Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

Vintage

Buttons, Belles & Polaroids: Angela & Paul

Kat

August 13, 2012

Paul proposed to Angela on an idyllic deserted beach in Galicia, Spain. This set the tone for their wedding day. Firstly a map of Galicia became the backdrop of their seating plan. They also had a polaroid theme with the table names, place names, cake toppers and invitations. They used images of their favourite places in Galician on the polaroids including palaces, fortresses and monasteries, and used them throughout the wedding.
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Go Wild with A Most Curious Party

Kat

August 11, 2012

I'm obsessed with this shoot, set up by Becky Hoh-Hale to promote her new breed of vintage wedding fair, A Most Curious Party. If you've been reading Rock n Roll Bride for a while you might recognise that name - I've been lucky enough to feature two of their shoots to promote previous events (as well as Rebecca's own gorgeous wedding). Alongside the amazing Joanna Millington Photography and some of the other suppliers exhibiting at the shows, Becky wanted to showcase a unique twist on the vintage wedding trend - it's not all tea length 50s dresses and mismatched crockery here! "We had big plans for this shoot", explained Becky. "Originally we wanted to shoot in the Norfolk Woods, where much of the flat landscape looks like the set of Spike Jones’s 'Where the Wild Things Are' but on the day we were strewn with drizzle, which eventually turned into full blown rain, which eventually turned into hail. So onto plan B!"
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A Sweet Sussex Barn Wedding: Fiona & Ben

Kat

August 10, 2012

"We didn't want a run of the mill wedding", explained newlywed Fiona. "Ben's a bit of a control freak and likes things done his own way. We both love anything vintage so enjoyed lots of weekends trawling through flea markets and car boots collecting bits and bobs to decorate the barn. We really wanted a party atmosphere with all of our family and friends. We collected/ borrowed lots of hats, sunglasses and various other items of fancy dress for the evening and encouraged people to be a silly a possible – our guests fully embraced the dressing up and pretty much everyone was wearing some kind of fancy dress at the end of the night."
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A French Garden Wedding: Elodie & Alexis

Kat

August 9, 2012

Welcome to Elodie & Alexis' gorgeous French wedding. If you loved their engagement shoot this morning, then their nuptials are gonna blow your socks off! The wedding ceremony was held in the bride's parent's back garden which they decorated themselves. Alexis picked all the flowers and pulled together a bouquet of wheat for Elodie to carry down the aisle. As I said in this morning's post, the couple are both deaf and found their film-loving deaf photographer Ashton Jean-Pierre at World Deaf Art Festival in Reims, near Paris, last Summer.
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A Burlesque Inspired Shoot with Flashes of Red, White & Blue: Naomi & Nicky

Kat

August 2, 2012

I'm sure you won't have failed to notice that there's a little sporting event going on in London at the moment. Now while I've genuinely surprised myself with how much I've been enjoying it (the opening ceremony was amazing and I'm now well versed in the art of synchronized diving) I can't help but shudder when yet another red, white and blue or Olympic themed bridal shoot (really, come on really, is that the most unique idea flying about at the moment?!) lands in my inbox.
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A Black & Red, 50s Rock n Roll Wedding: Hannah & Lewiss

Kat

August 1, 2012

Hannah & Lewiss' small and sweet wedding was held at St Fagans Castle, the National History Museum of Wales. For their evening party they moved to the trendy Jolyons at No.10, a boutique hotel in the heart of Cardiff. The venue choices were important to this couple and they both wanted places that stood out. Hannah explained, "We both didn't believe in long engagements so we set a date for 9 months after we got engaged. Finding a unique venue was important to us, but this was harder than we imagined. Living in Cardiff, we wanted somewhere in South Wales but it seemed to be flooded with chain hotel venues or vast historic buildings which were too big for the small wedding we had dreamed of. After overlooking it a couple of times we went to visit St Fagans Castle. St Fagans is the National History Museum of Wales, an outdoor museum full of historical buildings from all around the country. The Castle is a Grade 1 listed Elizabethan Manor House set in the most fabulous gardens. Even though it wasn’t what we originally had in mind, we knew straight away it was perfect. Also it’s in the area where Lewiss grew up and his parents still live, so it being local meant a lot to him."
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Colourful Californian Ranch Wedding: Jamie & Chris

Kat

July 26, 2012

This colourful ranch wedding winged it's way to me all the way from sunny California. Held at The Holland Ranch, San Luis Obispo, with all the guests staying at the nearby Madonna Inn, the day was one of colour, fun and a rockin' good time! "Our inspiration was to make our wedding as fun as possible and as uniquely 'us'", Jamie, the bride, told me. "We knew we wanted to do it in San Luis Obispo because it's our favorite little town on the coast and would be a destination wedding for our families who live out of town and our friends who live in LA. The Madonna Inn is a special hotel for us and we stay there a few times a year. It's so fun and funky. And we love that every room was different, we knew it would be a fun part of the experience for our guests. As soon as we found the Holland Ranch and saw all the neon signs and taxidermy on the walls of the party barn, we knew it was our place. Plus, it had the gorgeous mountain-backdrop and cool archway for the ceremony. We loved the idea of having our big day all in one location. And the barn was the perfect back-drop for the party! More than anything, we wanted our guests to have fun and from what we've heard, they did!"
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A Rustic French Countryside Wedding: Natalie & Oliver

Kat

July 26, 2012

Natalie & Oliver were married in France, at Oliver's parents home in L’Isle En Dodon. The British couple live in The States but made the trip to France to marry surrounded by their friends and family. "The French countryside and beautiful barn were our main inspiration and did a lot of the hard work for us!" explained the pair. "The family setting and DIY approach gave the wedding a really personal touch, which we would never have been able to achieve in a more traditional venue, and gave the wedding an incredibly unique feel. So many people contributed to making the wedding as amazing as it was – it really was a family affair and those invites, certainly a labour of love!"
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A Great Gatsby & Peacock Themed Wedding at Nonsuch Mansion: Chloe & Michael

Kat

July 25, 2012

The first thing Chloe & Michael decided upon for their wedding was the venue. They picked Nonsuch Mansion, in the heart of Nonsuch Park, as it held great sentimental meaning to them. They'd spent a lot of time there thoughout their relationship and so having the wedding there made total sense. "The mansion is built on the site of Henry VIII’s long gone Nonsuch Palace and is located in the middle of a huge park that we live within a few minutes walk of," Chloe explained. "The park is very important to us and we spend lots of time in there, running, walking, picking berries, lazing in the sun with a beer etc when the seasons are right! In fact, it was lazing in the shade of a tree just by the mansion on a sunny afternoon when we first said 'I love you' - so it’s a pretty special place. Choosing the venue really was a no-brainer for us!"
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A Bohemian Wedding with a Travel Theme: Ariane & Jonathan

Kat

July 16, 2012

Filipino born Ariane & Jonathan now live in New Zealand, which is where they chose to have their May wedding. The 3pm ceremony was held at in the vineyard of the Ascension Wine Estate in Matakana. "We wanted to showcase how New Zealand is part paradise and part home with our wedding, Ariane told me. "Marrying in a vineyard in the dead of autumn, what could be more gorgeous than that? Ascension Wine Estate was the perfect backdrop for us. The theme was a mish-mash of our passion for travel, photography, literature and the French countryside. We didn't really set something in stone, but in the end, the travel-bohemian theme dominated, with hints of shabby chic and vintage."
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A Shoreditch Shindig: Mike & Louise

Kat

July 13, 2012

Located in East London's trendy Shoreditch, Mike & Louise went for an urban vintage vibe for their wedding. "We met in 2009 in Sydney where Louise had just relocated to and where she was working for a charity with an old college friend of mine who set us up", Mike wrote. "It didn't take long to realise we had a similar outlook on life and after 1.5 years we decided to get married. Being from opposite sides of the world we faced the tough decision of where to get married as either location would see some of our family and friends unable to attend. In the end we opted to marry officially in London as Louise really wanted her Nan, a huge inspiration in her life, to be there on her special day." "We had travelled to London for one of Lou's friends weddings in September 2010 and had spent some time in Shoreditch. We felt quite strongly that we really wanted a non-traditional wedding for just our closest family and friends. We also knew from our time there previously that we would love to incorporate the local graffiti which so characterises the area."
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A Quirky & Vintage Manchester Pub Wedding: Mike & Geraldine

Kat

July 12, 2012

Retro board games on the tables, a laid back pub location, a gorgeous heirloom vintage dress & yellow Vivienne Westwood shoes. What's not to love about Mike & Geraldine's Manchester wedding? Answer: Nothing. The wedding was held at Manchester town hall and Odder Bar. The couple picked the pub location for it's quirky decor, laid back vibe and the ability to do anything they wanted with the space. "I am one of those kind of girls that most people, especially organised list-making people, want to give a good shake to," Geraldine began with a giggle. "So just to bug people more I went and fell madly in love with Mr Practically Horizontal himself... Not being a planner means I jump out of bed, sling a few things together and then give people a mystified kind of look of gratitude when they compliment the finished look… And this is exactly what happened with our wedding as well."
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A Simple Napa Valley Wedding: Ronnie & Richard

Kat

July 11, 2012

Ronnie & Richard were married at Calistoga Ranch, California. Originally from Taiwan, the couple's families knew each other and had often joked about setting the two of them up, but they'd never met. It was only when they both moved to America (her to New York and him to Austin, Texas) that they started emailing and arranged to meet. The bride readily admits that she's not a very crafty person so DIY was out of the question for their April wedding. She did however fall in love with etsy and used it to source as much as possible for the wedding. "We didn’t have anything handmade ourselves except for the 'here comes the bride' flag which Richard made", she told me. "I am not crafty, but I like the unique touch that comes from handmade products which is why I used etsy so much. I am also very into vintage style clothing and décor. I spent a lot of time researching on the site, searching for vintage wedding dress, bridal accessories, wedding favors and paper goods. At the end, I feel really fortunate to have found things I loved with affordable prices."
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A Laid Back Camden Wedding: Gemma & Liam

Kat

July 9, 2012

Recently I've been getting so many weddings in my inbox where the couple describe their wedding theme as 'laidback'. This makes me very happy indeed. I think a lot of couples stress so much about having the perfect magazine or blog worthy wedding that they forget about actually enjoying the whole process! Well not my readers... you guys know where it's at! Gemma & Liam's Camden wedding couldn't have been more gorgeous. The relaxed vibe of the venues they chose, and their quirky and fun fashion choices made this wedding stand out from the crowd. "The whole wedding was a very laidback affair, from organisation through to the actual day," Gemma told me. "I didn’t even write a to do list until 2 weeks before the big day and I’m not sure if I even used it!"
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A Long Weekend Wedding at Cliff Barns: Nic & Will

Kat

July 9, 2012

Nic & Will hired the gorgeous Cliff Barns in Norfolk for the entire weekend (and then some!) for their wedding. The venue sleeps 20 and with family coming from far and wide they decided having the space from the Thursday to the Tuesday would make for a nice mini break for everybody with a wedding thrown in to boot! "We decided to make a long weekend of it, and invited our family (from NZ, NYC, Canada) over to stay in the house with us for 4 days", Nic told me. "It gave everyone a chance to get to know each other and meant that we didn’t feel like we had to squeeze all our 'hellos' into one day."
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A Homemade Festival Wedding: Anna & Jonny

Kat

July 6, 2012

"Although there were some traditional elements to our wedding, we wanted to keep the day as informal as possible," began newlywed Anna. "We wanted a traditional wedding ceremony, but for the reception we just wanted to create a space for our friends and family to enjoy themselves. We had music all day, put out games and a fancy dress box, and left a jar of moustaches on the bar. The fancy dress box was well-used and our wedding became the chaotic festival-party we always wanted!"
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A Maryland Farm Wedding: Jamie & McKenzie

Kat

July 6, 2012

Too gorgeous for words...like literally. I just stared and stared at these amazing photos for (what seemed like) hours before I found the words to start writing this article. There really is something utterly breathtaking about this wedding and Lydia Jane's images that captured it. I'm thrilled to be able to share it with you today so please forgive my gushing... Jamie & McKenzie were married at home. They love their lifestyle on their farm, living alongside the sheep and chickens, so a homespun wedding was really the only option. The couple have a hugely supportive family who all helped out to make the wedding what it was.
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A Pretty Pastel Cinema Wedding: Lynn & Nick

Kat

July 5, 2012

I need weddings like this is my life right now. Yes need. I hate to jump on the 'British summer, what summer?' bandwagon but jeez Louise where is the sunshine Blighty?! I do not approve. What I do approve of however is little rays of joy like Lynn & Nick's wedding crash landing into my inbox. Sunshine! Rainbows! Pastel pretty things! This baby has them all... The wedding was held at an old movie theatre in San Diego. When the couple couldn't find a wedding venue they loved, Nick suggested this place. It really allowed them to let their creativity run wild and include things that were special to them.
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