Category: Inspiration

Inspiration Board: Plumfetti

by gaby

Happy Monday my lovely friends! Is everyone ready to be inspired? Today I thought we would play with one of my favourite things at the moment (glitter, you know it). Usually we see it combined with bright and soft pinks, but I got to thinking how lovely it would be with a range of purples. Plums, soft violets, lavender and lilac. Paired with glamorous gold, crisp whites and dreamy tulles. What’s not to love?

Colours: Lavender, plum & gold

Top row (l-r): Bouquet {Shari + Mike Photographers/Everything Beautiful Events}; dress with gold detail {Kim Maguire Photography}; bride & bridesmaids {Mint Photography}; ring box {Sarah Gawler}; place setting {Paige and Blake Photography}
Row 2: Gold paper straws; desserts on frames {Be Inspired PR/Be Inspired PR}; dress detailing {Kim Maguire Photography}; cork monogram {Stacy Able Photography}
Row 3: Bride & groom {Troy Grover Photographers}; flower girl; glitter {Robyn Kessler/Rebecca Wright}; gold shoes; champagne bottle.

 

Mira Zwillinger 2014

by gaby

Happy Friday, folks! We end off this week of loveliness with one more piece of lovely that will have you swooning your swooniest swoons. I’ve been in love with Mira Zwillinger‘s dresses ever since we featured them in this shoot, but I think it’s a love that has gone to a whole new level with the 2013/2014 collection. Like the previous one, it’s built on a combination of soft fabrics and fine lace details, but if it’s possible, this year it’s even more feminine and beautiful. These are the kind of dresses you just want to wrap up in tissue paper and sigh over. They’re definitely the kind of bridal couture that will make a breathtaking impression on any bride. My favourite is the New Beatrice (first below), a revision on one of the incredible dresses I worked with – I didn’t think it was possible to make it more beautiful, but Mira has. So here we go. Meet your new favourite dresses.Read More

Colour Story: Peach Blossom

by gaby

Afternoon, SouthBound brideys – oh, and by the way, a very happy Thanksgiving to our American readers! This afternoon we’re continuing with our day of everything peachy, following the Peach Watercolour shoot I featured this morning. It’s time to take a second look at the gorgeous Peach Blossom Bride stationery suite created for the SBB Collection by Magpie Collections. The shoot itself wasn’t based on one inspiration board, but we’ve featured loads of peach ones here on the blog – here are just a few…Read More

How to Create a Peach Watercolour Wedding

by gaby

Call me crazy, but the days I get to show off styled shoots that I have been a part of are some of my favourites! And I have been dying to share this one, which I styled with a team of awesome suppliers last autumn. It all started with a conversation between myself and the lovely Anneli Marinovich – she wanted to photograph a rustic table in a field, and we loved the idea of using peach blossom, as peach is such an awesome colour to have in your wedding right now. As the English summer wore on though, we worried that our little dream wouldn’t work as it was getting a bit late in the year, but when the day finally dawned in October, the sun came out for us (even if the wind did too). We had such a lovely day shooting in and around Gaynes Park, which has to be one of my absolute favourite UK venues, and working with the nicest (and most talented) bunch of people you could hope to find. The shoot subsequently was featured in Wedding and Wedding Flowers in the UK, and on Wedding Chicks blog. Honoured! Anyway, today we’re finally bringing it home to SBB.Read More

Lovely Long Veils

by gaby

cathedral length wedding veils

*UPDATED FOR 2020* Get ready for some beautiful inspiration friends, because today we’re talking veils. And not just veils. These are veils and a half: cathedral (or at least chapel) length, full-scale veily gorgeousness. There’s no messing around with these veils. They mean business. But let’s rewind a sec, because while long veils certainly aren’t a new thing, they’re definitely a trend. Back when I started this blog a few years ago, you couldn’t find a long veil for love nor money. It was all about the birdcage then. And then it was about flowers and braids and floral crowns. But slowly, I started to see these beautiful veils creeping into my peripheral vision. And each time they did, I would do a double take. Veils started making a comeback, especially dramatic full-length ones. Then Kate Moss did it, and it was officially a Thing. And here we are. And I have to tell you ladies, I LOVE this look. I mean, I still like other veil types, but this is hands down my current fave. Whether plain or patterned, cathedral length veils make a style statement, and the good news is (as you’ll see from my roundup of lovely below) that they go with a huge variety of dress types and wedding styles. So go on. Go long. You know you want to.

*Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.

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Polaroid Engagement Shoot

by gaby

How much do I love the idea of this shoot? A LOT, that’s how much. A couple, two big smiles and a Polaroid camera. Simples. It makes for such a fun and natural engagement shoot, without being posey but still being cute. Coba Engelbrecht was there to capture every giggle, every kiss and every lovely image of Phillip and Liezl. Which is especially lovely, since the bride-to-be is family!Read More

Inspiration Board: Nordic Nuptials

by gaby

Hello lovelies! Time for some wedding inspiration from the far north today – Scandinavia to be precise. I don’t know about you, but I love Scandi style, especially the clean, elegant neutrals that they use in their design. I wanted to put them together into a beautiful, modern but a little rustic and woodsy wedding design. I think this would be perfect just about anywhere in the world – and it doesn’t just have to be for winter weddings either. Oh and PS, antlers are totally a hot wedding motif at the moment. I have no idea why. But they’re pretty awesome.

Colours: White and beige neutrals

Top row (l-r): Antler art {Kari Herer}; bride {Love Made Visible}; kransekake; pie pops {Call Me Cupcake}; stone church
Row 2: Scandinavian wedding decor {Kate McLuckie/Mariah Breitenberg & Jess Pedersen}; antler monogram {Lydia Abbott Designs}; ring bowl {Paloma’s Nest}; antler candlesticks
Row 3: Flower girl in crown; wedding dress {Delphine Manivet}; lamps {Beautiful Days/White Loft Studio}; bride and groom {Fotograf Bjervig}.

 

Wedding Dresses for Strawberry Shaped Brides

by gaby

Wedding Dresses For Inverted Triangle Body Shape

*UPDATED FOR 2020* It’s time for another installment in our series looking at wedding dresses ideal for your body shape. Brides come in all shapes and sizes – it isn’t about looking like some perfect perfume-advert style bride or fitting into the smallest dress in the shop, it’s all about celebrating your own beauty and style. After all, that’s what your groom fell in love with, right? Choosing a wedding dress that highlights your best features is the best way to feel amazing, so try to let go of any hard and fast ideas you may have about the silhouette you want to cut, try lots on, and take the advice of your seamstress or gown salespeople, who really know what they’re talking about. Today we’re focusing on inverted triangle/strawberry shape brides, and sharing some exquisite dresses from Etsy to inspire and illustrate.

*Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.

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Making the Most of Your Wedding Photos

by gaby

Hello lovelies! To start off your Friday, I asked Cheryl McEwan, a fab Cape Town photographer (and SouthBound Bride too!) to share some of her insider secrets – what you need to know to get started, how to get the most out of your pics and what to do with them after the wedding. She’s sharing her top tips from engagement to happy ever after with you this morning – thanks so much Cheryl!

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Hi all you lovely SouthBound Bride readers! I am so honoured to have been asked by Gaby to share a bit of advice and perspective from a wedding photographer’s point of view with you all. Your wedding photos are one of the most important aspects of your special day and of course the lasting memories left after your wedding. You want to be able to get the very most out of your photos and your photographer so I hope the following will help you with this.Read More

Take Five Wedding Looks…

by gaby

Hello beautifuls, as you read this I’ll be landing in Cape Town for a little stint in the Mother City (yay!) and probably getting lost in my rental car (every time!). I can’t wait to see my lovely friends and industry colleagues, and to spend some time looking at the gorgeousness that is the Western Cape province. And speaking of gorgeousness, I have such a fab shoot to share with you today – in fact, it’s more than a shoot, it’s like five inspirations in one. It comes from the team at TopVendor Wedding Awards, who you might recall me mentioning, and was photographed by Ronel Kruger (with gorgeous flowers by Elle Fleur). Whether you’re a modern bride, a boho bride, a romantic bride, a statement bride or a rustic bride, you’ll find something here to inspire. And it’s not just for the main lady – there are some adorable decor ideas and styling for flower girls. I promise you’ll fall in love with at least one look! If anything, it’s choosing between them that’ll be the hard part… ;)Read More