Nobody puts Twee in the Corner...

Ok, so after recent discussions about my forthcoming blog post with a certain someone (no names mentioned Nia Fiori..), I've been set the challenge of trying to relate today's random entry to Vintage Twee in some way, shape or form. And, true to form as most of my brides can vouch for, I rise to any challenge set me and embrace it with open arms! And in the absence of my Chief Blogger Emma who is currently sunning herself in Rome, I am alone in this task at hand...

So how (and why?!) do we get from celebrating the life of Patrick Swayze, which sadly ended two years ago on 14th September, to teapots, doilies and party picks? Read on and I shall reveal all...

I wanted to write a post dedicated to Mr Swayze, who has and always will be, my hero. I was mortified the day I woke up and found out he had gone, it was like a flashbulb memory moment when you know exactly when and where you were when you hear about something significant that happens in the world. Ok, so people die all the time – it's a fact of life and I didnt even know the man - but for some reason he remains in my heart, connected to happy memories of the first time I watched Dirty Dancing at the age of 9 years old (I know, bad parents!) as a pneumonic child who was missing the annual family Boxing Day party. I got a new desk for 'making things on' at Christmas that year (Vintage Twee Reference Number 1) and I specifically remember watching the infamous 'lift' scene at the end through the gaps in the shelving that my dad had only half assembled.

From that moment on, along with a trillion other young girls, my childhood games revolved around recreating a holiday camp, where I would be the girl that Johnny Castle picked out of the crowd to dance with in front of my disapproving parents and jealous older sister (sorry Em). And admittedly, it wasn't that long ago I dreamt of the same dance at the age of 27, wearing that gorgeous pink dress and silver heels, kicking gold fairy dust into the air as he spinned me around...

To be fair, I've only really ever seen two of his films, and the second is of course Ghost. Cue the tears from 20 minutes in and the weird recollection and recital of Sam Wheat's account number by heart. I even took my sister to see Ghost the Musical in the West End last month to celebrate her forthcoming 30^th birthday (again, sorry Em).

Despite our reservations about Richard Fleechman's ability to portray the mighty Patrick, along with his 'blonde' version of Molly, we were pleasantly surprised and had an amazing night watching the show. Of course tears were flowing from the first line of Unchained Melody and I awoke the next day full of new romantic ideas for my range! (Vintage Twee Reference Number 2).

Patrick seemed like a loyal, honourable and loving husband who I think would be a role model to any modern man today. If I was asked the ultimate ideal dinner date question then he would, without doubt, be in the top three. I am lucky enough to have a signed print of him which is going to be framed and put up very soon on the walls of my new studio (Vintage Twee Reference Number 3) to remind me of the smiles he brought to me that Christmas I cried because I had to stay home and miss the family party and the chance to gorge myself on seconds of chocolate gateux and trifle.

So as strange as it may be for me dedicate my blog to a man I never knew, I thought it would be inspiring and insightful on this day to share with you the connection Patrick had with me - and my very first 'making desk' - that ultimately started off the romanticist world of Vintage Twee. Kind of. :)

(that's at least THREE references to Vintage Twee Fiori so mwah ha ha! I did it!)  

Wave the words of love....

Being lost for words is something one should never be at a wedding, especially if you’re the groom looking for some last minute inspiration for your heart rendering speech! And sometimes the simplest of words are the most effective - the ones that make us think, make us smile and most importantly, give us food for thought. Each night at my local tube station a member of staff posts a “quote of the day” at the entrance to the escalator and as I’m on my way home after a stressful, busy day at work, reading one line of inspiration will, without fail, make me laugh, muse or at the very least wonder where on earth they got that one from!

If you’re looking for a way to bring some love inspired citations to your wedding day or love themed event, look no further than the latest Vintage Twee product, Love Quote Flags. Designed to be used as centre piece decorations, buffet/candy table trimmings or alongside name place settings, these old fashioned styled flags have been printed with a different classic quote about love by some of the most inspirational people of days gone by. A neutral buttercream colour means the flags can be customised with your choice of bow to match your theme- currently available in red, dusky pink, light pink or ivory but let Joanne know your preferred colour and she’ll do her best to match!
With 8 flags costing just £5.50, they come carefully packaged in cellophane gift bags to keep them in pristine condition until your big day. Each flag measures approx 16cm long x 8cm (widest point of the flag) and look stunning individually or clustered together to make a nest of quotes and a real talking point for your guests. Perfect for any event where you want your guests to be entertained by literary genius’s and let their own imaginations run wild!

Make sure you don’t miss out on adding a special vintage touch to your main event by pitching your flags on every table! www.vintagetwee.com


Featured quotes shown above include:

'A woman knows the face of the man she loves like a sailor knows the open sea' Honore de Balzac

• 'Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold' - Zelda Fitzgerald• 'True love stories never have endings' - Richard Bach

• 'Love doesn't make the world go round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile' - Franklin P Jones

• 'Brief is life but love is long' - Alfred Lord Tennyson

Love My Dress (and hair... and make up...)

There aren’t many opportunities on a Wednesday night in Newcastle to don your best frock, sip on champagne and style your hair like Rita Hayworth but the extremely glamorous “Love My Dress Soiree” was THE vintage affair of the summer and demanded nothing but pure style and vintage tributes.

Joanne wearing a
dress from Vivien of Holloway

The UK Wedding Industry Networking Event was hosted by the lovely Annabel of the fantastic Love My Dress blog, a blog which has supported Vintage Twee since the early days by regularly featuring our products. It only seemed right that such an evening demanded the highest level of preening so Joanne and Nia, from Nia Fiori Designs booked themselves in for a morning of pampering by the extremely talented vintage hair and make up artist, Bethany Jane Davis. I was priviledged to receive regular updates of the transformations in to 1940’s beauties as they were taking place and resisted the urge to post pictures of the girls in heated rollers… but if anyone wants to see them I will be accepting bribes…!

Held on the banks of the River Tyne (yes, there was singing and several mentions of the words “Fog on the….”) , the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts was filled with glamorous flapper girls, vintage decor and props, chaise lounges, antique furniture and a fab display of cake pops, cupcakes and other sweet treats provided by the Boutique Baking Company http://www.boutiquebaking.co.uk/.  Joining Joanne and Nia was Katie from Perfect Days Vintage who rocked a 70’s inspired red dress, gold heels and a statement leopard print hat, all three of them posing in the retro digital photo booth for some memorable snaps and a reminder of how fabulous they looked!!  http://www.snaparazziphotobooths.co.uk/

Amongst all the champagne and canapés Joanne got to personally thank Annabel for her support of Vintage Twee – lots of brides mention they found us through her website so it was lovely to be able to show our gratitude. Also attending the event was the editor of Wedding Magazine, Catherine Westwood, another industry professional who recognised Vintage Twee’s potential in the early days and offered numerous features in the magazine – thank you Catherine!

The first 120 lucky people through the door managed to nab themselves a luxury goody bag filled with treats from contributors… including a pack of the infamous Vintage Twee party picks! It really was an evening to remember and showcased the best the wedding industry has to offer in a wide range of themes. According to the girls it was hard to snap out of the bubble they were in when the night drew to an end… so they “forced” themselves to go for a pizza on the way home just to bring them back down to earth!! I can only imagine the faces in the pizza parlour when their late night customers appeared to have just stepped off the set of Breakfast at Tiffanys!

Ok... I didn't need a bribe after all!!!

Pick a place, any place...

Planning every last detail of your special occasion is no doubt the part most party organizers love - what's on the menu, how will the theme transpire, who's sitting where? Now Vintage Twee may not be able to have any influence over how much red wine your mother consumes on the big day but these brand new place name settings will at least ensure she does it in the correct seat! Guaranteed to be the talk of the table, there are 2 new themes to choose from, each one being a simple way to add an authentic vintage feel to your seating arrangements.

The Victorian Style range depicts portrait images of young men and women from the 1800's with a design for every person in your party!  Each image has been aged, embellished with vintage lace and mounted on to gift tag style cards and is completed with natural coloured twine to allow them to be tied to wine glasses, napkin rings, cutlery or tea cup handles. Unique and interesting, they're sure to get everyone wanting to collect the whole set!

In contrast to the Victorian Style, the Vintage Rose collection show 4 different designs taken from vintage postcards and greetings cards. Using pastel coloured satin ribbons for the ties and delicate sparkling accents of gold glitter to highlight the images. Additions of the ivory pearls finish off the look whilst the font used for the name of each guest will be that of a typically authentic vintage typewriter.

Priced incredibly reasonably as follows, these name place settings are the perfect way to make sure the theme for your big day doesn't slip up when it comes to the detailing.

-Vintage Rose - £1.25 each  http://www.vintagetwee.com/shop-stationary-place-rose.html

-Victorian Style - £1.50 each http://www.vintagetwee.com/shop-stationary-place-victorian.html

And don't forget, if you require a specific colour of ribbon or have an idea in mind of something you'd like, Vintage Twee would be happy to discuss any amendments and 

provide an estimated costing as soon as possible.  

A Perfect Day with Vintage Style...

If ever a match made in vintage heaven was to be had, it’s definitely the blossoming relationship between Vintage Twee and the latest company to hit the market, Perfect Days Vintage. Last week, Joanne met the very creative and stylish Katie Mitchell from Perfect Days Vintage for a glass of wine and a chat about how together, they can offer any bride or event organiser the ultimate vintage service.

Perfect Days Vintage is the brainchild of Katie who has followed her passion for all things vintage and beautiful and turned it in to a successful business hiring out a range of props dating as far back as you want them to! As a young girl her fascination with antique fairs, eclectic and unusual items led Katie to invest in real treasures which today include a classic1960’s record player, a fantastic 18^th century walnut dining table, original china tea sets and an incredible vintage typewriter. Perfect Days Vintage now has the props to be able to transform any event  with authentic vintage themed style… and if you need further proof, ask Katie to tell you about her own wedding of which you can easily say the theme was decided quite early on! They cater for weddings, christenings, corporate events, photo shoots and much more, clearly showing the quality and validity of their items. Of course, if your longed for item isn’t currently in the Perfect Days Vintage collection, they will do all they can to source your heart’s desire for you, making them not only style guru’s but complete and utter time savers too! And just in case you thought their services ended there, think again. Perfect Days Vintage can also help organise elements or the whole of your event for you, taking complete control of the reins from start to vintage finish, a skill Katie found she had whilst organise her own wedding.

 So, you take a company that organises events and rents out vintage props, mix  it with a company that recreates vintage table décor and a foolproof formula is born! Hoping to be able to work together in the future, Joanne and Katie have been taking the time to show how the items can work seamlessly together, giving the look, feel and individuality of a really customized event. For example, the pictures here show Vintage Twee’s ever popular Eat Me Party Picks being used alongside Perfect Days Vintage fabulous decorative cake stands. Music lovers will grab the opportunity to showcase a vintage gramophone and can be seen here teamed with Vintage Twee’s music sheet favours. Or, the favourite idea the girls have come up with so far see’s the magnificent vintage typewriter placed conveniently next to the beautiful Vintage Twee guestbook. With paper at the side, all the guests have to do is write their message and pop it in the book, their words becoming the beginning of a story. 

For a truly professional and memorable service, Vintage Twee cannot recommend Katie and the impressive Perfect Days Vintage highly enough. Be sure to check out their website for further information or contact Katie on info@perfectdaysvintage.co.uk and turn your vintage dream in to a 21st century reality!!

The Biker, The Stationer, The Jeweller and the Twee...

Claire's method of transport- the Vespa!

Celebrating our own fabulousness is often an overlooked pastime due to busy work schedules, family life and just trying to deal with everything life throws at us! So when the idea floated about for a light hearted afternoon of tea, cakes and conversation, four busy ladies jumped at the chance to close the laptops, put down the glue guns and indulge!

Getting together to whip out the vintage china was Joanne of Vintage Twee, Claire from the lovely English Wedding Blog, Anita Mistry of the fantastic It’s a Mistry Design Studio and of course the hostess herself,Nia of Nia Fiori Designs. The location was perfect. Nia’s home is in the beautiful town of Hayfield, Derbyshire which, with its rows of stone

cottages, rolling hillside and according to legend, in 1760 even had its own witch, proved to be the perfect place to pour the traditional British brew and set the world to rights with a slice or three of cake. Joanne brought along some Vintage China plates which she has gathered from antique fairs, shops and markets whilst Nia provided the gorgeous tea pot and cake stands. Showing that the modern woman really can do everything, Nia spent the morning baking and turned out an incredible rum fuelled carrot cake with lemon and orange icing not to mention delectable scones with clotted cream and jam! The ladies chatted about how each of them followed their dreams to become self employed despite nerves, trepidation and downright fear! Hearing Joanne talk about it this evening co-incided with a conversation I had with my own boss today who came across a book her grandmother owned in the 1920’s and was madly inspired by its words. The book was entitled “Willpower” which, as you can imagine was probably very unusual and quite possibly frowned upon for a young woman of that era to be reading. The phrase which stuck in her mind from the book and which she repeated to us all before a day of sales today was, “I can, I will, I dare, I do”, So for all the budding entrepeneurs out there, remember that line and it will take you as far as you will allow yourself to go! It took her grandmother to the ripe old age of 96….

Don’t forget to check out the websites of todays lovely ladies for bridal inspiration, advice and calligraphy from Claire, beautiful, unique jewellery from Anita and a range of stunning stationary from Nia. Of course, Vintage Twee will be uncovering some summer delights very soon so keep an eye on the website as you read it here first!

Nia "road testing" her own baking..

If music be the fruit of love...

 You can’t get more romantic than the charming theme of music and wine for your wedding.. . just take a leaf of out of April and Edwards lyrical book whose wedding took place on Saturday 04^th June in an exceptionally tuneful style. Vintage Twee was honoured to be chosen to make the table plan, table names and place settings for this stunning wedding and relished at the opportunity to have free reign to design something the guests and happy couple  would remember long after the champagne stopped flowing.

April’s criteria to Joanne was that the décor must be fitting to the music and wine theme her and Edward had opted for, representing their musical background. Joanne quickly formed an idea of how she could use vintage inspired  idea’s to encompass all aspects of romance, history and of course, the lovely grape. Starting with the table plan,  a black and cream colour scheme was used to tie in with the vintage music sheets, circa 1930’s. Each table was named after a favourite wine and shown in a scripted font complete with delicate pearl heart to soften the image. Continuing the colour theme and style through to the table names, vintage lace edged the placards and a pretty bunch of grapes were added in the corners. Being the unique bride that she was, April was spray painting bunches of the tasty fruit in purple glitter to place on the tables so Joanne added small purple diamantes on to the printed grapes to accentuate and really set them off!

Choosing Vintage Twee’s rose music place settings for the female guests and the very imaginative idea of having corks as a place setting for the gents (bride’s own idea!!), really completed the look for the room and ensured the wedding was as swinging as the theme! As a thank you to her beautiful flower girl niece, April asked Joanne to create a card she could keep as a memento of the day- as you can see it turned out to be another feather in the Vintage Twee cap and we think it looks absolutely great!

Joanne was touched to receive a text off April the morning of the wedding to thank her for the items- as any bride knows there usually isn’t a spare minute in between being hoisted in to your dress and trying not to ladder your stockings!! As a wedding gift to the couple Joanne included the book from which the vintage music sheets were used which came complete with an inscription from 1937 and is truly something to treasure.

Don’t forget Vintage Twee are happy to custom make your orders to complement your theme.. don’t be afraid to share your ideas as Joanne will be able to offer advice and a specialist vintage eye to help you create your vintage dream.