Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

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Scare-Fest Wedding & Searching for ‘The One’: Sarah & Colin

Kat

December 19, 2012

For their October wedding at Whittington Castle and Wattlesborough Village Hall, Sarah & Colin wanted a scare-fest. Halloween, pumpkins, zombies & vintage circus horror were their inspirations. "When you first start to plan a wedding you are given strict instructions by every bride you know to research research research. You read magazines, you trawl through websites, you create a scrapbook of what you think your wedding should be", wrote newlywed Sarah. "I had 2 ½ years to plan my big day, and no matter what I saw I just didn't feel like it could be part of our day! Everything was so beautiful, classic, elegant... and so not us! I am mad about vintage but after heading to a vintage wedding fair I had started to lose hope. It was all too twee, too perfect. I am a rummage in the hay bales listing to The Coasters kinda vintage and it just wasn't there for me. Then after seeing a lady flying round the fair with pink hair, I was informed of Rock n Roll Bride by my friend Ffion and my world was changed! I saw couples who broke convention, who played their wedding their way and weren't afraid to let the world see their personalities through their big day!"
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Icelandic Elopement: Dean & Lindsay

Kat

December 17, 2012

With all the detail and theme obsessions that come with the wedding blogging territory, sometimes it's just really awesome to get a super simple and fuss-free wedding in my inbox. So when Dean & Lindsay's Icelandic elopement was sent my way, I couldn't wait to feature it. I've said it before and undoubtedly I'll say it again, but honestly, this is what it's all about people - two people in love saying "I will love you forever". Spending just $1200, Dean & Lindsay flew to Iceland from the US and were married at Solfar (Sun Voyager) a sculpture located by Sæbraut, by the sea in the centre of Reykjavík
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A Homemade Star Wars & Lego Wedding for Geeks: Jennie & Jon

Kat

December 10, 2012

With just £5000 to spend, Jennie & Jon we're able to pull of their homemade and geeky wedding with a little bit of imagination and a lot of elbow grease! The ceremony took place at Emmanuel's Church in Sidlow and the reception was hosted at the bride's mother's house. "We knew that when we decided to get married we would have to do it our own way and make it very individual", explained the bride. "We are both complete geeks and children at heart with a love for Star Wars and Lego, so how could it not be fun? We definitely didn't want a wedding that could have been anybody else's. All our friends live so far away and we only get together once or twice a year so we also wanted it to be very relaxed that we could just spend time with each other. We wanted to do as much as we could ourselves and scoured eBay and car boot sales for cheaper items."
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Tattoos & Toadstools: Toni & Colin

Kat

December 7, 2012

Tattoos, tears and a seriously cute couple. Toni & Colin's wedding is what my dreams are made of. These guys are THE perfect Rock n Roll couple and they're wedding slays me. Plus they had Sassy of Assassynation as their wedding photographer so they instantly go way up in the cool stakes with me! The wedding was held at The Quay, Musselburgh, on 10th November. "Colin and I met online what feels like a life time ago but wasn't all that long ago in the grand scheme of things", Toni began. "We spoke for a month or so online and then he made plans to come over from Northern Ireland to visit me in Edinburgh. 'I'll come for the weekend,' he said. Well, he arrived and he's yet to leave! We've lived together from day one and, including the night before the wedding, we are yet to spend one single night apart. It's a good job he makes me laugh as much as he does!"
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Ethical Wedding at Home: Feng & David

Kat

December 6, 2012

Simple weddings are often the best, and for Feng & David, doing something low-key and ethical was important. So they had a super tiny civil ceremony with only their closest friends and family in attendance, and hosted the reception at their own house! Yes, Feng put on an apron and served all the food herself! "Our wedding budget was £1500, but we went over this with our photographer and our rings", began the bride. "Our rings were pretty expensive as they were custom made using fair-trade gold, recycled gold & conflict-free gems by Amanda Li Hope. We were married at Oxford Registry Office and our reception was in our tiny house in East Oxford."
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A French Resturant Wedding: Kat & Ton

Kat

November 29, 2012

Being massive foodies, Kat & Ton knew that serving a fantastic meal was high on their list of wedding day priorities. So for their reception venue they selected their favourite French restaurant in Brisbane, Montrachet. "In my opinion Montrachet is the best French restaurant in the city, and has been a family favourite for years", Kat told me. "Feeding our families and friends good food and wine was very important to us. The staff, both kitchen and front of house, made sure the night was perfect with superb food and exceptional service."
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Chicago Boat Wedding: Sonia & Balthazar

Kat

November 20, 2012

Sonia & Balthazar's wedding was anything but typical. This casual couple turned up late, got ready in minutes, sailed off on a boat for the ceremony and had a meal at a Russian restaurant for their reception. "My husband and I are in love with the sea - the smell, the mystery and the expansiveness", began the bride. "We feel most comfortable near large bodies of water, so the idea of getting married on a boat seemed like the most appropriate. We had sailed on the Red Witch in 2009 with Balthazar's aunt and uncle in Port Washington during a tall ship festival. We overheard the Captain saying that they host parties and weddings and looked at each other simultaneously, with the same thought in mind: this is our vessel of love."
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Backyard, Kewpie Doll Wedding: Sam & Brendan

Kat

November 15, 2012

Being parents to seven children, Sam & Brendan were always going to have a huge family-focused wedding. Their magical day was held in their backyard in Brisbane surrounded by their family and friends. The colourful wedding was laid back and fun and had a theme of kewpie dolls running throughout. They had them as favours, for the flowergirls to carry, nestled into the ceremony backdrop and even on the front of the wedding car!
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Tattoo Britannia Wedding: Lisa & Paul

Kat

November 6, 2012

"Being the Jubilee year as well as the Olympics, a red, white & blue themed wedding seemed fitting", began newlywed Lisa who married Paul this Summer. "I sat with my bridesmaids and mum the night before the wedding watching the opening ceremony with great pride. The bright colour options coupled with my love of rockabilly styling and 1940s glamour added such vibrancy and fun to the day. Paul and I also both love tattoos so we wanted to bring this into our day. The swallows on the wedding cake, invitations, table decorations and gifts were all tied together with tattoo images."
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A Dirty Fabulous Circus Wedding: Caroline & Peter

Kat

November 5, 2012

Running her own vintage boutique, Dirty Fabulous, in Dublin, Caroline was in the perfect position to plan her DIY circus themed wedding. She and fiancé Peter knew from the outset that they wanted something fun and unusual, and they had the perfect place in mind to host it. "We go to flea markets at the Dublin Food Co-op building and we always loved it", the bride began. "It’s not particularly pretty by any stretch of the imagination but it always has a lovely vibe. We were at the market one Sunday and we both said that if we were ever to get married that it would make an awesome venue. It just went from there really, it took me about 6 months to convince the co-op to let us do it and we didn't have a back up plan if they said no."
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A Simple & Beautiful Irish Wedding: Anna & Mirko

Kat

November 3, 2012

Anna & Mirko wanted a simple wedding with tons of personality. The day was held at Fallon & Byrne, a restaurant in the heart of Dublin. "We met 12 years ago and we never talked much about marriage until two years ago", wrote the bride. "I was getting dressed one Sunday morning and we were chatting away when he just came and out and said 'Do you want to marry me?' I didn't realise it was a genuine question and replied 'Ah yeah why not'. He grabbed me and we start jumping around in a circle laughing. Mirko was shouting 'We are getting married!' and I was like 'Oh Really? Yay!!' It was so funny and this situation sums us up really."
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A Mountaintop Homespun Wedding: Allison & Scott

Kat

October 30, 2012

Allison & Scott were married at 4,629 ft, at their favourite place - the top of Max Patch Bald, NC. They hosted their reception in their own home. "The décor of the ceremony was the panoramic view of the Smokey/blue Ridge Mountains and the wild buttercup flowers", they began. "At the reception, drinks were served in mason jars, farm tables were used for dining, and the flowers were roses and hydrangeas mixed with sunflowers in mason jars. Vintage plates and napkins were used and little jars of local Tennessee wildflower honey and dippers were at each table setting as favors. Our home was built in the 1800s and we wrapped the columns in garlands and roses."
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A DIY Wedding in Downtown Santa Ana: Candice & Nathaniel

Kat

October 17, 2012

One of the things that bums be out about living in the UK is that we can't get married anywhere we like - of course many couples these days opt for a humanist ceremony at the spot of their choice with the 'legal bit' taking place a few days before or after, but it's not really the same. And when I see ceremonies as gorgeous as Candice & Nathaniel right in the heart of Downtown Santa Ana, I'm even more envious! The wedding took place on June 3rd. The couple organised everything themselves and did so for less than $5000. The ceremony was held on 2nd Street Promenade, and the reception was at Memphis at the Santora, just round the corner. The couple met online and had their first date in the area, and Nathaniel proposed on New Years Eve at Memphis at the Santora,. Basically it was the obvious location for them to have their wedding too!
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DIY Farm Wedding & the Wedding Photographer who Captured the Milky Way: Shirley & Waz

Kat

October 9, 2012

You've probably seen one of Shirley & Waz' wedding photographs before, because it went kinda viral. Remember the wedding photograph that captured the actual milky way!? Yeah that one... (and if you didn't - and where have you been? - it's at the bottom of this post). Anyway after wedding photographer Lakshal Perera published that image and everyone calmed down and people stopped squealing "PhotoShop!" (it wasn't by the way) every single wedding blogger on the planet (probably) waited with baited breath to see the rest of the images. And jeez I nearly fell off my chair when Lakshal emailed me to ask if I'd like to be the blog to share it... erm... let me think about that for like 2 seconds... HELL YES PLEASE!
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A DIY Wedding at a Safari Park: Jodi & Dave

Kat

October 5, 2012

I'm not gonna lie, where was something in particular that swayed me when it came to featuring this wedding... Stan, the ever so slightly disgruntled looking cat. Of course when I saw the rest of the photos, I just happened to fall in love with Stan's owners, Jodi & Dave as well, but if I'm going to be 100% truthful, Stan did help their cause. This couple didn't want to spend a fortune on the wedding and so by DIYing as much as they could the day came in at under £9000. The ceremony was held at Swiss Gardens, Shuttleworth with the reception taking place in the Safari Lodge at Woburn Safari Park. "We looked at about 12 venues from a marquee where I keep my horses to a vintage factory ballroom but nothing quite ticked all the boxes", wrote Jodi. "But when we found Swiss Gardens we knew instantly this was the one. We originally booked it for August 2013, but then were told the venue would be shutting down for 18 months for a lottery funded renovation so we could only postpone, cancel or move it forward! So we moved it forward giving us only 6 months to plan and make everything!" "We were married in the tiny thatched house in the centre
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