Lighting Man got to attend an event he had put the lights up for!! Friday night at Cole Court in Twickenham and a function for a group of retired professionals. Actually it was my Dad who organised the dinner, so I got an invite and he got a bit of a discount on the lights!!Returned to the venue on Saturday morning to collect the kit and the van. The wife walked with me so I kidnapped her and took her to an open day/wedding fare at Grove House in Roehampton . I love these shows – I attended the one at sister venue Parkstead House last weekend (ably assisted by my daughter – home after 3 years at university). You meet all kinds of people and its great to talk to, not only the prospective brides and grooms but also their families, and the other exhibitors.
To be honest the Portrait Room at Grove House is one of those stunning rooms (oak walled, chandeliers, huge windows) that need very little extra help. And I told the clients as much. I really don’t believe in selling for the sake of it. The wife was a bit surprised but in the end saw the wisdom of my approach. A few uplighters (the chandeliers are pretty but not dimmable – so the uplighters replace them with a subtle lighting effect, some candles on the table (not all venues allow this but Grove House does) and something to illuminate the band is all you really need here. Especially if you are planning a summer wedding – when it doesn’t get dark till 9.30pm.!Interesting to chat to the other exhibitors there – sometimes we can help each other out and there’s a lot of swapping of information. It’s important to know where you fit in the marketplace and I’m definitely the small man – if you’re after a big AV production I’m not your man…. but I can recommend one !