As we start the new year, we are looking forward to what is set to be a bumper year for weddings as many of you finally get to tie the knot. Here at Something Borrowed HQ, the whole team are super excited for the weddings we are involved in this coming year with all the consulting to guide our brides in choosing those perfect outfits. Our founder, Christie, and the team have loved interacting with so many wonderful clients in 2023 and cannot wait to further build the #MySomethingBorrowed community in 2024. To kick this off, get to know our founder as she shares her own engagement and wedding experiences and motivation for starting a wedding-fashion rental business.
Hey, it's Christie here and I am super happy to be writing this journal to share a bit more about me with you all. I'll start with telling you all about my own engagement and wedding.
My engagement was just perfectly 'us'. Bath is a special place for Ben and I, we have always made an annual trip there. This year, on a visit to Royal Victoria Park, whilst soaking up the sun sitting in some deck chairs (I was dozing to be honest), Ben got down on one knee and popped the question. I of course said yes and we spent the evening enjoying a gorgeous meal at At The Chapel to celebrate. Ben chose the ring himself, a 'Hearts on Fire' ring which when you look under a microscope has small little hearts embedded all over the diamonds, I absolutely adore it.
We got married on a glorious sunny day in June at The Orangery at Margam Park in Port Talbot. A venue that is very special to both of us as I have a lot of childhood memories of spending time there with my family, Ben's Dad even helped with the construction of 'Fairytale Land' and my sister got married there too! It's a beautiful and unique venue with an orangery and is full of history having been built in the late seventeen hundreds. The architecture is stunning, with stunning big windows that allow all the natural light in, which is particularly breathtaking at sunset.
On to my favourite part, naturally, my dress! It was Pronovias (it's currently available to rent here). I chose it due to it being elegant, fitted and timeless with a lace back and sleeves, and buttons all the way down the back which definitely needs a Mother of the Bride or Bridesmaid with patience to do them all up. I paired it with a cathedral veil which I took off for the evening reception.
We opted for a neutral and relaxed theme as we wanted our guests to feel at ease, we even sat them in a circular layout for the ceremony to make them feel more connected and included. Our colour palette was a delicate mix of shades of nudes, creams and whites. This led to flower choices of hydrangeas, roses and peonies with lots of foliage for texture. We opted for a mix of real and artificial flowers to reduce waste and save money. We chose a tiered cake with a mix of flavours from lemon to red velvet to the classic victoria sponge - something to suit everyone.
Due to our different tastes in music (Ben indie, me Dance) it wasn't until the week of the wedding, that we finally decided on the song for our first dance. We were driving back from London for the wedding and 'Something Just Like This' by Coldplay came on the radio. We sang our hearts out to it, looked at each other and knew that it was the one as it was fun, not too emotional and reminded us of when we went to see them in Cardiff - it just felt right.
It was a memorising day from start to finish. There was a truly lovely moment when Ben and I took some time away from the party just before sunset for some photos outside the castle. It gave us the chance to take in the ambience of the day and have a little chat as we hadn't seen each other much! We were so relaxed and happy in that moment and it really shines through in the photos making them my favourites.
Having been through the rollercoaster journey of planning a wedding, I understand that brides need to receive the very best service when making those all important wedding decisions. My mission has always been to provide brides with a premium service paired with high quality garments and it means so much that I am able to support our clients in choosing their bridal wear for the biggest day of their lives. To ensure the best customer experience, I am always looking for ways to meet and exceed expectations, and always with a smile. We make a big deal of encouraging our clients to get in touch, and we really mean it, we just love hearing from brides to be.
Now, going back to before Something Borrowed was even an idea, I was previously a graphic and digital designer working at some large-scale household names within the digital and fashion space. My role sat within the technology teams developing web and app experiences with a heavy focus on solving customers needs, using effective digital tools.
This desire to solve problems for customers and make their experiences as good as possible is really important to me. So when planning my own wedding, I was astonished at the cost of wedding dresses and that the industry only really offered a one fits all solution - buy your dress. Combining this with my increasing interest in sustainability, I became concerned at how the current bridalwear industry encourages waste, with most dresses being stored away never to be worn again, or even discarded to landfill. Due to this I felt there had to be another way so when Covid hit, I saw an opportunity to explore reusing dresses, whether that be secondhand wedding dresses or garments created specifically to be worn again and again. The lack of digital innovation within a somewhat traditional wedding industry and its lack of pace in acclimatising to current customer needs and wants inspired me to consider a solution that would provide convenience at a more accessible price.
My focus for the year ahead is to continue to inspire brides and grooms to think outside the box by showcasing how wedding dress hire can be a great alternative to the current, traditional bridal market. I intend to push the boundaries, making the offering for brides relevant for today's needs whilst keeping the tradition of sharing and passing-on good luck and wisdom from bride to bride. My mission is to still support brides to reduce waste, save money whilst keeping love at the heart of all we do.
I really do love offering bespoke advice and guidance tailored to each client looking for wedding dress rental, so please do not hesitate to contact us or start your journey with bridal wear hire by browsing our ranges here. I could talk about our magical day and my inspiration and vision for Something Borrowed for hours, so if you have any questions for me, be ready with a cup of tea before asking, it could take a while.