Lace Table Runners

It’s funny with wedding trends – one minute they’re brand new, and the next it seems like they never went away. Maybe it’s because everything goes in cycles. But I remember how, just a few years ago, sitting in Hyde Park watching Kate Middleton emerge in her wedding dress, myself and fellow blogger Annie of Marry You Me looked at one another and said: “Lace. Lace is going to be huge again.” And so it has been. But while brides have been getting their lace on in every beautiful combination of portrait back and illusion neckline imaginable since, it’s time for tables to have their turn as well. Lace runners were one of the trends I identified in my 2014 roundup, so I thought I would bring you a full feature on this decor loveliness here today. But be warned! This is an unforgiving look for functional tables. Make sure your venue has ones that look good without a tablecloth (or if you love the look, hire one for just the head table).Read More

Ten Tables: Beach {Part 1}

Our Ten Tables series is back, hooray! For those of you who didn’t catch the rustic tables (Part 1 & Part 2) last year, the idea of the series is to break down different tables along a specific theme into their components so that you can see what EXACTLY goes into creating a look. You can pick your favourite and treat it as a shopping list, or mix and match elements you like and add your own touches. You’ll also be amazed at how many of the details can be DIYed or included on a budget, and I’ve detailed those as well wherever possible. This time, we’re all about beach weddings. Now, let me be clear – I don’t necessarily think that if you are having a beach wedding or a wedding at a beach venue, you need to have a beach themed table. You don’t need to have shells, or driftwood, or boats. You don’t even have to have a nautical colour scheme. So if you don’t like those things, you go ahead and create a table that would work at any venue. But if you want to add a song of the sea to your decor, each of these tables is a classy and pretty way to do it.

UPDATE: You can find Part 2 here.

Table #1: Beach Ombre

FLOWERS: Air plants, succulents, hyacinth, thistle, lisianthus, scabiosa pods, privet berries

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SouthBound’s Best 2013: Details

It’s been a fun week counting down our favourite parts of 2013, hasn’t it? Well, next week there’s more to come, with the top 10 weddings of the year. Today, first, we’re bringing you my favourite details – a mixture of decor and doings and personalised loveliness that added the “ooh” factor for me. I keep saying it’s hard to narrow things down, but maybe this was the hardest, since every wedding has its own little angle that makes it unique. But here we go anyway! And don’t forget to come back this afternoon, when I have some really gorgeous wedding photos to share with you all from our talented sponsors. You’ll be so inspired!

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SouthBound’s Best 2013: Aisle & Ceremony Decor

So often when we think wedding decor we’re thinking about the reception, but today’s Best of 2013 post is all about the ceremony. Now don’t get me wrong – the most important thing happening at the ceremony IS the ceremony, but that doesn’t mean that (especially if you’re not getting married in a church) you can’t enjoy some creative licence in making it look like a fairytale. That’s just what some of our brides and grooms did this year, turning ordinary spaces into very special ones. Here they are, all in one place, to inspire!

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Ten Christmas Decor Items You Can Use At Your Wedding

Hello lovelies! Tomorrow we officially kick off our end of year blog schedule, but for this morning we’re going all Christmassy in honour of the fact that I’ll be tree trimming all day. I know that budget is a constraint for so many brides, and I can’t help but think about weddings when I see some of the decorations that are available these days – they’re definitely not of the cheese-tastic Santa’s grotto variety! With most of them being on sale at huge discounts from Boxing Day onwards, I got to thinking about how this was a good time for 2014 brides to stock up on some of their decor items in a brilliant stroke of forward planning. Some of these are more obvious, some require some creative thinking, but all of them will enhance your wedding, which doesn’t necessarily need to have a winter or a Christmas theme. Here are my Top 10 finds to look out for.

#1: CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

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Lightbulb Wedding Decor

It’s Wednesday Trendsday, and today we’re looking at a little decor trend that I am absolutely smitten with. I first fell in love with the look earlier this year when we featured Chris and Rich’s gorgeous wedding, with big, round custom-shipped Edison bulbs hanging at intervals along the tables – they were gorgeous touches of stylish retro during the day and at night helped to create an intimate, magical atmosphere. Love.Read More

Trend Alert: Candles

As the year starts drawing to an end, we wedding bloggers begin to think about the trends that have made an impact in 2013, as well as those that are top of our crush lists for 2014. There’s one I have been watching for a while, and I have to say, I am loving what stylists have been doing with it, and it’s candles. I know, right? Who knew they even went out of fashion? But when we’re talking candles here, we’re talking tall and taper candles, multiple candles (the way that flowers were done a couple of years ago), coloured candles, and even candles on wedding cakes, birthday style. LOVE. So I thought it was about time I brought this look to the blog. Here are some of my favourites from t’internets.Read More

Table Garlands

It’s an exciting day at SBB HQ, and I have some lovely news to share with you this afternoon. When I do, you’ll see why I have garlands and continuous floral runner arrangements on the brain! This is one trend that I have absolutely loved seeing in 2013, and I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of it next season. Garlands are such a pleasing visual element to add to your decor – they look so lush and plentiful, and they really make long tables pop. Of course, a magic carpet of blooms is stunning, but you can also make this work with greenery, succulents, or even (as you’ll see below), photos! You can work with a single colour, a mix, or an ombre effect (love!), and incorporate tall candles or little votives along the way. The garlands can go straight or have a little twist to them, and they can come off the ends of your table or just work along its length. This probably isn’t a trend for budget brides, in that a floral garland tends to use a lot of blooms multiplied by all your tables, but if you’re madly in love with the idea and watching the pennies, why not just have a garland for the head table? Or, as one couple did in the pics below, for a central table that works as a real showstopper and centrepoint visually? That way, you’ll get some of the effect, without all of the expense.Read More

Ten Tables: Rustic {Part 2}

Welcome back to Part 2 of our rustic tables feature, lovelies! I had such a brilliant response to this new series last week from both readers and other bloggers, so we’ll definitely be continuing with it! Do you have any specific table styles to request? Let me know in the comments! Of course, rustic is a big favourite – it works in quite a few contexts and as you saw last week, can go from real down-home farm styling to elegant and a bit glam, depending on how you combine different elements. This time I’ve lined up the second half of my top ten favourite rustic tablescapes, and again broken them down into their elements to help you with your own wedding design. If you missed Part 1, you can catch it here.

Table #6: Sweet & Low Country

FLOWERS: Mixed white blooms

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Ten Tables: Rustic {Part 1}

We’re doing something new this afternoon, and it is all about tablescapes. As much as I love designing the overall look and feel of a wedding via inspiration board, one of the key questions whenever I’ve helped a friend plan her wedding has been “okay, but what exactly do we put on the tables?” You can see fantastic details and ideas in styled shoots and real weddings, but one of the things that I know brides always want to see in the pictures is how it all looks together, how you combine things, what that combination looks like. This new series sets out to help – not just by inspiring you with some of the most beautiful tables I have found, but in breaking these tablescapes down into their elements so you can start getting an idea of what those elements are and how they work together. Take one of these designs as it is and treat the breakdown as a shopping list, mix and match different bits of a few tables, or adapt to make them your own. You’ll be surprised as you go how many inexpensive elements you can include, or DIYs that can be done (I’ve given advice on both wherever possible). We’re kicking things off with the first five of my ten favourite rustic tables for all you brides dreaming of a farm or a barn or a forest wedding.

UPDATE: You can find Part 2 here.

Table #1: Country Colourful

FLOWERS: Chrysanthemums, dahlias, delphiniums, roses

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