Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

DIY

A Colourful Country Garden Fete Wedding: Tom & Jenny

Kat

September 27, 2012

The DIY wedding of Tom & Jenny took place in Kent in July. After a church ceremony, their low key reception was held in Tom's parent's back garden. The bride wore a short wedding dress from Yours Truly Bridal Shop in Maidstone which cost her just £180 with a gorgeous headpiece was by a Rock n Roll Bride favourite, Crown & Glory. Alongside her lucky bridesmaids, she wore Vivienne Westwood/Melissa Lady Dragon shoes and instead of bouquets they all carried a single giant faux flower stem, bought from Hobbycraft costing just £2 each!
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A DIY Village Hall Wedding & A Bride Who Designed her own Dress: Laura & Mike

Kat

September 25, 2012

A village hall reception venue, a bride who designed her own dress and a groom who found his entire outfit in charity shops - oh I am so excited about Laura & Mike's amazing wedding! Is it just me or are the low key, budget friendly and full of love weddings winning over the high-maintenance, super detail heavy weddings right now? "I am a huge geek and one of the things I am most geeky about is design, craft and making things", wrote newlywed Laura. " So when Mike proposed at a picnic in Kensington Gardens just after our 6 year anniversary, the mother of all craft projects was born!
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A DIY Wedding at Crystal Falls: Dano & Holly

Kat

September 24, 2012

Throwing out as many wedding traditions as they could, Dano & Holly planned their wedding with one golden rule - to have nothing cookie cutter. "I have strong aversion to anything cookie cutter, so we threw out a lot of wedding traditions," the bride began. "We wanted our wedding to be a party that we would never forget. Our theme was something along the lines of 'vintage, woodsy & DIY'. I wore green. We cut the pie (no cake) with a machete. Our friends built the biggest bonfire that any of us had ever seen and we danced in the rain under the stars."
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An Industrial Meets Romance Aussie Wedding: Kate & Chris

Kat

September 24, 2012

Can I be biased and express my total and unapologetic love and adoration for my Aussie readers right now? The weddings you guys have been having and sending me are nothing short of amazing! So needless to say I was rather thrilled to see Kate & Chris' wedding in my inbox. Sent over by their gorgeous wedding photographers, husband & wife team Feather and Stone, I just about whooped with joy when I laid eyes on it. There's just something about a simple but classy wedding with a true Rock n Roll soul that makes my heart sing... plus Kate's amazing tattoo gives me some serious envy! "We are ecstatic that Kat would like to feature us", began the bride, "I'm a massive fan of her blog and it was a huge inspiration to our wedding." (awwww!)
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DIY Tutorial: Ombre Rainbow Paper Pom Poms

Kat

September 20, 2012

So firstly a little apology. I'm away this week at The Photography Farm so there's no Thursday Treats. "Waaaah" I hear you cry, but fret not, I have something even better! Who fancies making rainbow pom poms?! OH GOD YES! You might remmeber Jen & Ben's epic rainbow wedding... oh yes, it's one of my all time faves too. So it's taken a while but I've finally bartered Jen enough and she's created a DIY tutorial of just how she made those fabulous rainbow pom poms... and if that's not enough for you, she's even done a step by step video!(scroll down to the end of this post). Over to you Jen...
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Two Ceremonies, Afternoon Tea & A Music Festival: Tam & Rob

Kat

September 18, 2012

"We really wanted a fun wedding which guests would enjoy", began Tam when I asked her about her vintage-inspired festival wedding. "Rob & I decided we would split the day into three, so we had the ceremony, the afternoon tea with games then an evening party. I think having three different venues with lots of entertainment was fun for the guests and us!" In fact after the afternoon tea part of the wedding, the couple had a second ceremony - a traditional Indian wedding ceremony. "My dad is Indian so after the wedding ceremony everyone had a glass of Pimms and then gathered round for a traditional Parsee ceremony called a 'Mado Soro'. The ceremony is a blessing for the couple to wish them good fertility and a fruitful marriage. My dad explained what was going on to all the guests and what the ceremony meant. We were presented with the most amazing fresh flower garlands that my cousins had bought over from Thailand. A fruit tree was planted by my brother while prayers were said by other relatives. An egg was passed round Rob's head three times then thrown to the ground and broken. A coconut was then smashed on the floor. Everyone then threw rice and confetti."
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A DIY Science Museum Wedding: Kira and John

Kat

September 17, 2012

On 26th May this year Kira & John were married in Berkeley, California. The Lawrence Hall of Science at The University of California seemed to be the perfect space to host their reception as the bride had attended school there. It was a unique space and has plenty of things for people to look at and play with throughout the party! "Our wedding was held at the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley", wrote the bride. "The ceremony was held in a large courtyard called Science Park over a fountain (and exhibit), and the reception was held inside the museum, where all of the hands-on exhibits were open to guests. All of our portraits were taken in the nearby Botanical Gardens. Our officiant was John's law professor. We included a final blessing repeated by all of our guests... 'Live long, and prosper!'"
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A Wedding on a Budget with Portraits in IKEA: Janet & Dave

Kat

September 17, 2012

I'm rather partial to IKEA... I know it's not the fanciest of home stores, but whenever I persuade Gareth that we need a trip there (I'm sure we're due another one soon) I feel like a proper grown up. I can actually afford the stuff (like who decided £2000 was standard for a table and chairs? pah John Lewis, PAH!) and it makes me feel all educated buying things with Swedish names. Plus their items are always pretty... even if not always functional - "why yes Gareth I do need that cardboard deer head to put on my office wall..." And don't even get me started on the kids department. I just wish the pink chest of drawers came in adult size... So when wedding photographer and all round cool dude Chris Barber sent me Janet & Dave's wedding I was excited. Not just because of Dave's Rock n Roll stylings but because they chose the Coventry Ikea as the location for their wedding day portrait sesh. GENIUS! Oh and they spent just £4000 on their day. I'm IN AWE.
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An Industrial Warehouse Wedding in Sweden: Kari & Torkel

Kat

September 14, 2012

A warehouse might just be one of my all time favourite wedding venue ideas. Maybe it's a throwback from my teenage rave phase or maybe it's the fact that it's so raw and grimy - a fabulous antithesis to the over-saturation of pretty-pretty wedding fluff that I'm subjected to by working in this crazy little industry. But either way I flippin' LOVE Kari & Torkel's wedding. They had their legal ceremony 9 month's earlier but wanted a big party in August to celebrate with their friends & family. "We both have demanding work and work long hours as well as travelling extensively," began the bride. "We met through internet dating, both sharing a strong interest for physical outdoor training like running, cycling and canoeing. Since we had cheated everyone by having a small 5-minute ceremony the November before, my parent's decided to reenact this part of the day with my father taking the role of the officiator. We used flower wreaths as a symbol instead of exchanging rings."
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A Backyard Beach Wedding Planned in Three Weeks: Nellie & Matt

Kat

September 13, 2012

Nellie & Matt planned their Whistable wedding in just three short weeks. They wanted something small, something personal and something relaxed. They found the amazing Beacon House, right on the beach, for their ceremony and were able to use the back garden of the bride's brother's holiday cottage for the reception. "Serendipity and our amazingly supportive family and friends brought our wedding together in just 3 weeks," the bride began. "Matt and I had been engaged for 3 years, neither of us are planners but we had a clear idea of the kind of wedding we wanted, a relaxed, seaside celebration centred around our close friends, family, good food and drink. But every option we explored in Cambridge and Brighton, our two home cities, in one way or another tied us into expensive packages, so we put off the wedding and skipped to the baby."
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A DIY Maryland Wedding: Natalie & Brynn

Kat

September 10, 2012

"Our family and friends MADE this wedding happen," explained Natalie when I asked her about her wedding. "Brynn & I didn't want to have a wedding designer, but I think my mother now holds that title. She spent the eight months of our engagement collecting wine glasses and silverware from thrift stores. Her and my aunt accumulated all the décor and oversaw virtually every design detail. My grandmother sewed all of the napkins and a family friend arranged the flowers for the centerpieces. My father created and made the cocktails and roasted coffee beans for the wedding favors (Brynn’s mother sewed the favor bags). My super-talented friend, the visual manager of an Anthropologie in DC, built the ceremony backdrop & platform and made all the signs. We asked a family friend to bartend. My best friend’s father and my cousins hung all the lights for the reception. One of my friends recently started an event-planning business and she handled all of the insane day-of coordination. Our friend is in a band and graciously offered to DJ the entire wedding." The couple were married in Maryland in July. With a laid back approach, and as much help as their friends & family could muster, they planned the wedding of their dreams with little to no stress. "Our inspiration for the ceremony was a combination of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Lord of The Rings", she continued. "Obviously having the ceremony in a forest was a must. I envisioned my bridesmaids looking like little wood nymphs or fairies. They all picked out a white dress of their choosing and everyone looked smashing. We wanted our reception to be like a party Jay Gatsby would throw. There were lights strung everywhere, non-stop music, endless drinks, and next-level dance moves. Brynn's brother and best man even secretly got a limo to take us away."
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A Backyard Rainbow Wedding: Jason & Gwen

Kat

I Love that Glove

September 9, 2012

Honestly? I struggled with what to write about today. Usually on a Sunday I'll post something non-wedding related that's caught my eye or I'll share something exciting that I've done in the week. But I shared my Photography Farm retreat escapades in this week's Thursday Treats and since then I've basically been chained to my computer replying to the squillions of emails that came in whilst I was away and writing as many blog posts as physically possible. I also spent rather a lot of time on the phone to Cosmopolitan Magazine. NO BIG DEAL (more on this soon!) And then this wedding pinged into my inbox and it all became clear.
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A Private Hiking Wedding: Jordan & Michael

Kat

September 8, 2012

Jordan & Michael wanted a wedding that truely reflected them and the things they love, so they grabbed their children and were married in private on top of a mountain in Canada. "Our inspiration was definitely nature and our love of hiking", explained the bride. "We chose Gros Morne National Park in the beautiful province of Newfoundland and Labrador known for its mountainous terrain and unbelievable views. This in our minds made the perfect backdrop for our quiet intimate ceremony. We knew that hiking boots were a must so why not include them on our special day? We kept our attire simple and clean and focused on more important details like the photography and the food!"
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