Hellooo

hello there!
I have neglected my business terribly in the last month, so no blog updates, very slack, but with good reason!
We rolled directly from major wedding work (Jo and Xavier's amazing wedfest! ) the first weekend in September (not to mention Ali's lovely pub garden wedding and Miles and Jennifer's wedding and Henrietta's party for Marco, all just before (an I'll timed, but lovely) two week holiday!
Then we had three days to pack, clean and move house! We moved back to Biddestone (lovely) about a month before the cottage was really liveable! So we have had an interesting few weeks. With some stress and much work it is finally feeling like home and at last I am ready to get my sewing machine out and start curtain making., yippee!
Another handicap work wise has been the death of my laptop! It has totally thrown me! The iPad is lovely...but! So I will make the giant leap to a mac (I think!) v scary. It will probably take me years to get used to.
But I have made some new friends and great contacts through my plans and purchases for the cottage....trying to source woven Kashmiri fabric to cover a sofa, I have met Sanjil who I think will help us with our research into having bespoke marquees made.
Purchasing rugs for the lounge, Wayne, while spraying stain protector on the carpet has said he can also waterproof my old marquees!
I have not been entirely neglectful to Vintage Marquees, I have made a small purchase of another 40 of the lovely old folding chairs. I am always adding to my stock, but our season's end has coincided with much work this year on the home front, so we need to have a major sort out of our storage unit and a major stock take too. I really have no idea how much of anything I have now!
Lots of work on the Web site planned too. (brace yourself Derek!) with a picture library of the hire items if we can make it happen!
So a huge thank you to John, David, Rodders and all the great uni boys who have helped us through the summer. It has been really hard work, but good fun too and we have met so many lovely people and worked at so many unique events.
Lots of bookings and enquiries already for next year, so looking forward to a dynamic 2012.
We have a new home phone number 01249716119, and of course the email address is always a good way to contact me.
Less waffle next time x

11pm seems to be blog time!
Our last really hectic day of the season today! Wool!

Bev, Daisy, Holly and had to be up at 6.30 today to travel to Harptree Court near Wells.
The event was Jo and Xaxier's wedfest! Jo combines exuberant creativity with detailed organisation and created a wonderful mini festival for their wedding celebrations. The Brixworth was bedecked with decorated lamp shades and old photo frames, candle lanterns covered with butterflies and strings of old photos. We filled huge hampers with wonderful picnics and guests sat on picnic rugs or at trestle tables. Jo's mum made lovely gingham runners for the old trestles ( I must see if she wants to sell them!). The vintage marquee was the 'hedgerow bar' with galvanised baths full of chilled wine and cider. I wish we hadn't been working so hard, we would have had more time to admire everything! But I will try to post a few photos next time.

We are somehow going to go away on holiday tomorrow!! But before that John has to get back from Bath (he has gone to get Daisy who doesn't feel well.. Obviously something she has eaten!!?) then tomorrow there are four tents to dismantle before the hurricane winds arrive!
I hope that during our absence (at it has to be said, the trickiest time) the rest of the carpeting will be finished in the cottage, the decorating will be completed too, the kitchen will be made, the kitchen floor finished...(am I a little optimistic?)

Being unfit parents we are leaving a 21yr old, an 18 yr old and Daisy (15 or 20, depending!) and I am actually feeling very guilty about it. But it will be fun and games when we return, four days of frantic house packing and cleaning and then we move into the cottage. Which incidentally will have no cooker, one sink (the tiny corner one in the girls bathroom!) and a fridge in the shed!

But come October, well, the end of October, let's be realistic! Life just might be settling down to some sort of normality!
one small parting fact, Vintage Marquees has provided tents for 43 events this season!!!
I feel I have earned my new iPad which I am playing on now!

September 2nd, can you believe it!!??
And we have two more hectic weekends, then just the odd booking or two this year.
A few catering events over the winter and lots of planning and web site updating for next year.
Since the last post I really can't remember what I've done!! Mainly spun in circles between cottage, tents, and general chaos!
Some lovely events though...We had Freya and Victor's wedding which was very special. A fabulous bohemian event, complete with a stunning yurt which made our beautiful Big Top look rather ordinary! Every event is so exciting and so special. Freya and Victor cleverly covered all angles by having a tea party (provided by yours truly!) followed later on by their own home cooked curries etc and eaten in the yurt with everyone being very chilled on the floor cushions etc. It all worked really well and the Big Top (meant to be a bit posher!! than the others) has never looked so ethnic, with Indian wall hangings to boot!

The following weekend I provided about 80 sets of vintage china, table cloths and wedding favours for Laura's wedding in the Abbey Gardens in Malmesbury. I was washing and sorting china for the rest of the week!

The photo shows the pretty wedding favours, small heart shaped soaps in organza bags. There really is no end to our talents!!haha!

This weekend we migrated to Amersham in Buckinghamshire (the longest drive I have ever done!!) Very brave!! My mini was packed to the gills with Bev, Daisy and I, as well as 120 chocolate brownies, several hundred cheesy biscuits, pate, cheeses, lantern crooks, etc, etc! Purdy organised an extravaganza of a party for Charlie and Becky who were 21 and 18. An absoulutely amazing party in their totally stunning garden. Cleverly I forgot the camera, but again, the Big Top did look fab, expecially late at night with all the lanterns lit and fairy lights twinkling around the pool...

Sadly there is always the slight thrill when I actually remember my password to sign on to the blog!! Little things!!...Well, my manic summer might just be nearing its end now...phew! I have 7 more events (and the small matter of finishing work on the cottage and moving in) in the next 3 weeks, then THAT IS IT!!!
Already I have such an exciting (and indulgent..and expensive!!) project planned.. I have this idea to have a corner sofa made and cover it in kelims! I have found Shakeel who sells his beautiful Kelims from Kashmir and next week I will be working with Anne from the Sofa Workshop in Bath and cutting the fabric for this very exciting sofa!!!(This I hope will be followed by much curtain making etc, etc, oh joy!!)
But on the work front, Shakeel might just have a friend in Jaipur who might help me organise major marquee production. This is the next plan. By early 2012 I hope to have a sales page and be producing pretty traditional style small marquees for sale. Do drop me an e-mail if you would be interested in prices and have style preferences.
Another small update to my ever expanding inventory of hire items. I have now aquired 10 vingageish deck chairs and 9 candelabras. Also two wrought iron chandeliers to hang from the roof of the marquee!! More thrilling new additions to come!

The wedding before!

Sophie and Anthony's wedding last weekend was lovely and the weather was fab. So lucky, as it hammered down the next day. Don't we love England!!
This one was taken at Rachel and Ricky's wedding which was sumptuous, with delightful shabby chic detail everywhere! No detail was left to chance, from the vintage deck chairs, to the ice cream stall, candelabras, windmills and croquet!
I love the creativity and imagination of it all! Each event is so different and all equally lovely! In the last three weeks my Big Top has been a lovely lunch tent with old linen cloths and a band outside playing in the garden, a beautiful 1950's lounge, complete with full bar at one end, and coya matting looking like carpet, And then the centrepicec for the lovely wedding party overlooking Box Valley, with pretty missmatched bottles full of sweet peas and vintage crockery and bags of jelly beans.
Thank you to everyone who loves the look of my marquees and has taken the leap of faith to ask me to help at their weddings. It is hard work, but so special and I love it all....really!

Here is the utterly stunning view (and quite a great
photo, don't you think!!)
of Box valley taken looking out from our marquee
at Sophie and Anthony's wedding last weekend.
A tricky one for us staff, tripping around on a slope, but I think all the guests faired well and no one toppled down the hill! A lovely do with fabulous food and sumptuous BBQ from Neston Farm shop (hopefully we will be liasing with them in the future)

too busy to blog!!

Well, here we are again! Three more weddings since my last blog and I think about another seven to go before the end of the season. Then I think I will hibernate and sleep for the winter (actually of course I won't, I will be Mrs"I'm in my new cottage at last" and will be happily busy making curtains and plumping cushions!!)

Now, the Corsham do was a lovely relaxed (for the guests anyway!) affair in a beautiful garden with lots of lovely tents dotted around and listening to the jolly Pack Horse band from Lacock.

Perfect.

That was followed by Rachel and Ricky's wedding in Gloucester. Wow!! What an event that was! An amazing procuction with so much planning and brilliant attention to detail.

AAh!! I seem to have failed to add the appropriate image (arm chairs in a marquee) and found one of Josh (my big 21yr old) and I in the snow..aah well, better luck next time, hehe!

More blogging activity tomorrow I hope (it's midnight now, no wonder I'm making mistakes!)

till the next one...

This is Rob and Kate's 'going away bike'!! They sailed off down the drive while being showered with confetti! Luckily not rain!! Such a stormy day, but as the ceremony began mid afternoon, the sun came out and my brollies didn't come out again until the evening! Another BEAUTIFUL wedding that I have had the luck and privilege to be involved with.

Here are some of Kate and Rob's wedding guests at Sheldon Manor sporting my so stylish parasol umberellas!

I worked with Kate and Sarah on Friday filling kilner jars with sunny yellow gerberas and daisys

to go on the wedding tables in the marquee.

On Saturday, several frantic hours were spent decorating the cheese and fruit cake wedding cake (great idea!), decorating marquee poles,fixing button holes, and filling any available recepticle with spare flowers!

A great group of lovely creative people with ideas that are so inspiring. I love all the wedding preparation, and all things so creative, so it is wonderful to be involved at the last minute helping all the ideas come together. One of Kate and Rob's ideas was to name their tables by using small black boards wedged into discs of tree trunk, FAB!

On Monday we delivered and erected five

marquees for a wedding at the Stanlane Vineyard

near Reading. Here are John and David relaxing

infront of Joey amongst the vines!

July Wedding

Here are Natasha and Anthony looking so happy.
Their wedding in Biddestone was brilliant. Natasha did an amazing job organizing everything (including making miles of her own bunting). Lots of last minute changes which were dealt with brilliantly! Being let down by caterers, food was bought from Sainsburys, family pitched in and with a huge hog roast 120 guests seemed to be catered for with ease!!
Flowers were bought from local supermarkets too, and suplemented with alchemilla and lavender from gardens in the village. All looked lovely and Natasha's resourcefulness was brilliant. She and I collected glass vases which looked so pretty on the rustic pub tables (and my trestles of course!)
I loved making the posies for the bride and bridesmaids and the button holes. This wedding business is FAB!

This weekend we were all involved in our Biddestone village fete. It is a real traditional country fete with cream teas on the lawn, flower girls selling posies, bric-a-brac stall, plants, tug-of-war etc. Very quintessentially English..everyone worked hard, had a great time, and the sun shone!!!

Here is the original Vintage marquee with the local brass band!!

Meanwhile, one of my Jester tents (there are now four!) was in a neighbouring village for the annual scarecrow competition ..and Mum went back to her local church fete!! How British are we!!?

This weekend we had five marquees out in total, this is getting to be the norm at the mo. I am so pleased that the traditional look is so popular and stiil love everything about my marquees!!
This is the lovley Brixworth at a 21st birthday party. This 20' x 40' marquee was only bought about a month ago and we have about six hirings for this season already!
I am sorely tempted to buy a larger marquee, but firstly the genuine old canvas marquees are hard to find and then we would need more storage, tables, chairs, lights,vans, man power etc!!!
Mmmm, some careful thought needed!

This was taken yesterday. This is the new Brixworth not in her full glory. We need dollies and all the extras, hemp ropes etc, the bits that make these great old marquees really good. But the poles and canvas are perfect. I love the smell of the old canvas, and the condition is immaculate. (well, a few scuffs, but what can you expect??) Also featured here are Rhys looking hunky (as always.. well, he is a 6'3" rugby player!!...I wonder if he'ed like to give up the day job for tent erecting???mmm!) then John ducking under the roof and David really hiding!! (soon to be enticed out with cake! But you don't see that bit!)
We have had a few really busy days, with most marquees out last weekend and the torrential rain on Sunday, everything was sodden, so there was miles of soggy canvas and carpet to haul about and dry...harrrd work!! What a business to be in..bring on the flower arranging I say, I would like to leave all the marquee haulage to the boys, really and truly!

Blog time is here again!! After all, it is 11.15pm! Only one glass of wine tonight though (masses of chocolate on the other hand!!) So here are a few pictures of my life at the moment!! Firstly a button hole done for Briony and Joss's wedding last weekend. I just love being involved with weddings! I had a carte blanche (almost!) to do my best with all the wedding flowers, so for the first time I made the bouquets ( I called them posies). Four of those, table flowers, button holes and decorated napkins...all sheer joy, especially when compared to the evening task, child minding 18 children! All lovely, but quite a handful!!!

Belle in all her glory!! With John collapsed inside!! Then a very flattering photo of me inbetween lovely artistic stuff, sporting John's overalls and wearing full sanding gear! What a hideous job, but we now have two lovely old exposed beams (that only I will appreciate, hence the reason I was doing the job!! everyone else thought it a waste of time!!)

Anna (http://www.annaduranrphotography.co.uk/) sent me the disc of the photo shoot at Church Farm this week. The photos are fab and I would love to add a couple of pages to the web site to show them all! Failing that, here are a couple!! I love the black and white images..

These are images from Chris and Gemma's wedding.

I was involved in much of the fine detail including decorating the marquee poles with garlands of gypsophelia, alchemilla and ivy and (very exciting!) peony roses and hydrangeas. Also arranging the vintage china, helping with the wedding tea etc. With no detail left to chance, everything looked perfect. Masses of home made bunting, beautiful country flowers.. I could go on and on!

What a lovely family, I feel very honoured to have been able to work so closely with everyone in both the run up to and on this special day. I love my work!

What a lovely (and sometimes not a little stressful!) business to be in! These pictures are from Beth and Pete's wedding where I worked with Beth's mum arranging fresh herbs and peony roses in missmatched vintage glass vases.

Then I created the sumptuous cheese wedding cake, arranged with grapes, figs, fig leaves, rosemary etc.

Such a beautiful wedding with such attention to detail, it is a genuine privilege to be involved in the final stages of wedding preparation; meeting lovely people and being part of the very special day.

vintage vehicles!

The blog posts are coming thick and fast at the moment!
But look at this fabulous car!!
It belongs to Keith and we spotted it while
sneaking out for a pub supper last week.
The pub car park was full of lovely vintage cars.


This is just what I have been looking for!
What better than a vintage Rolls to take you
to your wedding reception in a beautiful
vintage marquee!!

You can contact Keith by visiting www.kingtoncarriage.com he has lots of vintage car club mates who might just be happy to oblige too!

Well, today I met my old friend Nigel and had a lovely 2 hours walking around his beautiful woodland and fields. (Quite an acheivement actually, having cycled 33 miles yesterday!! The first cycle for maybe 30 years!!!)

Nigel's land is just minutes away from M4 Junction 17, yet once there, you feel as if you were the only person for miles around. Anyway, the point of this is that Nigel has exciting plans to create a very special party venue, bell tents or yurts, around a rustic fire pit with sleeper benches etc, all encircled within a forest of poplars. VERY EXCITNG!! The idea is that there will be static tents for group hire, (then of course extra lovely vintage ones can be hired too!) so you could hire the whole venue for a very special 'party in the woods!'

Do e-mail me if you're interested in this idea.. watch this space for the new website link!

We have another new marquee in the family! Last Sunday John and I went on a road trip to Northampton to the most stunning All Saints Saxon church in the beautiful village of Brixworth.
'The Brixworth 'as it shall now be known was bought down from the church tower and we are now the prowd owners of a lovely 40' x 20' vintage marquee.
Hopefully the photoshoot will be next weekend, to include Belle too. I also plan to photograph all my small hire pieces so I can make a catalogue page on the web site for interested parties to see the detail on all the items.
Well, that's the plan! In truth, life is so flat out busy with enquiries, bookings, working at events and then making decisions on cookers, kitchens, worktops, walls, paint colours, cupboards, knobs, sinks, showers, tiles etc, etc (we will NEVER move again!!!) that the fun extras, frippery and photography always are left until last.
More quoting and paper shuffling now......

May Madness!

I can't believe how life just seems to get more and more hectic!!
While in the throes of trying to rennovate our new (old) cottage, we are in our rental house and trying to sell it, at the same time as running two businesses, three children, two dogs, one cat, one granny and four vehicles!!

Life on the Vintage Marquee front is frantic!! This summer I have 43 tent bookings and another 12 events awaiting confirmation....WOW!! I think I need a secretary! Just keep the e-mails coming folk so I don't forget anything!!

I am also helping with flowers and pretty stuff at several local weddings (what a wonderful job!)
And busy purchasing the odd extra marquee or two (off to Northampton on Saturday to pick up a vintage 20' x 30') but more on that one next time...

Meanwhile there has been a fabby photo shoot at Church Farm in Kington Langley Wilts, where Will and Kate (we have good connections here in Wiltshire) are launching their new wedding venue (to assuage boredom between public engagements!!) We will be linking web sites, and there will be some new pictures posted on my site soon.

Till next time...with photos I hope of beautiful Kings Meadow at Church farm, looking lovely with the wild flower meadow and graced with the majestic Big Top!

hummingbird cards

Well! The first thing I am pondering is why I always decide to update my blog so late at night and after several glasses of wine!! The first challenge is to remember my password (always a worry!) then I'm on a roll! So, my news today is I have a new friend! Sally-Ann contacted me about a marquee hire, but sadly we couldn't help as we were already fully booked, but, you know how it is... we got chatting and I discovered that Sally-Ann's business is making THE MOST BEAUTIFUL stationery! It is all lazer cut; the most delicate lace effect designs with (I think) a wonderful vintage feel. Sally Ann's company will of course create bespoke designs for each individual event, but we are planning to work on some 'vintage marquee' invitations etc...very exciting! So have a look at her web site www.hummingbirdcards.co.uk ..very special stuff! I would love to post a picture now, but having just moved, I have clerverly kept my camera to hand, but packed away the charger!! (along with all my important bank details, cheque books etc..oh joy!!) more next time...

Hunting and gathering!

Well. we've done it! Belle is on her way! Quite pretty I think! Made from cream canvas and 4m round, she will fit in well with the other marquees and may well gain a few sisters if she proves to be popular!

More fairly lights are also on the way, and fairy light hearts which I think will look lovely against the canvas at night. 100 fabulous old church hall style chairs should be arriving on Monday, very exciting as I have been looking for some for ages.

With each new booking and enquiry I have new (old) items to source. Next on the agenda are old crystal vases for flowers.. a hunting we will go...!

feeling displaced!

Well, we have just sold our house so are now renting for a while. Very odd and quite cosy and lovely to have only 10% of our posessions with us, but all our family and our animals, more than enough really. Why (and how!) do we gather so much stuff around us!!
So we have had to loose our phone number (so the 01249 one no longer exists) so I am only contactable via e-mail or mobile.
Still masses of activity on the Vintage Marquee front. Lots of wedding bookings for this summer.
I have bought more wooden folding chairs, so have a fairly extensive stock now.
I am hoping to buy a bell tent soon to add to my collection, she will be called Belle of course!

lazy Sunday afternoon

So what better to do than update my blog??

Well, I have been very creative this last couple of weeks, and have produced an eight page wedding planner which I hope will prove to be a comprehensive guide, along with a consultation from yours truly!

Also progress has been made on the marketing front (although John is a little concerned with keeing up with demand!) and Derek and I (with the help of Ripe publishing in Corsham) have produced some fabulous fliers which I plan to distribute to local pubs and hotels.

I am also linking up with some vintage and wedding shops in Bath, so hope to promote Vintage Marquees locally and have fewer bookings further afield (far more sensible!)

Lots of enquiries for the summer now. Unfortunately the marquee season (especially canvas marquees) is fairly short, and I hate to dissapoint by being unable to help if I already have a booking, so book early to avoid dissapointment!! An old cliche, but true!

Happy New Year!

Well!!

2011 is off to a flying start with lots of enquiries and several wedding bookings for the summer.

Derek (the fabulous web designer!) and I have spent several creative hours adding to the pages of my web site. The marquee page is now updated with Jester, Jubilee and Joey! I have added the option of a consultancy service for wedding and party planning and we have also updated the testimonials (Derek argues that people don't bother to read them, but I disagree!!) and the gallery. I can't resist taking photos of all the lovely parties, cakes, decorations, flowers etc, so the gallery is ever evolving! Here's to a sunny and happy New Year.