Accessories Event with Aliya Rose

A couple of weeks ago I was thrilled to attend an Accessories evening held at Aliya Rose, in Cupar, Fife.  Aliya Rose are our exclusive stockists for the East of Scotland and hold a vast range of pieces from the Starstruck Designs collection.

The evening started at 5pm, and as well as accessories advice from Kirsty and Liz from Aliya Rose and myself, brides could also discuss ideas for their hair and make-up from Princess Cut Hair and Karen Bowen Make-up.  There was plenty of pink fizz available (and I *may* have enjoyed a glass or two myself!).

Brides started arriving just after 5pm and continued to do so until about 9pm.  The shop was busy throughout the entire evening, although the atmosphere remained relaxed and fun, even though I did worry that I wouldn't get around to speaking with everyone!

It was wonderful to meet so many lovely brides, and holding the event in the shop meant that we could have a good look at their dresses.  This was incredibly useful for those who wanted something a little bit more bespoke in the way of accessories as we could get a really good idea of what would work, and what colours would be best.

I'm certainly going to be busy over the next few weeks with the orders that were placed on the night, including a fabulous bespoke version of the Gloriosa flower side tiara which I cannot wait to get stuck into!

Its going to be a combination of elements from the original design, and some from the Anemone flower side tiara.  Watch this space for the finshed design!

Thank you to Aliya Rose, for hosting such a fabulous event, and to all the brides who attended.  I had so much fun, and really hope to be able to another soon!

Cherry Blossom Wedding

I don't know what it is about cherry blossom, but I have a bit of a weakness for it.  I love the pink, the delicate flowers, and I love the taste of cherries, which I suppose also contributes to the general feeling of loveliness I get when I think of cherry blossom.  So on my travels around t'internet, i've been saving images of these gorgeous flowers when applied to all things bridal.

First on my list of "I LOVE" inspirations is this utterly stunning Cherry Blossom Cake by Intricate Icings. 

You absolutely simply MUST click on the link to their website (the photo links to the cake on their blog).  In case you have missed it, this is the link to their website:   http://www.intricateicings.com  I know they are an American company, and for my UK readers, you aren't going to be ordering a cake from them, but...they are awesome, and I really, really mean that.  Please, for me, click on the "Inspiration" tab.  I've never seen anything like it before, and i'm rather hugely in love with their designs.

I also love this cake by Complete Deelite - cherry blossom flowers, without the wooden stem, which is the bit that I can live without anyway - perfect!

But if you are planning on cupcakes, rather than the more traditional tiered wedding cake, you can't go wrong with these gorgeously cute cupcake wrappers from Cupcake Couture

I found it quite hard to find cherry blossom bouquets, but really love this from DK Designs:

The flowers are clay, so this would make such a gorgeous heirloom as well as looking beautiful on the day!

For Cherry Blossom thank you cards, these are from Wedding Paraphernalia.  The flowers are so delicate, with such a stunning colour to them.  They also sell cherry blossom paper fans, which would make beautifully themed favours for female guests.

For Cherry Blossom inspired hair accessories, we have a Cherry Blossom Side Tiara at Starstruck Designs.  She's not yet on the website, but keep a eye open for our newest range, coming soon...no name as yet, although Starstruck Boutique is a bit of a front runner!

And last but by no means least, are these utterly gorgeous shoes by Harriet Wilde:

I've never seen anything like them before, and must admit to having fallen head over heels (pun intended!) in love with them!

So what IS the difference between Clear and ClearAB?

This has to be one of the most common questions that I have been asked over the 10 years that i've been making bridal tiaras and jewellery!

There seems to be quite a divide within the industry as to which of them is "better", which is more sparkly, and which works best with other colours.  So I should probably at this point add a bit of a disclaimer - whilst this article contains some facts, which can't be disputed, a lot of it is MY opinion, based on my tastes and preferences.  That means that there is no right or wrong, and if you don't agree, well, hey - isn't it great that we all like different things!

So let's start with what they are, and how they are different.

In the photo above, are two Swarovski crystals.  On the left is a single Clear crystal, and on the right are 4 images of the same Clear AB crystal*.  AB stands for Aurora Borealis, which of course is the name of stunning natural phenomenon otherwise knows as the Northern Lights.  On the Swarovski crystal, the effect is created by applying a coating to several of the faces of the crystal.  I've always thought that the best way to describe the colour effect is to ask someone to imagine the rainbow colours that you see on a bubble.  The bubble itself has no colour, but you can still see all the gorgeous colours of the rainbow shimmering across its surface.

I took several photos of the same Clear AB crystal from various angles to show just how many colours there are, and also to demonstrate how strong the colour is from some angles, and how subtle from others! This photo of the Serendipity crystal bridal bracelet shows a really good comparison of the Clear and Clear AB as it uses both.  There are only a few of the AB in there, but its quite clear to see which ones!

So which ones is the MOST sparkly?  To be honest with you, in my opinion the Clear wins this in terms of true sparkle.  It is as close to the sparkle of diamonds as you can get and I am a really rather huge fan.  The Clear AB is incredibly sparkly, and light will reflect off the coating, which is why some people will consider it to win in the sparkly stakes.  However this reflection will be full of colour, as opposed to the pure, brilliant white flash of the Clear, which for me actually detracts from the sparkle itself (demonstrated here with the Adore crystal flower necklace, which has Clear crystal flowers, with a Clear AB crystal in the centre of each).

Other colours can work well when combined with Clear AB, but I do think they need to be carefully chosen.  Blues and purples can look stunning, but I try and avoid putting it with reds and pinks as I think the overall look can be cheapened by the coating.  I'm not a huge fan of Clear AB with jet, I think it really brings out the yellow in the coating, although it does work fantastically well with whites, such as White Opal.

Interestingly, the demand from my clients for Clear as opposed to Clear AB has dramatically increased over the last few years.  There was a time when almost all my orders were for Clear AB, whereas I now find that I am rarely asked for it.  I do think that the crisp sparkle of Clear against the luminosity of ivory pearls is a perfect combination for vintage inspired jewellery and tiaras, which continue to be an absolutely huge trend within the Bridal industry.

I definitely think that Clear AB creates a beautiful effect, but for me, its an effect that should be used sparingly, amongst a majority of Clear crystal.

*  The official Swarovski name for these are in fact Crystal and Crystal AB, however I also use the word crystal as the name of the material in discussion, so in order to avoid confusion for the purpose of this article I have used Clear instead of Crystal, and Clear AB instead of Crystal AB.

Food for thought

Today I read a really inspiring article by Laura at Laptops and Lullabies, about what a blog should be about. And my heart sank.

Point 3 made it very clear that I should identify my target readers, and write for them. That I should work out who they are, what they like to read, and write every single thing for their benefit.

 

Uh oh.

My blog is kind of for me. I mean, i'm happy for anyone to read it, and really, what is the point of a blog if not to be read by others? But my website is for my business, and my Facebook page is for mini updates about my business, and Twitter is for.....well, i'm actually not sure what that is for, other than wasting millions of hours of my life... But my blog is the point where personal me and business me merge. I blog about my work, but I do it from a personal point of view. 

On the Starstruck Designs website you will find the final, edited shots from a photo shoot of my work. But on my blog, is where you will find the "behind the scenes" breakdown of what happened on the day, and my dreadful nerves beforehand. On my website you will be able to order whichever of my designs you fancy, but on my blog you will find out what inspired the piece, who named it, and why I think it is fab.

And sometimes on my blog you will hear about my husband, and my children. Because as much as I love my work, I love them more. And sometimes they need me more, and no work gets done until they are tucked up in bed. And sometimes, as much as I go ga-ga over some sparkles, I melt into a big old messy puddle of love for my gorgeous babies and have to tell the world about them.

So who do I write for? 

Brides? Hmmm...only those that love my kiddies. And sparkles. And weddingy things. But definitely those who are happy with my babies putting in an appearance, sometimes wearing said sparkly accessories.

Mums? Hmmm...nope, unless they are getting married, which they might be. But its not a mummy website, or a "useful for mummies" website. And although I do promise to delight those "I need some sparkle in my life" mummies, its unlikely that I will ever post anything that enables them to create a 5 minute, 5-a-day rich, "look! my children are perfect and my make-up is perfect and I have not a hair out of place" dinner every single day of the week.

Me? Uh oh. I've identified my target market! Its ME!

If you fall into the "Me" category, please let me know i'm not just talking to myself!

A Swarovski vision

I don't always have the time to write a blog post, despite having a fantastic idea for one. In these situations, I start a draft, where I just write a little outline of what I want the finished product to contain - then I can come back to it and write it properly when I have the time.

About a month ago I started a draft blog post called "A Swarovski Vision". It was based around a musing I had regarding the gorgeous Fire Opal Swarovski colour. For those of you who aren't familiar with this stunning colour, here it is:

Basically, I was wondering why this is the only true colour blend that Swarovski do. They do have other blends, such as Vitrial, Vitrial Light, Bermuda Blue etc, but these are created with coatings and unfortunately only work when 1 side of the crystal is hidden. What I mean is, these work amazingly on diamante, rivolis, even some pendants, because you don't see the back, which has the coating over it:

Above image, clockwise from top left: Vitrial, Heliotrope, Volcano, Bermuda Blue, Vitrial Light.

And how do these translate into bicones? Take a look:

On the left is the Bermuda Blue, and on the right is Volcano. The crystal beads look much duller, and darker when half of them is showing the reverse of the coating, which is usually silver or gold.

So my plan was to write a post all about which colour blends I thought Swarovski should be making, I was even hoping to photo shop some of my visions to give an idea of how I think they should look. Unfortunately photoshop is not my strong point! I was thinking how I would love to see a blue blend into a purple, a sage green blend into a pale pink, and a hot pink blend into a purple. Ooh, and what about a champagne gold blending into a chocolate brown?

Then a couple of days ago, I received an email from Swarovski, outlining their 2013 Innovations (their new products, about to be released). Well, if I didn't know better, I would say that they have been tapping into my thoughts (or at least reading my blog drafts!). Here's what got me all excited:

Crystal Luminous Green !

Blend colours - Burgundy into Blue Zircon, and Fern Green into Topaz. Maybe not quite what I would have picked, but I cannot wait to get my hands on some to see them for real!

Until I actually have them here, I wont know for sure, but I think that these are proper blend colours, rather than coatings. {{{SQUEAL}}}

Award Excitement!!

Its been a busy few weeks at Starstruck HQ - The brand new Renaissance Collection is just weeks away from being released, and we already have a fantastic bridal boutique on board!  Aliya Rose in Fife will be stocking several pieces from the collection which owners, Liz and Kirsty, feel will perfectly compliment their 2012 range of bridal dresses.

We hope to be supplying other bridal boutiques in the near future and our trade brochures have litererally just gone to print!

We have also been working very hard on a range of snowflake themed pieces, which have been now been completed.  The "Let it Snow..." collection currently consists of a snowflake side tiara, a snowflake necklace and a snowflake bracelet, with plans to add a smaller side tiara and a snowflake comb in the very near future.

So having reached Friday afternoon after a week of non-stop work, I was looking forward to relaxing that evening with a glass of wine or two.  Instead of winding down though, the excitement and adrenaline kicked in when I found out that Starstruck Designs has been shortlisted as Best Bridal Accessories in East Midlands, in the 2012 Bridal Industry Awards!!  Cue much jumping around, squeals of excitement and more than 2 glass of wine!

We are absolutely overwhelmed at the support we have had from our 2010/11 brides, and thank you SO MUCH to every single one of you that voted for us.  What makes these awards so different to the many other industry awards, is that these are voted for ONLY by brides who have actually used each supplier.

The winner from each region will be announced at the end of November so watch this space to see how we get on!

Behind the scenes with Starstruck (and a Chicken...?)

On Saturday, Starstruck Designs embarked on its first ever location photo shoot, which turned out to be incredibly good fun, very hard work, and from the preliminary shots i've seen, extremely successful!  I really wanted to be able to showcase my work "in situ", and so enlisted in the help of an incredibly talented team of professionals to create a portfolio of images which I simply cannot wait to show you!  However, whilst I wait (im)patiently for them to arrive on my desk, I thought i'd share a "day in the life of" account with you...

The day dawned with the beautiful sunshine that I had been praying for all week, and I packed up the car and headed to the venue, Stoke Hall, which turned out to be the most beautiful, intimate wedding venue in Notts and Lincs that I have ever seen.  Owners, Diane and Brian, were so patient and welcoming throughout the whole day, despite us tramping through their home for almost seven hours! However, the very first person to greet me as I arrived was a very sociable chicken who seemed to think she was part of the family, and that access to the Hall was her right.

She became quite a fixture throughout the day, I think at some point all of us had a go at trying to chase her out of the house as she found her way inside again and again!

After a quick tour of Stoke Hall, we chose the Orangery as our base due to the fantastic natural lighting, and started setting up hair and make-up equipment, and laying out all the accessories into sets ready for the quick changes that were to come!  Model, Jess, soon arrived with her mum Julie, who was incredibly helpful when it came to helping with accessories changes, and keeping track of what had and hadn't been photographed!

The very talented Karen Kemp, Lincoln based hairdresser who created 2 fantastic looks on our models, here expertly coiffing Nikki's hair:

And equally as talented was our Lincoln based make up artist, Helen Mitchell who created the most beautiful looks on both models, here finishing off Jess's make-up:

Whilst our models were being "beautified" (like they needed it....gorgeous ladies!), Lincolnshire wedding photographer, Richard King and his rather lovely wife, Elizabeth were scoping out the venue for perfect locations to shoot.  The cherry on the cake when booking Richard, is that Elizabeth just so happens to be a highly sought after wedding planner! She brought a real perfectionist attitude to the shoot and I really do consider myself exceptionally lucky to have had not just one, but two fabulous professionals taking care of the photography.

Both Karen and Helen stayed with us all day to ensure that hair and make-up remained absolutely perfect throughout. So with hair and make-up finished, and dresses on, we started shooting...

Moving from one beautiful room to another, stopping briefly in the stunning hallway to take advantage of the impressive staircase:

And I had to include this photo as it makes me smile so much - Spot the model hiding out of shot!

Both models, Jess and Nikki, worked really hard as we moved from room to room, and swapped one set of accessories for another.  Photographer, Richard, knew exactly which parts of the rooms to use to create the best effects, and to make the most of the natural light that streamed in through the huge windows.  He also shows enormous patience with me as I nipped in and out of shots adjusting a tiara here and a necklace there!

Then, as the day got later, and the sunlight softened we headed out into the Secret Garden.  An exquisite walled garden, hidden entirely from view until you are standing in it.  Flowers of every conceivable colour, in every size and shape you could imagine, just everywhere.  And in the very center, a beautiful little fountain - the sound of the gently trickling water was the only noise to be heard.  I could have spent hours sat out there drinking in the colours and the peacefulness, however there was simply too much to be done, and I only managed to snap a few photos, but they give you a glimpse of the beauty:

I've already had a sneaky preview of some of the professional photos taken by Richard and they are absolutely stunning.  He managed to take photos of over 20 headpieces, and about 15 necklaces, with matching bracelets and earrings, on models, close up of each piece on models, and then individual product shots on both white and black backgrounds.  He worked tirelessly throughout the day and I think he would have carried on a lot longer had Elizabeth not kept him in check!

All in all, the day was absolutely brilliant and I couldn't have asked for a more professional team to have worked with.  I would highly recommend every single person within their role, with absolute confidence that they will not disappoint!  There was so much more to the day, but I fear I may have gone on too long already!  Watch this space for some of the professional shots soon!


Huge thanks to everyone involved in the shoot:

Venue:  Stoke Hall

Photography:  Richard King     Facebook Page

Hair:  Karen Kemp   Facebook Page

Make-up:  Helen Mitchell    Facebook Page

Models:  Jess and Nikki

Accessories:  Starstruck Designs     Facebook Page

And a little thank you to Elizabeth for all her help too:  Elizabeth King

Accessorising High Street Dresses - Coast

So, the second of my series of "Blinging up your bargains"....

This week i've found an utterly gorgeous dress from Coast Stores (www.coast-stores.com). Again, a High Street favourite of mine, Coast corsets have been rather a staple in my wardrobe for some time now.

This is their Mimosa Bridal dress, and it is simply beautiful, with the most amazing floral lace, accented with matching lace appliques. Combined with a nipped in waist, and slim silhouette, you really can't go wrong.

I love it when a dress dares to be different, and the way the appliqued flowers extend over the neckline, really appeals.  And of course the shape of the flowers are a perfect match for the Aster headband, complete with its tiny "something blue" crystal.  With such gorgeous detailing on the dress, and hair accessories, I think its best to keep any further jewellery quite simple.  A delicate bangle, such as the Eternity Bridal Bracelet, and perhaps a really simple pair of bridal earrings such as these:

And what about shoes?  Well, after a little bit of help, I have found these beauties Clara by Benjamin Adams - just the right amount of lace, and a gorgeous peep toe.

However, if you fancy something a little bit more on the unusual side,  then these ivory lace over duck egg blue peep toes, by Oscar De La Renta, are simply gorgeous.  I must admit that I am coveting them...in a BIG way....!

Feel free to leave us a comment below, and follow our blog to receive notification of our next post, which will be looking at accessories suitable for another high street wedding dress!

High street wedding dress:  Coast (www.coast-stores.com)

Bridal Shoes:  Benjamin Adams (www.paradoxlondon.com) 

Bridal Jewellery and Headband:  Starstruck Designs (www.starstruck-designs.co.uk)

Accessorising High Street Dresses - Monsoon

Or, as I like to think of it: Blinging up your Bargains!

As more and more high street shops are adding bridal collections to their repertoire, I thought it might be an idea to look at how to accessorise them. So i've spent some time (far too much time actually!) researching, and over the coming weeks will bring you what I consider to be four of the best high street bridal dresses along with some suggestions of jewellery and hair accessories to complement.

The first shop that sprang to mind was Monsoon (www.monsoon.co.uk). I love Monsoon dresses, and have owned a few myself over the years. This is my favourite from their current bridal collection: The Valley Mesh Dress, priced at £225.

I love the vintage feel that this dress has, and the detailing on the shoulders is just gorgeous. Team it with a side headband that has an equally vintage feel to it, such as "Selene" from our Goddess collection, and a pair of bridal earrings that combine sumptious pearls and crystals for a softly sparkling effect.

I haven't included a necklace as i'm not really sure the dress needs one, there is already so much detail around the neckline. However if pushed, I would suggest going with either a pendant or a Y shaped necklace, something that will drop beautifully into that deep V-neckline. The Vintage Glamour bridal necklace below is a good example:

I spent a long time researching shoes for this dress, and actually couldn't find what I was looking for.  I wanted something with heavy pearl and diamante beading to echo that shoulder detail, but nothing seemed quite right.  So in the end i've gone with these gorgeous peep toes, called "Crush" from Pink by Paradox.

Feel free to leave us a comment below, and follow our blog to receive notification of our next post, which will be looking at accessories suitable for another high street wedding dress!

High street wedding dress:  Monsoon (www.monsoon.co.uk)

Bridal Shoes:  Pink by Paradox (www.paradoxlondon.com) 

Bridal Jewellery and Headband:  Starstruck Designs (www.starstruck-designs.co.uk)

Teal and Fuchsia Colour Scheme

I'm often asked to make pieces for brides (usually for their bridesmaids!) in wonderful colours. There are some that get asked for over and over again, and others that are really unusual combinations, but that look absolutely amazing when they are put together with the right shades. However, if there is one thing i've learnt over the years, its that most of the time, its very difficult for brides to visualise how something is going to look, without actually seeing a "draft" first.

So I thought it might be useful to put together some inspiration boards for various colour schemes, just to give an overall idea of how some colours look together. Hopefully I can make this a regular feature of the blog, and to kickstart things, i'm starting with teal and fuchsia. Teal is often a very difficult colour to match, and I often find myself suggesting that brides work with various tones, rather than spending much sweat, blood and tears finding an exact match. Here you can see how several shades of teals and pinks work really well together.







If you click on any of the images above you will be taken to the website of the company that offers the product shown. The crystal bouquet and teal bridal earrings are both available in other colours as well, so do get in touch if you like the style!

So with any luck you'll find this is a regular feature of my blog - and if you have a particular colour scheme that you would like to see featured, please leave us a comment below and we'll hopefully fit you in!

Happy New Year!

Well its an obvious one, but Happy New Year sparkly fans! Hope you've all had a lovely Christmas and New Year - we certainly have in the Starstruck household. Christmas was hectic with both our familes here, and Mr Starstruck and I hosting for the first time ever (scary!), but everything went well. The children loved their pressies, the adults loved the food, and the wine went down a treat too!

So now its back to work, and as I do like to hit the ground running, i've booked a wedding exhibition for this weekend! Oh yes - on Sunday 9th January, we will be exhibiting at the Bentley Hotel in South Hykeham, Lincoln, from 10.30am to 4pm.



I can't remember the last time I did an exhibition so the nerves are starting up a little bit, but with it being this weekend I really don't have time to think about it too much!

I think we'll be advertising some kind of fabby offer on the day, i've not decided what yet....what would you like to see? A substantial discount on your order? A competition where 1 person wins a tiara? I'm going to have to have a good think about this!

Other news is that we have a brand new collection in the making, inspired by a commission that came in just after Christmas. Based on the idea of lace, pearls, buttons and the obligatory sparkle, the collection will contain a range of hair accessories and tiaras.



I've got most of these bits and pieces on the way, with a range of others as well and as soon as they are here i'll be adding new designs as soon as they are ready.

And here is the first piece: A little lace hairclip, with a sprinkling of sparkles.



That's it for now...time to get tea for the kiddies, and then I can sit down and finish adding all the new jewellery to the website. Dullsville evening ahead, but someone's gotta do it!!