EMILY BENDELL, CEO AT BLUEBELLA BRIDAL What do you offer nearlyweds? I’ve always loved lingerie, but the industry presented it to me in a binary way as either boring and functional or sexy to be dressed up in for someone else. If the thing we wear closest to our skin is for someone else and not ourselves – what does that tell us about our bodies? To me, lingerie is a personal selfexpression of individual style and spirit. I wanted to create an empowering, contemporary and fashion-focused brand. We offer contemporary fashion-focused lingerie for the modern bride, and our mission is to redefine sensuality. The bra should be just like a T-Shirt – a layering piece, a fashion item, a comfort piece or a provocative showstopper – whatever its wearer chooses it to be that day. We try to be as inclusive as possible, offering our designs in a 30A to a 40F and striving to extend our size range every season. Bluebella is also well known in the industry for breaking boundaries, and I’m very proud of everything we have achieved – from being the first brand to use a trans woman to front a lingerie campaign, Munroe Bergdorf, to being the first brand to introduce a plus size model into the windows of Victoria’s Secrets. What’s one piece of advice you can share with lovebirds? Never try to change yourself or your style for your partner. Always choose lingerie that makes you feel your most fabulous self. When gifting lingerie, think hard about what she would like in shape, colour and style rather than what you would like. There’s no excuse for buying the wrong size, always peek in her lingerie drawer to check you’re buying the correct size. Check out: www.bluebella.com/collections/bridal ALICE HOWARTH, CO-FOUNDER AND BRAND DIRECTOR AT KINSHIP PRESS What do you offer nearlyweds? The company was started in 2018 by myself and my sister, Naomi. We were living together in London, and I was working as a luxury lifestyle journalist while she was an illustrator. I was looking to move from my job, and she found that requests for illustrated wedding work were becoming increasingly popular. Eventually, we put our experience together to start a company that creates dream stationery suites for nearlyweds. We always aim to create unique stationery for couples that reflects their love story, tastes and personalities. We were adamant about working with British suppliers to produce pieces using artisan, specialist printing techniques and the highest quality of paper and print finishes. Couples can choose every element of their stationery design, from artwork to paper colour, font and print finishes. We offer Zoom consultations with couples who would like to talk through their design and get advice if needed. Our semi-custom range, The Illustrated Florist, allows clients to choose their flowers for their stationery, a concept unique to Kinship Press. Each stem has been hand-painted, and there are more than 60 to choose from. What’s your favourite part of the job? I love hearing from clients about their hopes for the day and how they want our stationery to reflect their love stories. From initial conversations to seeing their vision come to life, choosing beautiful finishing touches is a highlight. It’s wonderful to bring something special to our clients that represents the first taste of their wedding day to loved ones. What’s one piece of advice you can share with lovebirds? Always go for the heaviest paper weight and design a stationery set you’d be thrilled to have framed in your house. Check out: https://kinship-press.com Images courtesy of www.ameliaclaudiaphoto.com 52
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