Designer Vintage Bridal Show 2011

Wow, it's been an amazing couple of weeks for Lizzie Jayne and i'm finally starting to digest the fantastic time i've had and start to unpack. Wedding fairs are an incredible experience where you get to meet so many like minded brides and some of the most influential and inspiring people in the British wedding industry.

The Designer Vintage Bridal show first appeared on the wedding events calendar back in February this year and it was a huge success. I was desperate to be a part of the event and so flattered when I was invited to exhibit. So a couple of weeks ago my husband and I packed up the car with stands, tablecloths, photo albums, petticoats and many beautiful dresses and set our sights on Birmingham. Edgbaston Cricket Ground isn't really the first place you'd think of when you say the word 'vintage', but its blank canvas was the perfect place to fill with wedding loveliness. The perfect sized room for the perfectly chosen exhibitors.

I had an amazing time welcoming brides to my stand and helping them into a huge range of Lizzie Jayne dresses. I love the look on a brides face when they just *know* it's the perfect dress for their big day. 

During the catwalk shows the room emptied it was a great time to wonder around the venue and look at some of the amazing displays that some of the other exhibitors had put on. Right next door to me was Tobi Hannah, who brought along a beautiful and very bright range of 'occasion dresses' (perfect bridesmaid dresses).

One of the most popular stands of the day which was especially adored by the bridal bloggers, was that of Ava Event Styling. This is just a tiny taster, the flower table creation that they brought along was simply incredible. 

My personal favourite was the Wedding Yurts. Simply stunning. They literally pitched a yurt in the middle of the exhibition hall, complete with dining table, champagne cocktail bar and a fully made up king size bed. It was amazing, so cosy and felt a million miles away. If I was going to plan my wedding again, a yurt would most certainly be involved!

To top it all off, there was also a catwalk showing some of the best of the vintage inspired wedding gowns. I was so lucky to have the lovely Anna model a couple of my dresses, she looked incredible.

It was an amazing weekend and i'm already looking forward to the next one. For more information on the exhibitors and to keep an eye out for when the event returns, check out the DVB show website here: www.designervintagebridal.co.uk

All photographs copyright Ricky Banks www.rickybanks.co.uk

Designer Vintage Bridal Show - this weekend!

I've just about finished preparing, and I'm now really looking forward to Friday when I pack up my car with all my dress loveliness and drive to Birmingham for the Designer Vintage Bridal Show. The event takes place on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th October at Edgbaston Cricket ground.

I'm really excited about being part of this weekend, getting to meet the brides in person and seeing some of my dresses being enjoyed the way they should be. More than anything i'm looking forward to meeting all the other fantastic exhibitors who are coming along to the weekend. From the fantastic 'Meet the Bloggers', where you can meet and chat with Kat from Rock N Roll Bride and Annabel from Love My Dress to name a couple. To the stunning accessories like Rachel Simpson Shoes  and Magpie Vintage Jewellery. It really is an amazing collection of the best vintage inspired suppliers in the business and I feel more than honoured to be a part of it.

So come along, try on some of my dresses, choose some wonderful accessories and make your wedding amazing. For more details and tickets, check out the Designer Vintage Bridal Show website.

New Design - Josie

Back in early summer I met a lovely bride at a wedding fair who wanted the Grace design with a lace sleeve overlay over the bodice of the dress. I loved the idea so much that I decided to add the dress to the collection! I've just finished the first sample which i'll be taking to the wedding fair next week.

This version of Josie is made from pale ivory rough silk dupion, with a dark ivory lace overlay. I love the vintage feel of this new design, and I decided to keep it simple with a matching pale ivory sash and 3 layer, ribbon trimmed pale ivory petticoat. It's another dress to add to the collection, and hopefully i'll manage a photo shoot at some point. It will be available in all the usual options with coloured sashes and petticoats, silk satin and silk dupion. This would look stunning with a full silk tulle skirt like the Rose design.

Congratulations K8t and Nic

I've been looking forward to this blog post for months, ever since I first saw the photographs of K8t and Nic's wedding on the photographers website. It was worth the wait because they've now been added to with some simply amazing Trash the Dress photos as well. I love this bride, I love the groom, I love the wedding and I am simply in awe of the amazing photographer.

K8t contacted me from Las Vegas describing the dress that she wanted, it's the Grace design with a crossover bodice customisation,  a lowered back, a hot pink sash and 3 layer hot pink petticoat. The silk satin is a very pale ivory. Perfect.

After the wedding, K8t and Nic were lucky enough to enjoy a trash the dress shoot. I can't think of anything better than chucking bright paints at your new husband or wife. What a way to put a smile on your face. K8t was a bit nervous about telling me her plans for the shoot, but the way I see it is that wedding dresses are made to be worn once - if you can wear it twice then you've had double the fun out of the dress and it definitely is better than putting the dress into storage and never looking at it again (like my poor wedding dress).

If you happen to be a Vegas bride and looking for a fabulous photographer, then please don't hesitate to contact the fabulous Mike L. You can see more of his work on his website here http://www.mikelphotos.com/.