If you loved the look of bridesmaids in flower crowns that we shared last week, but don’t necessarily want to work with fresh flowers, then you’ll love today’s supplier spotlight. Of course, these lil’ beauties are great for brides too, or for festivals, or for parties, or just for sitting around watching Suits and feeling pretty. Whichgoose is a fab Etsy store with all kinds of little treasures, most notably for me the collection of hairpieces and crowns. They ship internationally from the US, which means that South African brides can get orders within about 2-3 weeks, so be sure to build that in to your order time. Let’s take a look, shall we? Just click on any of the images below to be taken to the item listing on Etsy.Read More
South Africa, you are so talented. I’m always amazed and proud at the awesome that keeps coming out of our little nation, and up-and-coming local talent Casey Jeanne is definitely one of those. Based in Durban, Casey’s just started her journey as a designer and she’s already gone from strength to strength. For example, just a few years ago, she was part of the Durban July Young Designer Award, then went on to win the Gateway Young Recycled Designer Award and the Fashion Challenge. This year, she was an Invited Designer. The theme was ‘The Big Screen’ and Casey chose to combine her trademark illusion lace with the glamour of Hollywood with a touch of Game of Thrones – an absolutely bewitching combination. Sequins AND illusion lace? Yes, please! And speaking of local talents, Casey Jeanne paired up with both photographer, Alexis Diack, and videographer Michelle Rabe to capture the showcase on film. Absolute gorgeousness. Be sure to scroll to the end to check out Michelle’s video!Read More
If there’s one wedding style that’s really taken off in the last couple of years, it’s forest weddings. A gorgeous combination of the relaxed boho vibe, the rustic farm style and a touch of magical whimsy, it’s no wonder that we all want to go down to the woods today! I don’t know about you, but I was OBSESSED with the Magic Faraway Tree books when I was little, so I’ve always felt like there was something special about a forest setting, and it has the advantage for outdoor ceremonies of creating a sort of cathedral atmosphere, which is the perfect nod to tradition. In South Africa we’re really blessed with some absolutely breathtaking forest venues, so all you need to complete the look is the perfect whimsical woodland decor. That’s where Not On the High Street – one of my favourite indie shopping sites – comes in, because among their curated wedding collections is a fab selection of foresty accessories that add just that extra touch of thought and detail. I just had to share!Read More
Before we head out for the weekend, I just have to share one of my favourite new supplier finds. I say finds, but actually I have watched from this sidelines as this developed from the beginning, since the talented designer behind indieLoveBooks is Ché Dyer, the same talented personage behind the amazing blog and stationery brand, indieberries. I love Ché to bits as you probably know by now, and a while back I asked her to share the story of the super original guest book she made for her own wedding with my readers. The response was amazing – not surprisingly, you all wanted one of Ché’s fun keepsake creations for your own big day. She’s gone on to launch indieLoveBooks, a bespoke site dedicated to the guestbooks, with three different packages available to suit the number of your guests. Knowing Ché’s incredible passion for her work and attention to detail, I know why she already has had so many happy customers, and I asked her to tell us a bit more about indieLoveBooks as well as herself. Welcome back, Ché!Read More
We started the week with macarons, so I thought it was the perfect way to finish our week as well. Because a girl can never have too many macarons. If you loved our feature on macaron favours and are wondering where you can find some of these pretty pastries for yourself, then allow me to introduce you to Cape Town’s Lady Macaron.Read More
A few weeks ago I spotted a little item on my newsfeed that got me really excited. Over the last couple of years, I have become more than a little obsessed with the gorgeous stylings of Rifle Paper Co., an American stationery & gift company that doesn’t just make beautiful things, but has influenced wedding styling in the same way as brands like Kate Spade and Anthropologie. The whimsical hand-painted illustrations (many of them botanical) and hand lettering manage to be both nostalgic and modern – if I were planning my own wedding right now, I have a feeling the Rifle look would feature pretty strongly. I must admit, I haven’t talked about the brand all that much here on SBB, because I know what it’s like when you love something and can’t find a local supplier, but that’s where I was wrong. Turns out that one of my favourite SA shops and online stores, In Good Company, is a treasure trove of Rifle goodness! YAY.Read More
It’s Friday Friday, and we’re kicking off the day with a world of loveliness from one of my personal favourite up-and-coming local designers. If you haven’t heard of Casey Jeanne yet, then I’m about to introduce you to your next fashion crush. That’s certainly what I had from the second I saw one of our own SouthBound brides in one of Casey’s creations last year. Today, the love affair continues, as I showcase more of her beautiful gowns, photographed by the awesome Alexis Diack. The attention to detail on every one of them is amazing, and I just love the combination of glamour, elegance and luxury that Casey’s work embodies.Read More
As you all know, I love featuring fabulous South African suppliers, and here’s one I have been meaning to call out for a while, because every time I come across one of Ladies & Gentlemen‘s custom cake toppers I am all, yay adorable! Because they are. The idea is that, instead of plonking some cheesy plastic bride and groom on top of your cake (okay, nobody does that anymore right?) you can have a hand-carved pair that have been painted up to look like you and the hubs. And not just painted – what really gets me about these cake toppers is the detailing and effort that owner Alison Sutcliffe-Smit goes into in recreating the bride’s dress or the flowers in the bouquet, or even the couple’s dog! Tiny protea bouquets, intricate illusion lace back dresses, furry ears (on the dog, not the bride and groom, fortunately), veils, etc. They’re sure to charm your guests, and make a really sweet memento of your big day (at least until your future kids steal them to play Barbies/dinosaurs). In fact, speaking of kids, for couples who already have them I think this is a lovely way of including them on the cake, since you can get mini figurines customised to make up the family. To give you an idea of what Ladies & Gentlemen do, here’s three pretty cakes and their owners…
Happy Friday, friends! It’s been a crazy but wonderful week at SBB headquarters, as I take a bit of a break to enjoy the Olympics. I’ll tell you more about it on the weekend, but for now, let’s just say that I am super excited and proud for all our gold medal winners! And speaking of South African talent, I have an awesome (part-South African) duo to introduce you to this morning. I first came across Kerry and Luis of Piteira Photography when I featured their adorable engagement shoot right here on the blog, and after that I started following their gorgeous work both in South Africa (where they spend time every year) and in Portugal, and they have really just gone from strength to strength. Somehow we all managed to synch our schedules and catch up in Cape Town in March, and they were just as warm and lovely in person as they’d always seemed online. I love the story of how they met, and I wanted you to meet them too, and to hear a bit of what they’ve learned working in Europe as well as SA. I love the concept of a husband and wife team shooting a wedding – not only do you get two talented photographers and two lens perspectives, but you also get two creative minds. And I’ll give you an insider tip – Kerry and Luis just happen to still have dates available for December 2012, so drop them an email and let them know I sent you. ;) {Oh, and PS, come back later today for a special SBB announcement!}
Hi guys! Thanks so much for talking to me today! Tell us about how you met? We met while working as photographers for a cruise-line company and worked together onboard for several years before moving to Portugal.
How did you get started in wedding photography? Honestly, it was quite by accident. We never really thought about being wedding photographers because we didn’t really identify with the traditional, posed, cliché style that was predominant in the industry… we didn’t even think about it for long enough to consider that wedding photography didn’t have to be like that, until we were asked to photograph a wedding close to where we live. It was a last minute request and a favour for a friend so we took it on and it totally changed our minds about what wedding photography can be. The couple was madly artistic and gave us free reign to shoot whatever, however we wanted, the ceremony and decor was totally original, bohemian and completely non-traditional, we had the best time ever and at the end of the night we decided that if we could shoot weddings the way we shot that one, we could do this forever… and that was the beginning.Read More
The first time I went to a kitchen tea I was about three, dragged along with my mom. The ladies played games and put the bride-to-be in a funny hat, and she got presents like fish platters shaped like fish, and mielie holders shaped like corn, and tomato sauce bottles shaped like tomatoes (what was WITH that in the ’80s?). I thought they were all mad. Fortunately, kitchen teas (bridal showers, whatever you want to call them!) have come a long way since then, but they’re still an opportunity for a bride-to-be to spend some quality time with the women in her life ahead of her big day, and I know you ladies are always looking for great ideas. So I knew I had to share it with you when I stumbled across Bella Chiara, a Cape Town-based accessories label who also host creative kitchen teas where a bride and her entourage can make lovely clay decorative items together. It’s a perfect hen activity as you get to know one another in a chilled out situation, and take something pretty home with you at the end of the day. Here’s a bit more from Claire of Bella Chiara…Read More
