Author: gaby

Real Wedding at Morrell’s {Michelle & Grant}

by gaby

Just like relationships, I love that weddings come in all shapes and sizes. Most of my friends have chosen to have the traditional 100-120 person wedding, some have gone smaller, one couple eloped just the two of them while travelling in New Zealand, and one had two weddings when family illness meant they had to push the ceremony forward by some months. Each wedding was perfect for the couple it honoured, their history and preferences and circumstances, just like the marriages they heralded. And I think that’s an important part of the wedding planning process – figuring out what’s right for the two of you. Today’s couple followed a non-traditional route, with a tiny elopement followed by a joyful party with their extended circle, and just like my friend with two weddings, it allowed them to really relax and enjoy their second party with their favourite people. Grant and Michelle were inspired by their lovely venue, Morrells, and took their cue from the decor for their colours and theme – another great tip for anyone just setting out on their planning journey! The result is a beautiful wedding with a bit of a vintage French/secret garden vibe, and comes complete with the sort of personal touches you know I love! The couple’s stunning, intimate pictures were taken by Schantel of Kiekie Photography.Read More

Engagement Shoot at the Hout Bay Ruins

by gaby

Okay, how cute is this? The bride-to-be in today’s engagement shoot, Patchi (Patricia), is originally from Brazil and she first learned English from watching Titanic with English subtitles. Which must have given her an interesting vocabulary, but at least she could tell Mike he was the king of her world when she met him! Photographer Brett Atherstone sent this adorable shoot in – Brett and his wife Niki are relatively new to the Cape photography scene, but judging by these pics we’ll be seeing more of them soon.Read More

Real Wedding at Paternoster Lodge {Katie & Theoniel}

by gaby

Today’s real wedding caught my attention when I spotted the driftwood logs and hanging twinkle light curtains on Be-dazzled Events‘ Facebook page, and I was thrilled to see the whole wedding appear over on the awesome Jules Morgan‘s blog. I love intimate weddings, and I adore Katie and Theoniel’s concept of sharing a favourite destination (who doesn’t fall in love with the West Coast, after all?) with their family and friends. Their design was relatively simple, but very stylish, and perfectly reflected the West Coast vibe in shades of grey and beige neutrals. And how about those fairy lights? Aren’t they just magical? This wedding is proof of how a great venue, a clean palette and a few special details (love that driftwood heart ring ‘cushion’ and the stylin’ groomsmen, for example) are all you need to make your wedding picture perfect (although the perfect pictures Jules takes don’t hurt either – it was too hard to choose, so this is a bit of a bumper post!).Read More

Let Them Eat Wedding Cake #7: The Details

by gaby

It’s four o’clock in the morning and I’m singing “I could have danced all night; I could have danced all night, and still have begged for more. I could have spread my wings, and done a thousand things I’ve never done before…” whilst searching for pictures of wedding décor online. I think it means we are officially in the final stretch. Less than two months to go! :))

So, how will we decorate our wedding? Well… there’s table settings, for which I found myself reading a book on French and English etiquette (which I am utterly relishing) to be certain as to which cutlery to hire. There are colour schemes, where contemplation has brought me to the interesting conclusion that I am completely smitten with the colour seafoam green (or perhaps it’s just these shoes?).

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Inspiration Board: Denim & Berry

by gaby

I’ve been focusing on reader requested boards for a while, but today I wanted to do one of my own that’s been brewing in my mind for a few weeks now. South Africans might be celebrating spring, but here in London it’s gone straight into winter, with casserole weather pretty much all of last week, boo. With that chill in the air, my thoughts begin to turn to rich cold season colours, particularly beautiful winter berries, and I’ve paired them here with dusky blue denim. I absolutely adore the idea of denim runners or napkins (ever since I featured this amazing wedding that did it), plus it’s a very of-the-moment colour (see the latest Pantone report, for example), so there’s really no better time for denim to smarten itself up a bit and have a wedding style revival. I’ve softened it up with some whimsical letterpress and charcoal accents, as well as the fresh berries and a tiny touch of gold. Doesn’t it look surprisingly spectacular?

Colours: Monaco blue, dusk blue, plum, violet & gold

Top row (l-r): Rings & denim {Levi Strauss}; bride with bridesmaids {Erin Hearts Court}; bowtie escort cards {Martha Stewart}
Row 2: Purple shoes {Lillian & Leonard}; letterpress invitation {S: Cynthia Warren}; cocktails with fresh berries {P: The Nichols Photography; S: The Nouveau Romantics}; chalkboard menu {P: Lauren Wakefield Photography}; groom in demin suit {P: Tec Petaja}
Row 3: Outdoor table with strings of lights {P: Jimena Roquero Weddings; C: KOMODO Producciones}; bride and groom with bougainvillea {P: Tec Petaja}; denim-style napkin {P: Olivia Leigh Photographie}

Supplier Spotlight: Tattyoo Temporary Art Tattoos

by gaby

 

Favours. They’re kind of a pain, aren’t they? You want to give your guests a little something special, that reflects the design of your wedding, makes them feel special and appreciated, but doesn’t cost the earth. So you spend months making pots of jam following your grandmother’s recipe, and adding pretty lids and labels. Come the end of the night, half your guests have left them behind. So.Annoying. For that reason, I’ve become a big fan of favours guests can enjoy at the wedding itself or immediately afterwards, and today I have SUCH a cute one to share with you! I’ve seen temporary tattoo favours popping up in a few weddings over the last year, and I absolutely love them. Advantage one: they add something really fun and irreverent to proceedings, because they’re unexpected in a wedding context. Advantage two:  they make for awesome photographs. Advantage three: they’re relatively inexpensive, and you don’t have to worry about your guests leaving them behind.Read More

Inspiration Board: Colour Burst

by gaby

Never let it be said that I don’t love my readers! I know how sometimes planning can be overwhelming (especially bringing all your ideas together as the big day approaches), so when I got a wedding 911 from SouthBound Bride Stephanie, I put together this little board for her quick sharp. Stephanie had chosen a lovely deep purple as her main colour, with beautiful bridesmaid dresses for her girls. However, Stephanie was also in love with colour and fun, but was having a tough time convincing everyone else involved with her wedding that she could be vibrant and still classic and beautiful. Her dream palette – purple combined with coral, yellow and pink – was certainly unusual, so I immediately started looking for florals in this combo. As I suggested to Stephanie, if you’re working with bright colours but you want to make sure they don’t become too much, the best thing to do is keep everything else simple and let the flowers really pop. Because flowers are colours from nature, they have natural tones to them, so you don’t get the same hard colour block effect that you might with something synthetic. It’s a softer and more classic look. Luckily I didn’t have to look too long before I found the perfect inspiration shoot, and all I can say is WOW. Isn’t this palette stunning? I’m such a convert. Paired with simple place settings and classic stationery, the florals really do the talking (and they say “hello, I’m gorgeous”). You’ll notice there are a lot of peonies in the board – and yes, peonies are incredible, but they’re also hard for a South African bride to find. However, chat to your florist about other options, as there are many lush colourful flowers (ranunculus or carnations, for example) that will do a great job here. Another tip I gave Stephanie was not to try to bring all four colours into everything – combine two here, two there, and the result is cumulative.
So, what do you think? Stunning, no? Good luck with the rest of your planning Stephanie! I’m sure it will be amazing.

Colours: Deep purple, violet, coral, yellow & pink

Top row (l-r): Bouquet {P: Sara Gray Photography; S: Elizabeth Anne Designs}; purple shoes {P: Simply Jessie Photography}; centrepiece {}; colourful sweet favours {Martha Stewart}
Row 2: Deep purple bridesmaid dress {Bride & Co.}; purple and coral stationery suite {P: KT Merry; D: The Right Side Design}; purple paper straws; centrepieces {P: Sara Gray Photography; S: Elizabeth Anne Designs}
Row 3: Elbeth Gillis wedding dress {P: Cari Photography; D: Elbeth Gillis}; flowers {P: Sara Gray Photography; S: Elizabeth Anne Designs}; purple chalkboard {generated by reader}; cocktail {P: Matthew Morgan; C: Tammy Mitchell}

 

Real Wedding at Welbeloond {Simone & Rudi}

by gaby

What on earth did we do before Facebook? Because, no kidding, I have heard about a LOT of lovebirds who have connected on there, one way or another. Today’s couple is one of them. And say what you will about modern technology, but I love the fact that, in a time before social media, their romance might have stopped when they were teenagers but today, even a couple of oceans aren’t insurmountable. Then again, if you believe as they do, that their romance was meant to be, perhaps even in another age they might have found each other. Kind of a lovely thought. Anyway, meet they did, and it all culminated in an awesome, down-home, farm-style rustic party at Welbeloond, that was centred around the love of their family and friends, and captured in all its sweetness by Jacques Lloyd of Real Simple Photography.Read More

Trend Alert: Prints

by gaby

Source: Jake McBride for Christian Oth via Style Me Pretty

Time for some afternoon inspiration! Last week I was thrilled to be asked by BrideTide (a brilliant hub for wedding news, as well as the keepers of the prestigious Top 100 Wedding Blogs list) to be one of 20 bloggers predicting the big wedding trends for 2013. What an honour to be in the company of some of my absolute favourite bloggers, and people I respect immensely. The list is still being updated, but you can find it here.

Trends are always hard to predict, since sometimes it feels like by the time you notice them, they’re almost over, but there was one that I feel absolutely sure will be a defining look for next year, and that’s prints (or ‘prints charming’, as the article so sweetly phrases it!). In some ways, this is a natural extension of some of the fabric trends we’ve already seen: damask, stripes, chevron, toile as well as the move towards painterly style and modern graphics, resulting in bolder or bespoke choices in linen, be they table runners or napkins. Of course, prints are also big news in fashion, and with mismatched bridesmaids being a much-loved look, it was only a matter of time until brides took the leap into dressing at least one of their girls in a print as well. Some brides have already managed to work a lovely layered print look, incorporating it into their stationery as well – this can work best for a shabby chic or country vibe – or adopting a single look which, again, is incorporated into their stationery or ‘branding’. I have to say, I’m a huge fan of the style in its many guises, particularly the way that a unique fabric on the tables or in the bridal party can really make your colours pop and bring everything together. And, while having all your maids in prints can look amazing, I think my favourite BM groupings are the ones that have a range of colours and textures, including at least one print and one sparkly dress. But that’s just me! I’ve put together a whole gallery of inspiration for you, so you can see that this look doesn’t have to be scary. Let’s start with whole groups of bridesmaids in matching prints…Read More

Real Wedding at Zulu Nyala Game Lodge {Janlyn & Grant}

by gaby

Good morning friends! Today I’m transporting you to one of my very favourite places on earth – the South African bushveld. I’ve spoken before about just how much I love the bush, but whatever, I am going to wax lyrical again. I’ve been going to game reserves since I can remember, and although my dad is also a fan, the impulse runs even stronger in my mom’s side of the family. I’ll never forget driving around with my grandpa and having him tell me about animals and birds, or the time my mom and I staked out a kill at Hluhluwe when all the tourists had cleared off, and were rewarded with the most magnificent lion sighting I’ve had yet. I feel like the bushveld is my happy place – in fact, when I once brought home a boyfriend who didn’t take well to it, my dad questioned whether I could spend my life with someone who didn’t understand this great love of mine (quite right, too). I’m passionate about encouraging visitors and South Africans to spend more time there (in a responsible way) and supporting the heroic conservation efforts that are taking place in our country. Which is a long way of saying, today’s wedding is a bush wedding, and hell’s teeth am I excited! When I saw Janlyn and Grant’s Zulu Nyala big day over on the insanely talented Jacki Bruniquel’s blog, I feel head over heels in love with it. I mean, it’s a true wedding under the African stars, in a quarry (!!). But what I really loved is that they took all the best, most romantic elements of an elegant ballroom bash, and just took ’em on outside. It’s like the Ritz, but with a herd of impala looking on. It’s one of those South African weddings that makes me wonder why anyone would get married anywhere else. (Sorry, world, we’re just better. True story.) Oh, and PS – this wedding took place on the night of the supermoon. How amazing is that?Read More