Sometimes I just can’t believe the talent I come across in this industry. Last week’s bride was an amazing designer, and today’s is an incredible baker – her cakes are totally swoonworthy. More about that later this week, because today it’s all about her beautiful wedding (okay, it’s a little about her cake). Roxy and Craig were married in Constantia before moving on to a lush garden reception at her family home nearby. There’s something special about having a wedding at home, isn’t there? I love the idea of being reminded of that moment every time you visit, and being surrounded by your nearest and dearest in a familiar place.
Don’t you just adore farm weddings? Rustic details are always so charming, and give your celebration such a relaxed vibe. If you’re not lucky enough to have use of a private farm, today’s inspiration board would also be perfect for a venue like Rockhaven Farm or Beloftebos. The warm autumny colour palette, ranging from peach through apricot, pinks and purple was inspired by this beautiful wedding, but I think combines beautifully with rustic touches like the lamp, birdhouse and wooden ceremony sign. You could use burlap for the table cloths or runners, and I just love the ‘spread the love’ konfyt favours!
Ok, I admit, I love all the weddings on this blog, and almost every day I fall in love with a new one. But the wedding I have to show you today is just… wow. As in, jump up and down and make little squealy noises-kinda amazing. As in, I’m still speechless at some of these details-kinda amazing. It is so beautiful, so creative, so personal and so joyful, that I have no doubt you will be truly inspired. You may remember Louise and Riaan from their bookshop-themed engagement shoot (in which case you’ll certainly remember their very talented photographer, Annemari Ruthven). Both are designers, and they took on their wedding like it was a high spec design project, from hand-staining the lanterns with tea to designing and making all the stationery and the exciting little goodies for the picnic baskets, to personalised parking vouchers (seriously!). Every little detail was considered to make the day special for their guests. And you’ll be able to see even more of those details on Thursday, when I’ll also be telling you how you can get a little bit of Louise magic for your own wedding (yay!). In the meantime, congrats to Louise and Riaan, who as well as being super talented are just two of the nicest people. Thank you both for sharing your incredible day!
I’ve been wanting to do a green board for a little while, as I think it makes such an elegant wedding colour. I combined it with the vintage and bird trends that are so popular at the moment and I think it works beautifully – just the right mix of classic and rustic. There are little touches of grey and powder blue here, which you could play up, or you could combine the green with woody brown for a slightly more rustic effect.
Colours: green and white, with touches of grey, blue and gold
Today’s guest post comes from the lovely Kate Diaz over at Wedding Concepts, one of Cape Town (and South Africa’s!) top event designers. She and the rest of the Wedding Concepts team go out of their way to create distinctive celebrations, and I always love featuring their work here on SBB. Today, Kate’s here to offer some top tips for hosting a beach ceremony or reception in the area – including where to get a Cape Town beach wedding permit – essential advice for anyone who’s planning a seaside celebration!
There’s so much to love about today’s wedding, which comes from photographer Joe Dreyer (whose work I have been dying to showcase!). The totally unique beachy ceremony location, for one (which just shows how a little creative thinking goes a long way). The proteas, of course. A couple so obviously in love. Ashley’s glorious dress. The infusion of different cultures into the day. But for me, the best thing is the way that the wedding is so very personal. It’s the perfect example of two people who are really celebrating their journey as individuals and as a couple, and sharing that with those who mean the most to them. To me, that’s what weddings are all about. Ashley and Malan – thank you for sharing your story with us, and congratulations again!
I’m hugely excited to share Louise and Riaan’s engagement shoot with you! One, because it’s the first on this blog, and it’s completely original, gorgeous and inspiring. And two, because I get to introduce you to a pair of very talented designers and a young photographer who I think we’ll be seeing a lot more great things from in future. But first, get ready to do some serious oohing and aahing over the proposal!
This wedding to me is just the epitomy of Romance. Soft colours, beautiful flowers, a stunning venue… sigh. But what really stands out is the incredible attention to detail. The little touches, like the chalkboard canape platters or the herb favours, or the bird’s nest ring holder, that give this such a pretty garden feel. Everything works so perfectly that it’s hard to believe it wasn’t all put together by a professional, but as always, the time and effort put into DIY by the couple and their families made it extra special. In fact, there were so many inspiring details that I couldn’t resist including all of them, and fortunately the lovely Jules Morgan has let me share lots of her wonderful photographs with you in this pretty post.
From Jeannine: Liam and I grew up on a farm together from the age of three, so we have known each other for 27 years. We both now have our own businesses in London. We love the outdoors and wanted to get married surrounded by mountains, as this is how we spent most of our childhood – camping and riding our bicycles in the mountains. We got engaged in Montepulciano in Italy and felt that Clouds Estate in Stellenbosch was like a little piece of Tuscany in Cape Town. The venue blew me away on the day – it was everything I could have dreamed of and more.
We wanted a relaxed wedding with an Al Fresco-French countryside feel. I love earthy /natural tones with touches of colour, so that was what we went for. I also really like a mix of textures which is why we went for mismatched bridesmaids’ dresses in charcoal and brightened them up with flowers.
I think that flowers can transform your day and reflect your personality – so much love and thought went into ours. My aunt did the bouquets and we had a mix of succulents (desert roses), lisianthus, roses and lavender. To create the herb favours, my father-in-law had a small greenhouse built specially in his back garden in Kalk Bay. We supplied our own ‘flowerballs’ from Heath Nash to hang over the pool, which were very striking. Having the herbs and rose bushes on the terrace meant that we didn’t end of up with lots of leftover flowers as the guests went home with a present and a lasting memory of our special day. We also didn’t print a lot for our wedding, but used chalkboards for decor and the menu. For dessert, we had three different types of cake on vintage stands – they were incredible!
I did a lot of things myself and had so much fun doing it. I read a lot of wedding blogs and it was amazing to see it all come together on the day. I think it’s important to have your own personal stamp on your wedding. I also think it’s important to involve family where you can… makes it more personal. My stepdad made all the blackboards for the snacks (these were really easy to do using blackboard paint on ply wood). I made the ‘table name’ board myself, using a vintage frame. Liam drew the herb which we had on our wedding invitation/table layouts and thank you cards. It was nice to carry this theme throughout the wedding.
Congratulations, Jeannine and Liam, and thank you for sharing your lovely wedding with us!
For even more beautiful pictures, head over to Jules Morgan’s blog.
I love the simple sophistication of this pink and black palette – I can just imagine it in a beautiful ballroom or marquee. Blush roses, bridesmaids in layers of tulle, pink champagne truffles, pretty calligraphy… and of course the prima ballerina – the gorgeous bride herself. Go for suave black suits for the groom and best men, and dance the night away on a black and white checked dancefloor.
Today we have another fabulous guest post from Roberta Crumplin of Big Day Big Picture. Her latest topic is bad posture (erm, guilty!) – something I wouldn’t even have thought of, but which could potentially ruin those all-important wedding pics. (And as a photographer, she should know!) We all want to look good in wedding pictures, and it turns out that perfect posture is your secret weapon! Thanks for your words of wisdom, Roberta – those photos got me heading straight over to the Pilates studio!
