Simply Enter: We are proud to sponsor CFM's 5 Brides competition- Enter here!

Simply Bows and Chair Covers are thrilled to be sponosring CFM's 5 Brides Competition in aid of Cash for Kids. They are giving one lucky couple the chance to win their ultimate dream wedding worth over £15,000!

 You can choose between a wedding on either Monday 18th June 2012 or Tuesday 25th September 2012.

This amazing wedding package includes.....

• A wedding at The Swallow Hilltop Hotel, Carlisle. The package includes red carpet, Champagne or Bucks Fizz reception drink for 50 guests, Wedding Service, 4 course meal for 50 guests served after the wedding ceremony, 4 complimentary bottles of wine per table (to a maximum of 6 tables), Toast Master, champagne for toast for 500 people, Evening reception for 100 people including finger buffet and disco. The Bride and groom will have use of a room before the wedding, Bridal Suite for after the wedding, meal and overnight stay for 1st anniversary, 6 weeks leisure club use before wedding. The package is worth £9000
• A wedding dress to the value of £1000 from KoKoa Bride
• 2 bridesmaids dresses to the value of £200 each from KoKoa Bride
• Groom and Best Man Suit Hire from KoKoa Bride - choose from either a short jacket suit with waistcoat, a tailed suit with waistcoat or a Prince Edward Suit with waistcoat worth £172
• Bespoke designer cupcake tower with 100 cupcakes and a 5” cutting cake and loan of display stand from Fantasweets Cupcakes worth £280
• Bridal flowers to the value of £150 from Bloomsberry
• Wedding photography for the wedding ceremony and wedding breakfast, 30 7”x5” photos and viewing CD of your order from Picture U worth £395
• Wedding Décor chair covers with organza bows with matching table runners to match Bride and Grooms colour Scheme from Simply Bows and Chair Covers worth £490
• Wedding Video from Higham’s Wedding Services, including Video of Wedding Day and part of the evening and supply of a DVD in case worth £650
• Brides Hair from Lockstock Hairdressing including pre wedding consultation and trial plus brides hair styling on wedding day at their salon in Carlisle. The package is worth £100
• Honeymoon from The Co-Operative Travel – this is a 4 night break at Faweather Grange Lodges for the Bride and Groom starting on 1st October 2012
• 30 minute performance at the Wedding Evening Reception from Zing Choir
• Wedding Rings from the Wed Fit Range to the value of £600 from Nicholson and Coulthard
• Whisper the Barn Owl Ring Delivery from Kielder Water Birds of Prey Centre worth £300
• A 1m x 1m single block Ice Sculpture from UK Ice Sculptures worth £350

Sponsors include....

For your chance to enter visit CFM now!

Simply Luxurious: Winder Hall

Winder Hall is a cosy yet luxurious, five star Country House Hotel in the Lake District. Nestled in a stunning setting away from the hustle and bustle of busy lives yet close to the popular attractions of Keswick and the historic market town of Cockermouth, Winder Hall is the ideal location for a relaxing retreat!

This enchanting hotel is a delight to work with for Simply Bows and Chair Covers. Its majestic standing and contemporary yet classical and elegant decor creates a unique image rarely seen in the Lake District.

It is a joy to wander around the gorgeous grounds and relax on the terrace with a drink. Guests can also take a dip in the hot tub or visit the sauna to unwind.

Not only is Winder Hall a great place to escape but it is also a great venue to host a wedding or a special event.

Civil Ceremony at Winder Hall dressed by Simply Bows and Chair Covers

Civil Ceremony at Winder Hall dressed by Simply Bows and Chair Covers

Special Occasion lunch at Winder Hall dressed by Simply Bows and Chair Covers

The magnificent Winder Hall Hotel have also teamed up with linen and event specialists Simply Bows and Chair Covers to introduce elegant yet fun ‘High Tea Hen Parties’ to the women of Cumbria!

With delicious sandwiches, vintage cupcakes, scones and cream cakes served in the exquisite grounds of Winder Hall dressed by Simply Bows and Chair Cover’s divine vintage linen you will feel like the ‘ladies who lunch’ of a bygone era. Champagne with strawberries will be served along with a traditional serving of tea and coffee and the staff of Winder Hall will be on hand to ensure your experience is one that you and your guests will remember for ever. High Tea Hen Parties start at £20 per person and we believe that for the women who like to be original and have something a little bit different, this is definitely is your answer!

Cakes by FantaSweets

Birdcage by Gardenalia

For more information on High Tea Hen Parties or any other events at Winder Hall please contact them on 01900 85107.

*Photography by Picture U

Simply Inspired: Royal Wedding has inspired romantic proposals

It appears that not only were Kate and Williams nuptuals the celebration of the year but they have also inspired numerous young couples to get hitched, caught up in the spirit of things....

Romantic Dean Nicholls, 26, proposed on one knee to his girlfriend of three years, Lauren Green, at  the Queen’s official London residence, which currently boasts an exhibition devoted to William and Kate’s wedding.

Dean and Lauren

 'I had always wanted to go there. The Palace symbolises all that is English, for me. Lauren shares the same interest so I thought it was an ideal place and opportunity to propose' revealed Dean.

‘I think the time was right and with the Royal Wedding and our Buckingham Palace tour it seemed to fit in nicely. I had been thinking about proposing for a few months.’

Buckingham Palace’s Visitor Manager Richard Knowles, said: ‘We were delighted that the gentleman chose to propose during a visit to Buckingham Palace. This is particularly special in the year of the Royal Wedding and with The Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding dress here on display.’

The perfect location: Thousands of people crowded outside Buckingham Palace on the 29th April this year to get a glimpse of the Royal Wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton

Just days before the Buckingham palace proposal, another mystery couple got engaged on top of Windsor Castle’s newly-opened round tower. The love birds, known only as ‘Brad and Natalie’, who are believed to be Australian, prompted cheers from other tourists with their proposal.

 

News of the romantic encounter was Tweeted by Buckingham Palace. It read: ‘The first proposal at the top of Windsor Castle’s Round Tower. She said yes!’Castle sources said the couple were part of a guided tour in the tower, which has just opened to the public for the first time in 800 years.

 

The man was said to be ‘overcome’ by the stunning views of the Windsor skyline from 215 feet above the River Thames. Standing on the upper parapet in pouring rain, he dropped to his knee and presented his intended with a ring.

The scenic view from the top of the Round Tower at Windsor Castle, looking down towards Peascod Street and the town centre.

Simply Charity: CHUF Event at Close House Hotel

Around 300 small babies and children are operated on each year by the children’s heart surgeons at the Freeman Hospital. Heart problems, including Tetralogy of Fallot, are among the most common types of abnormality found in newborn babies. Many of them are tiny infants who, up until a few years ago, would not have survived. Out of 33,000 babies born in the Northern region each year, around 300 will require surgery and many more will require medical or outpatient treatment in the Children’s Heart Unit (Ward 23).

Not all children are born with heart disease. Viruses can severely weaken the heart and cause it to fail. The Freeman Hospital is one of only 2 hospitals in the UK that performs children’s heart transplants and that use mechanical hearts to keep these children alive until their heart either recovers or can be transplanted. Since 1987 over 250 children have received a transplant. Simply Bows and Chair Covers were only to delighted to be invited by CHUF (Children's Heart Unit Fund) and Close House Hotel to dress their fabulous Handbags and Gladrags Ball hosted by the one and only Ben Shephard!

Below are just a few photos of the fantastic marquee at Close House Hotel to wet your appetite!

Flowers by the fabulous Wedding Flowers For You

We are delighted to announce that the ball raised £34,000 which is amazing and in total CHUF have raised £160,000 to date in approximately 20 months from an original target of £120,000 which was seen as terribly ambitious!!! Simply Bows and Chair Covers and CHUF would like to take this opportunity to thank the North East for their generosity and continued support :)

Simply Reality: Reality TV Star Kim Kardashian weds Kris Humphries

Kim Kardashian has said 'I do' to her basketballer fiancé Kris Humphries in a beautiful sunset ceremony attended by her A-list friends.

The couple tied the knot at 6.30pm in a 30-minute service watched by their families, and celebrity guests including Ryan Seacrest, Lindsay Lohan, Eva Longoria, Venus and Serena Williams, Avril Lavigne and Demi Lovato.

The legendary Vera Wang

It has been revelaed that Kim wore  a bridal gown by Vera Wang (as previously revealed to you by Simply Bows and Chair Covers on our recent blog post). It was an ivory cutom-made strapless dress with a full tulle skirt, basque waist and a hand-pieced Chantilly lace applique on the bodice and finished with an exceptionaly long train!

Mother of the bride Kris Jenner was spotted just before the wedding ceremony in a strapless Vera Wang gown with a large bow on the chest! Sneak peek below....

Mother of the Bride wears Vera Wang too

Insiders at the celebrity bash reveal that the bride also wore Guiseppe Zanotti shoes, and the weddings rings exchanged were designed by her good friend Lorraine Schwartz, who also designed her stunning engagement ring.

Following the ceremony, the action moved to a separate tent with the bride changing into a second Vera Wang mermaid gown with more Chantilly lace on the bodice and hand-cut organza petals on the skirt.

As the Kardiashians have sold exclusive photos of the day to a celebrity magazine a large tented walkway was erected to ensure privacy to the bridal party and exclusivity to the magazine.

Tented walkway

The wedding theme was black and white. Not only did every guest have to adhere to a black and white dress code but the whole marquee was decked out in black and white drapes and the couple had a ten tier balck and white chocolate and vanilla wedding cake!

 



Black and White Marquee and 10 tier black and white cake!



 

 

What did Twitter tell us?

Minutes before the 6.30pm sunset ceremony, Kris Humphries wrote on his Twitter page: 'This is it!'

The bride and groom have enjoyed spectacular weather for their big day, with the sun setting over a cloudless sky as they said their 'I Do's'.

Following the ceremony, bridal designer Vera Wang Tweeted: 'Wow! @KimKardashian What a joyous, beautiful, magical night! Wishing you and Kris all the blessings in the world xx Vera.'

 

Why not follow Simply Bows and Chair covers on twitter? @Simply Bows

 

 

Simply Charity: Sadie Rose Clifford Appeal

On 8th August 2009 Sadie Rose was born, weighing a very healthy 8lbs 6oz but in October 2010 aged just 14 months old Sadie Rose was diagnosed with a childhood Cancer called Neuroblastoma.

Sadie has survived front line treatment here in the UK, which has included an initial 70 days of Chemotherapy in November 2010, major surgery in February 2011 to remove her tumour which was located above her left kidney and wrapped around the main artery in the body, her Aorta. This was a life threatening operation but she came out fighting and was home after just over a week in hospital. In March 2011 Sadie then had an intensive course of High Dose Chemotherapy to prepare her body for her Stem Cell Transplant. Sadie had her own Stem Cells given back. Unfortunately as a side effect from her High Dose Chemotherapy she developed a very serious and potentially life threatening disease of her Liver, called Veno Occlusive Disease (V.O.D). This caused her tummy to swell and she gained over 2kg in just a few days, this was due to fluid being retained. The disease took over Sadie's body entirely and she ended up on Oxygen 24hrs a day. The Intensive Care Team came to see Sadie and had told her parents that they would expect to see her in ICU by the weekend. Their consultant had prepared them for the worst. However Sadie pulled through and was discharged from Leeds General Infirmary after 8 weeks. The Crown   Sadie had 3 weeks of radiotherapy in June. This seemed to go very well, so much so she didn't want to leave!!! However in July, Sadie started Immunotherapy which didn't go according to plan......and after just 2 weeks Sadie suffered a seizure and after an emergency CT Scan the specialist Neurosurgeons discovered a tumour on the right side of her tiny brain. The next day a 4 hour operation to remove the tumour was carried out, and sent to the lab for tests. Which showed that the tumour was in fact Cancerous. The Neuroblastoma had grown......yet again!!  Sadie this month sadly relapsed once again which meant that her family now need to look at taking her to America for life saving treatment and this will cost £300,000.00. With this in mind the team at The Crown Hotel in Harrogate decided to arrange a charity ball at the hotel in order to raise funds towards the appeal of this courageous little girl. Simply Bows and Chair Covers were delighted to be able to add a touch of glamour to this fantastic event and provide the decor to create a fabulous ambience for which to begin their fundraising journey.Below are a few

The event managed to raise a total of £10,200 and The Crown Hotel and Sadie's parents would like to thank everybody involved. If you would like to help them raise more money please visit this site for more information. Simply Bows and Chair Covers wish Sadie and her family lots of love and luck for the future.

Simply Twilight: Alfred Angelo in the spotlight again

You may recall a short time ago we featured a blog post on Alfred Angelos fantatsic range of Disney inspired gowns... if you missed it take a look here Simply Fairytale.

Alfred Angelo

Well knowing this very talented designer and his ever increasing popularity we knew it wouldnt be long before he made the wedding headlines again! This time he has delighted Twilight fans with his replica wedding dress from the forthcoming movie.

It has been revealed that when Bella Swan marries heart throb Edward Cullen she will be wearing a Carolina Herrera wedding dress however the British public will have to wait three months to see it. When Breaking Dawn, Part One is finally released on November 18th, shoppers will be able to get their hands on an exact copy of the 'Edwardian-inspired' dress.

Alfred Angelo has revealed however that he will be exclusively selling the official replica in his Signature stores in the U.S and independent retailers worldwide from November.

Bella Swan played by Kristen Stewart

Alfred Angelo also recently created a copy of Kate Middleton's Alexander McQueen gown and he is suddenly the designer everyone is talking about in tinseltown at the moment.

Watch this space for more fab news from this very talented guy!

 

Simply Vogue: Sneak peek images of Kate Moss wedding

Simply Bows and Chair Covers are delighted to give you a sneek preview in to some newly released shots from American Vogue of Kate Moss' recent nuptuals.

Sept 11 Vogue Cover

Amazingly Kate has revealed that is was the TV show 'My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding' that encouraged her and her fiance to tie the knot! She told Vogue: 'I am so romantic about Gypsies. They’re not allowed to do anything until they get married. So they all get married really young, at sixteen. You can’t believe the dresses. They’re like blinging butterflies times ten; they can’t move down the aisle! It’s so genius.'

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding

‘You have to look at every piece of cutlery; the details are intense. And then you wake up thinking about the ballet shoes for the girls; is the satin ribbon right? I’ve gone mental. Jamie thinks I’m mad, asking, “Are you gonna be all right? After the wedding, I’m hoping you’ll get back to normal”.’

Ahead of the wedding the fashion princess told Vogue she wanted: 'A classic Galliano, those chiffon thirties kind. I’ve lived in his dresses for years, and they just make me feel so comfortable. But it’s so much more couture, couture, couture. Oh, my God, the work that’s going into the dress!'

The designer whom we featured in our Simply Fashion blog on the day of Kate's wedding,said designing the wedding gown was like 'creative rehab'.

Kate Moss and John Galliano in their partying days

As well as displaying Galliano Kate enjoyed two wardrobe changes donning a smoky-grey gown by her close friend Stella McCartney for her first dance with Jamie, before emerging in a 1930s silk wedding dress partying until six am... just as we expected!

Here are some great images of the fashion world's royal wedding of the year...

Kate Moss and Husband Jamie Hince

The happy couple



The wedding party: Top row (standing), from left: Ella de la Falaise, Charlotte Moss, Mercy Magic Cutler, Bliss Ferguson, Lila Grace Moss, Etta Cutler Lindegren. Bottom row (sitting), from left: Blythe Ferguson, Alfie Watters, Elfie Ferguson, Stella Jones, Ava Jones, Kate Moss, Lara