We started off the week with some autumn inspiration, and we’re ending it the same way, with a styled shoot in a rich harvest palette from the team at Ecozest (a floral design studio based in the Garden Route). The colours and decor in this shoot are absolutely gorgeous, with touches I love like pear plates grey strips and oh my goodness, the most gorgeous naked cake. In fact, all the food looks amazing, from cupcakes topped with pomegranate seeds to little apple & walnut loaves wrapped up in lace, to tiny pumpkin pies. This is a great example of how your food can really be used not just to complement but to enhance your chosen theme – it’s pretty much decor in its own right (and delicious too). I love the idea of a loose bouquet made up of nature’s bounty, and the young lovers’ boho, organic chic outfits totally work with the general feel. There are loads of ideas to inspire, so be sure to read the background that Ecozest sent over to find out more!

As the late summer light begins to change and the air and light of autumn start making themselves known, things become very beautiful… After spring and summer’s growth, plants and trees have nurtured fruits, berries, leaves and branches. Now is the time for colour, rich in hue, and abundant fragrance and form. It is the time of last flamboyant flashes of the fullness of a season before nature takes its rest in winter. Truly a natural time for a feast!

Stepping out from a folkloric fable into this autumn world, bride and groom play amongst leaves and light in fantastical outfits that complement honest earthy inner beauty and confidence. Her bold shaped silhouette of the purest celadon toned cotton, complemented by a fine tailored white textured tunic, an image of rural endearment. She later emerges in tinted azure blue linen and barley cotton. His layered wide sleeve tied up jacket and fine print pattern of mustard, rust and grey green botanical matter, handsome is as handsome does. It’s a perfect match in this world of fallen leaves and ever evolving colour shades.

Fruits and berries inspire colour combinations and taste sensations. Think golden quince and late season red figs, little red apples, persimmons and pomegranates, physalis, tamarillo and all kinds of colourful seedpods and pigmented Liquidambar leaves. These beautiful gifts from nature are artfully combined and gathered into collected old and new, ceramic, amber glass and totemic handmade vessels.

Guests enjoy the nourishment of vegetarian food, including aubergine involtini with lemon pesto and smoked almonds, dukkah roasted beetroot with rocket, clementine reduction and white pepper crème fraiche. A dessert of rose geranium sorbet with verjuice poached pears and Turkish delight. A harvest of delicious treats like pumpkin pie, light chocolate cupcakes, zesty lemon curd cakes, apple and walnut loaves and carrot cake with cream cheese icing is served with spiced tea to fulfill this sensory autumn journey.

SERVICE PROVIDERS
Concept, styling & floral design: DP Ferreira and Hannes Stander for Ecozest (082 745 7445) | Photography: Riaan Lourens Photography | Garments: Superella (082 845 5551) | Food: Brett Garvy for  VegTable | Cakes: Plum Tree Cakes | Venue: Bibby’s Hoek Arboretum, Rheenendal (enquiries: 082 7457445) | Models: Tatum and Grant | Dog models: Roza Linde, the lurcher and Dante