wedding dresses - SouthBound Bride

Mira Zwillinger 2014

29 November, 2013 by gaby

Happy Friday, folks! We end off this week of loveliness with one more piece of lovely that will have you swooning your swooniest swoons. I’ve been in love with Mira Zwillinger‘s dresses ever since we featured them in this shoot, but I think it’s a love that has gone to a whole new level with the 2013/2014 collection. Like the previous one, it’s built on a combination of soft fabrics and fine lace details, but if it’s possible, this year it’s even more feminine and beautiful. These are the kind of dresses you just want to wrap up in tissue paper and sigh over. They’re definitely the kind of bridal couture that will make a breathtaking impression on any bride. My favourite is the New Beatrice (first below), a revision on one of the incredible dresses I worked with – I didn’t think it was possible to make it more beautiful, but Mira has. So here we go. Meet your new favourite dresses.Read More

Wedding Dresses for Strawberry Shaped Brides

22 November, 2013 by gaby

*UPDATED FOR 2020* It’s time for another installment in our series looking at wedding dresses ideal for your body shape. Brides come in all shapes and sizes – it isn’t about looking like some perfect perfume-advert style bride or fitting into the smallest dress in the shop, it’s all about celebrating your own beauty and style. After all, that’s what your groom fell in love with, right? Choosing a wedding dress that highlights your best features is the best way to feel amazing, so try to let go of any hard and fast ideas you may have about the silhouette you want to cut, try lots on, and take the advice of your seamstress or gown salespeople, who really know what they’re talking about. Today we’re focusing on inverted triangle/strawberry shape brides, and sharing some exquisite dresses from Etsy to inspire and illustrate.

*Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.

Inbal Dror Paris 2013 Collection

1 November, 2013 by gaby

Get ready, wedding dress lovers, because you’re about to have a brand new style crush. I am completely smitten with the incredible Inbal Dror‘s gowns, one of a crop of Israeli designers who are taking the world by storm. The 2013 collection was themed around Paris, and I think that’s perfect, because even though she’s based in Tel Aviv, you can also see the influence of the years Inbal spent in Milan. I can imagine these gowns on a European princess, a Monaco socialite, and of course on a stylish South African bride! French lace, pearls, tulle… all the textures combine into the most sophisticated and romantic cocktail of gorgeousness. Not to mention some breathtakingly beautiful photos… as Audrey once said: Paris is always a good idea! Enjoy – and have a fab weekend!Read More

Victorian Splendour

16 October, 2013 by gaby

*UPDATED FOR 2018* If you thought that the wedding we shared yesterday was the end of the sigh-worthy lace dresses we’d be enjoying this week, then good news – it was just the start. :) When I ran the SouthBound Bride Reader Survey recently, one of the questions I asked was what readers would like to see more of, and I had a special request for Victorian lace wedding dresses. We’ve already looked at beautiful lace portrait backs, but it got me thinking about the trend that goes hand in hand with that one – high lace necks and lace sleeves, which are a gorgeously elegant modern interpretation of vintage style. In fact, sleeves are still trending in general (total win for autumn and winter brides!), and of course if you love this style but don’t want it for the whole event you can always wear a lace overlay for the ceremony. It’s a modest look, but one that is so deliciously feminine that you can see why brides keep going back to it – this is only the latest of several Victorian revivals in bridal fashion, after all! *Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.

Real Wedding at Collisheen Estate {Julia & Waylon}

15 October, 2013 by gaby

Some days, I don’t feel like I have the words. After all, there are only so many ways to say ‘pretty’. Graceful, lovely, charming, fair. Today’s wedding is all of those things. It enters and floats across the stage like a blythe spirit, trailing beauty in its wake. There’s the dress, for one. I need about a dozen words for that alone, because it’s one of my favourites ever – and I still can’t believe that the radiant bride designed it herself and made it together with her mother. It is seriously spectacular (illusion lace, where have you been all my life?). Or the gorgeous reception, elegant but with personal touches like handmade napkins/tea towels, billows of baby’s breath, bridesmaids in blue. And of course the games aspect that the bride and groom added – such a sweet personal detail. Pretty definitely isn’t enough of a word to cover it, and yet pretty it is. Of course, I’m also in love with the talented Fiona Clair‘s gorgeous pics, that capture all the sweetness of this couple on their big day, and every soft and splendid moment. And I have some fab news to share (well, fab news for Cape brides anyway) – Fiona is relocating to Cape Town in early 2014, so KZN’s loss will definitely be your gain.Read More

Grace Loves Lace

4 October, 2013 by gaby

As much as I love the more traditional wedding dress designers (oh, Vera!), I’m also a huge fan of the up-and-comers, and a great place to find them is on Etsy. Every now and then I indulge myself with a good long browse through all the beautiful (often more affordable yet completely handmade) options scouting out new names, and Grace Loves Lace is one I have been looking forward to sharing with you for a while. Not only are the dresses absolutely GORGEOUS (Grace Loves Lace could have written the book on boho-luxe) but they ship from Australia all over the world and yes, that totally includes South Africa. Local brides, rejoice! I know it can be nerve-wracking ordering a dress over the internet, but every one is made to order from their studios, and since they only sell online they have built their reputation on satisfied web customers. It’s definitely about time that you knew the name. So today I thought I would bring you some dress swoonage. You’re welcome ;)Read More

Peplum Wedding Dresses

28 August, 2013 by gaby

*UPDATED FOR 2018* It’s funny how fashion totally changes your taste, isn’t it? And then changes it again. Back when I was 12, I was head over heels in love with a dress my mom ended up buying me from Woolies: it was black and electric blue, with a dropped waist, made of shiny watermark taffeta that ruffled when you walked, had an off the shoulder ruffle and a niiiice net rose to finish it off. God, it was hideous. But at the time, which for the record, was the late ’80s, I thought it made me look awesome. Just a few years later, I wouldn’t have been seen dead in it. And the way fashion goes, I wouldn’t be surprised if one day (gulp) I look at something similar and think it looks good again. (Note to future self: NO.) The nice thing is that when trends come round again, they often do it in a gentler, subtler way. And so it is with peplum wedding dresses. I want to hate them, I really do, but then I look at how flattering they are, and what a difference it makes when they’re made with wedding dress materials, like floaty lace or tulle, and how many of the top designers are including peplum dresses in their collections, and I have to admit, I’m a convert. So I thought I would round up some of my favourites!
*Links in bold denote affiliate links. The cost to you remains the same, but SBB may receive a commission for any sales made.

BHLDN Summer Bridal Lookbook

16 August, 2013 by gaby

We’re off to sunny climes for our afternoon adventure today. And my goodness, are you about to be swept up in a tropical bohemian haze of beautiful dresses, chic accessories and a dreamy location. If I were to be shipwrecked, I think I’d be quite happy as long as I also had a treasure chest full of BHLDN wedding and bridesmaid dresses to dress up and frolic about in! Head over to the BHLDN website to check out their full collection of dresses – although be ready to spend some time there, as each one of their collection is more swoony than the last. I can’t WAIT to see these on real brides.Read More

Sarah Janks Bridal Collection 2013

21 June, 2013 by gaby

Images: Jen Huang Workshops via Grey Likes Weddings

It’s funny – as I was saying to a friend the other day, wedding dresses were the part of this industry that I was least interested in when I started. I don’t know if the dresses just got prettier, but now I can’t help but do a bit of swooniness whenever I see a new collection. Even more so when I get to work with the gowns on a shoot, as I did with one of Sarah Janks‘ incredible creations, Briana, last year. I can’t show you those pics juuuust yet, but it turns out I’m not the only stylist who picked it out – just look at the amazing pics of Briana from one of the Jen Huang Workshops above. If you want a bit of this uber feminine gorgeousness in your life (and more importantly, in your wedding), you’ll want to check out the Sarah Janks 2013 bridal collection. Sleek silhouettes, beautiful adornment in lace, taffeta and embroidery and soft, floaty draping make each dress something quite spectacular. And there’s another aspect I love – the little capelets, belts and boleros that can be passed down, creating not only a versatile wedding day look but also a special heirloom. In London, Sarah Janks is available at Blackburn Bridal.Read More

Clinton Lotter 2012/2013

24 May, 2013 by gaby

It’s Friday folks, and that means time for some pretty dresses! I am always saying that South Africans are secretly taking over the world, and it always makes me smile when I come across homegrown talent over here. That was the case when I found myself fawning over some beautiful gowns on my last visit to Blackburn Bridal in London, and was told that they were by South African (now London-based) designer, Clinton Lotter. So I thought that this was the perfect collection to bring to you today. It’s available exclusively at Blackburn, so UK based brides should head over there to try some of these delicious creations on.Read More