Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

Kat

How to…Deal with Uncooperative Relatives

Kat

January 24, 2010

I need some advice. I live in Virginia, but all of my family lives back on the west coast. (I'm from Arizona) We decided that we would get married in Vegas this year so my family would be able to come (mainly my grandparents since they refuse to fly) They agreed to come and everyone seemed really excited about it. Then, I sent my mom pictures of what we'll be wearing. She hasn't shown my grandma yet, but she told her basically what they look like. When I called my grandma to talk to her about when we'll be flying into Tucson, she started lecturing me. She said it's "not a clown thing" and went on to say that if that's what I'm going to wear, she won't be able to come. Apparently, my clothing (which fits my personality very well) is making a mockery of marriage and weddings. I'm very upset about this, since she's as close to me as my own mom. I don't know what to tell her to convince her to come. Even my mother in law (who is extremely conservative) loves the outfit and thinks she's being ridiculous. Have you known anyone to have problems like this? (There’s pictures of our outfits attached if you'd like to see what the big deal is)
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Go on Then, Ask me Anything…

Kat

January 23, 2010

On a morning on procrastination (or could it have been an evening? I loose track) I decided to give this formspring thing a go. If you haven't heard of it, it's basically a new social networking site (for lack of a better description) where you sign up and randoms (or in my case my lovely readers and fans) can ask me anything! I'm usually aghast at such self indulgence but I've actually really loved answering your burning questions - whether they be about Rock n Roll bride, my personal life (oh yes), the potential of babies (arrgh!), blogging or about having pink hair! I've loved the questions so much in fact that I wanted to share some of my favourites here. If you want to 'Ask Me Anything' then shoot on over to formspring and question away, I will try and answer as many as I can. and if you like I'll do another addition of my favourite questions again soon. So, what do ya wanna know?
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A Little Help From My Friends

Kat

January 23, 2010

I was already brimming over with excitment to feature this wedding by one of my newest Scottish photographic discoveries Mirrorbox Photography, but then I found out that this blue dress bride was actually one half of the talented team. A true Rock n Roll photographer if ever I've seen one - she only even went and had her own Rock n Roll wedding! "Being a wedding photographer myself I knew how important the photos were going to be at my wedding. I am one half of Mirrorbox Photography. I worried about asking my business partner Sequoia to take the photos as she was also going to be a guest at the wedding but I really didn’t want anyone else to shoot it. She was the only wedding photographer I knew would take the amazing photos I wanted and thankfully she happily agreed. Asking friends to get involved became a bit of a theme to our wedding. In fact when we put together our guest list each person had a skill we could utilise next to their name. This was not only a way to cut costs dramatically but it was also a great way to get people involved. We knew that we wanted our wedding day to be very personal to us and to all our closest friends and family that would be there. My husband and I with the help of our creative friends designed and made everything from rings to invites to flowers, we even made our own champagne! I designed my own dress, which I then had made at Che Camille in Glasgow; an independent design studio featuring local artist’s work. The bridesmaids also designed their own dresses. I didn’t want Sequoia to be working all night so I utilised a small room off the main hall to our venue and turned it into a self portrait photo booth, setting up lights and a camera with a trigger release. This proved to be great fun on the night and even more fun looking through the results after. This was also another great way to get people involved."
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Carrie’s Jean Harlow Inspired Bridals

Kat

January 23, 2010

Carrie's wedding day portraits make me so excited I could scream. Isn't she just the most gorgeous Rock n Roll chick ever? "My entire ensemble was inspired by old Hollywood glamor and 1930's black & white films, very Gene Harlow" Carrie told me "My hair and make-up was done by me and I kept it very straight, classic and the make-up reminiscent of the silent era. I grew up watching nothing but silent films, old horror movies and classic film noir. I wanted to appear timeless and not dated, I think I achieved my vision and surpassed even my own expectations." Carrie's gorgeous ruffled dress came from "The Dresser" in downtown Fullerton and was by Pattis, the style was called "Diore". "Originally it was $1850, but I got it on sale for a trunk show promo for 15% off. The dress was made from scratch in Italy. At the time I was shopping for the dress, I had a shaved head. The sales lady then she pulled the dress for me said "The girl with the blonde shaved head and tattoos would look perfect in this dress" the second I tried it on...I knew it was the one." She chose a veil from www.birdcageveils.com which cost her just $59 and her shoes came from "The Dresser" too. The bracelet she wore was an heirloom of her husband's great grandmother and was actually originally a necklace. The gorgeous brooches on the bouquets (supplied by Kari Strand at Lake Elsinore Florist) were from Macy's and old cost about $8 each (reduced from $30!) The bridesmaids also wore dresses from Macy's.
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Under the Spotlight – Shan’s Photography

Kat

January 22, 2010

Who are you and what do you do? I am Shan Fisher, a photographer. I specialise in wedding photography - I’m really passionate about photography and I absolutely love my job! I founded Shan's Photography in June 2007. Where are you based and what cities/countries are you available to work in? The beautiful Isle of Man is my base, central to the UK. Although I am a pretty new photographer, I have already had great experiences shooting a wedding in Germany and various parts of the UK. I'm happy to travel all over the country and abroad for photography work.
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All that Jazz

Kat

January 22, 2010

This fabulous 1920s Vogue-stylee fashion shoot was sent over to me by Donna & Mark of Archibald Photography and I actually couldn't wait to share them with you! The shoot was commissioned to to photograph the new collection of 20s inspired wedding dresses from Lindsay Fleming called 'All That Jazz'. Lindsay Fleming Couture are award winning bridal designers based in Scotland. Aren't these beautiful!? Thanks to Donna & Mark for sharing these with us today
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Thursday Treats – 21st Jan 2010

Kat

January 21, 2010

Wow what an exciting weeks it's been so far. Not only are things hotting up (as ever) with the votes for the winners of the Kat Braman Free Photography Contest (if you haven't voted yet then go ahead and do it already!) but blog land exploded with excitement over my Vintage Boudoir shots with Julia Boggio. We knew they'd go down well but we never expected anything like the response we got. Thanks so much for everybody who commented on the blog, on twitter and on facebook. I read every single one and they all brought a smile to my face. Extra special thanks to all the other bloggers who took the time to write about and share the photos on their blogs already - Hot Pink Brides, Little White Book Blog, Charley Beard, Plans and Presents & Boho Wedding and Events.
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Fairy Lights, Scrabble & English Heritage

Kat

January 21, 2010

Ella & Sam's London wedding was such a gorgeously quirky affair that not only I was boiling over with excitement to blog them, but Emily from the ridiculously popular (and in fact one of my personal favourite blogs) Once Wed was too. So we've decided to join forces on this one and to both share our favourite bits of this gloriously English affair. For all the ceremony and portraits head over to Once Wed and I'll handle the beautiful reception details. You might actually recognise Ella from her sister's wedding that I also featured on Rock n Roll Bride a while back - who could forget those wonderful red shoes?! While Tara opted for a bright and colourful summer wedding, Ella & Sam's day was one of enviable vintage glamour and sophistication - with a touch of Rock n Roll of course! I am absolutely crazy for those bridesmaids in sparkly black jackets and the un-corordinated patterned tights, and of Sam's awesome floral shirt and bow tie combo. The wedding which was held in Grenwich, London was one of English Heritage and followed by a secret dinner at Davy's Wine Vaults, decked out with candles and hand-chosen gifts for everyone
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Under the Spotlight – Jordan McLachlan

Kat

January 20, 2010

I've got a true Rock n Roll photographer to share with you today! Jordan McLachlan's music business background certainly gives him the credentials worthy of shooting your Rock n Roll wedding. "I’ve worked in the music industry for more than 10 years as magazine writer/editor and photographer," he told me "Plus I've run a PR/marketing agency looking after music clients. So over the years I’ve written for most of the big specialist titles like Guitarist, Total Guitar and Rhythm magazines (I still do odd bits for Rhythm - the most recent interview is a cover with Dominic Howard from Muse that hits the shelves next month)." With the gorgeous texture, tone and subtle hues throughout his documentary styled images, there's certainly a lot more than guitar riffs behind Jordan McLachlan. Let's get on with learning more about the man behind the music shall we?
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We Want Kat to Rock Our Wedding! ♥ The Vote…

Kat

January 18, 2010

This is my favourite part of running contests - when I get to share my 3 finalists and get you all to vote for your favourite to win free wedding photography with Kat Braman (although I do hate the part where I have to narrow all the entrants down to just 3!) As always, the standard of entries was very high - I have the coolest readers with the best stories I reckon. After muchos tooing and froing I would like to introduce to you your finalists. Read the entries and pick your favourites by voting with the poll below and as always…only one vote per IP address please! You have until Sunday 24th January to vote.
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The Vintage Bride

Kat

January 17, 2010

I wanted to share a few images if Caitlin on her wedding day as I think she looked every bit the simple vintage beauty. We had an intimate wedding with the whole family bringing it together from the dress, the caterer and all the details in the house for the reception. I chose the vintage look because it not only totally works with my own personal style, it is a classic look that will never grow old. I didn't want to look back 20 years from now and say "What was I thinking?!" Even now if you look at pictures from the '40's and '50's, you can only say how beautiful and glamorous everyone and everything looked. My dress was something we found in a boutique wedding dress shop in Los Gatos. Actually it turned out to be a better pick for me then the $6500 designer dresses that I originally had wanted! (Mine was only $500!!) Thanks to Caitlin and Jessica for sharing these words and images with us Credit: Jess Epstein Photography
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On a Quirky & Personal Afternoon

Kat

January 17, 2010

Brett & Louise had an quirky and personal afternoon ceremony which was held at the Mt Coo-tha Botanical Gardens in Brisbane, Australia. Their untraditional ceremony featured two rituals, both a ring warming and a hand-fasting ceremony. Photographer Rebecca told me all about this fun and family-oriented day: During the ring warming ceremony the rings were past around the guests who were asked to give their blessings and to make a wish for Louise & Brett’s future together. During the exchange of rings Louise went from tears to laughter which help to create fantastic emotive images of her. After the exchanging of the rings the hand fasting was performed. This ceremony involved Brett and Louise’s mothers winding and tying a piece of ribbon around their hands binding them together in life.
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