For brides-to-be looking for a vintage inspired wedding, the era most favoured this season is the 1920′s.

It was the birth of Hollywood, the rise of the glamorous movie starlets and the beginning of an incredibly influential fashion generation.

I love the 20′s for its pearls, ostrich feathers and t-bar shoes and you love it too.  Your favourite piece by far has to be the St Tropez headpiece by Stephanie Browne and I don’t blame you.

St Tropez Headpiece £399

St Tropez headpiece, Art Deco earrings

St Tropez Comb, Vivienne Bracelet, Imperial Bracelet, Peacock Earrings

There’s been so much going on behind the scenes of Queens and Bowl lately including some pretty gorgeous new photography of the spring/summer collection of vintage inspired wedding jewellery and accessories, which you can check out on the website and buy now!

The images come courtesy of the fabulously talented Kirstie McNulty who has truly captured the essence of Art Deco 1920s glamour,  the sophisticated chic of the 1950s and the delicate fragility of a bohemian lifestyle.

Paris Headpiece £450

Ambrosia

Cara

Art Deco

Beatrice

Cauldfield Band

Windsor

Would love to know what you think. Which is your favourite?

Kate x

As I hope you may know, Queens & Bowl have just launched a brand new range of accessories by Madeline Isaac-James. They’re the perfect match for her glamorous gowns, many of which have a distinct vintage feel.

The lady behind the stunning designs is Paula Marsh, owner and designer at The Vintage Sparkle Company, known for its gorgeous one-off original vintage pieces. Here I chat to Paula about her collaboration with Madeline Isaac-James and the brand-new vintage inspired range of wedding tiaras, headpieces and necklaces…..

Paula Marsh - Designer behind the brand new Madeline Isaac-James accessories range.

1. First of all, could you briefly describe your business and ethos?

I’m Paula Marsh and I run The Vintage Sparkle Company. I also design an exclusive collection of vintage inspired headpieces & jewellery for designer Madeline Isaac James. In my business I make headpieces from entirely vintage pieces but Natalie from MIJ asked me to design a vintage inspired range that could be made available to every bride. I still wanted to make each piece unique its in own way so I’ve included an original vintage pearl in every piece for a brides special something ‘old’ and also a small blue crystal for their something ‘blue’.

2. Can you describe a typical working day? What do you like / dislike the most?

First thing in the morning I update my job board, then I spend half an hour sorting emails and updating twitter. The rest of my day I am completing orders, photographing new pieces, updating the web site and talking to shops that stock the headpieces. I love designing new pieces so my favourite part of the day is working on new designs.

I can’t think of a part I dislike I’d just like a few more hours in the day please!!

3. Who would be your dream client and why? What do you think they’d choose to wear?

My dream client would be Florence Welch form Florence And The Machine.  Seeing one of my headpieces up on stage would be fantastic. I think that she would choose the Charleston Headband to sit at the front of her head and it looks fantastic under stage lights.

Would Florence Welch rock the Charleston headpiece? We think so!

4. What’s the most unusual request you’ve had from a bride-to-be?

To make a headpiece that included the Arsenal logo. A request that was slightly mad but  I did fulfil.

5. What’s your greatest achievement of your career to date?

My first front cover was a milestone for me, it was the Rosalie headband and she looked fantastic. I hope to achieve lots more of my milestones next year.

The Rosalie headpiece got Paula her first magazine cover!

6. What’s the most memorable thing you’ve seen at a wedding as a guest?

I went to a friend’s wedding, during the hymns the vicar was having sneaky sips from his hip flask, then he started slurring the service and during the final hymn he fell asleep, the groom had to nudge him to wake him up. Luckily he delivered a very memorable service and we all still laugh about it with our friends 9 years on!!

7. What are the overriding trends we’ll see in your next collection?

Obviously I am really inspired by vintage and antique jewellery so I think that this will be a continuing trend. For the next collection I will work closely with Natialie again to see which direction her dress collection is taking and I will adopt some of those themes through the accessory collection. I think big statement pieces will be a major trend in 2011.

8. What advice would you give to a bride-to-be starting her search for a headpiece?

Look, look and look some more, find a headpiece that like your fiancé you completely fall in love with. There are no rules on what you ‘have’ to wear, find something that you love and it’s bound to suit you and your personality.

9. What career path would you have taken if you weren’t a designer?

Before I was a designer I used to be an accountant, but thankfully I was able to give up the accountancy to do something I love. Other then that I would have loved to have gone into Law.

10. Finally, what would you do if you won the Euro Millions?!

Oh that would be fun, I would buy a beautiful collection of stunning diamonds set them in platinum and make a spectacular headpiece, which could then be auctioned off for my favourite charity.

Aww, what a sweetie? I absolutely love Paula’s new collection for Madeliane Isaac-James – let me know what you think!

Kate. x

A little while ago, Louise at Bow Occasions wedding planners did a fantastic ‘Vintage Week’ on her blog. Being a HUGE lover of vintage AND weddings, I jumped at the chance to talk about my 2 favourite vintage eras and give some suggestions for how a vintage bride may pull off the look with shoes, jewellery and headpieces. Here’s the article in full:

Hi, I’m Kate Bowl and I run Queens & Bowl wedding accessories – an online boutique offering gorgeous wedding shoes, jewellery and headpieces. I love vintage style and all of my products are either inspired by vintage fashions and trends or are created from genuine vintage pieces. I stock amazing, award-winning designer names including Rachel Simpson, Halo & Co and Magpie Vintage.

One thing I’m really keen to do on my site is to provide inspiration for brides planning or thinking about having a vintage wedding. I’ve had a lot of positive feedback from brides on my ‘Inspiration Pages’ so I thought I’d share a couple of my favourite eras here as part of Bow Occasions’ vintage week!

First up is the 1920s….

I love 1920s for the dramatic change in women’s fashion that took place during this period. Women were asserting the independence and liberty they’d tasted during WW1 and there was a real sense of rebellion in the air! It was also the decade that first brought us the Art Deco movement and screen legends like Greta Garbo and Clara Bow who are still mysterious, enigmatic figures even today.

Ideas for a 1920s wedding. Image credits: Rex, Rosa Clara, Photorazzi, Ritz Hotel London

The most iconic 1920s fashion was of course the Flapper style which became popular in the mid 1920s. This look is probably the most recreated ‘20s look for modern brides and needs these key touches to pull it off:

• A loose knee-length shift dress that shows off bare arms. They were often heavily beaded with a scalloped hemline. The alternative if your figure doesn’t suit this style is to choose a drop-waist dress of longer length. Drop-waists were popular throughout most of the 1920s.
• Mary-Janes with a single strap or T-Bar shoes like the Hettie or Mimi styles by Rachel Simpson
• Pearls – and lots of them. Long length pearl necklaces, made famous by a certain Coco Chanel, are ideal. Our Luxe Pearl Necklace by Stephanie Browne is made of Swarovski crystal pearls and features 2 Swarovski crystal Deco brooch pieces that are detachable.
• A close-fitting headpiece worn low down, towards the forehead. The Tiffany pearl and diamante headpiece by Ivory & Co is perfect.
• Feathers. Headpieces with feathers (try our Vienna headpiece by Ivory & Co) or a shrug like the Paris by Sasso add an authentic 20s vibe.

Finish the look with finger-wave hair and dark red lips, re-applied at regular intervals!

Next up, the 1950s….

….another period of fun mixed in with elegance and I love the pure glamour of the decade. Speaking of glamour, how much more glam can you get than Hollywood screen siren Grace Kelly marrying into royalty in the South of France!

Ideas for a 1950s wedding. Image credits: Rex, Shutterstock, Photorazzi, candyanthony.com

So many enduring icons came to fame in the 50s – Liz Taylor, Audrey Hepburn and of course, Marilyn Monroe. The timeless fashion of the 1950s also became iconic and is very much growing in popularity amongst brides. Here’s what to focus on for a ‘50s wedding theme:

• A knee-length dress with plenty of under-netting to give the A-line shape. If you have a bigger bust, a strapless style top is ideal, if not, go for a higher neckline like a boat-neck or slash-neck. Lace or taffeta were the signature fabrics.
• Pearls – but keep it simple. Go for either small pearl stud earrings or a short, single strand pearl necklace. We have some beautiful freshwater pearl necklaces by Magpie Vintage featuring original vintage ornaments.
• Sparkle. As Marilyn Monroe could testify, the ladies loved their diamonds, so look for vintage-style jewellery featuring large crystals or diamante, such as our glamorous Boucheron earrings or detailed Astor bracelet.
• Bows and lace details. Both were popular in the ‘50s and contributed to the femininity of the look. The appropriately named Marilyn bridal shoes by Rachel Simpson fit the bill perfectly.

Whichever vintage era you choose, you’re sure to have a truly timeless and elegant wedding. For more vintage inspiration, visit the Queens & Bowl blog and feel free to leave your comments!

Kate. xx

I’m very excited to be able to write this post as it signals a bit of a landmark for us. As you probably know, Queens & Bowl launched a mere 8 weeks ago, so we’ve had quite a few orders from brides planning ahead for their big day, but we’ve now had our first wedding! I’m really grateful to Victoria for sending us lots of photos so we could do this post of her amazing wedding featuring (of course) plenty of Queens & Bowl wedding accessories. I’m also grateful to her photographer David Murray of Murray Photography for kindly giving me permission to use these shots.

The spectacular Peckforton Castle ~ Images: Murray Photography

Perfect details: the Charleston Brooch and shoes by Christian Louboutin ~ Images: Murray Photography

Being a designer shoe fanatic, Louboutins were the only choice for Victoria. We were lucky enough to help her out with 3 gorgeous pieces from our Stephanie Browne range, the first of which was this beautiful Charleston Brooch made from sparkling Swarovski crystals to keep the sparkle theme going! Victoria used it to highlight perfectly a little cross-over sash detail on her Suzanne Neville tiered gown, which looked stunning.

Victoria's gorgeous Hayworth Bandeau ~ Images: Murray Photography

Victoria also chose the ever-so-sparkly Hayworth Bandeau which looked incredible against her dark hair. It’s the perfect piece whatever your hairstyle as it works so well with hair either up or down, as you can see here with this tousled style. Shortly after these shots were taken there was a surprise guest at the wedding who delivered the rings – an owl from Peckforton’s very own falconry!

A surprise visitor from the falconry ~ Image by Murray Photography

The final piece of jewellery that Victoria chose was the Charleston Bracelet to match her brooch, as seen here at the signing of the register. This is a great piece – very versatile and easily wearable as a guest at future weddings and events.

Signing of the register with her Charleston Bracelet ~ Images by Murray Photography

With the ceremony and official paperwork all done and dusted, Craig and Victoria headed out onto the lawn for jazz, champage and Pimms and plenty of dancing later… Congratulations guys!

Jazz and champagne on the lawn ~ Images: Murray Photography

Thanks again to Victoria for choosing Queens & Bowl for her wedding accessories and to you both for letting me feature these fantastic shots. Many thanks again to David at Murray Photography. Victoria’s bracelet, brooch and bandeau are all available at Queens & Bowl.

Charleston brooch, bracelet and Hayworth Bandeau

Kate. x

Recently I had the chance to write a guest blog post for the lovely Annabel at LoveMyDress. Of course I jumped at the chance and I immediately knew what I wanted to write about – and that was a 1920s wedding. Lately I’ve been fascinated with all things 1920s, so I put metaphorical pen to paper, and this is what emerged…..

“OK, first things first. I will come clean and admit it: God strike me down, but I did NOT have a ‘vintage wedding’. My interest in all things antiquated was sparked quite late in the wedding planning process whilst hunting for a birdcage veil.  All I really wanted was something a bit glamorous and different, not necessarily vintage, but the site on which I eventually found my beloved veil sat buried beneath about 50 pages of Google search results. So although wading through the sheer volume of ‘stuff’ did seem like an uphill battle at times, by refining my search terms around the ‘vintage’ theme, I did stumble across a wealth of information and inspiration relating to the beautiful fashions and signature styles of the first half of the twentieth century.

Setting up Queens & Bowl has involved lots more research into vintage styles and trends and at the moment I am captivated by all things 1920s. Here are a few thoughts on what I think I’d choose for a 1920s theme if I had my time again, starting with, the outfit…”

Left Image ~ ‘Rosalin’ Wedding Dress by Rosa Clara Right Image ~ Rosa Clara Wedding dress, courtesy of www.weddingmagazine.co.uk

The Outfit…

“Now, I’m not sure my figure was made to wear 1920s fashion, but I love the drop-waist gowns in the 2010 Rosa Clara collection (see above, and below left). All 3 styles are beautiful; the ‘flapper girl’ style fringing and bead details add just the right amount of interest and the floor-scraping length gives a fantastic column silhouette. To add an extra 1920s feel I’d definitely add our Paris ostrich and marabou vest by Sasso and some chic pearls – probably a bracelet such as the gorgeous Karinska bracelet by Stephanie Browne, which features a perfect little Swarovski Art Deco emblem.”

Below ~ Rosalina wedding dress by Rosa Clara

Below ~ The Karinska bracelet by Stephanie Browne – £230 - click here to purchase

“I’d definitely go for a perfectly coifed, vintage-style waved bob as I find them drop-dead glamorous and I’d accessorise with either the Charleston Bandeau or the St Tropez comb (pictured below), both by Stephanie Browne.

Image on the left, Credit Wedding Magazine - Image on the right, Credit Bridalwave.TV

“To polish off the look I’d pick Rachel Simpson’s beautiful Mimi T-bar sandals in ivory (below top right). I have palpitations at the very thought of all this gorgeousness!”

Top Left Lola Bridal Shoes £145, Top Right Mimi Bridal Shoes £140
Bottom Left Grace Bridal Shoes £135, Bottom Right Hettie Bridal Shoes £150

The Venue and Decor…

“I do like the idea of having a fabulously decadent wedding at an iconic venue like the Dorchester and to hell with the budget. However, coming back to reality, I think I’d go for a small venue; it’s not exactly Art Deco but I love the Didsbury House boutique hotel, which is an old Victorian Villa bursting with chic period features, including a blue reception room at the front of the hotel, very reminiscent of the Blue Bar at the Berkley Hotel in London.  I’ve mentioned this on the Queens & Bowl blog before, but I think it would be fantastic to host an Agatha Christie murder-mystery night the evening before the wedding to get everyone suitably in the mood.”

For other fabulous art-deco and 1920s style venues (courtesy of LoveMyDress.net), also visit

♥  Burgh Island Hotel, Just off the coast, South East of Plymouth
♥  Claridges, London
♥  The Daffodil, Cheltenham
♥  Pembroke Lodge, Richmond Park, Surrey

Hope this has given you a little food for thought. Thanks again to Annabel at Love My Dress for giving me the opportunity to work on this piece!

Kate. xx

Planning on hitching up your Flapper-style dress and dancing The Charleston at your wedding? If you’re planning a 1920s-style wedding, we’ve got some great ‘dancing shoes’ news for all Flapper brides! Winging their way to Queens & Bowl as I type are some amazing Art-Deco-inspired  wedding shoes from British designer, Rachel Simpson…

Perfect your 'Roaring 20s' look!

With all the gorgeous drop-waisted dresses on the SS10 catwalks, covered in 20′s-style beading and fringing, then these little treats are perfect for topping off your look. Cute details like ribbon bows and pearls make them fabulously feminine and mid-height heels mean you’ll still be on the dancefloor until the lights eventually come on. On the practical side, T-bar and strap fastenings will ensure that you can kick up your heels with the girls without fear of losing them amongst your guests!!

For some finishing touches, we’d recommend sticking with the 20s feel and adding some delectable pearls or feathers from our jewellery ranges…

Feathers and Pearls add finishing Art Deco touches

QB x