Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

UK

Amanda & David’s Stonehenge Handfasting Wedding

Kat

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."
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Magpie Vintage Launch The Rose Collection…and I Get on a Horse & Jump on a Trampoline to Celebrate!

Kat

March 25, 2011

I sneak peeked this shoot back in February but I had to wait until now to share the full thing...sorry to keep you all waiting, it was hard for me too! I was asked by Lisa & Tania, the vintage jewellery aficionados behind Magpie Vintage if I'd like to model for their latest campaign - the launch of their brand new clothing line. Needless to say I didn't need much convincing, even when they told me I had to get on a horse!
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Annette & Chris’ Fancy Dress Victorian Circus Themed Wedding

Kat

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.
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Star & Kane’s Adorable Floral Engagement

Kat

March 8, 2011

I'm a sucker for adorable florals. Who isn't in fact? The concept of the shoot was formed by Thaoski, who told me all about Star & Kane's gorgeous photo session came about. "The first time I met Star was at a Christmas party last year. It was the first time I had seen her with Kane and I remember thinking she had this old fashioned vintage sweetness about her. Kane is actually a guitar player in a rock band so together they just formed a ridiculously gorgeous 'rock-vintage' couple."
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Tommy & Katie’s Bunny Engagement

Kat

March 4, 2011

Photographer Lisa Devlin told me about her plans for this shoot when we met up to discuss my initial ideas for The Big Fat Wedding Blogger's Photo Shoot. She was keen to use the Hasselblad that we'd been lent for the shoot with one of her couples, and Tommy & Katie (and their bunny suits!) were the obvious choice. "I saw some pictures of these two on Facebook dressed in big fluffy bunny suits at a fancy dress party and that sparked the idea for this quirky shoot," Lisa explained. "Tommy is the singer in the alternative rock band Slaves to Gravity and Katie is a gorgeous 50's chick so we were aiming for something a bit vintage and a bit dark. We shot a day in the life of them as this fantasy bunny couple and had a lot of fun. Well, it is the Year of the Rabbit!"
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Alice in Weddingland – The Engagement Session

Kat

March 1, 2011

This month Rock n Roll Bride intern and columnist, Alice headed out with her fiance Graham for their very first photo shoot together - their engagement session with photographer Sassy of Assassynation. The engagement session can often be a bit of a nervous time for a soon-to-be-wed couple, as for the majority of people it's the first time they've had a processional photo shoot. So, this month I asked Alice to tell us all about her experiences and why, when you've got your perfect photographer on the job, there really is nothing to be afraid of! I am seriously chuffed to share Alice & Graham's engagement session with you today...seeing these is making me super excited to see their wedding photos too! Also...is is weird that I'm a little bit proud of my Alice when I see these? Awww love... ♥ ♥ ♥ A couple of weekends ago Graham and I ventured into the heart of the Cotswolds, for our engagement shoot. We drove to Sassy’s house, where she settled our nerves by cooking us bacon sandwiches with cups of tea! After Graham got to know her a bit (I had met her for the first time the day before at the Designer Wedding Show) we discussed possible ‘venues’ for the days shoot. Thankfully the weather was beautiful, and we decided that outside would be best, so we could make the most of the natural light. Sassy explained that the shoot would last around a couple of hours, and that what we did in that time was pretty much up to us. When she mentioned an abandoned RAF watchtower and runway a few miles from her house I was beyond excited: I am a bit of a War History buff so the thought of being able to include that element in our engagement shoot was amazing! We got in her car and drove to the tower.
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Rock n Roll Bride Prize Winners – Ashley & Ray’s Old School Glamour Wedding

Kat

February 25, 2011

The eagle-eyed amongst you might remember Ashley & Ray. Ashley was the lucky Rock n Roll Bride reader that won all that lovely booty for filling out my reader's survey over the Summer. Needless to say I was pretty excited to then see how it was all used in their wedding! The couple were married in January and had their photographs taken by friend of the blog Kim Hawkins. The venue they chose was The Mayfair Hotel in London and their theme was old school glamour. Ashley was keen to tell me all about their big day and I'm thilled to share it with you here - espcially as a lot of the suppliers they used are my friends!
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The Luxury Wedding Showcase

Kat

February 25, 2011

Everyone loves sweeties right? Well Rock n Roll Bride favourite (and provider of the sweetie table at the Rock n Roll Party in April...eeek!) Hannah of Sweet Dream Events sent over this vintage-inspired shoot she was a part of. The idea for the shoot was to promote a new bridal show she is involved in...and from the look of these images, the show is sure to be a good one. "This is what happens when a group of talented women get together to create a wedding fayre with a difference," Hannah told me. "Hannah (Sweet Dream Events), Carrie (Carrie Bugg Photography) and Natalie (Exquisite Bridal) met when they decided that the personal touch was severely lacking in the wedding industry in their area. And so, The Luxury Wedding Showcase was born. This shoot was to give those wishing to attend an insight into all their talents."
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“The Pirate & The Stripper got Married” – Ed & Torie’s Quirky London Wedding

Kat

February 24, 2011

When Ed & Torie's beautiful wedding landed in my inbox last week, I was immediately drawn to the bride's beautiful ensemble - in particular her stunning vintage dress from my favourite girls, Fur Coat No Knickers. The couple were married in November at The Trafalgar Tavern, Greenwich, London and Torie was keen to tell me all about their quirky and fabulous wedding day, "On November 20th 2010 I got to marry my best friend, my pirate, Ed. Ed and I met 4 and a half years ago through his workmate / my flatmate at a pirate fancy dress party at our house – hence the nickname. Ed turned up, breathed fire (seriously) and then mysteriously left. As it turned out his appendix had burst and he went home and then to A&E. After recovering we got in touch and the rest, as they say is history."
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The Designer Vintage Bridal Show Feburary 2011 ♥ My Report + Exclusive Photos

Kat

February 23, 2011

In November I received an email from Bran Cook (PR extraordinaire) to ask if I’d be interested in being one of the attractions at a brand new wedding fair she was helping Rachel of Rachel Simpson Shoes and Clare Guest of The Wedding Club (a fabulous bridal boutique in Birmingham) to organise. At first I was a little confused. What would they want me there for? Who would want to come see me at a wedding fair? What would I even put on a wedding fair stand?! However I bit the bullet and said I’d be there with bells on…big pink ones. Over the next few months I received regular updates (both via email and on The Designer Vintage Bridal Fair blog) about all the amazing suppliers that were getting involved with the show and my initial uncertainty and nerves turned to utter excitement! I had basically signed up to hang out at the beautiful Highbury Hall in Birmingham with a load my favourite wedding suppliers for a WHOLE WEEKEND...woohoo road trip! I even booked into a hotel with my girls Lucy of Lucy Ledger Designs and Debbie of DC Bouquets which further transformed the weekend from a ‘business trip’ into a fabulously giggly and gossipy girls weekend (and yes we did lie in bed until 3am chatting and laughing uncontrollably!) And I call this ‘work’ right?!
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Peri & Ryan’s Snow-Drama Wedding!

Kat

February 22, 2011

Spring may be on it's way (apparently!) but I'm still lusting over the prettiness of snowy winter weddings...although would you believe, there was actually some snow in parts of the UK this weekend!? Ridiculous. There was quite a bit of snow-induced drama surrounding Peri & Ryan's wedding. The ceremony was supposed to start at 3pm, but due to the weather the bride didn't arrive until 5pm. Also, a lot of guests couldn't make the day for the same reason and after the ceremony they couldn't physically get from the church to their reception because of the snow dump and road closures. However a lovely local pub opened their doors to the couple and provided an impromptu reception to remember! I have to say, from these gorgeous shots by Shell de Mar I'd like to think they made the best of it (and I personally LOVE the pub venue - what great 'art' on the walls!) "I can’t really say I am really a quirky person because I’m not but I have always liked to be a bit different in the way I dress," explained the bride. "Nothing to crazy but just not like most of my friends, I don’t do brands and If I like something I will wear it! I love all things vintage and always have done! When we were planning I had originally wanted a vintage bunting, candy floss, ice cream type wedding in May but Ryan bless him couldn’t get his head around it so when he said how about a winter I thought it sounded lovely. However I still really wanted all the polka dot and vintage feel to it, so instead of doing the traditional long dress and winter colours we went for red and white colours
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The Big Fat Wedding Blogger’s Photo Shoot – The Final Results & Video!

Kat

February 21, 2011

What do you get when you cross 6 wedding bloggers, The Wedding Photographer of the Year, London’s most stylish & gorgeous wedding boutique and a Hasselblad? Why, The Big Fat Wedding Blogger’s Photo Shoot of course! My inspiration for this shoot came from the fact that I had seen a lot of big brands in The States using fashion bloggers to model for and promote their new lines. I loved the idea and thought it could really work for the UK wedding market. After all, wedding blogs are the new wedding magazines right?! I approached Rachel at Wimbledon-based Luella's Boudoir if she’d be up for letting us run wild in her shop and thankfully she loved the idea!
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Jennie & Mark’s Country Casual Wedding

Kat

February 18, 2011

Jennie & Mark's country casual wedding took place at St. Andrew's Church, Prestwold and Quorn Village Hall in Leicestershire in January. Jennie found her perfect dress at a boutique that was closing down so she got it for a great price. The couple gave their guests the loose dress code of 'country casual' for the men and 'tea dresses' for the ladies. I've heard both sides of the story when it comes to asking guests to dress to fit a theme, but I do think the overall result is quite a beautiful one! The majority of the reception décor was a DIY effort. Jennie had spent the week before decorating with birdcages, wild flowers, chinese lanterns, paper chains, handmade cushions and vintage knick-knacks which she'd collected herself (Jennie is now hiring out her beautiful collection to other brides, if you are interested in hiring any of the items for your own wedding, be sure to drop Jennie an email to jennie.preece@monsterenergy.com)
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Jazelyn & Darren’s Modern Vintage London Wedding

Kat

February 17, 2011

Jazelyn & Darren's modern vintage wedding took place in London in November. Their inspiration came from the fact that they are a young city couple, who somehow fell in love in London through chance. "He's originally from Nottingham, England and I'm from the other side of the pond in Seattle, WA USA," explained Jazelyn. "Our invitations had a London skyline and the top of it read: "Northern Lad and West Coast Lady". Darren bought my engagement ring from Bentley and Skinner. And it's a beautiful old-cut platinum solitaire from the 1920's. Very vintage and unique. So that really was the start. We wanted a wedding that was very "us". We planned it ourselves, down to every detail. Even the guest book... We wrote down personal questions on index cards and had friends answer them (ex: where do you see us in 10 years? what's your favorite memory of us?) We wanted a mix of vintage and modern, mix of British and American, because that is us!"
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Happy Valentine’s Day! The Big Fat Wedding Blogger’s Photo Shoot – Behind the Scenes Sneak Peek

Kat

February 14, 2011

So last Tuesday I headed up to Luella's Boudoir in Wimbledon to meet the all time UK wedding blogging greats. I'd had this little idea to organise a photo shoot with all my favourite wedding bloggers and some amazing suppliers (of course!) late last year and I was so excited to see it all pulled off. A lot of organisation went into this day and I'm so thrilled with how it all turned out. One word - EPIC!
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Emmaline & Guy’s Two-Day Cross Country Wedding

Kat

February 11, 2011

Emmaline & Guy had a 2 day wedding – the first, a modern urban ceremony, which took place in London at The Soho Hotel and the second, a more classic and countryside reception, at Gayhurst House, Milton Keynes. “We had contemplated getting married close to where we live in London, but Gayhurst was too much of a beautiful location to miss out on, so I think this made us love our civil ceremony at Soho House even more”, explained Emmaline. “Since the hotel opened we have spent many evenings there with friends and because of my job in PR I have been to lots of private screenings in the cinema there too. With just our parents and ourselves, we had a really special day, carrying out all the legalities of the marriage before Guy and I boarded a flight to Dubai for a 5 day 'mini-moon', making sure we had time to relax in the sun just before the big day.”
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