Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

DIY

Wedding Stationery…to Buy or DIY?

Kat

December 11, 2010

What is it with girls and stationery? Ever since school I remember getting super excited as September drew near...not to be going back to class, but to be allowed to buy new stationery for the year ahead. I'd spend hours wondering around WH Smiths and Paperchase, fingering every little brightly coloured item, searching for the perfect kit that was both practical and exuded my ever-changing sense of style. I think for girls this long-term love affair is why we see wedding stationery as such an integral part of our wedding day. It must be just right, it must be personal and it must look like a lot of thought went into it. In this budget-conscious climate, a lot of brides to be choose to DIY their stationery. Whilst there is certainly nothing wrong with this (hell, I DIY'ed the lot!) I wanted to ask an expert in this field to chat us through the importance of wedding stationery as well as highlighting the pros and cons of DIY vs buying your stationery...without simply writing the usual wedding-supplier-self-promotion-patter of "your stationery will set the tone for your whole wedding day" crap that you read everywhere else. Enter Lucy Ledger of the awesome Lucy Ledger Designs...
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Leslie & Ben’s Rowing Club Wedding

Kat

December 8, 2010

Leslie & Ben's rowing club wedding shows perfectly why I adore my readers! Such utter gorgeousness without conforming to anybody else's idea of what makes a wedding...plus the whole thing was DIY. I approve! "We called in a lot of favours to make the day; partially because we had a limited budget, but also because by using friends the day would be more special. Luckily we have a lot of talented friends who include a graphic designer (who did our invitations), a chef (catering), a musician (band), ex-florist and so forth. The favours, peanut butter fudge, I made myself 4 days before. It was all gone before the main course at the sit down dinner, so I'm guessing no one minded it was made by the bride!"
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Laura & Andy’s Classy, Rockabilly, Back to the Future Inspired, DIY Wedding

Kat

December 7, 2010

Laura & Andy's rockabilly wedding is pure class. Shot by the wonderful Chloe Browne of Caught the Light, the day exudes 1950's elegance and styling...with a big fat Rock n Roll twist! "We did things differently by really letting our personalities and our interests shine through our wedding preparations," began the bride. "Both ourselves and our friends are immersed in the music dancing and lifestyle of the 40s and 50s Swing and Rockabilly scene. It was inherent that I would wear a 50s style dress rather than a traditional wedding dress, that the details of our wedding would be centered around our love of vintage music, pin-up fashion, jive and jitterbug dancing, traditional tattoos, classic Chevy pickups!"
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Helen & Dan’s Good Old-Fashioned Coronation Street, 1940’s Tea Party Wedding

Kat

December 7, 2010

Cute, quirky, British weddings are my utter favourites to feature. There's so much originality and such fabulous ideas floating around this industry of ours, and it really really excites me! I was lucky enough to meet Heather, the photographer who captured this beautiful wedding, at the Unveiled Photography Conference that I spoke at in July so I'm so excited to see that she's put what she learnt in to practice with this killer wedding. Helen & Dan were married in September in Rye. Their theme was "a good old-fashioned Coronation Street party/1940s tea party feel". Originally the couple had planned to have an Alice in Wonderland theme, however after the film came out, and the whole world went Alice mad, they decided to do something different and more unique. "My mum is a magpie for nice bits and set about scouring the length and breadth of Lancashire's charity shops for table decorations, the cups and saucers, the teapots and the candelabras" began the bride. "Dan's nan volunteers in a charity shop, so she managed to pick up some lovely pieces too."
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How To…Make Your Own 1960’s Inspired Mod Floral Hair Wreath (Tutorial by Elsie Flannigan)

Kat

December 4, 2010

I heart Elsie. I've been following her awesome crafty blog, A Beautiful Mess, for the past year or so am not afraid to admit that I'm a bit of an super fan. Elsie got engaged to Jeremy in August and so secretly I was hoping she'd share all her wedding planning and DIY ideas on her blog. Last week I received an email from Elise and her sister Emma telling me that not only have they started their own wedding blog, Le Wedding Party, but that Elsie would like to share some of her amazing DIY tutorials on Rock n Roll Bride! Eeek...I am so excited that she even knows my little blog exists, let alone that she wants to share her stuff with us!
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Casey & Richard’s Sunny, Seaside, Sailor Wedding

Kat

December 3, 2010

My original plan today was to head out into my garden and take some snowy snaps for Photography Friday...however as I stared blankly through my kitchen window I had second thoughts and realised that it's flippin' COLD out there and you know what!? I'd rather stay here, wrapped in my slanket (blanket with sleeves - oh yes that is Rock n Roll!) For some further justification, I've got an amazingly SUNNY wedding from South Africa to share instead. This should warm your cockles...
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Adrienne & Christian’s Budget-Friendly, Central Park Wedding

Kat

December 3, 2010

Adrienne & Christian were married in Central Park in a simple but perfect ceremony, "Central Park allows the rental of any place (except for the Conservatory Gardens) for just $25," explained the bride. "The challenge is that they do not allow you to bring in anything, including chairs, so we all had to stand. It worked out perfectly, though, since we were in a beautiful location that did not need decoration, and we had two friends organize everyone upon their arrival into neat rows with an aisle. Another friend handed out whistles and ribbon wands on the path leading to the ceremony location, so everyone could arrive while making their own music with a smile. Our assortment of slide whistles, kazoos, and siren whistles were from Century Novelty."
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Michelle & Sterling’s DIY Aussie Bush Wedding

Kat

December 3, 2010

Michelle & Sterling were married at St Barnabas church, in the middle of the Aussie bush. Their reception that followed took place at Upper Landowne Community Hall. Michelle's parents had been married at the same church and hall 35 years ago so it was really special to them to also be married here. The importance of involving their families was continued throughout the planning process. "My mum and Grandmother did so much work ," said Michelle. "Mum organised all the catering which was done by the local church that my Grandmother belongs to and all of the table cloths, linen napkins were hand crocheted by my Grandma. My sister made the guest book sign and we all decorated the hall and set the tables and did the flower arranging in 30 silver tea pots that I bought over time from eBay ! They looked awesome and totally fitted with the romantic, quirky theme. We even found a home for the 80 massive paper tissue pom poms we made."
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Jess & Rob’s Hip-Nouveau-Country-Handle-Bar-Moustache-Rayban-Sunglasses-with-a-Dash-of-Vintage-Perfection Wedding!

Kat

December 2, 2010

Jess & Rob got married "under a lone tree in a field" in a cermony that was perfectly related to the things that they adore. "They really do live a dreamy life," their photographer's Emmy & Aaron told me. "Jess is a lover of horses and what better life than to run Foxstone Stables at Glenora Farm and also to live right above the stable with 300 acres of Vancouver Island's Cowichan Valley paradise. They even have their own natural spring swimming pond, meadows with lone trees, and gorgeousness everywhere you look!" Needless to say, their home provided the perfect location for the wedding.
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Jeanie & Mike’s Dorky & Eclectic South African Wedding

Kat

December 1, 2010

Jeanie & Mike got hitched at the end of October at Old Oak Manor & Cafe Felix in Riebeek Kasteel, South Africa. The wedding had a thrown together, eclectic vibe inspired by the couple themselves. "I don't know if I can classify myself as Rock n Roll, but definitely different and also somewhat dorky", explained the bride. "I think we usually do most things different than the norm and we also have a lot of fun doing it. God is always my inspiration, in fact, he gave me the idea to create a coat of arms for my new family and I used it on the invitation and all the other stationary." Jeanie has even since decided to go into business creating wedding stationary!
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Cassie & John’s Family-Central, DIY Wedding

Kat

December 1, 2010

"I guess we’re Rock n Roll in our attitude about life," began the bride. "We are both vegan and our whole wedding was as well. We never let anyone get in the way of that despite some people trying to persuade us otherwise. We both grew up going to punk shows (he more than me..) and there’s a whole entire community of kids who just want to live a positive lifestyle. We both thrive off of that. One of the greatest things I love about my husband is his love of his family and his friends. He would do anything for someone, and does, when they ask. There is no hesitation. It’s an amazing virtue about him."
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Daisy Chain – Eliesha & Joel’s Geek Chic, DIY Wedding

Kat

November 30, 2010

Like pretty much the whole of blog-land, I am uber smitten with anything Jonas Peterson produces, so when he sent me a super secret sneak peek of Eliesha & Joel's wedding a few weeks ago I was literally jumping up and down with anticipation of featuring it. A gorgeous couple (hello geek chic fabulous - how much does Eliesha rock her glasses?!) a stunning location and awesome photography - how can you go wrong?! Oh and don't even get me started on Eliesha's floral head band...I literally die!
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Hannah & Jack’s Rockabilly Party Wedding

Kat

November 30, 2010

"When I was little, I dreamed of having my very own big, white wedding," began Hannah. "However, when Jack and I decided to get married and started to make plans, it became apparent that even if we’d been able to afford it, we’d both feel out of place at a huge, formal gathering. What we really wanted was to have a great party with our families and mates, a party that just happened to include a wedding ceremony. So we threw ourselves into the planning and tried to make it ours." And that's exactly what this Rock n Roll couple did! The entire day reflected them and the things they love.
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Monique & John’s Elegant Halloween Themed Etsy Wedding

Kat

November 29, 2010

When a wedding as gorgeous as this one hits blog-land, you just know the wedding blogs are going to be fighting over who gets to feature it. I'm not one to boast, but I'm pretty chuffed that photographer Galaxie Andrews chose Rock n Roll Bride to showcase this amazingly stunning wedding. The bride is Monique, the uber talented designer and owner of Rock n Roll Bride favourite, Ouma Clothing, and her marriage to John really is a match made in Rock n Roll heaven. The details of this wedding are killing me...and don't even get me started on her dress. Epic isn't even the word!
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Rebecca & John’s Elegant Vintage Garden Party

Kat

November 28, 2010

Rebecca & John's beautiful Tennessee wedding took place at Almost Heavens Wedding Resort. With quirky details and elegant 50's styling, this really was a wedding worthy of Rock n Roll credentials. The bride wore a Paloma Blanca gown with awesome Irregular Choice shoes and a vintage veil that she found at a friend's yard sale. A friend of the bride who is a costume designer re-worked it for her to suit the style she was going for. She carried and vintage lace parasol.
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Charlie & Jo’s Unconventional Music Gig Wedding

Kat

November 26, 2010

Charlie & Jo's reception took place the day before their ceremony and that's not the only thing about this awesome wedding that was unconventional. "We decided to get married and the Registry Office had a date free in two months time so we had a short amount of time in which to plan and make everything happen," the couple explained. "We already had many things that we wanted to have at our wedding, incorporating lots of themes that we love. Many of these themes were not obviously related and not directly relevant to a wedding but we were more interested in these than having a traditional wedding. It all came together perfectly in the end. The less we worried about what we ‘should’ be doing, the more time we had to be creative and make our ideas possible in the time we had."
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Cassie & Loc’s Multicultural, DIY Wedding

Kat

November 22, 2010

I actually featured a link to Cassie & Loc's gorgeous wedding in Thursday Treats two weeks ago as I'll be honest, with most of photographer Jonas Peterson's weddings, I figured one of the big daddy American blogs would have snapped it up to feature instantly (this dude's work is in high demand!) So you can imagine my surprise and excitement when I received an email from the bride to not only tell me I'd made her day by linking to her wedding, but that she was a huge Rock n Roll Bride fan and that she'd love for me to feature them. Score!
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Lowina & Philsy’s Incredible Double Wedding Celebration

Kat

November 19, 2010

When I laid eyes on Lowina & Philsy's wedding the only thing I could said was "OMG so cute!" Seriously, you get that right? How adorable are they? Adorable in a kick ass Rock n Roll way though you understand... The couple, who met in 2006 at a fashion trade show in Hong Kong, got married in Philsy's parent's back garden in Victoria, Australia. It was important to the pair to not only plan a gorgeous wedding but to make sure it truly reflected them as individuals as well as their Chinese heritage. They also were certain it had to be unique and fun!
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Becci & Chris’ Funky, Retro, London Wedding

Kat

November 19, 2010

The slinky, sparkly vintage-inspired Topshop (yes really!) dress was what grabbed my attention when I first laid eyes on Becci & Chris' retro styled London wedding. However when I saw the rest of their day I was utterly smitten. The pair, who never wanted a traditional wedding, were set on creating something within budget and to suit their funky London lifestyle. I spoke to Becci about their wedding and I'm so thrilled to share their amazing wedding and all their quirky details with you today.
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