Free Wedding Photography Contest Winners – Gaelyn & John’s English Country Picnic with a Mexican Flair

Kat

November 15, 2010

I have been waiting over a year to see Gaelyn & John's wedding - a year! Long term readers of Rock n Roll Bride may recognise this couple as the lucky pair who won free wedding photography by Love me Do Photography from a contest I ran back in October 2009. It was one of the closest contests I've ever ran but needless to say, I know these two totally deserved to win! And now I get to share their awesome wedding photographs with you today. EXCITED!

The Rock n Roll Bride Venue Guide – Manchester

Kat

November 13, 2010

Following the popularity of the first The Rock n Roll Bride Venue Guide, written by wedding planner and stylist Mary Herrington of Forever & Ever Events, I was keen to ask her if she'd be willing to do a bit of travelling for us and do some venue guides for the rest of the country. This month, Mary visited Manchester to bring you her reviews of the most kick ass venues for your Rock n Roll wedding! Following the great response to my first venue post on London’s Rock n Roll reception venues, I now take you up north to Manchester, where the city and surrounding areas offer a truly eclectic mix of inspiring venues for a Rock n Roll wedding. As I did in my London venues post, my approach here is to recommend a variety of venues across the spectrum of budgets and aesthetics, from very cool historical architecture to vintage modern interior design to contemporary and modern dance halls. Remember that no matter where you have your wedding, if you put your personal stamp on it, the venue will come alive.

Sheila & Austin’s Small & Intimate Peacock Themed Destination Wedding

Kat

November 12, 2010

Mis-matched jewel tones and a peacock theme were the order of the day for Sheila & Austin's small and intimate wedding. The couple found the planning of their destination wedding in St. Petersburg difficult and enlisted the help of the bride's Mother with all the organisations but really put their hearts and souls into creating the prefect wedding.

Photography Friday – Kat & Gareth = ♥

Kat

November 12, 2010

This is a bit of a cheat on my part this week as I didn't actually take this photo myself. My friend Emma Case came to visit us this week and while she was here we did an impromptu photo shoot in our garden and bedroom. I can't wait to see and share the rest, but to whet your appetite, here's a sneak peek of what's to come really soon! How sexy is my husband?!?

Lauren & Tim’s DIY, Budget-Friendly Seaside Wedding

Kat

November 12, 2010

"We both decided that although we wanted our wedding to be amazing, we weren't going to spend a stupid amount of money on it," explained bride Lauren when I asked her about her big day. "We weren't prepared to pay more just because it was labelled as a "wedding product". Plus, most of the wedding-related stuff that's available isn't really "us". I bypassed the usual wedding dress shops and went straight to the high street, and found everything exactly as I wanted at a price I was willing to pay. Tim wore a suit he already had from Next because none of the hire places had slim fitting suits. We wanted invitations with skulls and studs and splattery writing but didn't want to pay a professional to design and make them for us, so I did it."

Thursday Treats – 11th November 2010

Kat

November 11, 2010

♥ Christy + Kyle's gorgeous yellow wedding ♥ Renee + Randy’s Fashionable Wedding ♥ Halloween Goth Wedding - thanks for the mention La Carmina!

Zack & Alene’s Nerdy Board Game Wedding

Kat

November 11, 2010

Zack & Alene wanted a casual, fun and nerdy wedding - something that was perfect for them. "We knew all along that we didn’t want to do a traditional dinner and dancing wedding, and there was never a chance of there being a church ceremony (neither of us has ever attended a church service outside of weddings and funerals)," the couple explained. "We settled on an afternoon of games and hors d’oeuvres because we’re both nerdy, think appetizers are exciting, and I like to go to bed early. It’s not our proudest tradition, but Zack and I go to my parents’ house most Saturday evenings and play games with them – it’s one of the highlights of my week, and we always have fun, so we decided to extend that feeling to our guests. The reception space was filled with couches and ottomans, and then we had a few little tables brought in – it was laidback and jolly, and the games gave even people who didn’t know anyone else something to talk about and bond over."

Jennifer & Dave’s Heavily Tattooed, Utterly Punk Rock Engagement Sesh.

Kat

November 11, 2010

I actually have no words...how awesome are Jennifer & Dave?! The tattoo shop owning groom and his punk rock bride got hitched in October so I hope to follow this up with their kick ass, heavily tattooed wedding asap!

Josephine & Radney’s Eclectic, Vintage & DIY Wedding

Kat

November 10, 2010

I am so EXCITED about sharing Josephine & Radney's wedding today! I first met Filipino photographer Josephine Sicad when she submitted some of her own photographic work for features on Rock n Roll Bride and I was instantly smitten with her vintage aesthetic and beautiful and genuine portrayals of true love! So when she told me that she herself was getting married, I literally couldn't wait to see the results....and I DIE at how fabulous they are!

Dottie About Dots ~ Dottie & JP’s Polka Dot Themed Bash

Kat

November 10, 2010

Dottie is dottie (!?!) about...erm...dots so that's exactly the theme she wanted to go for in her wedding! She and JP were married at Christ the King Church in CA followed by a polka dot themed wedding at Elements Venue at the Ice House. The bride (real name Amanda) wore a gorgeous Mori Lee dress, customised with a polka dot sash (and a polka dot garter!) which matched JP's tie, made by Elmmies. The polka dot theme continued into the cake, the linens and even the groom's socks!

Rennie & Joe’s Vintage Styling with a Quirky Edge

Kat

November 10, 2010

Rennie & Joe are the coolest. The couple, who have known each other for 19 years and were first loves, still felt marriage was important to them even after all that time. "Most would think that it must be boring to marry after such a long time and that we might just be going through the motions," Rennie told me. "On the contrary, our decision to marry was not because we felt we "had to" - we decided to marry after all this time because we are more madly in love than ever and still best friends. We created our ceremony around our wishes to deepen our commitment to each other and profess our love in the presence of those who are most important to us."

A Cinderella Themed Rockstar Wedding

Kat

November 9, 2010

Heather & Jonathan’s Arthouse Café Wedding

Kat

November 9, 2010

Heather & Jonathan got married at Southampton Civic Centre, followed by a reception at The Art House Gallery Café. They chose this venue as it's ethos ran true with them and the style of wedding they wanted. "The Art House Gallery Café is a volunteer run, multi-disciplinary arts venue and café in the heart of Southampton’s evolving cultural quarter. We are a welcoming, vibrant and quirky community space serving delicious, organic food and drink in inspiring surroundings" they say. They also only served vegetarian food which suited the couple perfectly.

Danielle & Carl’s Incredibly Gorgeous Red & White Vintage Wedding

Kat

November 8, 2010

I am a little bit over excited about featuring Danielle & Carl's vintage wedding today. As soon as I laid eyes on her amazing dress I knew this wedding was going to be incredible... and you know what? I was right! The couple, who met at school, got married in June at St Peter's Church in Doddington, Lincolnshire. A 1950's vintage theme was really important to the couple as it really reflected their everyday style. "Having been to a few 'traditional' weddings, as soon as we started to plan our wedding, we knew that we wanted to do things differently," Danielle told me. "We wanted every part of our wedding to be personal to us, and be able to show our personalities. We didn't just want to do something because it was the way people usually do things at weddings, we wanted to put our stamp on it. We both love all things vintage, particularly the era of the 50's and 60's, after all, our first car was a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle. For this reason, having a vintage rock 'n' roll 50's style wedding just seemed to come naturally to us. Our inspiration came out of our love not only for the 50's fashion, but the music and the whole lifestyle. Having a dancing vicar was not something we planned but that was an added bonus!"

Sarah & Matt’s Red & Black, Gothic Wedding

Kat

November 8, 2010

Gloomy and grey weather doesn't have to spell disaster for your wedding day - and in actual fact I think the darker atmosphere and evening-only event worked perfectly for Sarah & Matt's gothic-inspired wedding! The wedding took place at Riverlife, an outdoor activity centre in Brisbane which also has a number of gorgeous venues, perfect for a wedding! The evening event started with pre-ceremony drinks and canapes for the guests. "We’ve been told that our absence at the start really added to the atmosphere, especially with our DIY decorations adorning the venue," said Sarah when I asked about their idea behind this. "Neither of us were at the venue when the event started. We arrived after the guests had an hour of canapes. While the guests were awaiting our arrival, the decorations served as a talking point, and since they could see that we’d gone to so much effort on the tables, it added to their anticipation to see our outfits and everything else that was to follow."

A 1970’s Woodstock Inspired Shoot

Kat

November 8, 2010

This 1970's Woodstock inspired shoot took place on Hampstead Heath, London. The shoot was set up by wedding planner & stylist, Mary Herrington of Forever & Ever Events. She and photographer Caro Hutchings wanted to create a shoot to show how you can easily create a beautiful look with vintage and reclaimed items that won't break the bank. "Finding inspiration in the ‘70s doesn’t mean that you have to stick with the original dress form the ‘70s or be literal about it; rather, you can take a vintage dress or theme and modernize it," Mary told me. "For example, the most amazing part of the dress was the tiered back – we took away the billowy elbows and the high neck, which really allowed you to highlight the back of the dress as the focal point."

A Sunday Kind of Love – The New Vivienne Westwood/Melissa Shoe Range

Kat

November 7, 2010

Anyone that knows me at all, will be well aware that I'm having a bit of a love affair with Vivienne Westwood...it's more of a lifetime commitment actually, but when she launches new ranges like this my love is rekindled just a little bit more! This week I was casually browsing the online store when I saw these babies. Oh My Lord. A new Vivienne/Melissa shoe range? Be still my beating heart! They are not available until the end of November (mean teases!) but I think I know what's going to be on my Christmas list this year...

Sarah & Jonathan’s Hipster London Wedding

Kat

November 6, 2010

Sarah & Jonathan found the perfect photographer to capture their modern London wedding though Rock n Roll Bride so I was over the moon when Annamarie Stepney asked if I'd like to feature their wedding! The couple chose to have their wedding in their local borough of Islington, North London as they both felt it was very important to support their local businesses and friends. "The fact the venue and all suppliers were local in Angel was very important to us and this is why we chose them. Jonathan's business and our lives in Islington are important and it was all about a sense of community. We also wanted a relaxed inclusive wedding, but not casual. We involved as many people as we could with 18 ushers and bridesmaids altogether, four readers and roles for everyone individually. We have been together for 9 years and have many great friends together who we wanted to be very involved."

Best of Blogs – Issue 14 ~ Jasmine Star

Kat

November 5, 2010

I couldn't believe it when Jasmine Star first emailed me. I got a little bit fan-girly and squealed down the phone to my friend a little bit. So needless to say when it came to writing this month's Best of Blogs article there was only one lady I wanted to write about. I am literally honoured to have her on these pages with me. The woman is such and inspiration and I heart her. A lot. My virtual love affair with Jasmine Star began this summer when I watched a video recording of a seminar she’d held which was called ‘The importance of branding and its vitality in the wedding industry.’ After watching it, the way I viewed by own brand and business was literally changed forever. A dramatic admission maybe, but that’s how motivating her one-hour teaser video was: I ended up blogging about it, and I thoroughly recommend that you take a look.

Vintage, Floral and a Tattooed Bride

Kat

November 5, 2010

This gorgeous and rockin' bridal shoot took place in LA and was shot entirely with film, with virtually no post-production. The bride wore a Betsey Johnson dress and shoes and jewellery from Tarina Tarantino. Her cute parasol was from Chinatown Los Angeles.