We at Chantal Mallett have a lot of love for the straight talking, incredibly talented, visionary Amie Bone – even more so since getting to hang out with the whole Amie Bone team this weekend at The National Wedding Show, Olympia, London.

A few months prior to the show I was asked if I would design & create a peach tulle fairy gown & accessories to go with a secret garden theme & knowing just how phenomenal Amie’s previous stand was, I was 100% on board & loving the creative freedom of the brief.

As with all designs I created a number of sketches & presented them to Amie who loved the same sketch I did – a design which, after 20 years creating gowns & accessories, finally amalgamated the two into one design.

 

 

There was A LOT of complicated wire work to create but we knew it would be completely worthwhile. The design had a strong nod to butterflies with wings for straps & a butterfly motif in the center of the corset & the jewellery components of the gown took several weeks to hand make.

 

We were incredibly lucky that one of our favourite models Abigail Tara Lilly was in the country (between stays in Barcelona & Tokyo) & could breath life into all our hard work with her enchanting personality & fairy like features.

 

On Friday 23rd September with the scaffolding tower & buckets of flowers cleared from the aisles, before us stood a 5 meter high stand, covered in roses, hydrangeas, clematis, delphiniums…. in shades of peach, green, purple with touches of blue.

 

 

 

The floor: real grass, damp as though covered with morning dew. The tablescapes: fantasies laden with moss for tableclothes with touches of gold including gilt Duchess & Butler cutlery & in the center, huge golden urns full of blooms. The quirky chairs had moss seats, some with mirrors for backs, others floral backs decorated with stag horns. Everywhere you looked there were flowers; climbing the pillars, covering the walls & cascading from the ceiling.

 

 

At 10am, Abi stepped out of hair & make-up, courtesy of Team Glam, into Amie’s world & added that final touch of magic; a living breathing fairy. Sanshine Photography‘s camera clicked away & Amie’s videographer moved silently around the stand capturing the magnificence of the scene aided by a fabulous lighting scheme by Rendezvous Events.

 

For the next 3 days children & adults alike were drawn to the jewel at the center of the National Wedding Show to see this mesmerising garden & meet the fairy & at times with the amount of cameras pointing at the stand it felt like a perpetual press call at a red carpet event.

We loved this collaboration & thank Amie Bone for asking us to be part of her magical world – we wouldn’t have missed it  x

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Credits:

Flowers & Styling: Amie Bone Flowers 

Lighting: Rendezvous Events

Bridal Couture: Chantal Mallett 

Tableware: Duchess & Butler 

Hair/Makeup: Team-Glam 

Host: The National Wedding Show 

Official Photography: SanShine Photography 

Fairy: Abigail Tara Lilly