Phil Garlington & Jonny Draper Two of my Favourite Photographers

Phil Garlington fabulous photographer visited us at Flower Design HQ today

It was fabulous to welcome Jonny Draper too, this  was to be a meeting of two great photographic minds!

We all went out for a fabulous lunch at Jacks Bistro, we discussed all things wedding, cooked up some fabulous events for our collective gorgeous Brides and generally had a jolly time to boot!

Impromptu Photo Shoot Images by Phil Garlington

So this is a little follow up posting from yesterday, as you may remember we were at Westleigh, with some glorious Dreamcatcher wedding gowns, some exquisite Orchid wedding Bouquets, a very gorgeous photographer Phil Garlington and perfect blue skies and this is the result....

Love the shadows

I first met Phil Garlington about ten years ago, when I arrived home from that first meeting I told Jason "I've just met the sexiest, hottest photographer ever" (You just gotta keep em on their toes! sorry about that Jas) anyway as Phil pointed out ten years have passed between now and then, but what is it with men they do seem to improve with age!

I've worked with Phil on some truly gorgeous and magical weddings over the years, the last one was two years ago, and since then Phil's been all over everywhere doing some seriously world class portrait work, so it was great to catch up with him and see him in action, back where he belongs in Lancashire shooting these perfect girls.

This is my personal favourite

Wedding Open Day at Westleigh in Lea

So another brand new venue for 2010, Westleigh is a bit of a hidden jewel I'd say, the outdoor spaces are superb, ideal for a Marquee wedding, the decked terrace is spectacular and the function suites modern and fresh. Westleigh is part of the University of Central Lancashire and is used mainly as a conferencing and meeting facility during the week but at the weekends it changes it's personality completely and opens it's doors to Romance!
The purpose built conference and banqueting space is huge but with clever room dividers it can be adjusted to suit your needs from sixty to two hundred, it's fully licensed for Civil Ceremonies too.
There are great views of the park land surrounding the house
For the open day we'd created a collection of wintery wedding bouquets and table designs including lots of our favourite seasonal Orchids, Roses and Nerines

Mark who is part of a very lovely waiting on team at Westleigh was on hand all day handing out delicious Canapes to all of the guests, of course another huge benefit for Westleigh is their endless supply of waiters and waitresses from the University.
Michael is head chef, he has a good pedigree, working in some top notch wedding venues across the North West before finally arriving in this state of the art brand spanking new kitchen, his canapes were first class and I'm really looking forward to seeing and sampling his signature dishes over the coming year!
Home made biscuits straight out of the oven yumm!
Phil Garlington, fabulous photographer and good friend of mine, his work is sublime, he did take some images on the day, a little impromptu photo shoot so I will share his magic with you very soon! & Howard Wing singing superstar!Golden Top Table design
The gowns were provided by my great friends Gill & Georgina from Dreamcatcher Bridal in Wesham, their gowns are simply exquisite, they have an enormous amout of variety including some of the very best designers; Suzanne Neville, Kate Sherford and Sassi Holford to name only three, their models were so beautiful too.

I adore this Horse & Carriage from a Touch of Class Carriages, the horses were so immaculate and gentle too, here's their contact information
Anglea and Walter Tel:01772 815566 Email: wpostlethwaite@yahoo.co.uk

Millie the most perfect Flower Girl ever

Super shiny and gleeming cars from JA Fellows Vintage and Modern Cars My better half Jason
And the gorgeous girls of the Westleigh C&B team from left to right

Debbie Machin
Nicola Hanmer
Becky Eldridge
Julie Clarke
The rich Christmassy candelabra looked fabulous on the table with matching chair covers dressed by Cakes Occasion Balloons


Vanda Orchids looked stunning in the goldfish bowl design
The gardens really are sensational

Phil Garlington working some photography magic
I love this terrace area, it's just so perfectApparantly the acoustics are great too!A bit of fancy napkin work











Black Magic Vanda & Paphiopedilum Orchids are combined with deep pink Cyclamen in this dramatic bouquet, can't wait to show you Phil Garlington's pictures of it.



Some very delicious cakes from the lovely Cheryl at Too Nice to Slice

And some Hair and Make up demonstrations entertained us throughout the day from The Beauty Room and Roberts Steel Hair, a delicious Chocolate fountain from SJ Enterprises and Ren Papperie - Stationary
Gowns from Dreamcatcher Bridal
And then the visitors descended, everyone seemed really impressed...


We had a lovely day, many thanks to Nicola and Becky for their organisation and hospitality!