The Simply Sophisticated Events Blog: Vendor Spotlight: Frilly Bits

Be Memorable, Be Gorgeous, Be "Frilly"

Who: Mother and daughter duo Kalee McTaggart and Wendy Widdicombe of Frilly Bits, located in Grimsby, Ontario.

How It All Started

How did you get involved in designing hair accessories for weddings and other special occasions?
My [Kalee’s] husband is from the UK and hair accessories are huge over there. I would always bring them back from our UK trips and would wear them to special occasions (weddings and other social functions) and would get tons of compliments on them. When a friend of mine was getting married a few years ago, she asked to borrow one of my hair accessories because she didn’t want to pay the exorbitant amount at a bridal shop. I decided to do one better, I made her her own, custom piece. On the day of the wedding the salon where we got our hair done asked me for my business card so that they could promote my business. It was then that I realized I was on to something exciting and thus our business was born.

What inspired you to start your own business?
We have always wanted to work in the wedding industry. When we eventually came up with the idea of creating custom hair pieces, we knew we had to start our own business.

How did you come up with the name for your company?
A close friend’s mom, who is also English, commented on one of my hairpieces one day. She said “What a lovely little frilly bit.” We loved her way of describing it so much we decided to name our company Frilly Bits.

How long have you been in business and how many years of experience do you hold personally?
We just recently passed our one year anniversary but we have gained quite the momentum and following. We have created custom hairpieces for over 90 brides and clients, and we have even been worn, on air, by Dina Pugliese, Co-Host of Breakfast Television (BT). In addition, we have been asked by BT’s segment producer, April Kalloo to create a hairpiece for her upcoming wedding. We’re thrilled!

Ok ladies, why the wedding industry?
I have always wanted to work in the wedding industry. After planning my own wedding I realized what a fun, exciting and rewarding industry it is. Wendy and I have always been extremely creative so we knew it had to be something that would utilize our creative abilities.

Since we're talking fashion and accesories, how would you describe your style?
Our style is the perfect combination of classic, vintage and modern. One of our gorgeous brides said this about our style, “Frilly Bits' style combines the best of both classic glamour and contemporary flair. They build upon the decorative and ornate style coming out of the early to mid 20th century and combine it with a contemporary sensibility. Together this makes all the pieces seem both unique, and slightly vintage but also completely part of current fashions.”

How long does it take you to make a customized hairpiece?
It depends on what our client is looking for. If we have all the supplies in stock, we can generally have the piece complete within one week from the original consultation. If we need to custom order or dye certain supplies, then the time frame will be extended according to shopping or processing times.

How soon should a bride place an order with Frilly Bits?
Generally we like to recommend the bride order a piece from us as soon as she knows what she wants to do with her hair/veil/hairpiece. That way we have enough time from consultation, to design, to creation, to make sure it’s what the bride wants.

We certainly know why we love Frilly Bits, but what do you think makes your product so unique?
Frilly Bits is unique because we are able to take a bride’s vision and personality and translate it into a show stopping, custom piece that celebrates her personal style. We don’t stop at hairpieces though. We can create everything from boutonniere alternatives, flower girl and bridesmaid hairpieces, corsage alternatives, cake toppers, clutches with frilly bits on them, custom sashes with flowers, shoe clips, rings, ANYTHING that helps the bride create a cohesive vision for her big day.

Time for Girl Talk

What trends have you noticed come and gone over the years?
Many trends have come and gone over the years but we are seeing that vintage is one that seems to be staying. Our pieces have a vintage flair to them to begin with, but we can take that a step further by adding vintage jewellery into the piece or we can take a bride’s family heirloom (like a Grandmother’s brooch, for instance) and incorporate it into the piece for their something old. A few other trends that seem to have staying power are peacock themed weddings, bride’s incorporating black into their ensembles and bride’s adding custom items to further embellish their look from hairpieces to adding a sash to their otherwise
simple gown.

What trends have you loved, hated, missed and/or are glad have come back?
There aren’t really any trends that we hate. We are thrilled that the vintage trend seems to have real staying power, it’s such a fun and gorgeous theme!

Having Fun and Getting Personal:

What do you do when you’re not designing or creating accessories?
We both love to travel, love shopping, cooking, reading, writing and getting together with good friends

What is your favourite piece from your current collection?
Kalee: My favorite piece right now would have to be Robin Custom and Catherine Custom. They both have a vintage feel and are very feathery and ethereal looking.

Wendy: I love our custom sashes, they are such a gorgeous way to jazz up a simple wedding gown or a bridesmaid dress.

If you were stranded on a deserted Island, what is one item you couldn’t live without?
Aside from food? I think we would both say music. We’re both huge music people!

Are you Tim Hortons or Starbucks kind of gals?
Starbuck’s, without a doubt!

Final Thoughts

What is new for Spring/Summer 2011 for Frilly Bits?
This Spring/Summer we are doing a lot of bright colours in dupioni silk and crepe satin. We have also been creating a lot of grey pieces, a colour that seems to be very popular these days.

If you can give a couple only one piece of advice before their wedding day,what would it be?
Our advice would be to enjoy the planning process. It is such an incredibly fun time in your life, you are planning a day that celebrates the love and special commitment you are making with your best friend. Nothing could be better! :)

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