Sponsored by
Leeds woman makes weddings a vintage occasion
Keeley Harris is helping brides go back in time.
The traditional rhyme says that every bride's outfit should include something old and something new – but brides who buy their dress from
Keeley Harris are concentrating very much on the old.
* Click here for latest YEP showbiz news.
Leeds woman Keeley has organised what is believed to be the UK's first vintage wedding fair after realising there is an increasing interest among women in wearing a dress from past decades for the big day, rather than spending vast amounts of money on a modern creation.
* Click here to watch latest YEP news and sport video reports.
Keeley, who owns a shop selling vintage clothes and homeware, said: "We were gradually getting more and more people who were going to vintage-themed weddings and needed outfits and brides themselves who were looking for dresses. I realised there could be quite a big market for vintage weddings."
* Click here for latest YEP news and sport picture slideshows.
And brides-to-be are currently interested in old wedding dresses from many different decades. Among the dresses Keeley sold were gowns from the 1940s, the 1960s and the 1970s.
* Click here for latest YEP sport headlines.
She said: "One was a full-length 1940s satin dress with wide shoulders and detailing on the bodice which fit the buyer like a glove.
* Click here for latest YEP features.
"There was a lot of interest in two 1940s polka dot bridesmaids dresses but they really are very tiny.
"People were much smaller then. In the 1940s, food was rationed and people were much thinner. Women tended to be much tinier around the waist.
"The styles from the 1950s are easier because women became a bit more curvaceous and in the 1960s clothes were not quite as fitted – there were a lot of shift-style dresses around – so they are a lot more wearable.
"I think people are moving towards vintage weddings because they want something different. They know that no-one else will have the same as them.
"It's also good if you don't have a huge amount of money to spend. The 1940s dress I sold went for 140 but you can buy dresses from 50 up to 600.
"There's also the fact that it's quite an ethically-sound thing to do, to. You're effectively recycling something second-hand – though I prefer to call the dresses 'pre-loved'."
The vintage fair was held at the White Hart Hotel in Harrogate and attracted traders and brides from across the UK.
And it was so successful that Keeley is already planning another event in September at a bigger venue.
She said: "There just isn't anywhere else that you can go if you want a vintage wedding. There is the odd vintage wedding clothing shop, mostly in London, but nowhere you could go and get everything under one roof – like vintage cake stands, to hire a vintage car, find vintage china or porcelain, to buy jewellery and hair accessories."
Keeley became interested in all things vintage after receiving a vintage doll as a childhood gift.
The present was given to her by an antique dealer friend of her parents when she was just 10 years old.
And it sparked in her a passion that she has forged into a business.
Keeley, 33, from Kippax, Leeds, said: "My parents had a friend who was an antiques dealer and we used to go round to his house which was just stuffed with old things.
"Later, I used to go to house clearances with him and I just loved rooting through it all. I found it fascinating.
"He gave me a little doll from the 1950s and an old fan. They weren't worth very much at all but I absolutely treasured them."
For Keeley, it was not just about the age of an item, but its 'story'.
"I liked imagining who owned it, where they got it from and how much they might have loved it," she said.
Later on Keeley also became interested in vintage clothing and, as a student at Leeds Metropolitan University, she used to scour Headingley's vintage and second-hand stores.
Over the next decade she carried on her passion and often bought and sold at vintage fairs.
But last April, she decided to make her hobby her career and opened her Discover Vintage store in Harrogate.
Based in the Space centre in The Ginnel, she now sells unique homewares and clothing and also organises and sells at vintage fairs.
Keeley said: "The interest in vintage has exploded over the last few years, in particular. You see celebrities wearing vintage dresses on the red carpet now – that would never have happened a few years ago.
"It suddenly became a viable business opportunity for me to have my own vintage company – and to be able to make a proper living from it."
To find stock, Keeley visits car boot sales, buys from people's private collections and also goes to auctions.
But sourcing items – particularly clothing – is not always easy.
"I'm always rummaging about but there isn't so much of what I call 'pure vintage' about," she said.
"Pre-1960s clothes are quite difficult to find because they've been thrown away or they haven't been kept in good condition.
"I'm always on the lookout for 1940s and 1950s dresses because they sell well.
"The best things I have ever bought were five gorgeous 1950s evening dresses from a lady at a private house. They were just so beautifully made, from stunning fabric.
"One was a dress she wore for her 21st birthday. I really like to hear about the clothes and their history as much as I like how they look. It's fascinating to know about their heritage."
"I tend to wear a lot of 1950s clothes because that is the shape that suits me. If you're interested in vintage, you really have to go for a style that suits your body shape. It has to fit like a glove otherwise it's not right."
So what would Keeley plan for her own wedding?
"Well, my boyfriend hasn't proposed yet, but I know I would like to have a vintage tea-party theme to the whole event.
"I'd like to have an old Volkswagen Beetle as my wedding car and I'll definitely be having a 1950s-style dress.
"But I probably won't go the whole hog – my boyfriend's not really a huge fan of vintage so I might have to tone it down a bit!"
* For further details visit: www.discovervintage.co.uk
Email to a friend
Print this page- Simon Grayson sacked: Host of names linked with Leeds United job UPDATED
- January 2012 Premier League and Championship transfer round up
- Leeds United: We wouldn’t have got Alan Smith for £2,500 a week! - Grayson UPDATED
- Leeds United: Celtic star set for Whites loan move?
- Web poll: Who should be Leeds United’s next manager? VOTE HERE
- Simon Grayson sacked: Host of names linked with Leeds United job UPDATED
- Leeds United: A fresh start is just what we need - Lorimer
- Web poll: Who should be Leeds United’s next manager? VOTE HERE
- Are you satisfied with Leeds United’s dealings in the January transfer window? VOTE HERE
- Match report: Leeds United v Birmingham City
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Leeds
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Light snow
Temperature: -1 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: West
