Happy 2019, lovely ones! And a huge big special welcome to all of you who are just engaged and joining us on SBB for the first time! We’re kicking off the year with some gorgeous modern boho inspiration with a desert vibe, brought to life by a talented local team. (Start as you mean to go on, I say!) I especially love that this one is an elopement, because styled elopements have become one of my absolute faves recently – I just adore the idea of escaping with your ride or die to the dunes and having a dreamy picnic while the sun goes down, perfectly captured by a photographer like the lovely Jessica Notelo! It also shows you don’t have to go to Morocco or the Mojave to capture this very much on-trend desert style. And OMG you guys the details! Cake, dress, flowers, oh my! Let’s get inspired, shall we?
Time for some inspiration! I’m loving this sweet little elopement styled shoot, sent over by an American creative team led by Amanda Lauran. Elopements are so en vogue right now, and I love how this one has a bright and beautiful colour palette that contrasts beautifully with the pale neutrals of the Vegas desert that provides the backdrop – so fun! I also love the intimacy of the day, as the bride and groom help one another get ready, before exchanging vows, sharing a small high tea style reception with vintage crockery and a gorgeous naked cake, and then riding off into the sunset on a motorbike. Eloping in Vegas never looked so adorable!
If you go down to the woods today… well, today you’ll find a couple, deeply in love, heading into nature for the most intimate of elopements – just the two of them sharing their vows beneath a waterfall, watching the sunset, and toasting their lives together at a table made for two. It’s such a sweet vision of a wedding day, and reminds me that all that really matters in a wedding is that the two of you are there, promising yourselves to one another. Whether you’re having a tiny wedding yourself, or just want to be inspired by the natural boho vibe of this gorgeous shoot, you’ll love these images by Megan Ann Photography!
I have such a jam-packed week for you guys, and we’re starting it off right with this absolute delight of a styled shoot from some of our fave suppliers at one of our fave venues! Take the riverside setting of Mofam River Lodge in Elgin, add in some deep wintery jewel tones and a tablescape that’s equal parts vintage and glam, decked with wild, opulent blooms, and you have the perfect recipe for rustic elegance. And let’s not forget the stylish bride and groom – she in a gorgeous champagne two-piece gown with 3D floral detailing (with hair and makeup done to perfection by SBB Directory member Sketch & M) and he in a suave blue suit. So much pretty, and all beautifully captured by Nerize Raath!
I have a special place in my wedding-loving heart for elopements. There’s something so utterly romantic about the idea of two people taking this moment away from the rest of the world for just them, to promise their forevers wrapped up in one another with no distractions, and bask in the glow of the moment, seeing it reflected in each other’s eyes. Sure, it’s not for everyone, but a beautiful wedding à deux always makes me smile. And I know someone else who loves these kinds of weddings as much as I do – the lovely Rebecca of Runaway Romance, who has made it her mission as a wedding planner to focus on more intimate celebrations and bring them a special kind of magic through her love of detail and styling. After all, just because it’s only the two of you, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t look amazing! Today’s wedding is just that. Theuns and Ewalda chose to infuse their elopement with their love of literature in general and Alice in Wonderland in particular, and the result is a wonderfully whimsical celebration with the sweetest of details, from paper flowers (mixed in with red roses, of course!), to Scrabble tile elements, to a custom ceremony backdrop that proclaimed ‘It was always you’. Told you elopements were romantic! Andries Combrink was there to capture the whole thing on film.
Earlier this year, we took a moment to focus on short wedding dresses. Because: total chic. Since then, it’s been so cool to see the amount of hits and pins that post has generated, and know that maybe short wedding gowns are having their day in the sun. I mean, full length gowns will always be awesome, but just like a wedding dress doesn’t have to be white, you can pick a length that suits you too. So! Where to start? Well, you know we love finding new designers on Etsy, and this is the category where these designers really shine. There’s a wealth of pretty, flirty, fabulous gowns on the site, and we’ve picked 20 of our absolute faves! As always, click through on the links or images to see more of each dress. *Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.Read More
Holy cannoli, do I have something special to share with you guys today! As you know, it is our month of small weddings, and this fine morning we have a super creative elopement inspiration from a brilliant team. It combines a few of our favourite things – a wedding for two, urban chic, and a city skyline. But what tickled me was the little details – a naked red velvet cake, a table runner made of 5 cent pieces (seriously, I LOVE THIS), and a sparkly birdcage veil (which huzzah, we’ll be sharing a DIY tutorial for later on today). It’s so fun and unique and South African – basically everything we like to celebrate here on the blog. Thank you so much to the awesome Rebecca of Runaway Romance and her team for sharing!Read More
When I put out a call for elopements and intimate weddings among our favourite SBB wedding pros, I was absolutely thrilled to receive this stylish gem by Green Goddess flower studio, with beautiful images by Debbie Lourens – one of those submissions I just think of as a ‘hell yes’. With a sort of 1950s Italian Vogue feel, it tells the story of a pair of starry-eyed lovers and a surprise elopement. Totally adorable, and incredibly romantic! I just love everything about it, from the bride’s gorgeous Gavin Rajah dress and coat to the flower-embellished umbrella, and the cake display that’s almost too pretty to eat. And even though it’s an editorial, I love the intimate, fun feeling that the team managed to create – the same feeling I imagine that a real couple would experience if they pulled off this wedding coup. This, friends, is why elopements are awesome.Read More
*Updated for 2018* A few years ago, when my friend Sarah and her lovely fiancee stopped in London after a round-the-world trip, a group of us girls threw her a fairly impromptu hen night. All night, we drank trays of flavoured vodka and toasted their lives together, and sent them off back to Joburg expecting them to set a wedding date. Instead, as soon as they’d had a chance to tell their parents in person, we got an announcement – the sneaky minxes had in fact eloped while on their trip. And you know what, we loved it! There were all these gorgeous pics of the two of them, so in love and sharing this special secret moment on the other side of the world. I still think they looked like one of the most relaxed couples I’ve ever seen on their wedding day. So ever since then, I think elopements are pretty awesome. Sure, they’re not for everyone (and there can be hurt feelings from family members and friends who want to be included), but there really is something special about a wedding with a guest list of ‘just us two’. BUT here’s the thing – if you’re going this route, you’ll want a classier way to let your nearest and dearest know than just changing your status on Facebook. Something to let them in on the excitement, to let them know they were in your heart if not at the ceremony. Maybe even something to invite them to a party that you throw back at home. And that’s where the elopement wedding announcement comes in. The good news? There are tons of sweet, fun and pretty elopement announcements for you to say ‘we did’. Here are 20 of my favourites from the makers at Etsy. *Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.
