You're Engaged !

Hello and congratulations, you’re engaged.

It is so lovely to be hearing about all the engagements happening while the world is such a challenging place. It reminds us that love really does overcome anything and we know from the brides we have helped find their dresses over the last 10 months, that it has only made them stronger as a couple.

When you are newly engaged of course the first thing a bride thinks about is ‘what will my dress be like ?’.  Maybe you already have a secret Pinterest board which you have been adding ideas and inspiration to for a long time and now you get to bring those ideas to life.  

In these times we have notice the way brides choose their dress has changed.  It used to be easy to visit a few  different boutiques and take your time, now brides are making decisions faster and if they love a dress, they say YES right there and then.  Standing by a bride when she knows she has found the one is hands down the best thing about working in our little shop.

The Wedding Room have a carefully hand picked collection. From the Australian inspired sophistication of Stella York to the effortless, yet chic and sensual Lillian West, we work hard to get the right selection for the modern bride.

Like most small businesses in the wedding industry right now, we are unable to do what we love but that is not slowing us down. Our amazing reviews are helping brides find us online and we have a growing waiting list, so if you are planing to start your search when we can reopen why not check them out on our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Then all you need to do is to get in touch so when we open we can help YOU find your perfect dress.

Photo courtesy of Bethany Pigott who got engaged to Suraj at Curbar Edge on June 2nd 2019.

They will tie the knot on August 30th 2021 at Thorpe Gardens

The Buying Process - Covid Style

One of the most pleasurable yet difficult processes of working in a bridal boutique is when the time comes to choose the next seasons dresses from your designers. Alongside from ensuring we are able to offer our brides a diverse collection which hopefully offers a selection for a variety of ages, body shapes, style and fit, it is also a time for the designers to thank us for being their customer. These events are the designers ‘showcases’ and we have been lucky enough to have had the opportunity to travel a little for this and to be, well let’s say a little ‘spoiled’. A perk of an already very rewarding job. But then Covid-19 happened and like so many of you, the way we work has had to change, including the process of buying our collection.

On Tuesday this week, we set off down the M1 to Milton Keynes to visit Justin Alexander, the designer of our ‘Lillian West’ collection. This is the first of this kind of event since March and we thought we would share how buying has changed.

Pre Covid-19 times these showcases would be part of a huge event featuring many different designers, there are two a year, one in Harrogate and one in London. Each designer has an area for their range and you arrive and browse at your leisure.  Refreshments are on tap, the rooms are styled to perfection and the dresses are being modelled by real woman so you have the opportunity to ask to see certain dresses on, see how they move, fit, catch the light (all the things that give a dress it’s magic). We would each make a shortlist of the ones we loved and then sit with a coffee (and a cake) and go through our lists, discussing the individual elements we loved for each design and how it would be a good addition to our current collection. Some we agree on and some we don’t but eventually we arrive at a final list (this takes some work). We sit down with our account manager and place our order, maybe enjoying a drink and a few sweets at the same time.  We get a little goody bag to take home and we are done – it is a stressful but very enjoyable process.

This time was a little different. Numbers are monitored so we must arrive at our allocated time, we put on our face coverings and use the hand gel and make our way to the exhibition room. Under the new guidelines the dresses sadly cannot be modelled by real people but are beautifully presented with all the details we need, images are available on iPads however the Wi-Fi is less than perfect, so this takes time.  As usual we have a list ready of the dresses, we think are potential, this is made beforehand from a presentation online (a bit like homework) so we have an idea of what we want to look at. We spend time together going over the dresses, feeling the fabric, checking how it will feel against the brides skin, notice the fine design details which make the dress unique and how ‘wearable’ it is in reality – there is a lot to consider.

After a good time focusing on the dresses, we take a break – but instead of refreshments laid on we have coffee vouchers so we head to the bar and order, we sit down, remove our face coverings and talk.  We get together a shortlist and return to check we’re happy with our selection, minds are often changed at this point so when were are happy we place our order – at this point we are already excited to take delivery of our dresses and see them on our brides, our job is done. 

Covid-19 HAS changed the way we buy, no doubt about it, it is different. But one thing we did find on this visit was the support and passion felt for the Wedding Industry. From talking to designers who were on hand to offer advice, to other boutique owners facing the same challenges we are, to the team working at Justin Alexander who’s roles have changed since the pandemic, everyone is feeling the same, which somehow gives comfort. One thing stands out, we are all looking forward to picking up where we left off in March. Maybe with a few lessons learned but with more passion and excitement than before.  After all, as we all keep being reminded, LOVE ISN’T CANCELLED.

Sample Dress Love

We all know that your wedding dress is possibly the most important item of clothing you will ever buy and choosing it should be a very special and memorable event - we pride ourselves in making sure your experience at The Wedding Room is the very best it can be.  We choose the dresses we have to offer our brides VERY carefully, making sure we have something for every bride, but after a while dresses become discontinued and we have to move our gorgeous dresses on to the sample rail, it's a sad day for us because it means we are no longer able to order dresses both ourselves and our brides love.

FEAR NOT !

Now is your chance to own one of these gorgeous gowns at a hugely reduced price, perfect for brides on a budget or for saving a little of the dress budget to go to something else.  Our favourites are some luxurious underwear or those shoes that seem devilishly impractical and self indulgent - we say GO FOR IT !

In store we have over thirty sample dresses, we do not always go for set 'sample sale' days, we know our dresses well and if a bride guides us to a style we know we have available in a sample then we will always offer it - finding your perfect dress is paramount to us.

We currently have sample dresses available from the following designers. 

Stella York, Lou Lou Bridal, La Sposa,

Eliza Jane Howell, Lillian West and Lusan Mandongus

 To make an appointment to come and see us and our dresses call 0115 9258876.