DIY - SouthBound Bride

Marbled Wedding Invitations

9 May, 2014 by gaby

How’s the Friday afternoon going, lovelies? For this week’s trend, I wanted to share a little detail that I have noticed cropping up in weddings of late – you’ll see it in everything from cakes to runners, but where I love it most is as a little detail in the stationery, like an envelope liner or backing. And the good news is that, unlike most patterns, this is one that you can do DIY. In fact, it reminds me of when I did some youth business programme in high school, and our ‘company’ sold little notebooks we made with marbled covers. Went like hotcakes. And then I didn’t see much of it again for years, until now. As you’ll see below, talented stationers have been combining marbling with everything from Kraft paper to gold glitter, calligraphy to bold graphic fonts. For book or antique lovers, it’s a subtle nod, since the technique was so often used for endpapers in old books. Whatever your wedding style, this is a pretty detail/motif to consider adding into the mix, for a little bit of unexpected colour and visual texture.Read More

Kraft/Brown Paper DIY Roundup

2 May, 2014 by gaby

Hello lovelies! How has your short work week been? It’s felt a bit weird for me having such a pared down week on the blog, but I promised myself last year that (since I work most weekends, late nights, etc.) I would take public holidays along with my lovely readers :) We’ll be back to a full schedule next week, but for today, I wanted to share some DIY goodness with you all. A while back I posted a Kraft & Blush inspiration board which proved to be SUPER popular – it showed how you can use this simple, budget-friendly material in an elegant way as well as for rustic or handcrafted style weddings. So I thought that I would track down my favourite Kraft (or brown, to us Saffas) paper DIY ideas that can be applied to your wedding. Here we go!

DIY Paper Plane Drink Stirrers

7 March, 2014 by gaby

Morning lovelies! We have a busy day here on SBB, as Telkom and Eskom put paid to some of my well-laid plans this week, but all the better to fill up your Friday with pretty. We’re kicking things off with a little bit of DIY goodness. BY FAR the most popular theme in weddings (if you could call it that, since it isn’t necessarily all themey) is travel. Every time I write about it on SBB, it gets a ton of hits and frankly, I love writing about it since travel theme design often includes some of my favourite things – air mail stripes, vintage stamps and postcards, maps, globes, hot air balloons… and paper planes. I’ve been wanting to do a couple of travel theme DIYs for a while, and I thought I would kick things off with a little something for cocktail hour. This DIY is super, super easy. If you can fold paper and use glue, you can make these. They make an adorable little detail for your pre-drinks, and you can just as easily use the same DIY (with toothpicks instead of full size skewers) as cupcake or even cake toppers.

‘Be My Bridesmaid’ DIY Roundup

9 January, 2014 by gaby

Once the first excitement of the engagement dies down, and before you get swamped with all the planning, there’s a fun decision to be made and that’s who will be part of your bridal party. Having your best girls beside you to celebrate your big day is such a joy – a special memory that you’ll treasure as well as a source of support and perspective. Some of you will know immediately who to ask, some of you will have a harder decision ahead of you, but either way, asking your girls can be a lovely moment, an affirmation of the past you share and the role you want them to play in the life of your new family going forward. In the last couple of years, I’ve seen some super sweet ideas for ‘proposing’ to your bridesmaids, and I thought it would make a fun DIY roundup. Let’s go!

DIY Wedding Postmark

18 October, 2013 by gaby

A few weeks ago, I highlighted some gorgeous travel-themed invitation suites, and today I thought I would follow that up with a little DIY that might help brides and grooms who want to create a similar look but maybe aren’t Photoshop whizzes. I feel you guys, because when I started this blog three years ago, sshhh! but I only knew how to use Paint. Seeryus. Those of you who have been with me for a while will know how tragic that first banner was. Anyway, the point is, sometimes we all need a bit of step-by-step guidance. One element I really liked in a number of the suites that were featured was the inclusion of customised postmarks, with the bride and groom’s names and wedding date and location. Whether you incorporate it into an invitation design, or have it turned into an actual rubber stamp (love that idea!) this Photoshop tutorial will show you how to create one these sweet little jetset wedding details for yourselves.Read More

Gold & Glitter DIY Roundup

2 October, 2013 by gaby

Evening, friends! You know, in the reader survey (which I’m still keeping open for a day or two – would LOVE it if you would fill it in!), one of the big things people said they’re like to see more of was DIY. So I’ll be making a plan on that front! But in the meantime, I have an awesome DIY roundup to share with you – and it’s all about the sparkle! Contrary to the saying that ‘all is not gold that glitters’, we’ve rounded up fifteen absolutely gorgeous tutorials for gold or glitter (or both) accents that will add that extra special something to your wedding style. Just, um, don’t use them all at once, obvs.

Nautical Wedding DIY Roundup

13 August, 2013 by gaby

It’s actually hilarious that I love nautical style as much as I do, considering the complete lack of sailing skills that I have. Seriously, if I ever gave it a try, I’d probably get smacked with the boom before I even figured out which side was starboard. Even so, nautical wedding details never fail to raise an excited “ooh!” from me – they’re just so preppy and punchy, and the perfect combination of contemporary, vintage and rustic. You all clearly feel the same, since our roundup of nautical wedding details is still one of SBB’s most popular posts. So today I thought I would round up some of the seriously ship-shape DIYs that are sailing about the internet. Awesome, ahoy! (Yes, I’ll stop now.)

Burlap DIY Roundup

27 June, 2013 by gaby

After a gorgeous outdoor wedding this morning, I thought it was high time for a rustic DIY roundup this afternoon – and nothing says rustic like burlap! Or hessian, as most South Africans call it. This sacking fabric not only adds texture and a bit of a rough feel (perfectly contrasted with lace, or even a bit of sparkle) but it’s also super affordable, which is a win for budget brides. Pick it up in your local haberdashery, or order online by the metre. Most brides use it for table runners, but there are actually many more fun uses for the fabric, and it’s a chance for some creative DIYs. Pick your favourite from these fifteen brilliant ideas and get crafting!

Winter Gold {Plus DIY details + special offer}

17 January, 2013 by gaby

You guys, I am doing such a happy dance as I post this feature today! It has been a long while coming, and I am thrilled to finally be able to share it with you. See, this isn’t just a beautiful shoot that someone sent me, I was actually there for this one. I saw it put together from scratch. I even helped make it happen a little. Not that it’s my shoot – ‘assisted’ is the key term here. All of this shimmery, wintery loveliness comes straight from the imagination of styling queen Louise Beukes of b.loved (how pretty must it be inside her mind?) as well as the lens of Liesl Cheney. It’s all about making your guests feel cozy while at the same time sweeping them up Narnia-style into a world of snowflakes and pinecones and sophisticated elegance. And now’s a good time for me to say how proud I am of everything Louise has achieved. A couple of years ago, she approached me as a SouthBound Bride herself, and told me she wanted to start a blog. I thought it was a great idea. Then she told me she wanted to be a stylist, and I thought that was an even better one. The result is not only daily eye candy on her fabulous blog, but a portfolio that is just busting at the seams with loveliness. This was one of her first shoots, so you can see she hit the ground running. Oh, and the reason we didn’t show it to you earlier? Only because it was too busy being featured in UK magazine You & Your Wedding.Read More