A DIY Cornish Wedding: Angie & Jack

Kat

November 15, 2011

Angie & Jack's Cornish Wedding was a wedding of three parts - with the ceremony at Devoran Parish Church, drinks and afternoon snacks at Devoran Village Quay and finally the main reception, with dinner and dancing, at Devoran Village Hall. "We didn't stick to the standard 'wedding rules' and just wanted our wedding to be fun and to show our personalities," the bride told me. "We wanted everything to be as unique and as personal without spending a fortune."

A Village Fete Meets Tattoo Parlour Wedding: Jess & David

Kat

November 14, 2011

Jess & David were married in All Saints Church in Kirby and they had their reception in the bride's parent's back garden. Jess wore a Candy Anthony Dress, Upper Street shoes (which she designed herself) and Vivienne Westwood jewellery. The lucky couple had Shell De Mar there to capture their day. "We met at school and had been together 12 years when David proposed at sunrise on the beach in Mexico," Jess told me. "Initially I’d been reluctant to get out of bed so early but something told me it might be worth it...and it was!"

An Autumnal Lakeside Wedding: Meredith & Nic

Kat

November 14, 2011

Meredith & Nic's wedding couldn't be any more perfect for a changeable autumnal day like today. The warm orange accents with the lakeside location are all kinds of wonderful.... The wedding took place in September at the family cottage on Bob's Lake, Ontario, Canada.

A Restoration Wedding: Neil & Becky

Kat

November 14, 2011

I really love reading wedding stories from the groom's point of view. Most of the submissions I get are written by the bride, but there's something so utterly adorable about hearing about a wedding from the boy's point of view...

A Sunday Kind of Love: Getting to Know You

Kat

November 13, 2011

The funny thing with the internet is that everyone thinks they know best...all hidden behind their keyboards with their opinions on everything. A lot of people think they know the people they see online better than they actually do. But you know what, most of the people you see online are keeping things secret. Take myself for example, you know I like pink, glitter, kittens, shopping, rainbows...and that I have strong opinions on weddings, but what else do you really know about me? In the spirit of showing you I really am, here's some things you probably have't heard about me before...

Roo’s Favourite Finds: Terrariums

Kat

November 12, 2011

Roo is pretty awesome you know. So she called me last week with an idea for a blog post which I loved so much I asked if she'd like to make it a monthly addition to the blog. Which I'm pleased to report she did. As a bit of a charity shop/thrifting fiend, Roo's idea was so share some of her favourite charity shop finds as well as showing you how she is using said finds in her wedding. These posts are going to be the perfect antidote to a wedding industry that tries to convince you that you have to spend a bomb to have a beautiful wedding. All you really need is a little imagination and not a lot of cash. Hurrah!

Post-It Notes – 11th November 2011: Getting Organised

Kat

November 11, 2011

Getting reader questions and suggestions for these Post It Notes posts is amazing so thank you everyone that's commented and emailed me. I'm going to try to get to as many of them as I can! After all these posts are to help you guys so I'm pretty chuffed that my rambles seem to be doing so. Last week, Nik commented asking...

Post-It Notes – 11th November 2011: Non-Tacky Hen Do Ideas

Kat

November 11, 2011

Oh the wonders of the great British hen do (bachelorette party for my American friends). A time to let yourself go...your last night of freedom...an excuse to get horreniously drunk and snog a stripper. Erm...Or maybe not.

Thursday Treats – 10th November 2011 + New Vivienne Westwood/Melissa Shoes Available for Pre-Order

Kat

November 10, 2011

60’s Girl Bands & 50’s Rock n Roll – A Vintage North London Wedding: Laura & Daniel

Kat

November 10, 2011

Meeting through a love of 60's girl bands and 50's Rock n Roll, it was inevitable that the wedding of Laura & Daniel would be made for this little blog of mine. Combine this with a penchant for vintage clothing and you've just about created the perfect Rock n Roll Bride wedding. "It seemed natural for us to reflect the way we met in our wedding," Laura told me. "I'm an artist, designer and one half of 50's Rock n Roll DJ duo The Truckin' Laura's, and Daniel is guitarist in The Special Needs, so music was a big part of the wedding. I walked down the aisle to a piano version of 'Sea of Love' by Phil Phillips played by our friend Galia. Our friend Anna and her all singing all dancing Ronettes played a beautiful ukelele version of Phil Spector classic 'Be my Baby' at the end of our ceremony which set the tone for the day perfectly. Another really special moment was Daniel singing The Tempations 'My Girl' after his speech and all our guests joining in with the chorus. After our first dance to The Ramones 'Baby I Love You' our DJ friends took turns on the decks and kept the guests dancing all night!"

A Handmade South African Wedding: Megan & Peiter

Kat

November 10, 2011

South African weddings are blowing me away at the moment. I've been featuring so many beauties from this fabulous country recently, I feel very lucky indeed! Well my luck was very much in when Megan & Peiter's beautiful wedding landed on my lap last week. The wedding was held outdoors at Kleinkaap Pretoria, a boutique hotel in Centurion, Gauteng. "I wanted to do everything!" Megan laughed, "and everything had to have a significant meaning so all my vendors were our families. Everything from the bunting to the match-books we handmade and actually (sorry for the cliché) made with thought, consideration and love. To me the fun part wasn’t only the actual wedding it was getting together with friends, family and a great bottle of wine to stick match-books together."

A Handmade Informal Tipi Wedding: Katie & Will

Kat

November 9, 2011

Don't gorgeous handmade weddings like Katie & Will's just make you go weak at the knees? So much of what went into their amazing wedding was hand crafted by the couple and their friends, making the day a really special one.

A Vintage-Inspired Mountaintop Wedding: Roxanne & Braxton + WIN Her Twigs & Honey Veil

Kat

November 9, 2011

Roxanne & Braxton's beautiful mountain view wedding took place at Meditation Mount, Ojai, CA. Photographer Lydia Hudgens was there to capture the day. "We wrote the ceremony ourselves and our friend John was our officiant," Roxanne told me. "We had some friends perform readings from favorite writers of ours - Emily Dickinson, Virginia Woolf, Paul Eluard, etc. Another friend, Rob, provided the processional & recessional music on guitar, accompanied by Braxton's cousins Kati and Madi. We walked down the aisle to Joanna Newsom's 'Bridges and Balloons' and finished with Michael Jackson's 'The Way You Make Me Feel.' It was so lovely and just what we wanted; Meditation Mount was an amazing place for a ceremony--the view of the surrounding valley is epic, sublime."

Why I Don’t Feature Many Engagement Shoots…

Kat

November 9, 2011

I'm often asked by wedding photographers what I look for in engagement shoots. You see, unlike many wedding blogs I actually feature very few pre-wedding shoots - in fact since January this year I've actually only featured 30 (out of approximately 780 blog posts in total!)

Under the Spotlight: Custom Wedding Illustrations by Christy Pepper Dawson

Kat

November 8, 2011

To say I'm head over heels in love with the work of Christy Pepper Dawson would be an understatement of vast magnitude. Christy is a super talented illustrator from California (originally from Nova Scotia) and she's just branched out into doing portraits for Rock n Roll couples.

A Magical & Ethereal Midsummer Night’s Dream: Daisy & Adam

Kat

November 8, 2011

A Midsummer Night's Dream was the inspiration for Daisy & Adam's September wedding. The wedding was held at Mountains Country House, Hildenborough, with the ceremony in the gazebo in the gardens. "As a child I remember being taken to watch A Midsummer Night’s Dream," Daisy wrote to me. "It was being performed in a London park, and with each scene the audience picked up their chairs and walked with the actors through the woods to get to the next setting. I remember being struck by the romance of it, the mystery of the faerie woodland was so magical, it was always how I’d imagined by wedding. Luckily, Adam loved the ideas too!"

A Simple & Intimate Concert Hall Wedding: Valerie & Craig

Kat

November 8, 2011

"For us, we wanted our wedding ceremony to be kept simple - no flashiness and relaxed," newlywed Valerie told me, "which is just the way we are. We wanted intimacy and for it to be very personal which I think was reflected in our music, readings (the lyrics of the Adam Sandler tune from the Wedding Singer and an extract from the Irrational Season, Madeleine L'Engle) and having our little boy with us. However, we definitely wanted a big party afterwards to celebrate."

‘Rock n Robin’: A1950’s Christmas Shoot for the BBC

Kat

November 7, 2011

I know what you're thinking...Christmas stuff already woman?! Well just hear me out would ya... I've known wedding photographer Ashton Jean-Pierre ever since we both went to Emma Case's wedding back in March. I don't think we managed to talk on the night, but after the event I saw some of his incredible photos (that he just took on his iPhone!) on facebook and so I got in contact to ask if I could share some of them on my blog. He said yes and we've chatted online ever since. Ashton is deaf which makes no differece at all when communicating online, but when he asked if Gareth & I would like to do a mini shoot with him I was a teeny tiny bit nervous on how we would get on it 'real life'. However I needn't have worried. Ashton is so expressive and animated that it's actually pretty easy to have a conversation, and although I didn't know any sign language before we met, we were easily able to chat by gesturing and using good old fashioned pen and paper to write things down.

A Sunday Kind of Love – The Quiet Place

Kat

November 6, 2011

♥ Shooting with Ashton ♥ learning some sign language ♥ fitting back into my vintage dress after just three weeks of not drinking!!!! ♥ spending the day with Elbie ♥ Gareth's quiff ♥

DIY Tutorial: Multi-Layered Tulle Petticoat (Make Your Own Rainbow Petticoat!)

Kat

November 5, 2011

First up, I have to say a huge thank you to everyone that's emailed me with their DIY ideas. I've has a huge response and I'm really looking forward to sharing them with you over these coming weeks. Be sure to keep them coming! I'm starting with this amazing underskirt tutorial by Alexandra King, an independent designer from Somerset. Alexandra produces fabulous vintage-inspired dresses and accessories. So without further ado, over to the lady herself...