Afternoon, lovelies! I’m just stopping by to let you know about an exciting feature we have in the works with Luis and Kerry of Piteira Photography. Not only am I a big fan of their gorgeous photography, but this husband and wife team are just the loveliest, and I’m happy to count them as friends. In fact, I’m looking forward to seeing them when they’re working in South Africa this summer wedding season (December/January) and this is where the great news comes in – they have some availability, so if you’re still looking for a wedding photographer over the busy season, you can nab this awesome pair! Their work has been featured all over the place: Style Me Pretty, 100 Layer Cake, Ruffled, Bridal Musings, The Pretty Blog – and of course, right here on SouthBound Bride – so you know you’re in the best hands.
To celebrate their South African trip, Luis and Kerry have offered to step in as our experts for the day. They’ll be answering your questions about wedding photography, posing, light – whatever you’re wondering about. They also planned their own (gorgeous) South African wedding from abroad, so they have awesome insight into planning from afar. So here’s the deal: just leave your question at the end of the post (or on our Facebook page) and we’ll put all the answers together into a special post.
If there’s one wedding trend that South African brides and grooms have embraced wholeheartedly, it’s lasercut stationery. I think this has a lot to do with the talented stationers and designers we have in SA, especially Doodles Laser, who have really made this form their own. I love seeing Doodles work crop up in the weddings I feature (as it frequently does), and spotting all the new and exciting ideas that the team come up with. I was also lucky enough to work with Leigh from Doodles on a shoot earlier this year (see it now in the latest issue of Wedding Inspirations) and she is such a pleasure to work with, and full of awesome ideas. But what’s the best way to incorporate lasercut into your wedding decor? We’ve rounded up three clever ways, with lots of eye candy! All stationery below is by Doodles Laser.
Good morning, friends! As you may have picked up by now, I’m passionate about the South African wedding industry, and for the last while I’ve made it my mission to connect couples with great suppliers. I know that sometimes those small business owners with limited advertising budgets have a difficult time, but that doesn’t mean you want to know about them any less, right? So a few weeks ago I launched a promotion called the Days of December, and I’ll be introducing you to a whole family of new blog friends throughout this month in a series of posts. We’re all working hard to make sure this isn’t about boring old adverts, but rather the same high quality editorial content you expect from SBB. You can find all of the suppliers here through the month, but today, we’re meeting the first: Craig of My World Creations, a videographer from Port Elizabeth. I’m always hearing from brides how not getting a videographer is their one regret, so it’s always great to come across someone who can produce something beautiful to complement your photography. Craig has spent some time answering my questions about his business and his advice for brides and grooms, and sharing some of My World Creations‘ gorgeous videos with you today!
Hi Craig – thanks so much for chatting with us! Tell me a bit about your company… My World Creations was established in 2007. At the moment, we are a two man team with myself concentrating on the editing and the main camera work. I have chosen to specialize in video because of the medium’s “story telling” ability. I feel that there are so many little moments and feelings that pass us by that cannot and should not only be captured by a photograph. I love to capture the essence of how the day felt.
How did you get started in videography?
I got started totally by accident, actually. When looking for a career change about eight years ago a friend asked if I did not want to help him with some video work on the side. With that the bug bit and I knew that this was something I wanted to pursue.Read More
In our Reader Survey (if you haven’t completed this yet, you still can right here) one piece of feedback that has been coming through is that you’d like to know more about wedding pros. So I’m delighted to introduce you to Stephanie Veldman, a Cape Town-based photographer. Her photographs really caught my eye from the first time I saw them – they seem to have a special kind of radiance, which is of course exactly what you’re looking for on your wedding day. I wanted to find out more about her, so I asked Stephanie to answer a few questions for you all.
Good morning! It’s Friday, but I have that Sunday feeling today as I pack up from a week in Cape Town and finally board that flight back to London. Just in time for my housemates to inform me that the summer is probably over, as the sunshine has disappeared. Boo! Hopefully I’ll be able to smuggle some of it into my suitcase! In the meantime, I’m feeling very cheerful about today’s posts, as I have a double dose of fabulous for you! Just a few weeks ago, a friend told me about The Irreverent A-Z Wedding Guide: South Africa, and I was intrigued. Then I got chatting to one of the writers, Francesca Bourke – a real SouthBound Bride who comes from Ireland but married her South African boy here, and got my hands on a copy. You guys, it is awesome. Fran and co-author Martin Heller write in such a combination of hilarious and practical that it’s the perfect antidote to wedding craziness. It has TONS of info especially tailored to South African couples, laugh-out-loud horror stories, tongue-in-cheek bridezilla tips – plus some very flattering mentions of the former Cap Classique (thanks, authors!). And as a book publisher in my other life, I love the production values – it’s the perfect size to fit into a handbag but hardy enough to survive months of being toted about, it’s easy to navigate, and it’s a little bit shiny and gold and special. I very much recommend you get your hands on a copy! It’s available at all good bookstores in South Africa (for UK availability, please drop me an email) and you can find out more on the book’s website or Facebook page. Today on SBB I’ll be sharing a Q&A with the woman behind the book, Francesca Bourke, and later this afternoon you can read an extract.
Hi Fran – thanks for agreeing to answer some questions today! Tell me a bit more about yourself and your book. How did you find yourself writing a book about weddings? Well, I’d never been the kind of girl who dreamt of her wedding day. In fact, I never thought I’d get married and then suddenly here I was with a ring on my finger, blissfully in love and completely lost! I both envied and scoffed at all those girls who seemed innately to know what a boutonniere was… and then I realised that there must be other women out there like me who just didn’t have a clue and needed open, independent advice… minus all the drama. So The Irreverent A-Z Wedding Guide: South Africa was born.
What was your own wedding like?
Very, very hot! We married in Paarl and on our wedding day we had a freak heatwave – 40C! It was the best day of my life though, despite the heat. I had lots of friends and family over from Ireland so we had a week long party. If I had to choose a favourite part of the day it would be sneaking off with my husband during the reception to have one final photo taken. It was the night of a super moon – the first time in 20 years that the moon was as close to earth – and we decided to have a shot taken in the moonlight. There was something very special about standing on top of a small wall staring into my new husband’s eyes in the moonlight! Things like that can’t be planned and that’s what makes them so special.Read More
