Yesterday The White Emporium turned a whole whooping 1! I am not sure where this year has flown to but it has been a whirlwind of emails, weddings, styled shoots and endless tidying!

I love The White Emporium and everything it is growing into but it has consumed my life, my nearly every waking thought is about weddings. My spare time is spent cleaning, writing emails and pestering people, would I change it for the world…. No! I am sure my feelings are shared by everyone struggling to start their own business, especially those working 2 jobs. That is enough of the negatives, here are all the positives and there are lots!

This year I have been lucky enough to meet so many amazing and talented suppliers, some I have already worked with on shoots and more I plan to work with in the next year. They have taught me a lot and have offered so many pearls of wisdom.

Next are the lovely couples I get to work with, all the hard work is rewarded when you see their beaming smiles, that feeling of accomplishment will never get boring.

I have also learnt so many lessons, a lot through trial and error but with every wedding I do I feel The White Emporium improves along with the service we offer. I don’t think in this job I will ever stop learning and that is one of the best things about it.

Unexpected success… our little hand drawn maps have gone from strength to strength, they were never intended to be part of our range and I am so glad I was convinced to offer them as part of the range. I love drawing and in the past year my maps have travelled from London to Italy with many Bedford destinations in between.

So what will happen in the next year… watch out for The White Emporium gracing the pages of some of the UKS biggest blogs! This is so super exciting but I don’t want to spoil the shoot reveals to much, so watch this space! We will be adding into the collection with some more rustic and unique props from our hit list. Keep an eye on our website, this will be evolving and growing and I promise I will get better at a regular blog post!

Of all the things I have learnt, the most important is ‘there are just not enough hours in the day!’ But there never will be, there always be to much to do and far to little time, I have many more late nights ahead of me! I need to try and stop beating myself up about the things I don’t have time to do and realise all I can do is my best.

Finally thank you to my friends, family, likes and followers for all your love and support. Especially the hubby whose life and home The White Emporium also consumes. I could not have survived this first year without you all!

So here is to the next part of the adventure and turning 2!

Love Gemma

The White Emporium xxx

It is with great embarrassment I am writing this opening sentence! Eeekkk we have not blogged in nearly 2 months! Where has that time gone? We have good reason… we have hit our first wedding season hard and so far it has been a success, although I massively underestimated how many hours running this little gem would take up! No complaints from me though 🙂

So today’s blog is all about dreamy back drops, I have been collecting a lot of images over the past few months and I just can’t get enough! These will be incorporated into a lot of the styling projects we are working on over the next couple of months. I am getting crafty and hopefully will be able to offer out some of the below ideas to brides to hire in a few months time.

A lot of the images have been grabbed of blogs and instagram so unfortunately I don’t have image credits for all of them but I wanted to share them all with you as they are just so beautiful.

Backdrops are so functional and look amazing at the end of an aisle, as a frame for the newlyweds or as the perfect photo background. Plus most of the are super cost effective and if you are a little crafty can be created by hand.

Here’s a little selection of inspiration from my back drop scrap book…

I hope you found a little spark of inspiration from these images, backdrops and arbors are key trends for the next wedding season. The great thing is they can be made personalised just to you, by adding in your flowers and your own unique touch. My personal favourites are the fabric frames set in the woods, how dreamy to be married in your own little woodland wonderland. I am also head over heels for dream catchers at the moment, keep an eye on this blog for how we will be using these in an exciting shoot we are collaborating on.

Have a lovely weekend!

Gem xxx

Image list from top left to right:

1 – Unknown. 2 – Unknown. 3 – Bridalmusings.com. 4 – Inspiredbyloveevents (instagram). 5 – weddingpartyapp.com. 6 – wanthatwedding.co.uk. 7 – costalvirginiamag.com. 8 – bridalmusing.com. 9 – rusticweddingchic.com. 10 – wanthatwedding.co.uk. 11 – tiedbowblog.wordpress.com. 12 – ruffledblog.com

Most of my regular followers will know I have a bit of a thing for glitter, I have been busy this week creating glitter dipped feathers for a little project I have been working on so thought I would share an easy tutorial with you. The dipped feathers can be used as backdrop, as details for your place settings or highlights in your flowers.

All you need is – A brush, PVA glue, a selection of feathers and a pot of glitter emptied into a bowl.

1 – Make sure the feathers are clean, then lightly brush the PVA glue over the tip of the feather.

2 – Make sure there is not so much glue that it drips off the feather, you only need a very thin coating.  Dip the end of the feather into the bowl of glue. Shake off excess glitter.

3 – Place your feather somewhere to dry, it is essential the glue tip is not touching any surface. I used oasis to keep the feather upright and separate.

Why stop with glitter you can also use paint and sequins!

It’s so simple but very beautiful 🙂

What will you be using your dipped feathers for?

Love

Gemma xx

The White Emporium

I personally love the wedding ceremony, there is something very special about the pomp and circumstance, the sense of occasion and the formalities. For me it was the most important part of our wedding and I didn’t want it to end. There are many customs and traditions that we enjoy and we consider to be important, I have looked into a few especially those associated with a Church of England wedding.

The Ushers, should be the first people to arrive at the church or venue to ensure they know where everyone is to sit and everything is in place. Their main responsibilities are to welcome the guests and ensure everyone is sat in the right place with an order of service. The best man should stand at the front of the church with his groom to ensure he remains calm and focused.

found on confettidaydreams.com

Traditionally the brides friends and family sit on the left and grooms on the right. This mirrors how the bride and groom stand at the end of the aisle. A very long time ago the grooms right arm was considered his sword arm and he would sometimes be required to fight off attackers whilst holding his bride on his left side.

Found on bridalguide.com

It is customary for the brides mother to wait at the entrance of the church for the bride to arrive, to be ready for any last minute tears and hugs, she should be the last person before the bridal party to enter the church, this acts as a symbol to the groom that his bride has arrived. She should be walked to her seat at the front left hand side by an usher.

Found on brides.com

We exchange rings as a symbol of eternity with no beginning or end and it is thought this goes back thousands of years and may have originated in Egypt. Within the Christian Church it is believed that the ring is placed on the fourth finger as the vicar used to touch the fingers whilst proclaiming the words ‘In the name of the Father (touching the thumb), the Son (second finger) and the Holy Spirit (middle finger) Amen’ by which time he is at the ring finger.

There is no religious requirement for a bride to wear a veil, but traditionally worn as a symbol of purity and modesty. After the minister declares the Bride and Groom husband and wife it is customary for the Brides Father to lift the veil to reveal the brides face to her husband, this symbolizes that it is now o.k for the couple to enter into a sexual relationship.

Found on heyweddinglady.com

I hope you have enjoyed a little peek into some of the many traditions involved within the wedding ceremony.

The White Emporium x

We love ladders at The White Emporium, they are so versatile and make a great focal point. We get asked a lot about how to style up our items and we understand that sometimes it is hard to see past the fact it is to some just a wooden ladder. So to help you out and inspire you on this unusually hot Halloween we have found some of our favourite images to show that there (in the words of Marks and Spencer) ‘Not just a step ladder.’ If you love what you see and want to add a step ladder into your wedding, good news! We have wooden step ladders to hire, in various shapes and sizes.

Create a cake table with a difference, this is perfect if you are having cupcakes and need a lot of room to display them.

Found on weddingbee.com

Welcome drinks are often the first insight your guests will have into your venue, make sure you leave a good impression with an alternative welcome drinks display.

Found on lovemydress.net

Use your step ladder as a shelf to create layers of detail and add interest to your venue, great for displaying flowers, candles and photos. This is a perfect tool for use in barns and marques where you basically have a blank canvas to decorate.

Found on myvintageflower.co.uk

Found on prophotography.co.za

Use as a photo back drop, tall ladders offer a perfect height to create your very own photo studio, perfect to capture special moments in front of.

Found on Pinterest

Finally and one of the easiest to create ideas that’s very practical but looks beautiful is using a ladder as table plan. Stack with plant pots, hang gift tags from string wrapped around the steps or stand decorative photo frames. The possibilities are endless.

Found on samandlouise.co.uk

If you love any of the above we have everything you need at The White Emporium to recreate your ideas.

How will you be using your step ladder.

Love The White Emporium xxxx

The changing seasons are my favourite time of year, I love Autumn for the changing leaves, crisp nights and change in wardrobe. So last Sunday I headed off with a box load of props and my trusty flower arranger (my mum) and armed only with my iPhone set about trying to capture The White Emporiums wares against an Autumn backdrop.

Love The White Emporium xxx