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What’s Saturday for if it’s not for spoiling yourself? I know one lady – Brides Up North Featured Supplier Julia of Elegance Bridal Studio – who can help you to do just that.
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With accolades for amazing customer service coming at them from all directions, you’d do well to direct your wedding dress hunt their way.
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Have a fantastic weekend!
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When did Elegance Bridal Studio open and what is your background?
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Elegance Bridal Studio was born in August 2005. It was always an ambition of mine since I can remember to work in the bridal industry. I guess you could call it my vocation in life, my mum would have to drag me away from the local bridal shop window as I would insist on walking past it when we went to town shopping on a Saturday, just so I could catch a glimpse of all the beautiful dresses. Upon leaving school I enquired at two local bridal shops (there were only two at that time) but they were both family run and they had no vacancies for a 16 year old, so I had to put my dream on the back burner. I then had a mixed career in retail, beauty therapy and also hospitality working at 5* level, which looking back has been good grounding as I use almost all the skills and training that I learnt in my past employment, which has helped me build my business. I also sold my home to finance my dream, as I didn’t want to start my business in debt with a mortgage. Given the recent recession it was the right decision to make and I do not regret it one little bit, however I wouldn’t recommend it for the faint hearted!
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What lines of wedding gowns do you stock?
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The designers that we stock have all been chosen not only for their amazing designs but also for their reputation and reliability within the bridal industry. We currently stock beautiful gowns by Trudy Lee whose designs are red carpet glamour with a touch of fairy-tale without the expense. They give today’s bride excellent value for money. Bride’s are often pleasantly surprised when they see the price tag.
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Our next designer is the fabulous Jean Fox who has been making brides beautiful for over 80 years, they are an Australian company based in Sydney and they have a such a huge selection of designs. It is always hard for us to choose from their new collections because they are all truly divine. The internal corsetry within these gowns are absolutely superb and flatter any figure which eliminates the need for a bridal corset to be worn providing total comfort for the bride. These gowns are so lightweight that they can be worn anywhere around the world which means that brides getting married abroad can have an actual bridal gown not just the typical floaty destination gown. New for us this year are the Jean Fox couture silk gowns that have just arrived, these gowns are truly special, all handmade in Australia using only the very finest silks and embellishments whilst also giving brides so many options in change of design. If you prefer a sweetheart neckline or maybe a shorter train or even some delicate straps, then you can have whatever your heart desires. We actually witnessed a silk gown being made when we visited their workrooms in Sydney and, it was fascinating to watch the highly skilled seamstress create these beautiful gowns. You could see how much care and attention went into each detail of the gown. Whilst each crystal was sewn into place by hand, there is also a little finishing touch that every Jean Fox silk gown has which is her signature blue bow that’s sewn onto the inside of the dress, so you never forget your something blue.
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Last but certainly not least are the show stopping designs by the multi award winning bridal designer Wendy Makin who is based in Brisbane, Australia. Wendy’s gowns from her Bella Donna Collection are fresh, modern & affordable with a choice of little added extras such as flowers, vintage brooches, sparkly belts and lace cap sleeves. Brides can simply change their look from day to evening whilst also having some flexibility in change of design and of course they are lightweight gowns that can be worn at home or abroad! We have just taken delivery of her new designs and we have fallen in love with them.
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Wedding gowns by Trudy Lee
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What lines of accessories do you stock?
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We have a very sparkly selection of accessories due to my love for anything that sparkles! I have hand picked each accessory individually to compliment our gowns, so that brides can choose from several different pieces before they find a look that they feel confident and totally excited about. We stock everything from the traditional tiara & side tiaras to diamanté hair slides, pretty pearl combs, hair vines, veils, shoes, jewellery and even garters. Our collection is always changing and we don’t like to sell more than two of the same accessory, which makes our brides look totally unique.
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All our veils are hand made so we can change the designs and embellishments to compliment any gown.
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Where are you located?
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Our boutique is really easy to find and is situated at 2 Eastgate, Barnsley, South Yorkshire. We are in the town centre located only a five minute walk from the travel interchange, or if you are travelling by car we are a ten minute drive from Junction 37 off the M1. We can also direct you to the free car park that is available on weekends and evenings.
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Wedding gowns by Wendy Makin
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Can you give Brides Up North an idea on price?
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Our made to order gowns are priced from £695 – £2,400 and we also have our designer discontinued collection that starts from just £99 – £599, these gowns are available to buy off the peg, making them ideal for last minute weddings or limited budgets.
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Do Brides Up North need an appointment?
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Yes, we work by appointment only as we feel that choosing your bridal gown needs not only our expert advice and one to one personal attention, but also total privacy which means that when you book an appointment with us, there are no other brides present and you have the exclusive and sole use of our boutique making your visit to us comfortable and stress free. Whether you are spending £99 or £1,999 you will receive the very same high standards of our award winning customer service and professional advice that you truly deserve.
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What can Brides Up North expect when they come in for an appointment?
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To be totally and utterly spoilt! We love our gowns and we love our brides and we would never, ever sell a gown to a bride if it didn’t suit them. Our award winning reputation walks down the aisle with every one of our brides, which is why we have created an oasis of calm in luxurious surroundings. We allow two hours for your first appointment with a comfortable seating area for your mum and/or best friend who we also love to spoil! At Elegance we guarantee you will have a truly memorable and enjoyable bridal experience that you will treasure forever and we always get the bubbly out to celebrate when ‘the one’ has been discovered as well as providing FREE Wedding Dress Insurance with every gown sold.
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Wedding gowns by Jean Fox
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What is your current favourite gown that you stock and why?
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Looking around our collection there isn’t one gown that I can say is my one favourite, I love them all and brides always comment on what a varied and beautiful collection we have. They often pick so many to try on, which proves that we know what brides are looking for.
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Is there a particular style of dress that is popular with your brides at the moment?
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No, we attract such a varied range of bride from all age ranges, expectations and walks of life that we don’t have a particular style that everyone is choosing and we are always updating our collection with new styles, however we have sold a few more lace gowns since the Royal Wedding.
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How does Elegance Bridal Studio provide a superior experience to other wedding dress boutiques?
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When you visit Elegance Bridal Studio you will discover the most beautiful gowns in the world whilst experiencing our famous award winning northern hospitality. I am a total perfectionist and our standards are very high which acts as a guarantee to any future brides that we are the best and you will look amazing.
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We have a few business awards under our belt for providing a service of excellence that are all proudly on display, giving brides total confidence when placing the dress of their dreams safely in our hands.
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We also offer an in-house alteration service by our highly skilled seamstress who can make bridesmaid dresses and mother of the bride outfits. A bridal dressing service is offered as an optional extra: we will dress the bride and her maids on her wedding day to ensure total perfection. We also offer a gown cleaning and preservation service, so after the wedding day brides can leave their gown with us and when they return from their honeymoon, their gown will be cleaned and packed within a beautiful wedding dress box that can be treasured forever.
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Do you stock Bridesmaid Dresses?
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We don’t sell an off the peg collection of bridesmaid dresses, but our seamstress can make bridesmaid dresses to order which is proving to be a very popular service.
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What about Menswear?
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Our menswear department Sensational Formal Hire is located within the same building and is totally separate from our boutique, so that the groom can have the same one to one service by appointment only within an all male environment. Sensational Formal Hire is owned and operated by my husband John Carr and you will find suits to hire by the award winning Cameron Ross whilst also a range of suits to buy is also available. Sensational Formal Hire have just won a National Award ‘Best Wedding Menswear Supplier’ in the 2012 Wedding Industry Awards, which is an award that we are all totally proud of and is a cast iron guarantee of our high standards and of course the award winning customer service that every customer receives.
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Click here to read an interview with Sensational Formal Hire on Brides Up North.
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Are you married?
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We were married on the 1st June 2006 in Cyprus. I wore an a-line angel satin gown with a very long train in a light gold colour which looked fantastic on our beach photos. John didn’t have his business then so he wore some linen trousers with a white shirt, waistcoat & scrunchie tie. We are planning to re-new our vows in a few years time and I cannot wait to choose another gown from our fabulous collection!
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How can Brides Up North get in touch with you/ find out more?
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Elegance Bridal Studio can be contacted directly by phone on 01226 786527 or by email via our website www.elegancebridalstudio.co.uk or through our Facebook page.
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Anything else that Brides Up North should know?
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Yes! Elegance Bridal Studio & Sensational Formal Hire are both finalists in the North of England Wedding Awards, which is based on customer feedback after the wedding has taken place. Its now up to the judges to decide the winner of each category which will be announced in September! We are so excited and we have our fingers & toes crossed!
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Brides Up North UK Wedding Blog – Images © 2012 as supplied by Elegance Bridal Studio
Elegance Bridal Studio is a Brides Up North Featured Supplier, and this is a sponsored post
Contact Brides Up North to submit your business as a Featured Supplier
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