Showing posts with label Black. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Black. Show all posts

Saturday 29 July 2017

An Autumn Wedding with a Vintage Art Deco Theme

Brides planning an autumn wedding are going to feel super-inspired by this glorious big day set in London town. Tom and Cecily embraced the fading light by creating a cosy romantic feel to their wedding reception, which they hosted in a traditional English pub surrounded by twinkling lights and flickering candles. Their choice of an Art Deco theme is inspired - the gold and black is elegant and easy to DIY. I love how they created their tablescapes themselves, with a little bit of help from their talented family. There's nothing you can't do with a can of spray paint! Huge thanks to wedding photographer Lily Sawyer for capturing every perfect detail.


We had a unique situation where we had weddings in both the US and the UK! Our UK celebration in October took place in East London at St Paul's Shadwell. We followed up with a reception at the nearby Dickens Inn.


We really liked the history behind the Dickens Inn and the rustic yet modern interior. The location on the docks and next to Tower Bridge made for iconic photos. 



Wednesday 12 July 2017

An Art-Deco London Wedding with Black & Gold DIY Details

London's been my home for nearly twenty years now {apart from a brief sojourn in Dubai}, so I've got something of a soft spot for a wedding hosted here. Tom and Cecily celebrated their marriage with two ceremonies - one in the US, and the second at St Paul's Shadwell followed by a cream tea and dinner at the Dickens Inn. As an American, you can understand Cecily's love for historic London, and it's something we should all embrace. Her photography Lily Sawyer took advantage of all the capital's stunning landmarks for their wedding pictures - don't miss them in Part 2 of this wedding, which I'll publish later this afternoon. Enjoy these shots - there's plenty of lovely details, including Tom's traditional three-piece suit, Cecily's fragrant white-on-white bouquet, her 1920's-stylepretty pearl accessories and elegant chignon.



Tuesday 9 April 2013

Real Alice in Wonderland Themed Wedding: Cheryl & Jack

Weddings with a fabulous theme make me happy! And there's nothing I like more than an Alice in Wonderland tea-party - there's just so many fabulous details to choose from. Lewis Carroll was a genius! So when Louise and Sam from Pavone Photography got in touch with Cheryl and Jack's amazing monochrome Alice in Wonderland themed wedding, I jumped at the chance to feature it on Before the Big Day. Many months later, and here, finally, it is! Don't miss all the DIY wedding details - Cheryl and Jack came up with everything, including their brilliant themed portrait pictures, complete with Alice in Wonderland props. It's such a clever idea to come up with a few props for your portrait pictures, particularly if you're slightly nervous in front of the camera. Other wedding details to steal include Cheryl's gorgeous second-hand wedding gown {which she personalised herself}, the flower girl's alternative bouquet {a clock!}, and the hilarious fancy dress kit for classic guest entertainment. Huge thanks to Pavone Photography for their stunning shots!


We got married on 2nd July at Little Hallingbury Mill in Essex, surrounded by our family and close friends. Our theme was vintage Alice in Wonderland with a black and white stripped twist.


The venue was a quirky old mill surrounded by fields and just seemed to scream 'Tea-Party'!


I bought my wedding dress second-hand, and customised it by adding as much black as possible. My shoes were an old pair from my wardrobe which again I customised in black.


My dress was so beautiful {and totally over the top}, that I didn't want to distract too much attention from it. So I didn't wear a veil and chose understated accessories, which were of course, black and white.




My husband’s outfit was a plain black suit, with an all-important waistcoat. He wore my great-grandfather’s pocket watch to add a hint of ‘Mad Hatterness’ to the day.




My bouquet was a single large black rose head which matched the black roses in my hair and on my shoes. 



Apart from this, we didn’t have anything other flowers as instead chose to decorate the venue with playing cards, spoons, teapots, teacups, clocks, books, white rabbits and any other Alice in Wonderland item you can conjure up!


My flower girl was mostly in white, but instead of carrying flowers she held a black old-fashioned alarm clock, set to the time we got married.


We tied black and white stripped ribbon to it in keeping with the theme. It added a fantastic element of ‘Don't be late, don't be late for an important date!’






Jack and I me on a night bus in 2007! Jack was my knight in shining armour, as he made sure I got home safely. We got engaged on Christmas Day in 2010 in front of our twinkling Christmas Tree.


We chose Pavone Photography {Louise and Sam} as our wedding photographers. We felt they were the only people who had the talent to do our unique wedding day justice, and we were so right!


Our entire wedding was a DIY project – nothing was pre bought, and we put all the ideas together ourselves. I really enjoyed planning every part. My advice to other brides would be, leave yourself plenty of time. Make as much as you can to give you a truly original wedding. Go wild – you will only do it once! Enjoy every last second.
 


We made our own wedding invitations. They were made to look like 4 large playing cards held together by black and white ribbon, and a small silver key. All the phrases on the invitation, directions and RSVP were taken from the original Alice in Wonderland Film - e.g. ‘Help us Paint the Roses Red’.


For our wedding favours, we bought miniature 2cm high glass bottles with a cork cap, filled with red wine, and labelled with a 'Drink me' tag.


We slotted a playing card into the corks of each of the bottle favours, and they doubled up as place markers too.


My sister-in-law handmade our wedding cake! It was three layers, and covered in black and white Alice in Wonderland decorations, like clocks, teaspoons, books, teapots and teacups. It was amazing!


♥ Want to see wedding detail ideas? ♥ Or how about more wedding favour ideas? ♥
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Sunday 30 September 2012

A Black Veil: Would you?

Sometimes it only takes one thing to get inspired, and for me, this black wedding veil has got me thinking. As autumn approaches, consider a darker slant on your wedding day, maybe a gothic theme, a candlelit ceremony or a crushed berry colour palette. Or why not a jewel-hewed wedding gown? Find more fabulous alternative wedding ideas on my Pinterest board. Beautiful black butterfly veil by Ellen Marie Designs on Etsy Weddings.

♥ Want more gothic wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about more black-themed weddings? ♥
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Tuesday 12 June 2012

Real Winter Wonderland Wedding: Allison & Charlie

This wedding is a true inspiration for those of you getting married in the winter, but want to say your vows in natural light. Allison and Charlie made the most of a beautiful February day, hosting their reception in a clear marquee, surrounded by a magical indoor 'forest' of silver birch and blossom. Both Allison and Charlie are keen animal-lovers, and actual creatures played a huge part in the theming of this big day. From baby chicks, to birds-eggs and donkeys plus Allison's white horse, this wedding was totally at one with the natural world. I'm loving Allison's style - her stunning dress and fake-fur-lined boots go to show that you don't have to compromise on cool if you're getting married in the cold. Huge thanks to Our Labour of Love for these exquisite photos.


♥ Want more winter wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about rural wedding ideas? ♥
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Tuesday 1 May 2012

Real Luxury Red-Themed Wedding: Gwen & David

Every now and then a wedding comes along that just completely blows my mind. This is one of them. Every detail is super-chic, and en masse they're a perfectly mixed, uber-elegant, rock n' roll wedding cocktail. With red and black as their theme, Gwen and David selected luxury red roses as their flowers of choice, which tied in Gwen's bright red lipstick, their red cupcakes and even their signature cocktail Lady in Red. Everything else was black, including Gwen's bridesmaids dresses and the table cloths - such a dramatic look. My favourite detail has to be the table markers-slash-favours. Designed as vinyl records, guests had to flick through Gwen and David's 'record collection' to find their seat, which is an amazing idea for the music lovers out there. Simply stunning photographs as ever from the talented Stephanie Williams - she really knows how to catch every detail. And if you're wondering about the dramatic location, it's Union Station in Los Angeles, which is, I'm sure you'll agree, a pretty kick-ass venue.

♥ Want more red themed weddings? ♥ Or how about luxury weddings? ♥
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