How do you solve a problem like Maria?

It is a little known fact that I almost walked down the aisle to "How do you solve a problem like Maria?". I've always loved the wedding scene from The Sound of Music. So when we were trying to decide which piece of music I should walk in to one of the suggestions was The Wedding March from that musical. This march, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the Sound of Music (I don't know what's worse - knowing what I am talking about or not?), incorporates this song. However, we just intended to use the more grandiose orchestral and organ section of the march not realising that the sheet music our organist had finally tracked down started way before this section. So at our wedding rehearsal we got to hear it for the first time and had a panic that he had obtained the wrong music as "How do you solve a problem like Maria? rang out. My Dad rushed up and said "no she wants it to start it at here" and the organist scribbled some notes and started at our chosen section. Problem solved! The thing we still find amusing is that no one (apart from us and my family) knew what the music was and no one believed us when we told them! So why am I telling you this? Well it will make sense in a minute...honestly!

One of the things I get asked a lot by family, friends and customers is "Are you busy?" Well I'm always busy and this time of year I am undoubtedly at my busiest. But this year I am unusually busy. This is of course a great thing and given the current economic climate I am extremely grateful and thankful that our work is still being well received. But there is one element that is helping to contribute to this year's success and that is a very simple design of ours called Maria (are you beginning to see the link yet?).

So to celebrate its success I thought that I would tell you a little something about Maria.

Maria

Maria was designed for an exhibition I did back in 2006 to bridge a gap in my collection and yes it was named as a nod to our favourite singing nun. However it didn't make another public appearance until we relaunched the website in April 2008. Then one day in May 2008 I received a call from a customer who had seen our Louise design and loved the textures in it but didn't want it to be as deep as the original design

Louise

We discussed reducing the depth in great detail. We discussed changing the shape, we discussed changing the beading, we discussed changing the materials, we discussed her gown, we discussed her hair, we discussed everything but the kitchen sink and yet she was having a bit of trouble deciding what she wanted. In the end it came down to what did I think would suit her from a professional perspective. I could tell that she was quite a bubbly person but didn't like a lot of fuss. So I asked her to send me a picture of herself so I could gauge the best depth of headband for her and to make sure that the Louise style would actually suit her face shape. Once I saw the customer's short spiky hair with heavy fringe and face shape one design immediately sprang to mind...it wasn't Louise but Maria. And the strange thing was the customer's name was Maria as well! The first thing she said when she saw the design was "I love the texture...can I have that one?" So problem solved for Maria by Maria.

This sale was the first of many and this season Maria is by far our best selling product. So what is the key to Maria's success?

Essentially it is a thin decorated headband but what makes it special are the textures of the materials. You have the beautiful mix of Swarovski crystal and pearl which provides one level of texture and then the variation of pearl sizes as well as crystal sizes and shapes gives the piece that extra level of texture and interest. Although simple it is an incredibly elegant design and perfect for any bride who believes in the principle of less is more. But what also makes this piece so special is its versatility. It adds subtle texture to plainer gowns, it complements the texture of lace covered gowns, it suits short hair and long hair alike, it can be worn around a bun, it can be customised very easily, it is ideal for bridesmaids and brides alike and it suits all ages. It is also great as a special occasion accessory - not just as a wedding accessory. With all that going for it, it is easy to see why it is such a popular piece. I've even been asked now to make it into a double headband!

So if you would like to own your very own Maria - either as it is on the website or customised to suit your own requirements (which may mean the price is higher than advertised if the materials used are more expensive) then simply click here

I hope you have enjoyed reading about this fabulous little headband and look out for our next blog entry which will be all about our photo shoot on May 31st in the wilds of Oxfordshire!

Want to learn more about Tiararama? Visit our website www.tiararama.co.uk or drop us a line at info@tiararama.co.uk

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Happy Birthday to us

It is hard to believe that Tiararama is 4 today. I can't believe how time has flown and this has got me thinking about all the things that have happened in those 4 years. There have been lots of amazing highs and some very big lows, some big changes (who remembers our first logo?) but here we are going from strength to strength and despite the stress that running any business brings, I wouldn't change it for the world! So to commemorate this special day I thought I would share with you some of my favourite pieces from over the last 4 years.

So in no particular order

1. Louise

The reason why this design is one of my favourites is simply because it spawned one of my most biggest selling styles of tiara - beautifully textured encrusted styles. I really didn't have a clue how popular the idea would become but I think it ticks a few boxes for many brides - not too fussy a design, slight hint of vintage but still contemporary, and lots of texture and the fact that no two will ever be the same. And I have to say Louise, the bride I designed it for, looked amazing wearing it!

2. Chloe

Back in 2006 I designed a simple encrusted floral design called Lillia. Over the years Lillia has had various incarnations - mini lillia was 3cm in diameter through to one which was 18cm in diameter. But this was my favourite incarnation. Wonderful pearls in various shades of ivory and diamante gave this piece a really lovely vintage feel to reflect the beautiful bridal gown. Again it looked stunning on the day but it was also fun seeing this one come together.

3. Red Czarina

Back in 20o6 I was commissioned to design a tall, striking red tiara to complement a two piece red gown with gold embroidered bodice. After much deliberation the concept of graduating columns of crystal was favourite. But this could have been quite an ordinary design so I decided to use a number of ideas to make this piece more interesting. I used two different coloured crystals in the columns - Siam and Topaz and used a mix of beads ranging from round and bicones to the wonderful helix beads. I decided that the design should be a staggered graduation and for extra texture I would alternate the column placement between the front and back of the band. And then, as if that wasn't enough, I decided to wrap some of the columns in very fine gold wire interspersed with tiny crystals. So what could have been a very ordinary design became something quite special.

4. Sarah

This is one of my latest designs but it was one of the most fun pieces to make. This beautiful tiara was created for a very individual bride who wore a gown which was just as unique as she is. Very modern in its concept it still maintained a restrained feeling reminiscent of the victorian inspiration of the bridal gown which was also brought right up to date. Curls of gold wire, some bound in gold ribbon were interspersed with curled strands of garnet, siam and burgundy crystals with crystal ab helix and crystal golden shadow accents. Added to these wonderful crystals were pale gold freshwater pearls and garnet diamante. The texture and beading gave this tiara a fabulous feel and looked stunning on the day itself.

5. Fiona

This lovely asymmetric tiara was designed in 2007 for a wonderfully opulent burgundy velvet bridal gown. The beauty of an asymmetric tiara is that you can have a really funky design which is still quite subtle. This ball like design was based on circles of twisted wire stems layered on top of each other with curved stems encircling the piece. But the best part of this design was the crystal beads and colours used. Lovely Swarovski burgundy, jet and crystal ab were used in a variety of shapes and sizes gave a great texture and sense of fun to the piece. I really did enjoy making this piece and the end result was fantastic.

6. Golzar

The reason I chose this tiara as a favourite was simply because it looked so stunning. It used the same technique as our Louise design but it was far bigger and much more imposing. It was just so nice working on a piece like this (even though it became an incredibly heavy piece to work with) because the finished product was so sparkling and glamorous that it knew it would look stunning and perfectly complement the bride.

7. Jadis

Named after the White Witch from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, this stunning coronet style tiara was made up of 16 peaks some as high as 16cm. It looks lovely worn at an angle as the differentiation between the two types of peak decoration is really clearly seen and it has a wonderful crisp sparkle. Although it was designed as an exhibition piece it is one of my favourite pieces and has always been commented upon most favourably (which is always nice!)

8. Skye

What I loved about this piece was that it took one of our more popular ideas and was then totally transformed through the use of some wonderfully interesting materials. Rather than just using crystals and pearls this piece took on a completely different feel because of the rose quartz chips, freshwater pearls and crystal. I love using different materials in my designs because it just makes each piece that much more individual. Although these lovely gemstone chips give it a chunkier and unusual feel, it is still an elegant and pretty piece

9. Un Fiore

Like I mentioned with our Skye design, I love working with different materials and this design takes a beautiful handcrafted silk floral design with freshwater pearls sat on a bed of twisted wire finished with freshwater pearl and crystal. I would love to say that I created the flower but alas I did not. Instead they are made by Vikki Lafford at www.liliia.co.uk . I love Vikki's work and I am so pleased to be able to work with her occasionally and include her lovely work in my own designs. But what I love about this design is that it ticks so many boxes for today's modern bride. It is pretty and elegant, it uses beautiful materials and if you don't want to wear bling then this kind of idea may be the one for you. I am very much looking forward to showing my Fiore collection off soon - so watch this space!

10. Carly

It is true to say that your favourite design is the last one that you worked on and so this must be my current favourite. Designed with the idea of a wild garden this piece takes crystal clusters and singles to represent floral motifs with diamante leaves. Elegant and striking this piece has a lovely texture to it. I think this is a really pretty design and used a technique which I feel we may be seeing in future designs.

So here is to the future! Thank you to all of my lovely customers for making these last 4 years so enjoyable and to Kevin for all of his hard work and support. I am really looking forward to the next few years. There are some incredibly exciting projects coming up for us and I am looking forward to a busy, creative and productive future.