Find the perfect dress with White Mischief Bridal
Discover the perfect gown at White Mischief Bridal
Christine Marchant has been working in the wedding industry for 12 years, having represented a number of bridal designers and accessory companies in the UK and Europe. After visiting hundreds of shops, Christine has had the ideal experience for opening a successful wedding boutique.
White Mischief in Henfield opened its doors to brides-to-be in 2005. “After time spent considering the ideal location, I felt that Henfield was ideally placed for brides throughout the South East,” explains Christine. “We now attract girls from all over the country.”
White Mischief is a large, modern, contemporary store furnished with comfortable leather settees for visitors to relax in. The store comprises of two shops – the original bridal store and, as of last year, integrating the shop next door to extend the bridesmaid and evening wear selection available.
Customer service is paramount to White Mischief along with the backing of successful design partners. The store holds the largest selection of Augusta Jones dresses in Europe. The stunning gowns collection include Jenny Packham, The Vintage Wedding Dress Company, Jesus Peiro, Caroline Castigliano and Lyn Ashworth.
“Wedding dresses are made to order, to the closest size of the bride,” says Christine. “Through our chosen designers, many can be made with design changes enabling brides to create their own individual look. Augusta Jones, in particular, specialises in this service and we are one of the few stockists that actively persuade brides to work with them. A unique wedding dress is available at the fraction of the cost of a designer gown.”
“A unique wedding dress is available at the fraction of the cost of a designer gown”
Wedding dresses start from around £1,200 with the average price being around £1,700. Additional charges include alterations, which are undertaken by independent seamstresses. So how do you go about finding the one perfect dress? “Bring along to your appointment family or friends whose opinion you trust,” suggests Christine. “It’s your big day; what you feel most comfortable in, and the gown that makes you feel ‘wow’ should be the one that you buy! And don’t forget that although you will value Mum’s opinion – you probably don’t wear the same style – so don’t be put off if she’s not over the moon with your choice.
“When a bride visits White Mischief, we discuss the style of clothing they generally wear as this helps us to evaluate the styles most suitable. We suggest an appointment time of an hour. Around six to eight dresses maximum will need to be tried. “Following the Royal Wedding last year we are seeing tremendous demand for styles incorporating different necklines, sleeves and lace trimmings,” says Christine about the latest trends in bridal gowns. “Lace is continuing its revival and styles are being chosen from slinky vintage looks to full ball gowns. Vintage seems to be the buzzword with brides this season and we are exclusive stockists of The Vintage Wedding Dress Company in the South East.”
New styles in store include classically gorgeous and alluring boat necklines in lace and fine tulle, and the big theme coming for the next season is fitted lace sleeves. This is balanced with lovely open backs. Off white or ivory are the most popular colours for brides although with the vintage theme spreading White Mischief are seeing more demand for cream, soft gold and champagne. These colours suit many skin tones whereas white can be quite harsh on some.
Once you’ve found the perfect bridal gown, you can shop at White Mischief for the bridesmaids too: “We offer a fabulous selection of bridesmaid, evening and occasion wear – with a limited amount of mother-of-the-bride outfits that can be found in this selection,” says Christine. “Night Mischief, as we fondly nick-named our new department, houses an eclectic selection of dresses from Mascara, Anoushka G, Forever Unique and more.”
Bridesmaid dresses start from £200 and are available from the JLM collections of Alvina Valenta, Occasions and Lazaro – together with the fabulous Two Birds Collection. Two Birds dresses are available in a choice of 15 colours and four lengths. If the colour you want is not available, Two Birds will customise it for you.
Both online and in store at White Mischief you will find the fabulous ‘Goodbye Collection’ offering samples to brides on a budget at a snip of the original price. Some dresses in store have reductions of up to 70 per cent! White Mischief offers an abundance of wedding accessories: jewellery, shoes, veils, head-dresses and lingerie, including pieces from Rachel Simpson shoes, Halo, Rhapsody and Nieve Couture.
Brides who purchase a full price gown are automatically given ‘More Mischief’, the White Mischief loyalty pack which includes substantial discounts on bridesmaid dresses, veils, jewellery and more – saving you hundreds of pounds on your overall wedding outfit purchases.
For even more incentive to choose White Mischief, they are offering brides the chance to win a full refund for their wedding gown! “Brides who purchase their wedding gown through White Mischief in 2012 are welcome to enter our Bride of the Year competition,” Christine explains.
“To enter simply complete the entry form available in store or online and submit a short story about your wedding experience and what made it so special. The winner will be announced in December 2012 and the prize will be a full refund of the amount paid for your wedding gown!”
Open Monday–Saturday, 10am–5pm. Free unlimited parking. White Mischief Bridal, High Street, Henfield, West Sussex, BN5 9HP, 01273 495566, info@whitemischiefbridal.co.uk, www.whitemischiefbridal.co.uk
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