April 5, 2011
Alejandro & Aurelie's wedding was a small one - tiny in fact. They were wed at Hammersmith & Fulham Registry Office with just a few close friends in attendance. They didn't have a reception but instead will be having a big family party back home in Switzerland later this year.Read more...
April 2, 2011
The eagle-eyed amongst you may recognise the above image from Nicole & Aaron's 'Just Married' Session that I blogged back in February. As I was blogging it, I fell a little bit in love with Nicole's handmade fabric flower bouquet so I thought I'd try my luck and ask her if she'd be willing to share how to made it with my readers. Luckily for me (and you!) Nicole was more than happy and excited to share her tutorial with us. Enjoy this guys and as always, if you make this yourself I want to see pictures! Nicole has her own blog, Knitcole, so if you are interested in seeing more of her work then be sure to go check it out. The bouquet she made especially for this tutorial is even for sale through her blog (along with others) for the less crafty among you (ahem...like me!)Read more...
April 1, 2011
Michelle & Deborah's touching ceremony was one of the main reasons I wanted to share their wedding with you all today. Quite apart from all the beautiful and individual details the couple put into their day, the readings and poems that they selected for their ceremony made this wedding really special and signified their relationship perfectly. They chose Shakespears Sonnet 116, a section from the children's book "I Like You" by Sandol Stoddard and "I carry your heart with me" by E.E Cummings for their vows. Finally in order to include the fight for equality they read the Massachusetts ruling on marriage. They thought it was so simple and basic and spelled out what marriage meant to them in a perfect way. "FROM GOODRIDGE V DEPT OF HEALTH (Mass. 2003): Marriage is a vital social institution. The exclusive commitment of two individuals to each other nurtures love and mutual support; it brings stability to our society. Without question, civil marriage enhances the “welfare of the community.” It is a “social institution of the highest importance.” Civil marriage is at once a deeply personal commitment to another human being and a highly public celebration of the ideals of mutuality, companionship, intimacy, fidelity, and family… Because it fulfils yearnings for security, safe haven, and connection that express our common humanity, civil marriage is an esteemed institution, and the decision whether and whom to marry is among life’s momentous acts of self-definition….It is undoubtedly for these concrete reasons, as well as for its intimately personal significance, that civil marriage has long been termed a 'civil right'."Read more...
April 1, 2011
This beautiful, vintage-inspired wedding came about after Lucy proposed to Andy on a trip to London. "I took Andy away to Tower Bridge London, to stay in a 5 star hotel on Valentines Day 2010," the bride told me. "He kept saying,'You're not going to propose are you?'. I said 'No of course not, don't be silly'. Then as we were walking back to the hotel under the bridge by the dolphin statue, I placed a ring box shaped like an orange in his hand. He looked at it and said 'What's this?' with a scared look on his face. And I said 'Open it', then 'Will you marry me?'. The colour drained from his face, I cried, he said 'Oh, I was planning to propose to you, and I started saving for a ring, and what is everyone going to say?' I just said, 'Look, I have saved you the bother of saving your money for months and months. Let do this our way'."Read more...
March 30, 2011
I honestly don't know where to begin describing Emma & Pete's wedding to you all. From the reaction to just the sneak peek post (epic) that I put up last week, I know pretty much the whole of blog-land has been eagerly awaiting to see this wedding too and so I'm pretty flipping honoured that not only was I invited (and let into the secret that it was a surprise wedding!) but that Emma & Pete have allowed me to share it with you all. I have the best job in the world.Read more...
March 29, 2011
Leah & Peter had a red & black themed rockabilly wedding. They kept the fact that they had got married earlier in the day a surprise from a lot of their guests but made sure all the most important people were in attendance...including their two (very well dressed!) pugs. "We were never officially engaged (Peter bought my my black pug Ziggy instead of an engagement ring!) we just always knew we would get married and with both of us turning 30 in June 2010 was as good a reason as any," Leah told me. !We never wanted to be the kind of people who let the real reason for getting married to be overshadowed by stressing about table placings etc so we focused on what would make us have a good time at the party and turned the tables so people were leaving with things that we had bought!"Read more...
March 28, 2011
Photographer Penny McKinley-Rodgers told me about Amanda & David's Stonehenge handfasting wedding when I met her a few weeks ago. Quite apart from the location, one of the main things that really made me fall in love with this wedding was that the couple got married at 8am and had an actual wedding breakfast - pancakes and all! I am so excited to share this one with you today because Amanda & David really did do things their own way, making them perfect for Rock n Roll Bride! "Our wedding was incredibly informal but was honestly the nicest most relaxed and meaningful wedding" the bride told me. "We also only invited 20 people, who were all our nearest and dearest and that made it utterly special. We both wish we could bottle the day and go back and live it again whenever we wanted as it finished too soon."Read more...
March 24, 2011
"The first time I met Lacy was over 10 years ago in high school where we became fast friends," photographer Daniel Stark told me. "Unfortunately, she moved before our senior year and we gradually lost touch. When it came time to plan her wedding she walked into a bridal shop that happened to have my business cards. I was thrilled when they asked me to photograph their fun, edgy, rockstar wedding." "Lacy has always been really cool and edgy even in high school. And Brandon couldn't have been a more perfect match for her. They quickly got identical tattoos with their own made up symbol that shows the love for each other. It was even on their wedding cake."Read more...
March 22, 2011
I was sent Ali & Mike's wedding video by their videographer Ryan Hinman, which I immediately fell in love with...so much so that I had to know more about the couple behind it and so asked Ryan if I could share their whole wedding story - photographs and all. Luckily he was more than thrilled to oblige. The happy couple were wed at Red Butte Garden in Utah. Their ceremony was held in The Fragrance Garden and the reception in The Orangerie. Ali told me all about their day, "We really wanted the entire day to reflect our personalities and style, so we tried to add our own personal touches wherever we could. We served some of our favorite snacks at the reception, french fries, gelato cones and even had a self serve popcorn cart. We had a photo booth set up all night printing one copy for the guests to keep and one copy for our scrapbook that they could sign."Read more...
March 20, 2011
It's a bit unconventional for me to do two posts on a Sunday, but I just had to pop by and share a few sneak peeks of where I was last night. Emma & Pete got married! The whole wedding was a surprise. We were invited under false pretences (it was also Emma's 30th Birthday) Half way through the night, the couple disappeared, got changed (Emma into a stunning vintage dress from Fur Coat No Knickers) and got married right in front of us. I cried like an actual baby. I can't wait to see the rest of the professional photos from Steve Gerrard & Joanna Brown, but for now...Read more...
March 18, 2011
How are your emotions doing today? because I've got a wedding to share that will probably make you blub...there is just so. much. love right here! N'tima & Steven's love blossomed across the sea. The bride explained, "We lived in Okinawa, Japan when we met. He was 16, I was 14. We were kids. We were neighbours. We both were kinda dating people on & off here in America, so we were just friends.You see, my family had orders to be shipped to California in June. It was April, and Steven and I were starting to get close. We exchanged numbers, and everything moved so quickly after this point. Every day before I moved was spent falling in love with this beautiful boy. Although we denied it, and being together was scary to us. Distance obviously hadn't worked previously, so we decided we’d be just friends. Everyone around us knew we were ridiculously in love, but we kept telling each other that we had to stay friends. On May 26, 2008, Steven told me that he loved me, and that he would rather ‘try & fail with us, than not try at all.’ So June 6, 2008, I moved away, and we made the distance work for us. We lived through web-cam dates & 17 hour time differences. I visited November of that year, and April of 2009. By the end of 2009, Steven had joined the air force. He was sent to Basic & we lived through letters for 8 1/2 weeks. I visited for his graduation. He was then sent to Tech school across the country for four more months. I visited for Christmas. In January of 2010 he was sent to live 2 hours away from me here in California, completely by chance. How much luckier could we be, eh?"Read more...
March 17, 2011
Annette & Chris had a fancy dress/steampunk themed wedding in Liverpool. The bride wore a corset purchased from Corsets UK and a skirt from MTCoffinzUnderground on Etsy. "My dress wasn't technically a 'dress' as it was a Corset and a separate skirt," the bride told me. "I bought the white and black steel boned corset for around £60 and the skirt, which was described as a 'Victorian Lace Gothic Ball Gown', cost around £100." She also wore Victorian-style black ankle boots which she hired from a fancy dress shop! Chris hired his unique outfit from a fancy dress shop too.Read more...
March 16, 2011
When I received the initial submission email from photographer Pat Dy, dubbing this as his 'coolest ever wedding' I had high expectations...and you know what I'm going to say here don't you?...I certainly wasn't disappointed! Marco & Corinne's home-spun DIY wedding was a real labour of love. The wedding took place at the Groom's parents house and they crafted their wedding mostly from items they already owned. Everything from their outfits to the flowers arrangement were hand made by the couple themselves or a close friend or family member. This created something totally unique and personal. "Our theme was global folk art," Corinne told me. "We just used mostly what we already have lying around our house. We wanted that all the elements were everything we both love. So much heart was put in by family and friends during the 2 months preparation of the wedding. My Mom even handpainted the 150 stones as favours."Read more...
March 15, 2011
Emma & James had a wedding filled with love and laughter. With help from their family & friends, the couple pretty much handmade everything for their special day. The cake was made by James' brother who has a family bakery, The Cherrytree Bakery, the bridesmaid dresses were made by a family friend and Emma, her Mum and her sisters made all the bouquets and buttonholes.Read more...
March 15, 2011
"I like to question everything, so if something at a wedding doesn't have a specific purpose it was out," began the bride Briana. "We didn't have a guestbook, or a garter toss, or a bouquet, or a cake, or a chicken dance...My husband and I both love vintage stuff. We're both silly, dumpster-diving artist types. We would have just eloped, because the idea of a wedding seemed both superfluous and expensive, but we both love a good party! It was a compromise. If I had more than 4 months to plan it and lived in town, I would have handmade everything myself and incorporated tons of quirky details...but it was perfect just the way it was."Read more...
March 15, 2011
Anna Lee & Jeremy were engaged and married within 3 1/2 months. After Anna Lee moved away to teach in Rwanda, the couple realised they couldn't live without each other and set a wedding date before she'd even come back. Even though they we're technically already engaged, when Anna Lee returned after 10 months, Jeremy proposed properly and did so in the car park of their favourite restaurant because he couldn't wait one second longer! Anna Lee told me all about their vintage-inspired DIY wedding. "I think I would describe our wedding as DIY vintage and it wouldn’t have been possible to put together a wedding on a budget in 3 months without the help of my awesome family and friends. The only "vendors" we hired were the DJ and photographer. I hit up every craft store, thrift shop, and dollar store in the area. My Mom, sister, and I made everything: the invitations and programs, bridesmaid’s bouquets, boutonnieres, and decorations. I created the mothers wrist corsages out of fabric hair pieces from Forever21. The only flowers used were babies breath, purchased from a local grocery store. Instead of large floral arrangements at the reception, I bought manzanita branches online, spray painted them black, and attached tissue paper flowers and moss. A local landscaping nursery let us borrow two small trees we set up inside to soften the reception hall area. We saved a ton of money on flowers this way!"Read more...
March 14, 2011
Alison & Aaron's beautiful June wedding was held at Rancho Cicada Retreat in Plymouth, CA. The bride wore a gorgeous blue number by Jessica Hinel Designs and shoes by Seychelles. The Groom arrived to the ceremony by in style - by boat - although the bride only heard about this afterwards. The ceremony took place under a chupah that was originally a bedspread that 13 other couples in Aaron's family have gotten married under which made the whole thing even more special. The service was officiated by Alison's brother and Aaron's cousin and they had their closest family and friends create their own blessings in place of the traditional 7 blessings.Read more...
March 10, 2011
Millet & Hendrick's wedding was held at Sonya's Garden Country Bed & Breakfast, Tagaytay City, Philippines. With a sister who's a wedding planner and events stylist, the bride (who is a fashion stylist herself!) was certainly in good hands when it came to creating the perfect day for her and her fiancé. "I followed my instincts and searched all the details," the bride told me when I asked for her main inspiration. "We didn't spend much, but the overall effect was satisfactory to me and my husband. The guests went wild when they were advised that they can take home the centrepieces!"Read more...
March 10, 2011
"We had the idea for a Rock n Roll themed stylized wedding shoot and one of our former client was perfect for it!" explained photographer Jessica. "MJ is a local tattoo artist and amazing painter. We set up in an apple orchard on a fall day and had a mix of vintage glass, flowers, instruments and an old radio from the 1930's. The shoot was styled by our assistant and partner-in-crime Brooke Biette and flowers were provided by the amazing Judy Bourgeois of Flora Fauna. The bottom of the bouquet even had a record that was melted down to go around it."Read more...
March 9, 2011
Teresa & Mat had my favourite style of wedding - colourful, fun and not-too-serious. In fact as soon as I saw these gorgeous images a big fat grin spread across my face and I can't wait to share that feeling with you all too. To keep the day personal, the couple were married in Teresa's parent's back garden. The reception was held at Red Brick Theater, Adel, IA. Teresa wore a dress by Amanda Archer whom she found on Etsy. "I found her a year before our wedding, fell in love with her dresses and I could not wait to ask her to make mine," Teresa explained. "There was one problem, she lived in Portland and we lived in Chicago. Amanda was amazing to work with. She sent me swatches of fabric and took my measurements over email. She made the dress in Portland and I waited anxiously at home. About months before the wedding I received an email from Amanda saying they were relocating to Chicago!! It was such an amazing turn of events. A month before the wedding I went to Amanda's studio and tried my dress on. It fit like a glove. I don't know how she made it just perfect for me without even meeting me, she's just that amazing. I also had Amanda make my birdcage veil, an item I am so glad I went with. I love my husband, but I still have a secret crush on my dress."Read more...