Tag: KZN weddings

Real Garden Wedding {Bridget & Glenn}

by gaby

Get ready to start your day with a burst of colour, because I am bringing you such a lovely wedding full of it this morning! You know, as much as I love a formal wedding with classic, subdued decor, I can’t help but smile wide when I come across one that is built for joy. There’s such exuberance in every corner of Bridget and Glenn’s garden wedding – paper windmills, miles of bunting, dozens of mismatched vases and flowers of every kind, ably captured by the lovely husband and wife team of Knot Just Pics. But then, that kind of joy is at the centre of Bridget and Glenn’s relationship – printed on the back of their programmes was this wonderful quote, which Bridget says is just what went through her mind the first time she noticed Glenn with his two little girls and a huge, amazing smile: “Then he smiled. It was the biggest smile she’d ever seen. It was radiant and suffused with an irrepressible good humour. She looked into that prodigious smile and a strange feeling took hold of her. She smiled back at him, despite herself and felt a rush of well being, an indefinable but overwhelming sanguine cheerfulness. Things will turn out right the voice of her heart said to her. Everything will be alright. She knew, that no man who smiled with so much of his heart would knowingly hurt or harm another.” (From Shantaram) See? I love this couple already.Read More

Real Wedding at Netherwood {Michele & Brad}

by gaby

Morning SouthBound Brides! We’re kicking off today’s pretty with a foggy wedding from the beautiful Natal Midlands. Now fog might be one weather scenario you hadn’t considered (and to be fair, most of you won’t need to), but Michele and Brad got a LOT of it. And here’s what immediately made me love them when Michele sent in her photos from Tyme Photography – there was no hiding away inside trying not to get her hair damp. They went out into that fog and rocked it like it was a Prince video. The results are amazing! And that’s just one thing to like about this cozy autumn wedding, with it’s swish black and white colour scheme, spirals of lamps and chocolate tequila (best favours EVER). It might be a million miles away from South African summer, but for those of you just getting cracking with your planning, I hope this (and the other lovely autumn and winter weddings we’ve featured here) will at least make you consider an off-season wedding. Because they can be so, so lovely! Anyway, before I start preaching, I’ll hand you over to the lovely Michele…Read More

It’s a Beautiful Day

by gaby

It’s Wednesday, and although I have a kickass wedding to share with you later, I am starting the day with an incredible couple shoot. With pictures so lovely that I get actual goosebumps every time I look at them, such is their loveliness. Durban photographer Fiona Clair is fast becoming a fave of mine, and she has outdone herself with this couple shoot taken of Tessa and Wayne after their wedding day, with their BEYOND adorable family. (Seriously, I would consider having children if you could guarantee they’d turn out as cute as these three boys.) They have a special story, and everything in this shoot is just perfect – the light, the backdrop, that special glow – for a celebration of their new life together. I also love that this was Tessa’s response to some disappointment with her actual wedding photos, because for one reason or another, sometimes that happens. It must be difficult, but if this shoot proves anything, it’s that your big day doesn’t have to be the only day you can rock a photoshoot (or a big white dress). And there’s no question Tessa and Wayne will treasure these pics in the years to come – congrats to all of you!Read More

Real Wedding at Zulu Nyala Game Lodge {Janlyn & Grant}

by gaby

Good morning friends! Today I’m transporting you to one of my very favourite places on earth – the South African bushveld. I’ve spoken before about just how much I love the bush, but whatever, I am going to wax lyrical again. I’ve been going to game reserves since I can remember, and although my dad is also a fan, the impulse runs even stronger in my mom’s side of the family. I’ll never forget driving around with my grandpa and having him tell me about animals and birds, or the time my mom and I staked out a kill at Hluhluwe when all the tourists had cleared off, and were rewarded with the most magnificent lion sighting I’ve had yet. I feel like the bushveld is my happy place – in fact, when I once brought home a boyfriend who didn’t take well to it, my dad questioned whether I could spend my life with someone who didn’t understand this great love of mine (quite right, too). I’m passionate about encouraging visitors and South Africans to spend more time there (in a responsible way) and supporting the heroic conservation efforts that are taking place in our country. Which is a long way of saying, today’s wedding is a bush wedding, and hell’s teeth am I excited! When I saw Janlyn and Grant’s Zulu Nyala big day over on the insanely talented Jacki Bruniquel’s blog, I feel head over heels in love with it. I mean, it’s a true wedding under the African stars, in a quarry (!!). But what I really loved is that they took all the best, most romantic elements of an elegant ballroom bash, and just took ’em on outside. It’s like the Ritz, but with a herd of impala looking on. It’s one of those South African weddings that makes me wonder why anyone would get married anywhere else. (Sorry, world, we’re just better. True story.) Oh, and PS – this wedding took place on the night of the supermoon. How amazing is that?Read More

Real Wedding at Netherwood {Jana & Ruan}

by gaby

It’s ironic that as I wrote this intro it’s POURING down with rain outside, since this is the second wedding this week that had to contend with erratic weather (thanks, climate change). But, like our bride and groom yesterday, Jana and Ruan didn’t let it spoil anything for them, and as well as enjoying a slightly rainier after ceremony carnival than planned, took advantage of the cosy fireplaces at their venue, Netherwood. It’s a great example of how a happy bride and groom will always result in happy guests, which is so much more important than the decor, really. Um, not that the decor takes a back seat here. Oh my goodness, I LOVE the bright colours Jana and Ruan chose for their tables and the way they used clever twists like books (almost like treasured scrapbooks the way they stuffed them with little bookmarks) for table numbers and bright napkins with menu bands that look like Pantone chips along the table. There are so many thoughtful touches here, like the instant camera ‘scavenger hunt’ they set their guests or the ‘love is brewing’ coffee favours, and don’t get me started on the ‘carnival’ itself, which included adorable fete food as well as lawn games. Everywhere I look there’s a stealable idea, so get ready to pore over the pictures and get your Pinterest on. Oh, but don’t skip the text, because Ruan pulled off the most AWESOME proposal, which I think would put any girl on cloud nine (literally!). I’m so excited to share this wedding with you – images are from Cape Town-based photographer Yvette Gilbert.Read More

Real Wedding at Rain Farm Game & Lodge {Sarah & Matt}

by gaby

Just when you think you’ve seen everything, you find a wedding at a game lodge inspired by a perfume advert (and I don’t mean ‘Beautiful’). A wedding that takes its blueprint from  a fashion shoot. A wedding that should represent everything about this industry that we’re always being criticised for – that we’re all about the form over content, that we’ve lost sight of what’s meaningful, and classic, and appropriate. A wedding that, as it happens, turns that criticism on its head. Because the thing is, that fashion is bride Sarah’s passion. It’s what she does for a living, it’s what inspires her. So when she dreamt up her special day, it didn’t look like an Estee Lauder advert. It was elemental and edgy and, as it turns out, exquisite (thanks in part to the stunning pictures by Fiona Clair), but it was also very personal – an expression of romance in the couple’s private language. This is the kind of wedding that reminds me of why I love weddings – of the infinite creativity that can go into designing them, of the way you can take a concept you love and make it classy and classic, even as it’s vibrant and unique. And meaningful? Well, you only have to read Sarah and Matt’s ‘how we met’ story to know that this is one very special love story, and that’s only fitting, because it’s one very special wedding day. I’m inspired by it. I’m invigorated by it. Fact: I bloody love it.Read More

Real Farm Wedding {Bianca & Chevy}

by gaby

Oh I do love me a farm wedding. And who could fail to love one as pretty as this? Personalised pinwheel favours, bridesmaids in belted floral dresses, a love letter motif based on the couple’s relationship… not to mention a big, red, Just Married truck. Chevy and Bianca (who get my vote for the couple with the coolest names, by the way) chose to celebrate their marriage at a place important to them – Chevy’s grandmother’s farm near Pietermaritzburg, where he grew up. They were surrounded by family and friends and a sunny afternoon, which signalled the end of a long distance relationship and the beginning of a married one. Their lovely pictures were taken by Thea Cogill of Tink Photography, and are full of colour and life and general down-home goodness that makes me want to pull on a pair of wellies and trek out to the countryside. Yup, farm weddings are the rockingest.Read More

Let Them Eat Wedding Cake #3: The Venue

by gaby

From the moment the ring is slipped onto your finger and your betrothal gleefully announced, a couple is advised to quickly find and secure two things that can become booked up over a year and a half in advance – the venue and the photographer. Indeed, not only are these some of the first tasks in the wedding planning process, but also some of the most important.

Being a tad wedding crazy (as mentioned in prior posts), I had already spent endless hours looking for venues online and had seen many a beautiful property, but nothing ‘us’. Staring at my computer screen, nothing had made me shout “THAT’S IT!” at an audibility common only to those of us with farm upbringings, or childhood operatic aspirations. Well… that’s not entirely true. We had found the perfect place months before the engagement. A place that would have effortlessly pulled off the theme in question and that we both loved. But it had only been able to seat 80 guests, which despite my initial fairly deep denial, I soon came to realise simply wasn’t realistic for us.

And so with the realisation that our wedding was only a year away, the euphoric “it’s my birthday everyday” engagement feelings began to be replaced by a rather palpable anxiety felt right in the centrepoint of my chest. Waste time and lose the perfect venue. We had to find a venue!Read More

Real Wedding at Netherwood {Sam & Stew}

by gaby

Okay, I am going to admit, I found this feature HARD. Not because it’s not lovely, oh no. But because picking through the pictures has never been harder. It’s not just that Sam – our brand new DIY Bride guest contributor – has an eye for detail second to none and the most incredible, original, personal, heart-warmingly wonderful ideas incorporated into her beautiful wedding, but that every one of photographer Jacki Bruniquel’s pics is so perfect that I wanted to use them all. Narrowing them down was like a Herculean task. So this is kind of a long post. But I don’t mind if you don’t mind, and I know you won’t mind scrolling through this absolutely gorgeous DIY celebration at Netherwood. And the best part? You’ll be able to recreate some of the awesome yourself, when Sam brings you her DIY tutorials. Isn’t that the best news? Yes it is.Read More

Real Wedding at Hartford House {Mary-Lyn & Rowan}

by gaby

“What’s the right amount of time,” someone asked me the other day, “to plan a wedding?”. And you know what, it’s a good question. Traditional wisdom holds that a year is about right, but the fact is, some of the most gorgeous weddings we’ve featured here on SBB have been pulled together in just a few months. It all depends on what you want, your organisational skills, and your ability to make quick decisions and compromise. And what really helps when you’re pushed for time, is to find a GREAT venue, and take your cue from there. That’s just what today’s bride and groom did. They were already big fans of Zululand’s Hartford House, a gem of a boutique hotel that is situated on a country estate and stud farm. Horses and views, what could be more romantic? Mary-Lyn and Rowan didn’t try to compete with the aesthetic of the venue, just added pretty touches reminiscent of a wedding in the English countryside. I especially love Mary-Lyn’s ballet slippers and their garden ceremony by the fountain. It’s super elegant, and so are the photographs by the wonderful Alexis Diack – these pics just feel like they come straight out of a magazine. Sigh.Read More