Thursday 30 May 2013

Amazing Rainbow Honeymoon Shoot

So I need to come clean - I've actually posted this honeymoon shoot before, but my newborn baby has decided to have a growth spurt this week, so I've had no chance to do any blogging! Instead I bet on the fact some of you lovely brides-to-be might not have spotted this fabulousness in Before the Big Day's archives. Combining a rainbow theme and hot air balloons, it's a dreamy concoction that ticks every one of my blogging boxes. Shot by Jose Villa, and style by Joy Thigpen, it's too perfect for words. Don't you wish you could be swept away in a hot air balloon the morning after your wedding? So romantic! P.S. For more from Before the Big Day's archives, be sure to take a look at our Real Weddings, Wedding Themes and 2013 Wedding Trends.


♥ Want to see honeymoon ideas? ♥ Or how about balloon wedding ideas? ♥
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Tuesday 28 May 2013

Introducing Sweetness Boutique Cakes & Confectionery Wedding Cakes London

The cult of the wedding cake is one of the most curious developments in recent wedding trends. Simple white tiers just don't cut it anymore - wedding cakes are now works of art. I've seen them spot-lit at wedding receptions, getting as much attention as the bride's wedding dress! To make sure your cake stands out from the crowd, consider these fabulous creations from Sweetness Boutique Cakes & Confectionery. Sweetness is run by Roma Finlinson, who has a passion for creating exquisite wedding cakes, decorated with delicate, handcrafted sugar flowers. Take a look at the beauties below to get a sense of her stunning work. Can you believe those anemones and roses are made out of sugar?! Sweetness Cakes aren't just seriously stylish - Roma is a Cordon Bleu-trained pastry chef, so her wedding cakes have the quality and flavour you expect from French patisserie - i.e. they taste AMAZING! Although they're so beautiful, it's almost a crime to cut into them.... Sweetness Boutique Cakes & Confectionery make bespoke tiered wedding cakes, cupcakes, iced biscuit wedding favours - everything and anything you could want for your wedding or bridal shower. Be sure to check out Roma's Facebook page for more of her work.






♥ Want to see more wedding cake ideas? ♥ Or how about luxury wedding ideas? ♥
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Monday 27 May 2013

Amazing Geometric Wedding Altar Backdrop

If you're not getting married in a church, but you want to walk up an aisle, then you might want to consider an altar-equivalent. There's a huge wedding trend for so-called 'backdrops' in the USA, and it's winging its way over the Atlantic to hit our shores this summer. Ribbons, bunting, flowers, paper chains, balloons, blackboards and vintage door-frames, they've all been used to create a focal point for the marriage ceremony, but the latest {and greatest} idea are these origami diamonds. Designed and handmade by French Knot Studios, they're fabulously neon, and the perfect addition to any contemporary themed wedding. Check out more wedding altar and backdrop ideas on my Pinterest page.




{Photo Credits} Izzy Hudgins Photography

♥ Want to see more modern wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about wedding decoration ideas? ♥
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Friday 24 May 2013

The Best Honeymoon Passport Covers

When it came to my wedding, I was all about the minutiae. There wasn't a wedding detail too small - I obsessed over everything. And I reckon these passport holders are going to divide the readers of Before the Big Day into two camps. You're either like me {a bit of a weird wedding obsessive} and you think love the idea of heading out on your honeymoon with personalised passport covers, OR you think people like me are slightly insane, and you definitely can't see the point. But I love them, so if you're in my camp, pick these up from RMC Studios, or there's tonnes more here! P.S. Don't forget to get your travel vaccinations if you're going somewhere exotice....safety first!



♥ Want to see more honeymoon ideas? ♥ Or how about real weddings? ♥
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Thursday 23 May 2013

Real Traditional English Wedding: Sarah & Michael's Wedding Reception

With wedding details galore, you're going to love the reception pictures from Sarah and Michael's beautiful big day. Sarah chose lace as her wedding motif, and purple and white as her colour palette, for a truly coherent wedding theme. I love the clean lines of their white wedding marquee, and the purple punctuation of the wedding flowers and table stationery. Even their wedding cake is in keeping with the theme, with super-realistic purple flowers made out of icing. The effect is one of classic elegance, all perfectly pictured by Anna Rosell. Enjoy her wedding photographs, and be sure to read all of Sarah's great wedding advice, and don't miss Part 1 and Part 2 of this wedding!



We celebrated our wedding at Longstowe Hall in Cambridge on 4th August 2012. We wanted a real English wedding, and felt the historical feel of Longstowe's Elizabethan architecture, and its beautiful English rose gardens was just perfect.


We had a purple and lace theme to the wedding, and also white roses, again keeping with the traditional English feel. We wanted to keep it simple and traditional yet classic. We also felt it was really important to use local suppliers and we managed to do just that.


My favourite chocolate is Ferrero Rocher, so I decided to give each guest a chocolate as a wedding favour. I bought organza and purple ribbon from Hobbycraft and my Nana, Mum and I had a great {and long} day wrapping each one.


Our wedding flowers were from The Flower House in Cambridge. I don't know much about flowers, and only knew that I wanted purple and white roses in the stem of the vases, so I let the florist decide on the arrangements. 


We loved planning our wedding! Being a teacher I love researching and organising, and a friend bought me a wedding planner, so I was in my element buying wedding magazines and tearing out bits that I liked for reference. The worry is whether it will all come together on the day, a few things didn’t go as planned, but that added to the day.


My advice to other brides would be, don’t get too bogged down with research, there are so many options out there and many people offering similar ideas. Choose something you like and then don’t research it anymore, there may always be something else to find, but you have draw a line, otherwise it can be never-ending. Most importantly, enjoy it all as it is over very quickly.


We spent ages designing our wedding invitations, menus and table names, keeping with the purple and lace/white theme. We found an wonderful lady called Julie, whose local stationery company is called Little Button Nose, who handmade them for us.



For our wedding cake I chose a local lady called Margaret who makes wedding cakes as a hobby. She made handmade the purple icing sugar flowers that cascaded all the way down the cake, and afterwards, as a keepsake, she put them in a little arrangement for us. We had a three tier cake, sponge, fruit and chocolate.


Our photographer was Anna Rosell. She was recommended by the venue, but I also loved her work and the gorgeous colours that she always manages to capture in her shots. I spent months in the run-up to our wedding following Anna’s blog, and looking at the other weddings that she had shot, so I was very excited, as I knew she would provide us with pictures to treasure.


♥ Want to see summer wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about elegant weddings? ♥
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Real Traditional English Wedding: Sarah & Michael's Portrait Pictures

Your wedding portrait pictures will be some of the most important photographs of the day, so it's worth having a bit of a think about what you want beforehand. Consider using props to help you relax - some brides carry a parasol, or you could pose with matching bicycles or even funny hats and signs. An engagement session can also help you relax with your wedding photographer, and with posing in front of each other! In these gorgeous portrait shots from Sarah and Michael's big day, their photographer Anna Rosell took full advantage of the stunning gardens at Longstowe Hall. I love how she frames the shots with the rose arbours, and takes a mixture of informal and posed pictures. Make sure your wedding photographer knows what pictures you want, and scout out good spots at your wedding venue when you visit. Meanwhile, don't miss more gorgeous reception details from this wedding, coming soon!



We celebrated our wedding at Longstowe Hall in Cambridge on 4th August 2012. We wanted a real English wedding, and felt the historical feel of Longstowe's Elizabethan architecture, and its beautiful English rose gardens was just perfect.



Our photographer was Anna Rosell. She was recommended by the venue, but I also loved her work and the gorgeous colours that she always manages to capture in her shots. 


I spent months in the run-up to our wedding following Anna’s blog, and looking at the other weddings that she had shot, so I was very excited, as I knew she would provide us with pictures to treasure.








We had a purple and lace theme to the wedding, and also white roses, again keeping with the traditional English feel. We wanted to keep it simple and traditional yet classic. We also felt it was really important to use local suppliers and we managed to do just that.




♥ Want to see quintessentially English weddings? ♥ Or how about elegant weddings? ♥
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Wednesday 22 May 2013

Real Lace-Themed English Wedding: Sarah & Michael

Much as I love quirky weddings, I'm a traditionalist at heart, and there's nothing I like more than a classic marquee wedding, set in the beautiful English countryside. Sarah and Michael chose the stunning Longstowe Hall in Cambridge for their summer big day - it's one of my favourite wedding venues because of its stunning rose gardens, and they struck lucky with a sunny August day - perfect for their portrait pictures. Sarah was keen to create a classically elegant feel to her wedding, so picked a lace theme, and a simple colour palette of rich purple and white. With this in mind, every wedding detail is perfectly matched, from the bridesmaids' dresses, to the wedding invitations and the wedding cake. Even the confetti matched, creating a brilliantly put-together feel to the whole day! You'll find tonnes of wedding inspiration in these beautiful wedding pictures by Anna Rosell - I'm a huge fan of her work, particularly her portrait shots. Don't miss the reception pictures, in the second blog post, later today.


We celebrated our wedding at Longstowe Hall in Cambridge on 4th August 2012. We wanted a real English wedding, and felt the historical feel of Longstowe's Elizabethan architecture, and its beautiful English rose gardens was just perfect.


We had a purple and lace theme to the wedding, and also white roses, again keeping with the traditional English feel. We wanted to keep it simple and traditional yet classic. We also felt it was really important to use local suppliers and we managed to do just that.





Like most brides, my original idea for how my wedding dress would look, was not what I ended up with. After visiting many shops I finally chose a beautiful Augusta Jones lace gown from Lara B in Newmarket. I wanted to be slightly more covered up, so I re-designed the top part of the dress, but I especially loved the open back and the lace edged veil.




I couldn’t find any bridesmaids dresses I liked so I ended up designing them myself, and having them made by a local seamstress, Cheryl Stratton.


Our wedding flowers were from The Flower House in Cambridge. I don't know much about flowers, and only knew that I wanted purple and white roses in the stem of the vases, so I let the florist decide on the arrangements. 



I was over the moon with her work! After the wedding I sent my flowers off to Precious Petals to be preserved, and now have my beautifully preserved bouquet framed above our bed.





We spent ages designing our wedding invitations, menus and table names, keeping with the purple and lace/white theme. We found an wonderful lady called Julie, whose local stationery company is called Little Button Nose, who handmade them for us.

Our wedding stationery was one of my favourite parts of the planning process, and I've kept a souvenir of everything that was made.


My husband's suit was from Moss Bros, teamed with a cream tie. The other men in the wedding party had purple ties, to fit in with our wedding theme.



Our photographer was Anna Rosell. She was recommended by the venue, but I also loved her work and the gorgeous colours that she always manages to capture in her shots. 


I spent months in the run-up to our wedding following Anna’s blog, and looking at the other weddings that she had shot, so I was very excited, as I knew she would provide us with pictures to treasure.


♥ Want to see quintessentially English weddings? ♥ Or how about summer weddings? ♥
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