What do you get when you mix together a beautiful outdoor setting (Mofam in Elgin), simple but covetable rustic-DIY decor, and two of the most attractive people ever to put on a dress and a suit? This wedding, is what. And you guys, it is a cracker. Luisa in her floaty dream of a dress (loving the sash and rosette detail), bridesmaids in lace and groomsmen in panamas (loving the Gatsby-esque styling here), a surfer-boy groom in a killer suit – and that’s just what they wore. Let’s not forget the simple (but very chic) rustic styling (I am loving the idea of the tree centrepieces instead of flowers, especially combined with the chalkboard details) and twinkly fairy lights under a Bedouin tent. Oh my word, and the couple shoot – you could eat the light with a spoon. This here is Catherine Mac showing us why she’s one of Cape Town’s rising stars, and I can’t help it, the word ‘swoon-worthy’ begins to come to mind. So before I start bringing out the wedding blogger cliches, you’d better get on with falling in love with it for yourselves.Read More
Happy Monday, folks! Hope you had a lovely weekend! Today’s inspiration board is a reader request from Robin, who is planning a black, white and silver garden/farm wedding for April next year. Robin had already chosen her colour scheme and bought many of her decorations, but couldn’t find a suitable venue in her area, so in the end decided to host the reception at her in-law’s farm, where there is a beautiful garden. I’m not sure what sort of decor Robin has already purchased, so in creating the board, I focused on how you might translate an elegant, slightly formal wedding to an outdoor setting. In fact, the two work perfectly together! Robin already told me she wanted long tables (love this idea, especially with strings of lights in the trees – what could be more romantic) and was considering a collection of glass containers with white flowers in them, which I also think is a great idea. The key then is to balance out the rustic (as a nod to the farm) with the formal. One great idea is to hire at least one beautiful chandelier, and hang it from a tree as a focal piece of decor, which really sets the tone. Stationery can be quite traditional, and calligraphy makes a really lovely detail, especially at each place setting as with the menu cards below. I was going to suggest either white dresses or black ones for the bridesmaids until I saw the pic below – what a great idea to let them wear a combination! The bride can also wear a black or silver sash, depending on the style of her dress. Silver touches come from mercury glass (which you can easily DIY) and just LOOK at this silver cake – isn’t it gorgeous! On the rustic side, consider hessian/burlap table cloths or runners, twine-wrapped bouquets, and wooden or chalkboard details. Make use of pretty features of the garden, like a gate that doubles as a place to hang escort cards. Just because the venue has changed, doesn’t mean that your style has to – in fact, in this case, I think the indoor and outdoor elements work perfectly together. Good luck, Robin – hope the rest of your planning goes brilliantly!
New pics of me taken by the awesometastic Anneli Marinovich – thanks so much, Anneli!
Happy Friday SouthBound Brides! A bit of a personal post today… You know how I am always banging on about ‘making it personal’ and using your wedding to express something of who you and your husband-to-be are? Well, today I wanted to tell you a little bit about how I am applying this philosophy in my own business life, and to share a couple of aspects of my new branding that you don’t know about yet. Yep, that’s right, I don’t just talk the talk, I walk the walk. (Except that right now I’m limping, since I stood on a nail retrieving one of the cats from our back fence. Darn cats. ANYWAY.)Read More
Maybe it’s because I’ve lived all over the country (when people ask where I’m from in SA, I usually just say “pick a city”), but one of my favourite things about South Africa is the sheer variety. Just yesterday I was telling a cabbie about the sub-tropical Durban climate and how it’s all bananas and beach bums, and it still blows my mind that right next door there’s mountains and the little England of the midlands, not to mention the dust of the Karoo, or the Cape winelands, or, or, or… I could go on. It makes for a lot of variety on this blog, and as much as our natural assets blow me away, I’m always thrilled when a couple show off the city side of things as well. Jozi is soooo urban chic, and never more so than in this phenomenal shoot in Newtown/Melrose Arch by the very talented Wesley Vorster. Gayle and Lyle make fantastic models – congratulations to both of them on their engagement!Read More
Usually we’re all about the wedding look, but today I thought I would share some inspiration for after the big day. The post-wedding chop is one tradition almost always observed by South African brides (in my experience, anyway!). All those months of growing your hair to get it up into a braid or chignon seems to culminate in a post-honeymoon trip to the hairdressers for a chic shorter hairstyle with which to begin married life. So here’s a bit of hair inspiration for that day after the big day, from our friends the slebs. How short will you go?
When I’m deciding which weddings to feature, there’s always something in the pictures that grabs me and makes me think “ooh!” (The Ooh Moment. It’s a Thing. Like Oprah’s Aha! Moment, but for weddings. And also, copyright me.) With this wedding, it was the colour scheme (followed by lots of other oohs as I looked more closely at the decor, especially the wall of mirrors). I just LOVED the way Kristy & Greg combined a sweet cornflower blue with soft cream and peach colours, and created this lovely romantic English country feel but in a farm location. And to be honest, I can see Kristy’s an SMP fan, because this has the same sense of refinement that makes me love the SMP style. But in the end, the real Ooh Moment TM for me with this wedding was when I was reading Kristy’s write-up. I always ask my brides what the three highlights of the day are for them, and this was what Kristy said: “Greg. He was by far my most favourite thing about the day. He’s my most favourite thing about every day!” Okay, maybe that’s more of an Aaah Moment, but either way, it made me smile. And I’ll bet you’ll be smiling to0, as you enjoy these beautiful images by the awesome Thea Cogill of Tink Photography (welcome to SBB, Thea!).Read More
This afternoon I have a lovely, unique engagement shoot for you and a new photographer to introduce you to. Laura Jane Photography is based in Gauteng, and is one of the photographers I’m super stoked to be able to work with now that SBB has gone national. She went with today’s couple, Fransa & Grové, to Bellbottoms in Pretoria, a super cute and kitschy thrift shop in Pretoria. I love the intimacy of these pictures, even in a public space, and the way this couple clearly just love spending time together! You can see even more of the shoot over on Laura Jane’s blog.Read More
Happy Monday, folks! I’ve been jonesing to do this inspiration board ever since I was myself inspired by this shoot in the latest Sweet Paul magazine (which you should totally check out if you haven’t already). You probably already know I’m a fan of nautical style, but I loved combining that with soft dirty orange and sand, for a wedding that would be equal parts beach rustic and South of France stylishness. Striped dresses for your bridesmaids (and peep toes for you), navy suits for the boys, and wooden tables right on the beach with flowers in soft corals and peaches. I can just imagine a bride in a chic short dress, and isn’t the rope hair accessory darling? (This post contains affiliate links)
Good morning friends! I have something a little different for you today, but I absolutely love it! A trash-the-dress/rock-the-frock session with a difference! I was intrigued when I spotted these pics over on Joanne Markland‘s blog, of five bonny brides walking along a Cape Town beach. It turned out that this was a very special photo shoot put together by five cousins: Hailey, Melissa, Leigh, Rene and Robynne-Leigh. The girls decided that, once the last of them got married, they would all get back into their wedding dresses one more time and have photographs taken together. Jo shot Robynne’s wedding last year, and soon after, the cousins came to her with their idea.
Unfortunately on the day it was extremely windy and cold, but this didn’t dampen anyone’s excitement and enthusiasm as they put on their sneakers and played princess on Sunset Beach near Milnerton. As they said: “it was great fun and created memories… ones we will never forget”.
What do you think? Would you rock the frock with your besties?Read More
So a couple of weeks ago, I got behind the idea of a brunch wedding, and you guys have been loving it. I think one of the reasons is that it offers an alternative to a full scale canapes-cocktails-sit-down-meal-dance-all-night reception (much as I love them), and that can be a great thing not just for budget reasons, but also for brides and grooms who are hosting on a Sunday and don’t want to send their guests home drunk on a school night, or want to make use of a venue that wouldn’t cater to an evening crowd, or just want a different sort of vibe. Brunch is one option, but today’s bride and groom got creative and decided to host a high tea reception for their party. Not only did the two chocoholics get to serve their favourite kind of food (and just check out the spread here), but they also achieved a laid-back daytime vibe at pretty Glen Carlou wine estate. Guests didn’t have to worry about formal table settings, but could sit and chat with their goodies at a number of smaller tables and other seating areas. It’s all so civilised. And it doesn’t hurt that Rochelle and Henry-John played up the pretty high tea inspiration using details like a ‘tree’ of hanging teacups to complement their black and white colour scheme. I’m all about making it your day, your way, and this is one couple who lived that philosophy completely. The lovely Taryn Ward was there to take pictures.Read More
