Southampton Hilton Hotel Wedding Fair

Hey All,

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I spent my Sunday working with the amazing Annette Bradford and Michelle of Elegance Bridal Coiffure; the Miss Hampshire 2014 finals’ hair stylist.

We were attending the Southampton Hilton Hotel Wedding Fair, near Chilworth in Hampshire. The event was a cosy, friendly wedding event to showcase some of the South’s wonderful wedding businesses; including bridal dress shops, make-up artists, photographers, decorators and even a white dove release company!

I was working with Channon Kail and Lillie Hirst. Now what was so special about this wedding fair was that this was the first time I had modelled alongside my gorgeous younger cousin Lillie. She was brilliant – at 17 years old I was so shy and uncomfortable in my own skin, but she is so helpful and a joy to be around. And turns out she is a great model too! I did feel slightly old modelling next to two spring chickens (teenagers!) but we had such a great laugh.

Annette and Michelle whisked us from girls next door to beautiful brides, despite having a limited amount of time (and a lot of my hair to do!). These ladies are so expertly skilled – how Michelle hacked through my curls and made them into a soft up-do I’ll never know, and I adored Annette’s make up. It was my first ever time wearing individual false eyelashes and I am now converting to them! They also gave me a wealth of advice on hair health and make-up tricks, so I would recommend popping into the Waterlooville-based salon soon!

We modelled a number of bridal gowns, as well as some bridesmaid dresses which would also look amazing as prom gowns. These were all from JC Brides in Portsmouth; kindly lent by Katie Campbell.

My favourite gown was actually a short wedding dress. It really went well with the hair and make-up that Annette and Michelle gave me, and I can’t resist a bit of vintage 50’s styling!

I was more of a pin-up, while Lillie was styled very ‘Great Gatsby-esque’ – she could have been Daisy Buchanan. Channon was styled as more of a classic beauty; very elegant and regal.
We had a great time on Sunday, especially posing on the wedding cars. Keep an eye out for pictures from Hemma Mason and Brian’s photos from BC Digiphot Ltd hopefully coming soon!

The event has prepped me for the upcoming Alton House Hotel wedding fair; where I’ll be reunited with the wonderful Miss Hampshire 2014 Charlotte Giles and a number of the other beautiful contestants from this year. The Alton House Hotel has been the venue for the past two Miss Hampshire events, so it really is a special place for me to return to!