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Brides Up North talks to Kim from The Fine & Funky Events Company about their fabulous event planning and styling services. Want your wedding to be extra doubly super duper? Talk to Ms Groves.
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How did The Fine & Funky Events Company begin? What is your background?
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The Fine & Funky Events Company started after planning my own wedding. I totally adored every single second of planning my wedding, I developed a passion for all things wedding related and really enjoyed being able to use my creative flair. My previous background is in office management / project management in the public sector, which sounds very different, but I actually use a lot of the same skills. I’m very organised (not afraid to say my friends call me Monica from Friends!) and have organised numerous celebrations events and other large events throughout my working life. So after my wedding when I found out I was being made redundant, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to combine my two passions, list making and pretty things!
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What is your favourite thing about being a wedding and event stylist?
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My absolutely favourite thing is seeing everything coming together. When I’m at a venue and setting up I get such a buzz and tingly feeling, it’s amazing to see the couples day surpassing their expectations and to see their massive grins whilst being surrounded by everyone that loves them. (P.S I’m a massive softy.)
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What services do you offer?
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I offer wedding planning services, which includes full planning, on the day co-ordination to supplier search. In my planning packages I also offer bespoke packages so couples can tailor a package to suit their needs. My on the day co-ordination services are very popular this year, from couples who are having backyard weddings, to village halls to grand manor houses. Couples have put in so much time and effort planning their wedding they want to make sure that their day runs perfectly.
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I offer styling packages, these are really fun for me as couples will ask me to provide ideas and inspirations for a rock and roll theme for example and I will go away and research and come up with lots of ideas with costs, and a very funky mood board to boot!
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In addition to this, I also have lots of items that I hire out. Including vintage crockery hire service which I can cater for up to 200 guests.
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I also hire out a photo corner which is the first in the North East - think moustache on sticks, cute signs, wigs, guests love this! So fun!
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I specialise in vintage themes and have a lot of vintage props that I hire out, a vintage bicycle for a table plan for example Or a vintage typewriter for an alternative guest book.
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I love anything a bit quirky and different!
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I don’t just do weddings though, oh no! Celebrating birthdays and other special occasions is becoming more popular than ever, from a swinging 60’s birthday party to a baby naming ceremony!
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Any really memorable weddings that you have styled/ planned?
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Every wedding or event is so memorable as I really get to know my clients, it’s a very emotional time planning a wedding and I get just as excited as they do! I have lots of lovely clients who really become part of the The Fine & Funky Events Company family and quite often text me, or email, or give me a ring for a chat, it’s lovely!
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Which celebrity’s wedding would you like to style and why?
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I take a lot of my inspiration from the US and would love to plan a wedding over there one day, perhaps in a vineyard in California, they have amazing backyard weddings over there and that would be my dream! Don’t really mind if they are a celebrity or not, just as long as they love each other and I plan them the day of their dreams that’s all I care about.
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How would you style the Royal Wedding?
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For a start, I would insist that everyone in the country has the option to attend a street party and the wedding is projected on big screens, so folk can sit with a nice glass of champagne and some fancy sandwiches (no crusts of course)! For the actual wedding, I would defiantly go classic and elegant, lots of beautiful flowers everywhere, white hydrangeas, flower curtains hanging in all the gardens, flower pomanders hanging everywhere at different heights, beautiful tall centrepieces. I think a classic and elegant feel to the wedding would really represent them as a couple. Everyone in the industry will be watching the wedding as no doubt lots of trends will follow.
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I am in total admiration of them asking for donations to the 26 charities they support, think that its very fitting of the situation around the world at the moment.
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Did you style your own wedding? Tell us a bit about it…
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Would you like a little look? You can see piccys of me at the top and bottom of this post! Chris and I spent what seemed like forever venue searching, we stuck to our guns though and held out till we found a venue that really represented us, we knew what type of day we wanted practically from the first moment we met, fun, informal, relaxed and surrounded by are amazing family and friends. I still get butterflies now thinking about our wedding day, words cannot describe how perfect it was, how could it be anything less when I married my best friend, I did not stop smiling all day!
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Is this your dream job? What would be your alternative career?
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Hell yeah it is! It’s incredibly hard work, working 7 days a week, 14 hour days but I love every moment and feel incredibly lucky to be doing what I’m doing.
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Oooooo if I wasn’t a wedding planner / stylist think I would love to be Kirsty Allsopp making her homemade TV series, would be so much fun! Or I would love to be in Glee, can’t sing or dance but would have a blast! Although I’m 30 this year so might be a little late to start my career in musicals!
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We hear you do very special sweetie tables, can you tell us a bit about them?
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The Fine & Funky Events Company now does Sweetie Tables and Dessert Bars!
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Sweetie Tables are very popular at evening receptions at weddings, or birthday parties and christenings. You can now add popcakes to your sweetie table as well from the amazing Popcake Kitchen! Sweetie Tables are fab, they look amazing and kids but mainly adults it seems go wild for them! Think old fashioned white mice, cola cubs, lips, bon bons, the list goes on! I was one of the first to offer this service in the North East and they are still proving very popular!
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The dessert bars are fab, some couples have had this as an alternative to serving a dessert, others instead of a sweetie table on the evening, very much up to the couple. Think mini sherry trifles in shot glasses, macaroons, mini bakewell tarts, victoria sponge, cupcakes sprinkled with popping candy, they are just such fun and very much a talking point of the day as something totally different. I’m the first company in the North East to offer this service.
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Both these services includes my styling and set up.
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What’s all this about vintage tea parties at Danby Castle?
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I work very closely with Carolyn from Danby Castle, who is amazing! Not only did she put up with me being a total bridezilla during my own wedding planning but she is so open to trying new ideas and we work so well together. The Vintage Tea Party Package is a collaboration between Fine & Funky Events, Danby Castle and Arches Cookery School (who are out of this world) Couples need not worry about a thing, nearly everything is sorted for them and the package is so quirky and unique, it’s been a massive success, prices start from £4000 for 60 guests, inc venue hire, catering, venue decor and styling.
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How can Brides Up North find out more or get in touch with you?
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You can visit The Fine & Funky Events Company website, email me – info@fineandfunkyevents.com, follow me on twitter @finefunkyevents or find me on facebook @The Fine & Funky Events Company
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Anything else my readers should know?
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I’m extremely passionate about what I do and you will find me very personable, a friend, and most importantly a great listener. Your day is about you two as a couple and I will do all I can to ensure you both have the perfect day, whatever that may be, from a chill out festival theme on a farm to a classic elegant ballroom wedding.
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If you want to pop along and say hi, I’m exhibiting at these wedding fayres.
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Finally, why do you read and like Brides Up North?
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It’s fab to have something that’s written in the North for the North! Very inspiring what you have achieved so far Julia, you rock!
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Photographs by Karen McGowran Photography, Katy Melling, Katie Byram Photography and Kim Groves.
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The Fine and Funky Events Company is a Brides Up North Featured Supplier
Contact Brides Up North to submit your business as a Featured Supplier
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