Hello
to all you beautiful newly-weds and brides-to-be!
Here is a recent blog about us by 'Sell My Wedding'...
Back
in 2010 Charlie and Emily, 2 friends from Brighton dreamt up the idea of the Brighton
Bridal Boot Fayre.
Whilst
planning their own weddings back in 2010, Charlie and Emily looked for
inspiration on many wedding blogs like Rock and Roll Bride, Ruffled and Love
My Dress. But when it came the time to start searching for details to make
their weddings personal, quirky and different from others, they found it was a
lengthy and expensive process, albeit very fun. The girls spent months trawling
the Internet, going to flea markets, car boot sales and 2nd hand
stores in order to collect all the paraphernalia they desired.
Once
they started collecting vases, tea light holders, material, lace, vintage bits
and decorations (the list goes on), they both had the same thoughts.... “What
are we going to do with all this after the wedding?!” The girls were both
living in small flats in Brighton and needed a way of clearing some of the
mountain of wedding clutter that had accumulated, they were also keen to make a
bit of money back. So the idea of a Bridal Boot Fayre was born, they could sell
on wedding items to other brides, so they could create an equally beautiful
day, but at a fraction of the cost.
The
first Brighton Bridal Boot Fayre took place in February 2011, Charlie and
Emily weren’t sure how popular the idea would be, but were sure there must
other brides out there, like them, and in the same position. They were full of
apprehension and started off small, too small in fact! The girls were blown
away when they realised how much interest there was - there was a queue around
the corner before they even opened the doors to the event. You can
imagine how pleased with how the first BBBF went.
In
March 2012 Charlie and Emily were invited along to a Wedding Networking Evening
held by Helen of Doily
Days and Kelly of Belle’s Events.
The girls got chatting to Kelly about her plans for more unique and alternative
wedding fairs across Sussex. They met lots of lovely people and spoke about
plans for the next Boot Fayre.
The
girls held one more Brighton Bridal Boot Fayre and then realised that along
with their full time jobs and Emily’s growing family they were unable to keep
up with the admin, arrangements, marketing and advertising that goes alongside
events like these.
Charlie
and Emily were so disappointed not to be able to keep up with their fabulous
idea, especially as they were still receiving enquiries. So in the spring of
2012 Charlie met up with Kelly of Belle’s
Events and asked if she would like to keep
the event running. Kelly was thrilled with the idea and since then has been
gathering more brides and suppliers for the next event, now named Belle’s Bridal
Boot Fair.
Kelly
told us “I was so chuffed that Charlie and Emily came to me to take on the
Bridal Boot Fair, I love boot sales, flea markets and vintage emporiums and my
job is running bridal fairs with a difference so this was a fantastic opportunity
for me. I also really appreciated the girls trust, they had built the event up
over a year and were so kind to pass it over, I just hope I can carry it off as
well as they did. I have found a new venue for the next one, the Ralli Hall in
Hove, it’s beautiful and as well as the fantastic brides and suppliers we will
have a pop-up tearoom run by the fabulous Jamqueen.
I have also added a new area within the fair which is a ‘Make Your Own Wedding
Workshop’ we will have some really talented suppliers in this area teaching
brides skills, such as making button holes, favours and how to do their own
vintage inspired make-up. More details about this will be available on the Belle’s Events website
in December.”
