, I think 'vintage' may become more 'mainstream'. But I just think that weddings are becoming more of a personal experience and a reflection of the bride and groom's personalities. That’s how I think it should be, really.

• Where can we find your fabulous company? 

The website is at www.adorephotography.co.uk

But you can interact with the photography business at www.facebook.com/adorephotography & www.twitter.com/adorephoto

If you're interested there's also a bit more at http://about.me/mikelitchfield

• What are your plans for the future?

To keep building both businesses and possibly move into a few other areas. I think there are numerous possibilities for adore photography™, including taking on more photographers and offering other wedding services, whilst maintaining my own vision. I'm always interested in hearing people's views and suggestions, so if your readers have any I would love to hear them.

Immediate future plans are getting out into this sunshine though!

Cheers!

Mike

Thank you so much to Mike for taking the time to share all of this with us! I hope this encourages you to check out Mike's website where you can marvel at more of his captivating photographs!

I'd also love to know your thoughts!

Love Kate x

Wedding Wonder of the Week: Serendipity Floral Designs

Hello - Happy "Hump Day" (as in climbing up the hump that is the middle of the week!)


Today I'm back with my Wedding Wonders! Whoop!

Introducing my Wedding Wonder of the Week: Sally from SerendipityFloral Designs. I first 'met' Sally through Twitter and have admired her beautiful floral creations from afar! So whilst tweeting one day I thought I should feature Sally on my blog......and here we are:

• Tell me a bit about yourself and your company.

I’m Sally Johnson, 37 years old a floral designer (& teacher)  & owner of Serendipity Floral Designs, Leeds. I love chatting, coffee, green & black’s chocolate, sunshine, being by the sea and swimming!  Serendipity specialises in designing & creating exquisite floral designs for weddings/events across Yorkshire but work also encompasses funeral tributes & special occasion flowers.

• Are you married?
• If no: do you have a secret wedding wish list?

I’m not yet married and mmmm I really haven’t got a secret wedding wish list, except that my friend Nicola Denbigh of ‘Little Cakes’ is already in the process of designing the 7 tier cake ……oh and I just LOVE ‘marquee’ weddings!

• What attracted you to working in the wedding industry?

After training as a general florist at college, I then continued on to study ‘wedding floristry’ as I loved the work involved in designing & creating the bridal/reception flowers. I saw the wire work involved in creating stunning bridal bouquets & just wanted to learn how to do it! After studying floristry for four years, I just knew I had found my dream job as a specialist wedding florist and set up ‘Serendipity Floral Designs’.

• What is your favourite part of working with bride & grooms (to-be)?

I love meeting the bride & groom for the first time (the first consultation), listening to their ideas & then the whole process of bringing their floral vision into reality.

• What is your most favourite wedding theme at the moment?

My current favourite wedding theme is the ‘vintage’ theme, which means I can use all the beautiful pale pink, pale peach & ivory blooms.

• Top wedding tip?

In regards to wedding flowers, be realistic about your flower budget & let your chosen florist know this from the start. A good wedding specialist should then be able to come up with ideas & designs to fit your budget & vision at the same time.

• What do you think the next big wedding trends might be?

I think the next big wedding trends (in terms of flowers) will be the return of the ‘big’ old fashioned trailing bouquets which we were popular in the 1920’s.

• Where can we find your fabulous company?

I’m based in Leeds, West Yorkshire & run Serendipity from my home based workshop. I travel to see my clients at venues across the whole of Yorkshire. You can find Serendipity at www.serendipityfloraldesigns.co.uk & www.facebook.com/SerendipityFloralDesigns 

• What are your plans for the future?

To continue working with the lovely brides & grooms of Yorkshire but to also move more into the events market.

Thanks to Sally for sharing of of this with us I hope there's lots of Yorkshire Brides who will get in touch for their Wedding Flowers! 

Love Kate x

Wedding Wonder of the Week: Philosophy Flowers

Happy Wednesday all!

Today I have an utterly gorgeous company to introduce you to; Philosophy Flowers. I stumbled upon these fab girls on Twitter not so long ago and instantly 'clicked' with them, I think it was the lure of the beautiful butterfly they use as their 'symbol'.......which incidentally Rebecca had at her own wedding scattered around bushes for decoration. Just gorgeous!
I'm over the moon that Philosophy Flowers are my Wedding Wonder of the Week so here you go......

PHILOSOPHY FLOWERS

• Tell me a bit about yourself and your company.

Philosophy Flowers was formed by two sisters, Sarah and Rebecca. We have both always had a keen interest in floristry and pursued something that was once a hobby into something more when our eldest sister married in 2005. Once we were fully qualified we decided to focus on wedding floristry which enables us to offer a very focused and personalised service to the bride and groom.  Being freelance wedding florists enabled us to be more specialised in style and trends of the industry, it’s all in the details. As our first client was our sister we have always aimed to make our bride and grooms feel part of the Philosophy family. As we are a two person team we only ever work on one wedding at a time so a couple get our undivided attention and love.

• Are you married and if so will you share some of your details?

Rebecca married Mark in 2009. We decided to have an intimate ceremony and breakfast with 45 close friends and family. The reception was held in Rebecca’s parent’s garden in a marquee followed by an evening reception at the Castlefield Rooms where we were joined by more friends and extended family. Highlights of the day was an insane down pour, our fantastic band at the evening reception but most of all our vintage black and ivory double decker bus we used to ferry our guests from venue to venue. The flowers of course were our favourite flower of all time, peonies and we mixed in muted foliage and herbs, sweet avalanche roses, Spanish moss and sweet William. We wanted to have a classic but vintage theme so opted for a black and white colour theme with pink flowers. We went to town on the flowers for the evening reception trying to create an old ‘Italiano’ feel. We used various props to contain the flowers such as candelabras, urns and birdcages.  My favourite thing of all was my bouquet which was a simple hand tie of pink and white peonies, with a few sprigs of rosemary for added fragrance.

• What attracted you to working in the wedding industry?

We have also had a keen eye for detail and wedding flowers open up the opportunity to work on something beautiful themes. What better way to showcase beautiful flowers and displays than in a grand wedding venue with a captive audience, who want to soak up the whole atmosphere. We also thrive under pressure and wedding flowers are certainly quite a pressured area of the industry. Working with live flowers that all need individual preparation, handling, care and attention certainly has its moments! But our experience allows us to work with each flower to ensure it reaches the venue in perfect condition. There is also nothing more lovely than handing a bride her bouquet on the morning of her wedding and to see her cry with joy as we have created exactly what she has been picturing and more. Although we certainly don’t aim to make bride’s cry!

• What is your favourite part of working with bride & grooms (to-be)?

It’s always lovely to meet with brides and grooms especially from the floral aspect, sitting down together and going over their ideas and getting their creative juices flowing. I think during our consultations we give the bride and groom the opportunity to envisage their wedding day. A big part of our job is coaxing out little details from a client that could really give their wedding flowers a real wow factor. How we achieve expectations and beyond is very rewarding.

• What is your most favourite wedding theme at the moment?

Of course the recent trend for all things vintage and shabby chic has been lovely to work to as every bride’s vision and take in it is slightly different. The chance to incorporate lots of typically English flowers into pretty natural looking display has been fantastic. However, our favourite recently was a wedding we travelled to Hickling in Norfolk for as the bride really embraced her country / farming roots and wanted a really natural look. Using lots of glass pots and jars, jugs and milk urns with fantastic flowers, thistles and herbs was amazing. The journey down to Norfolk with a husband who suffers from hay fever was interesting though!

• Top wedding tip?

Part of our aim in setting up and creating our website and facebook page was to impart as much neutral advice as possible to any potential couples that may be looking for wedding inspiration, even if they don’t use us for their flowers. As such this is why we try to give a Wedding Flowers tip every day if possible. We also use our blog and facebook page to keep any visitors up to date with all the styles and wedding trends that we hope they would find useful.

However we think that our number 1 tip would be that no matter what your budget and theme if you are resourceful and do as much homework as possible then your florist will be able to perfectly create your dream flowers. The more information you can give us at your consultation the more creative we can be in relation to your theme.

• What do you think the next big wedding trends might be?

We feel the recent claim that the ‘vintage wedding trend is dead’ is a little off the mark but we do see a move towards more understated classic glamour. Think Audrey Hepburn and we don’t think you will be far from the mark. However, we always try to steer our clients to a vision that perfectly encapsulates their style and inspiration. Wedding trends are there to give brides and grooms inspiration for what kind of wedding they ‘could’ have. By keeping abreast of these latest trends we can offer advice on what elements could work for a given bride’s style and vision.

• Where can we find your fabulous company?

We are actually located in a little town called Atherton (in Manchester) but generally our working locale is the whole of the Manchester region, Lancashire, Cheshire and Yorkshire. As mentioned before we have travelled as far as Norfolk and have also completed a number of weddings in Yorkshire.  As freelance florists we don’t actually have a shop front so to speak of so we travel to clients to for our consultations. We think this helps to keep brides relaxed and at ease during their initial meeting with us.

Website: www.philosophyflowers.co.uk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/PhilosophyF   

Facebook: www.facebook.com/PhilosophyFlowers

• What are your plans for the future?

Without doubt we have a vision of opening our own little shop sometime in the future. We do feel the location and time needs to be right to do this though as we hope to offer not just wedding flowers but also our hand made items. At the moment we make wooden love hearts, card boxes, post boxes and pedestals so our brides can also hire those to complete their day. As we also have glassware, birdcages, candelabras etc our shop would be a real treasure trove of wedding style when we eventually open it. We also would love to run flower workshops as we really want to pass our skills on also. A lovely bonus would be if we can some how incorporate a cake / tea room as well this would perfectly complete our vision. We can only dream!


I'd like to say a huge thanks to these lovely girls for sharing all of this with us, and also to wish them every success for the future I'm sure they will go far!


Love Kate x

Friday Feature! Made by Miss Mower

Today's Friday Feature is slightly later than usual on account of it being Remembrance Day 2011. We will never forget.....

I have an utterly adorable girl to introduce you to today......Chloe from Made by Miss Mower. I had the great pleasure of working with Chloe many moons ago, and she was a constant ray of sunshine in an otherwise dull and dreary place :) You WILL fall in love with Chloe and her work......fact!

• About you......who you are, what you like, what you don’t like…. Basically anything you want to share

My name is Chloe Mower, I’m a Textiles teacher by day and a start up business by night (and school holidays).

I love all things vintage, for the home, for the body, for the mind and spirit! I don’t know if it is because I was born in the wrong era or if my naivety craves a simpler way of life. I like when people smile at each other, open the door for someone and offer out their last Rolo. It gladdens the heart when I see an old couple walking hand in hand down the street kicking autumn leaves like they were still 18 years old. I really feel like we need to spread a little love these days and this is what I try to do, as a teacher, as a friend and through lovely dresses!

(Above is my model Caroline in two of my ‘Made by Miss Mower’ dresses)

I have always wanted to be a costume designer, I love making fancy dress costumes and I’m often the one making these for all my friends, I don’t take myself too seriously so I don’t mind looking ridiculous, as long as I’m having fun and laughing.

(Above is one of many costumes I have made for a themed party, this one happened to be Blackadder and I was Queenie. Next to this is my mad hatters tea party with two of my very brilliant and creative friends, Fiona and Drew and all our handmade hats)

• About your company......when, why and how you started, what your company does and why it does it best, where can we find you (email, website, shop, etc)

Made by Miss Mower is about Vintage inspired clothing and home ware items which put that little bit of sunshine in your life. I love seeing people’s faces when they find the perfect dress that makes them want to twirl around until they get dizzy, so I thought why not be the one who makes those moments for people.

When and why it started: I’m completely obsessed with the incredible style and quality of clothing from the 1920’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s, the way the garments fit like a second skin, a skin which makes you look amazing and feel confident! I, like many others I’m sure, find it hard to find true vintage garments in my size, so it was after an unsuccessful vintage shopping trip that I decided to turn my frown upside down and put my talents to good use.

I make vintage inspired garments in a range of sizes, mostly they are one-off pieces as I offer a custom made service – with this customers can either choose one of my stock designs (changing elements if they wish), or bring me a picture of a garment they have seen and I then make the pattern to their measurements and the garment in their chosen fabrics. The beauty of this for the customer is that I then have their personalised pattern block saved and stored so I can make more garments for them in the future using just this block. It is almost like a personal vintage shop made just for you. I am currently designing a range of garments which link eras to body shape, so that customers can choose the vintage that is perfect for them.

I also make lovely home ware items so that your house can match your beautiful new clothes! I adore floral fabrics and polka dots so you will see a lot of this in my products, such as the reversible pinnies, oven gloves, British flag door stops and draft excluders. I also enjoy a good cushion, I often personalise these for customers by hand embroidering letters and shapes onto lovely vintage/kitsch fabrics.

Though my company is in its infancy there a numerous ways of contacting me;

chloemower86@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/groups/MadebyMissMower/

Twitter: @madebymissmower

www.madebymower.wordpress.com

www.folksy.com/shops/MadebyMissMower

• What or who inspires you?

This could be a dangerous question, due to the fact that I am inspired by many people and things, but also that talking about people brings out the cheesy side of me.

The people in my life whom inspire me are;

My mum – Her strength of character is second to none, she had Cancer three years ago and she never once let it become her, there was no doubt in her mind she would beat it and be back to fabulous in no time! She is the kind of person who knows what she wants and knows how to get it whilst being perfectly lovely to everyone!

My Dad – Always has confidence in me especially when I lacked my own. He is my own personal Brian Cox, there is literally nothing this man doesn't know (except how to make clothes). 

Christopher Blower (my boyfriend) – He is constantly wanting to learn, new information, skills, guitar riffs. He is persistently positive and supportive and must always be the best he can be.

Lisa Kay of ‘Vintage Belle candles’ – I met her at a Vintage fair in Altrinham a couple of weeks ago, she makes gorgeous smelling candles in vintage teacups and glasses, she was so lovely and happy. She is amazing. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vintage-Belle-Candles-By-Lisa-Kay/210309255658192

Kirsty Allsop – I LOVE LOVE LOVE HER!!! Even though she steals my ideas. I just love how she embraces her body, her quirks and her personal style. She is like a kindred spirit.

And all my wonderful friends!

I am also inspired by the 1950’s pin-up girls/posters, it is what I believe is truly sexy, leaving things to the imagination, showing just a little and not too much.

• Top 3 on your wish list right now?

1) An Overlocker

2) An Iphone

3) The Vintage Tea Party Book

• Tell us your best/ funniest joke…………go on its Friday!

This is mega tough! Erm, the one I always break out is;

What kind of bee produces milk? A Boobee

• What do you have planned for this weekend?

Every weekend is a wonderful and mysterious adventure which I love to be surprised by. Which is a poetic way of saying nothing, until I make last minute plans with friends or Chris.

• Finally (thank Chrunchie) what give’s you that ‘Friday-Feeling’?

Hmmmm, many factors give me that Friday feeling…main one is THE FRIDAY DANCE!!!! My housemate Kate and I jog like a crab on the spot real fast, it’s really something.

Thank you for reading, have a lovely Friday, and weekend!

Lovely stuff,

MMM

x

I hope you've enjoyed reading all about Miss Mower and seeing some of her wonderful creations........we'd love to hear your thoughts..................

I'd like to say a massive thank you to Chloe to sharing all of this with us, and also to take this opportunity to wish her the best of luck with her business which I'm sure will only go from strength to strength.

Have a fab weekend all!

Love Kate x

Wedding Wonder of the Week: Tamaryn's Treasures

Hello! I'm so excited to be featuring the most scrumptious company - and I mean scrumptious in every way! From their gorgeous vintage china hire to the yummy and 'oh-so' pretty sweetie tables, Tamaryn's Treasures is a real delight and I'm so pleased that they are my Wedding Wonder of the Week! I have had the great pleasure of working with Tamaryn on a few occasions this year and not only does she have a great company to top it off she is a fantastic girl........read for yourselves:

• Tell me a bit about yourself and your company.

Tell me a bit about yourself and your company. I am 30 years old and have worked in the wedding industry for six years. I am creative and love everything to do with weddings! Tamaryn's Treasures hires out vintage china, candelabras, table plans, decorations and pretty much everything you can think of! We do sweetie tables and cupcakes and have a beautiful online boutique selling confetti, parasols, favours, decorations and of course... your fabulous stationery! (I am very lucky that Tamaryn sells Kate Lewis Design wedding stationery on her beautiful website!)

• Are you married? If yes, will you share some of your details?

We got married last July in Mallorca. We have been going there for the last seven years and it was where Jeremy proposed to me. We were blessed to have 45 guests travel to our wedding.  The surroundings were very bright, green and luscious so to make it look weddingy (?) and stand out, I went for a very pale blush pink and lots of white. In response to Kate's question 'What did you love the most?' I would struggle to say really. I loved all of it so much. I remember being so excited the day before when everyone was arriving and everyone was in the best mood as they had just arrived on holiday! I adored our flowers so much. My husband said I didn't look at him when I was walking down the aisle because I was mesmerised by the flowers. I went for a style that I had never seen before and they were so personal to us and our wedding. When I see any of the flowers we used now it takes me back to that day. I loved our cake and wedding favours from Peggy Porschen... so much so that we drove our cake to Mallorca! I loved my lace and sparkly dress, my tiara, veil and shoes! I loved my bridesmaid dresses a lot too. They all looked so stunning. They designed the dresses themselves... I just chose the fabric and said it had to be knee length... the rest was up to them!

• What attracted you to working in the wedding industry?

I just loved everything about it. I love being creative and organised. I love running my own business. I love flowers, stationery, cakes, wedding dresses and everything that goes with weddings. I'm still like a kid in a sweet shop looking through magazines and new products!

• What is your favourite part of working with bride & grooms (to-be)?

When they are so happy on the day once they have seen everything set up and it looks just like (or better than!) they dreamed!

• What is your most favourite wedding theme at the moment?

I'm definitely into the sweetie theme at the moment! Whenever I set up a sweetie table, everyone at the venue just goes mad for it and are so excited.. and they aren't even the guests! I love doing them with ornate jars and in vintage pinks... it's just so girly!

• Top wedding tip?

Choose a company to do your decorations whose style you like... they will get your vision! A professional and creative company will help you make your venue look stunning whatever your budget. I love creating a reception that has a huge impact but it is even more satisfying when you've done it to a tight budget... I love a challenge!

• What do you think the next big wedding trends might be?

Sweetie Trees for centre pieces! I love doing sweetie tables but I am even more excited to be starting sweetie trees. They look amazing and it is a great way to get guests to mingle as they go up to other tables to steal their sweets!

• Where can we find your fabulous company?

www.tamarynstreasures.co.uk. We have offices in Alderley Edge, Cheshire; Sheffield and Harrogate, Yorkshire.

You can also find Tamaryn’s Treasures on Twitter and Facebook

• What are your plans for the future?

Apart from the sweetie trees... just to continue with Tamaryn's Treasures. We only started less than a year ago and already have 40 weddings this year. All I want to do is see this keep growing and receive lots of stunning photos and comments from new brides!

I'd like to say a massive thanks to Tamaryn for taking the time to share all of this with us and for sending so many gorgeous photos! Anyone else feel the need to go and buy a huge bag of sweets now too??? 


Love Kate x