Find Your Dress - Without The Stress

Following on from my recent 'Frocks and Flowers' post, I would like to introduce you to the very lovely Nicole Gallagher and her bridal shop Pearl Bridal Boutique .   Nicole very kindly allowed me to style a shoot in her boutique and this was photographed by Jenny Mcavoy from Mcavoy Photography .   I love Jenny's relaxed, natural style of photography.  She is also a girl after my own heart who is in love with all things glamorous.

Whilst there I took the opportunity to find out more about Nicole and her plans for the future.......

Nicole explained that she has always had an interest in fashion and a creative side so the bridal industry is the perfect niche in the fashion industry for her.  Nicole has worked hard and from humble beginnings as a work experience placement in a bridal shop to now owning her own boutique, she really is an inspiration to anyone considering a career in bridal fashion.  She now has over eight years experience and so brides really are in safe hands with her when it comes to buying their perfect wedding dress.

She is passionate about her work and takes great pride and enjoyment from the journey she goes on with her brides from the initial meeting, right up to when they collect their dress and any alterations have been carefully done and everything is perfect.

Having her own boutique means she can put her own stamp on things from the style and design of the shop and the dresses she stocks, to getting creative when window dressing.  Whenever I pass I always drive by slowly to admire the window displays....

I asked her to tell me what is her favourite part of her job. Nicole told me, it has to be attending the trade shows to buy her collections.  She says it's just like a huge shopping spree!!!!

It is also very important to her that she makes sure she knows her collections inside and out and that she stocks a range of gowns which will suit all shapes and sizes.  She wants brides feel comfortable and have an enjoyable time in her shop when choosing their dress.  She ensures she stocks sample dresses in a range of sizes up to size 26.  During our shoot we picked out four dresses from her collection...

Charlotte By Sincerity (£785)

Grace by Jasmine (£580)

Carrie by White Rose (£535)

Chloe by white Rose (£895)

The Pearl Bridal boutique also stocks shoes by Rainbow Club  , Liza & Ellie K Tiaras  and Elizabeth Dickens Veils  so brides can complete their look.

As well as this there is also a lovely range of dresses for your bridesmaids from the Belsoie Collection by Jasmine .  This collection is flattering, fashionable and is available in a wide selection of colours.

(image by Jasmine)

As for the future, Nicole has big plans and the boutique is going from strength to strength.  Not only is she waiting for an imminent delivery of new stock for 212 and 2013 brides (I for one can't wait to see your new dresses!!!), she also has plans to expand the business.  She is hoping to stock a collection for Mother of the Bride and also for Grooms.

Thank you Nicole for allowing us to play 'dress up' in your shop and for sharing your plans with me.  So if you are searching for 'the one', this boutique really is a Pearl of a find!.

Frocks and Flowers

Last Wednesday the lovely Nicole, owner of Pearl Bridal Boutique  allowed me to invade her shop and play 'dress up'.  I arrived with loads of flowers, a gorgeous model and the talented Jenny Mcavoy ,who captured the whole proceedings beautifully.

I decorated the shop with a large Urn and vases filled with avalanche roses, stocks, lisianthus and hydrangeas all in shades of creams, white and ivory.  I also bought along bouquets in the same colours to compliment the dresses.

We had the pick of the shop's stunning gowns,  gorgeous shoes and had an absolute ball.......

I interviewed Nicole and a blog post telling her full story and that of her boutique will follow soon but, for now take a look at some of  Jenny's beautiful images.

By the end of an exhausting but great day, the shop was full of the scent of stocks and freesia, I had to resist the urge to take an armful of gorgeous dresses with me and Jenny had to be persuaded to put the fabulous red high heeled shoes she had tried on back in their box!

Nicole's full story is coming soon...

Luxe For Less

I had a little tweet with @BridesSkyTV this week who are working on a project with brides who want 'Luxe for Less'.   During today's tough economic climate there are lots of couples who are having to keep spending under control when it comes to planning their wedding.  However, this does not mean you have to forgo the wedding of your dreams.   Do your research, familiarise yourself with the industry and with suppliers.  Also keep your eyes peeled for genuine offers.  Keep an open mind and be prepared to be flexible and you really can achieve big things without necessarily the big budget.

With this in mind I have been having a little hunt to source a couple of the North West's gems.  When organising a wedding the first two items at the top of the list are - 1. The venue 2.The all important dress.  So here are two of my 'Friday Finds' for you.

First up if you want your dream dress you may want to make an appointment at The Ivory Lounge Chester
they are holding a fantastic Designer Bridal Gown Sample Sale on the 9th - 10th July.  With beautiful gowns starting from £100!

Next if you are looking for your perfect venue then check out Rookery Hall Hotel & Spa Nantwich, Cheshire which is part of the Handpicked Hotels collection.  I know this venue well having worked setting up wedding flowers there several times and it is beautiful.....and the spa is to die for!

(Images belong to Handpicked Hotels)
Visit their website and give these lovely people a ring to find out about their late availability dates, special offers and inclusive packages.  They have some great all inclusive packages for example their Winter Wedding 2011 package.  If you are able to be flexible with dates you can also pick from a selection of enhancements to the package. Take your pick from chair covers and bows for 60 guests, upgrade to a suite on your wedding night, 5 complimentary bedrooms, make-up trial prior to your wedding.  Depending on which date you go for you can pick 1 or 2 enhancements from this list.

So in one weekend you could for example bag yourself a dream dress at a fraction of the original price, a beautiful winter wedding venue with brilliant and money saving extras thrown in!

So get savvy when it comes to organising your wedding and  I hope my 'Friday Finds' help you achieve a perfect day.  

And The Winner Is.......

Yesterday's post and Competition featuring Jelly Tots & Dolly Mixtures was a huge success and I had a record number of hits to the blog.  As a new blogger I often gaze upon the 'big players' with blog envy. To be able to quote monthly page hits the size of those of Rock My Wedding  or to have interviews with big names in the wedding industry similar to those featured on Love My Dress and to be offering sponsorship packages like the fabulous English Wedding.   Maybe one day I will be able to say.."Rambling Rose Media Pack now available."
Yesterday's post has actually resulted in an email from a company wanting to be featured on the blog, so let the journey begin.....

Obviously building up a following takes time, effort, hard work and most importantly good content.  There is also the whole mind field of SEO's, Google Ads, RSS feeds etc. etc.  However, despite today's technically advanced world it would appear old fashioned methods to do still work. - "OFFER FREE CAKE!!!!"

So thank you to all who visited yesterday I hope you enjoyed the post and also a big thank you to those who took the time to enter the competition.

Without further a do, the winner of the gorgeous Jelly Tots and Dolly Mixtures Cakes is.........................LELA CRIBBIN!!!! Well done Lela, lady luck has been shining on you. I hope you enjoy your cakes!

There is lots more to come on the blog so I hope you will stop by again.  However, I can't promise there will always be free cake.

The Baking of an Empire

The tea is brewed and there are PLENTY of cakes so take a seat and join us for a chat with Louise from Jelly Tots and Dolly Mixtures
Her company came to my attention during the early part of 2010 when I noticed a shop very close to my home undergoing refurbishment.  I would frequently pass and watch as the shop was gutted and transformed from a drab unit into a beautiful pretty pink palace.  It's the kind of shop I wish I owned (my small issue of poor baking skills aside).

Louise's cupcake journey began after being made redundant from a career in forensics with the police.  She explains....."  I love baking and spent alot of time baking cakes while I was job hunting after my redundancy.  I made cupcakes for friends and family which proved very popular.  Whilst working for the Police Force in London I saw lots of cupcake boutiques but on my return to Manchester, noticed there was nothing like this.    I decided this was what I wanted to do."  Louise found the shop and refurbished it during terrible weather and snow.  It took a little longer than she thought to get the shop just as she wanted but by May 2010 it was perfect and ready to open.

With a beautiful product and her passion for customer service her business has grown from day one.  So what has been your proudest moment...." I think my proudest moment so far has been getting the contract to supply cupcakes to Selfridges.  With nothing to loose I contacted Selfridges and by July 2010 my cupcakes were in store."

And what are your plans for the future......."The future of the business is looking very exciting.  We have just agreed a huge contact with the high end supermarket Booths.  Our cupcakes will soon be stocked in the Knutsford branch, followed by Media City and gradually expanding to their 26 stores!! We are also in correspondence with other companies and we are looking into opening another shop."

As I have already mentioned Louise is passionate about customer service and when I asked her what is the best part of her job, she said........"After the baking which I will always love, it has to be meeting my customers.  Whether they are just popping in for one cupcake or booking their wedding, each cupcake and customer is special to us!"  No matter how busy Louise is she always makes time to go to the front of the shop and say hello and chat to her customers.

So let's tuck in and talk CAKES!! Jelly Tots & Dolly Mixtures create high end quality cupcakes for customers to enjoy everyday of the week and for those of you on diets - Please look away now!!

Louise admits her favourite flavour has to be the RED VELVET.  She temptingly says..."It is a deliciously light vanilla cupcake with just a hint of cocoa.  It really does have the texture of velvet and melts in the mouth.  It is topped with a smooth but rich cream cheese topping.  It is the best seller in our boutique and has also become the best seller for Selfridges.

For those of you who are now salivating and need a cupcake 'fix' Jelly Tots & Dolly Mixtures cupcakes  can be purchased from their beautiful pink boutique and in the food hall at Selfridges  in the Trafford Centre. Standard cupcakes are £1.80 and specials are £2.00.  Or treat friends and family and choose 12 from across their range of flavours for £20.  They also deliver so give them a call or check the website for details.

IT'S COMPETITION TIME !!! So Hands Up if you would like a cupcake.......?!!!!!!!!  ( Can't believe I just asked such a daft question!!!!)

We have a box of six absolutely gorgeous Jelly Tots and Dolly Mixtures cupcakes to give away to one lucky person.    However please note - As these cakes are delicate they cannot be posted and so this competition is open to the lovely folk of Greater Manchester and Cheshire.  Jelly Tots and dolly Mixtures have a large delivery area including up to Bolton and over to Knutsford  Big apologies farther flung friends!

So to be in with a chance of winning simply add a comment to this post or email me or tweet me @rosaandco with the reason why you deserve this 'Sweet Treat'!! - Good Luck!

As for me I have really enjoyed my tea and cake, so "Thank you Louise" I say as I wipe my sticky fingers and the sweet crumbs from the side of my mouth.....oh go on then just one more....

Job Done

A little peek at some of Fridays wedding flowers ready to go to Rookery Hall ........

And the candy coloured germinis ready to dress Shaw Hill Golf and Country Club ......

The full story of these weddings will follow but both couples had fantastic days and were really thrilled with their flowers!

With the flowers for this weekends weddings successfully done, I think its time for a well earned sit down, cup of tea and not forgetting a lovely cake.

So stop by the blog tomorrow and I will be doing just that with the very lovely Louise from Jelly Tots & Dolly Mixtures  She will be sharing the story behind her gorgeous Cupcake Company and of course her gorgeous cakes.

(image and logo by Sixes and Sevens Design )

'Yes Please' to the Sleeve

So this week I have been looking at the trend for lace which was worn by both Kate Middleton and more recently Lily Allen.  Both gorgeous dresses and..... both had sleeves!!

I have been moaning for some considerable time now about how brides seem to go for very similar dresses, especially where the top half is concerned.   You and Your Wedding Magazine  editor Miranda Eason also recently expressed her pleasure in the return of the sleeve in her Editor's Letter from the current edition (July/August 2011) of the magazine.

So come on brides let's embrace the sleeve.  There are loads of stunning bridal gowns out there with sleeves from full length, 3/4, short or capped.  Again as with my earlier post I cannot blog about bridal dresses without discussing  Sassi Holford Bridal, who it has to be said is a real favourite of mine.

Here are my Sassi Holford picks for those of you considering sleeves.....

This is Sassi Holford's Samantha dress (image belongs to Sassi Holford)

Or if you want to keep the sleeves short have a look at Sassi Holford's Georgie dress (image belongs to Sassi Holford)

Sassi Holford's Willow dress would be perfect for 'country' themed weddings teamed with a relaxed country style hand tied bouquet....Think pale roses, scented stocks and herbs.  (Image belongs to Sassi Holford)

And finally the Roseanna Dress which would be stunning for a winter wedding teamed with a posy of red roses. (image belongs to Sassi Holford)

So happy dress hunting ladies and please....consider the sleeve!