Julie Teckman joins the celebrations as Story marks its first anniversary with a fashion show at The Church restaurant…
If such a thing as a dull fashion show ever took place, then I’ve yet to hear about it. There’s something deeply glamorous about the heady combination of stunning clothes, stylish models and gorgeous location, often accompanied by a glass of something fizzy, that makes any fashion show a real event and which creates a clamour to attend (front row if you really want to show you’re somebody in the fashion world). Katie Chapman, proprietor of Story boutique in the St Crispin Retail Village in Duston, knows the lure of the fashion show only too well and this month she celebrated the shop’s first anniversary with a glitzy fashion show and disco at The Church restaurant in Northampton.
The place was packed out well in advance of the show starting with women representing varying age groups arriving early to enjoy a glass of prosecco before sitting at tables spaced around the restaurant which was festooned with glittering fairy lights creating an enchanting atmosphere.
Once we were seated the show began, and Katie’s clever decision to ask customers to model the clothes was a triumph with the models looking both gorgeous and confident as they descended the stairs from the mezzanine to walk amongst the audience below.
An amazing array of knitwear, dresses and party clothes was displayed to brilliant effect and the positioning of the audience at tables around the restaurant meant we got plenty of opportunities to see every item. There was plenty of sparkle and a range of fabulous party dresses which twinkled as the lights caught them, giving an ethereal effect which was summed up in a stunning jumper with glittery angel wings at the back which I’m definitely planning to wear on Christmas day!
Both casual and formal wear was on display but there was one theme underpinning the whole show: these are clothes that are easy to wear, look great on everybody and really pack a punch in the style stakes. After the show concluded there was a tasty dinner of chicken breast served with crushed new potatoes and sautee cabbage and bacon accompanied by lemon and thyme jus, served with a glass of wine, and after we ate, there was a disco.
Katie and her team created a fantastic evening and it was clear from the conversations around the tables over dinner that the show gave audience members plenty to think about in terms of shopping for the party season. It took me a while to realise but Katie even had rails of items seen on the catwalk in the foyer of the restaurant so that we could buy on the night if we wished. Seeing the clothes up close and trying them on ourselves was simply too much temptation for most of us, and by the time I managed to barge through my fellow guests to the rails, the room was full of women clutching sparkly clothes to their breasts possessively and beating a path to the till.
I left, with a new dress and a generously filled goodie bag, after making Katie promise to order me the angel wing jumper. She looked exhausted but happy and, judging by the smiles on the faces of the women around me, she’d made a lot of other people very happy too.
Visit Story boutique online or at the St Crispin Retail village to check the party wear out for yourselves and let the team help you enjoy a sparkly, glamorous and classy holiday season. And if you hear bells ring, you’ll know another woman just got her angel wing jumper!
