Tag: romantic

Inspiration Board: Elgin Spring

by gaby

I have an extra special inspiration board today, as it’s for my beautiful cousin Caitlin, who’s currently planning her wedding. Caty grew up on an apple, pear and now wine farm in Elgin – one of the most beautiful places ever – and that’s where she and her fiance will be having their late spring wedding this year. It’s going to be gorgeous, and I love Caty’s idea of using a soft, dreamy palette of whites, creams, grey and pale blush pink with lush blooms and some rustic textures that pay tribute to the farm with wine barrels and apple crates. I think when you go for this sort of look, the best thing is to keep it simple but do the basics well – gorgeous flowers are the biggest building block, along with soft hair, flowy bridesmaids’ dresses (in grey, white or blush will work). I’d mix up the bouquets to include a variety of blooms including silver brunia, but also blushing bride proteas (a big floral crush of mine at the moment!). Use rustic shutters (to hold escort cards?), calligraphed signs and printed calligraphy napkin menus, and apple cocktails for after the ceremony (also love these painted white apples as place or escort cards, or just for fun). I’ve also included a little nod to Caty’s rowing talents with an oar guest book (although another sweet idea is to use paddles as signposts). It all adds up to a classic but contemporary look that is super romantic.

Colours: White, cream, blush and grey

Top row (l-r): Bouquet with blushing brides {Florali}; printed calligraphy napkin {Rylee Hitchner Photography/Jessica Sloane Event Styling & Design}; oar guest book {Alea Lovely}; bride and groom {Marta Locklear Photography/Diamond Events}
Row 2: Bridesmaids {Polly Alexandre Photography}; crate with olive leaf details and table number {Punam Bean Photography}; bride and flowergirl {Hristina Piltz}
Row 3: Ceremony with wine barrel entrance {Jose Villa}; wine barrel and shutter escort cards {Laura Gordon Photography/Tyler Flood}; ceremony sign {Jose Villa/Laurie Arons Special Events}; flowers and silver vase {Gia Canali Photography/Delicate Details}.

Rustic Romantic Inspiration Board

 

Inspiration Board: Lovelier Than Lilacs

by gaby

It’s Monday, and Mondays mean one thing here on SBB, and that’s inspiration boards. Yay! So to kick off the week, I have a reader’s request that I’ve been looking forward to getting to. Georgie sent me a request before Christmas for her Johannesburg wedding – she said that with so many themed weddings around, she and her fiance wanted to bring their focus back to what was traditional, classic and elegant. Their venue in Parktown has a gorgeous view of the city, so they’d like that to be central, and will include lots of ambient light in the form of candles and fairy lights. Their palette is clean white with dove grey, lilac and celadon (a green very much like Pantone’s current Greyed Jade). Georgie had just one more request, and that was to include orchids, since they will remind them of India and Singapore – two places that are meaningful to the couple. So that was the brief, and that’s what we’ve got. No themes, no motifs, no gimmicks – just classical elements and a gorgeous set of colours. As with all weddings where white forms a big part of the canvas, texture is important, so I’ve included lots of it – feathery tulle in the bride’s dress, crisp linens on the tables, even a little touch of velvet ribbon, which I really like (especially since this is an autumn wedding). The orchids are there – nice, simple and soft, but I think roses on the table are a classically romantic statement so I’d probably stick to orchids in bouquets and in other special places like on the cake. Chandeliers and a twinkle light curtain add a festive touch, and I’d bring in the colour accents in soft ways – bridesmaid’s dresses, shoes and (my best) invitations with a subtle touch of celadon on the edges. Add a pretty hairpiece, updos for the bridal party, a touch of calligraphy and signature cocktails for while guests enjoy that magnificent view. Et voila. A return to elegance. Hope you like your board, Georgie!

Colours: White, lilac, dove grey & celadon

Top row (l-r): Orchid {Anouschka Rokebrand}; bride {Beth Helmstetter/Samuel Lippke Studios}; pale lilac shoes {SH Weddings/Hanle Productions}; calligraphy table number {Jose Villa}; chandelier {Tea Olive Photography}
Row 2: Invitations with celadon edging {Lucky Luxe Couture Correspondence}; elegant updo {Easton Events/Patricia Lyons Photography}; orchid and rose bouquet; lilac velvet ribbon; cake with white orchids {Jenna Walker Photographers/Creative Weddings}
Row 3: Bride and groom with fairy light curtain {Cory Ryan Photography/CLINK }; lilac cocktail with ribbon tags {Samm Blake}; diamond ring {KT Merry}; table setting {Kate Preftakes Photography}; lilac bridesmaid dresses {Samm Blake}.

 

Real Wedding at South Hill {Estie & Francois}

by gaby

A few months ago, as you may recall, I opened up our Real Life Bride feature to our readers. I was hoping to hear from one or two of you, but instead, within days, my inbox was full. The BEST kind of emails – mails full of passion and excitement and plans and inspirations. I felt like I could picture each and every one of those weddings, and even though I could only pick one (okay, I picked three), I knew it wasn’t the last I wanted to hear of the others. One of my favourites was a submission from self-confessed “huge SouthBound Bride follower” Estie, whose big day was too soon for the series, but who described in detail the French-inspired fantasy wedding she and her fiance had dreamed up (with a bit of help from SBB!). She described a spring wedding, romantic and glamorous in Parisian shades of mauve, pewter, black & white, with a water feature and a transparent marquee full of twinkling lights reflecting the stars above. It sounded… well, dreamy is the only word I can come up with (even if it makes me sound like I should be at a sock-hop). Anyway, fast forward to a few weeks ago when talented Cape photographer Adene told me about her latest wedding, which she described as A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. And amazing it was. It also turned out to be Estie’s, and I’m thrilled to be sharing it with you today! (Oh, and PS: THAT CAKE!)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

Inspiration Board: Aqua & Rose

by gaby

Happy Monday, lovelies! I have so much goodness coming your way this week, it’s going to be like awesome real wedding palooza. But first, I have a very special inspiration board. This one was created especially for one of our readers, who wrote to me for some help a couple of weeks ago. She wanted a pretty, romantic look for her wedding at a beachside venue, and she wanted lots of white and aqua for her bridesmaids, but she wasn’t sure if she should introduce any other colours. Although aqua and white on their own are lovely, I always think the addition of another colour adds more dimension and gives you more options when you’re sorting out your details. There’s so much that goes with aqua – coral, lemon yellow, pretty taupe neutrals, for example – but the couple’s favourite was a mixture of aqua with rosy pink tones, inspired by the gorgeous image top left. So here’s the rest of what I came up with – light, clean and very romantic!

The key to a look like this is to base everything on a white on white palette, so that you don’t overuse the bright pink and aqua shades – you can also bring in a bit of grey or silver to help. Chantel wondered if a grey or silver damask may work for the tablecloths, and it would, but I think only if it was very subtle (as lovely as damask is, it can really dominate when used in black and white, for example). I’d suggest runners or square overlays as an alternative, and for this palette you could use pretty Cath Kidston-style prints like the pattern seen below from photographer Christine Meintjes’ gorgeous aqua and pink wedding. To bring in the aqua on the tables, I love the idea of using milk glass (or, if not actual milk glass, then glass containers spraypainted white and differing shades of aqua as in the original picture). So pretty! I also added in some beachy touches with shells and starfish, or you could get hold of some pretty white urchin shells or similar, just for a little bit of beach appeal (starfish may make a lovely motif for a romantic beachside wedding). Another place to bring aqua in is in the bride’s shoes (love these ones!) – another pretty little pop of colour alongside the bridesmaids’ dresses, without going overboard. Keep everything soft, especially the flowers (thinking peonies, roses, carnations –  maybe with a few anemones for extra visual interest). I also think the ombre trend I spoke about last week works beautifully here – in invitations that have a beachy, washed out look, in pretty cake slices, and in pink flowers that graduate from deep pink to pale pink. For a final, beachy fun touch, have an ice cream bar where guests can create their own cones or sundaes at cocktail hour (or late at night). Or why not try the absolute latest trend and have classy jelly shots instead?

Colours: Aqua, pink, white, grey

Top row (l-r): Milk glass containers with flowers; Vera Wang wedding dress (Jose Villa); shell with napkins; bride & groom (Nakai Photography)
Row 2: Valentino aqua shoes; starfish place setting (Mike Adrian Photography); table decor (Julie Lim); milk glass vases (Shay Cochrane); pink ombre cake; beach hair style (First Comes Love Photo)
Row 3: Wedding party; aqua ombre invitation; pink flowers; ice cream cones

Real Wedding at Natte Valleij {Chené & Andy}

by gaby

I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that I love all the weddings I feature here on Cap Classique. Because, let’s be honest, I have been blessed with some seriously unfreakingbelievable prettiness on this blog (and trust me, there’s lots more in the honey jar). But sometimes I don’t realise quite how MUCH I love a wedding until I’m busy putting the pictures together and I start to get butterflies thinking how gorgeous it is and how much you guys are going to love it. Which is exactly how I feel about Chené and Andy’s wedding at Natte Valleij. When I start throwing around words like ‘vintage romance’ and ‘secret garden’ you know it’s going to be beautiful, and boy is it ever. The details are just beyond gorgeous (my favourite is the hanging birdcages – WOW) and the bride and groom look like they stepped straight out of a fashion shoot. It’s pretty much perfect, so get ready to fall in love too! Oh, but first I get to introduce you to Chené and Andy’s photographer. Abigail Klopper of Abigail K Photography is not only an up-and-coming Cape Town snapper, but she’s also leading the way in getting the wedding industry up on their social media. This is one savvy chick, and I’m very excited to have her here on the blog!Read More