It didn't take long for geologist Carolayne Holley and tech guy Kevin Beauchamp to shift gears from their former careers. These days, they're publishing a successful bridal magazine, running a bed-and-breakfast inn, hosting weddings, coordinating bridal fairs and, their newest venture, running bridal fashion shows.

Holley and Beauchamp purchased Kaleidoscope Inn & Gardens nearly four years ago while living in San Francisco. The former Southern California residents missed the warmer weather and wanted to get out of the big city. They had talked for years about running a bed-and-breakfast inn in an old home and living in San Luis Obispo County.

Then the inn on Dana Street came on the market.

”Everything just fell into place so perfectly that we really thought it was meant to be,“ Holley said.

Once they had completed shaping up the property, it wasn't a stretch to add wedding catering to their menu of offerings at the restored Victorian inn.

”When we had our wedding, it was so difficult to get it all organized, but after it was done, we saw how easy it could be,“ Holley said.

In 1993, they expanded their then-tiny wedding empire to include Central Coast Bride, an annual wedding planning publication focusing on San Luis Obispo County and northern Santa Barbara County.

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Beauchamp and Holley have expanded the publication from 30 advertisers to 150 in the latest issue, released Sept. 1. A Web site associated with the magazine is currently receiving 22,000 hits each week.

”It's just phenomenal for a regional magazine like this,“ Holley said.

The couple plans to extend the magazine's reach next year with a new, separate edition focusing on Santa Barbara County.

As if that weren't enough, Holley and Beauchamp have developed bridal events to complement existing fairs.

”We spent the first three years working on the inn, the gardens and developing that as a viable business,“ Holley said. ”We feel like we're there, so now we're focusing our attention on this magazine, growing the magazine and finding new opportunities to serve our brides and the advertisers.“

First up: more wedding planning events.

”When we got here, there was only one good bridal fair each year, and that was in January,“ Holley said.

The Kaleidoscope couple created a new bridal fair, scheduled each fall at the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo. About 600 visitors and 90 vendors are expected to spill throughout Madonna Inn's public areas at this fall's fair, scheduled for Oct. 16.

With the autumn fair on relative cruise control, Holley said, she and Beauchamp are ready for their next project: a bridal fashion show at their own inn.

”At some fairs they do fashion shows, but we didn't feel that was really fair to the vendors,“ Holley explained. ”Then they're just sitting around for an hour without any customers while the brides and their guests watch the show.“

By separating the events, Holley hopes to help brides focus their attention while also giving vendors the greatest possible exposure.

The gala fashion show Oct. 23 at Kaleidoscope Inn will feature fashions from Bridal Boutique of Atascadero, Central Coast Wedding Center of San Luis Obispo and Down the Aisle of Arroyo Grande. Tickets for the 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. event are $30 per seat at the catwalk and $25 per standard seat. All tickets include a Champagne lunch.

The following weekend, Holley and Beauchamp will hold Central Coast Bride's first bridal fair in Santa Barbara County.

The Oct. 30 event at Marriott Hotel in Buellton will include 70 vendors of wedding services. Tickets are $10 per person and $15 per couple, but discounted tickets are available from www.centralcoastbride.com.

Holley and Beauchamp will repeat the series of events in February. ”We see a need for bridal fairs at other times of the year as well,“ Holley said. ”There are couples who get engaged on Valentine's Day and who want to be married in the fall. The fairs and fashion show can provide them the information they need to make the wedding planning experience smoother and more enjoyable.“

Jennifer Best is an Orcutt-based freelance writer. She can be reached by e-mail at outdoor411@ aol.com.