Real Wedding: Lindsey & Scott

There's so many things I adore about Lindsey and Scott's big day, that I'm struggling to order them in my mind.  Lets start with the stunning lilac roses - I believe they're called Blue Moon, and they're just the most gorgeous starting-point for a truly romantic colour palette. Then the green-grey of the bridesmaids' dresses, which incidentally are cut just beautifully - no frilly flounces or bonnets here.  And then there's the bride's gown, which is the definition of elegant simplicity. I'm keen to copy everything! Many thanks, as always, to Karen Wise for her gorgeous photographs.

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We ♥ Boutiques

What's better than shopping for a beautiful wedding dress? Shopping for one on your boss' time!! Okay, maybe not, but if you were to have a spare moment in your working day, check out Net-a-Porter because they've just launched their super-duper, drool-worthy, dreamy online wedding boutique. They're flagging it as the one-stop shop for the chicest wedding yet, with gowns, veils, shoes and even honeymoon outfits on sale. Definitely worth a webrowse.

Valentine's Day Special

Made plans for Valentine's Day yet? You're cutting it pretty fine if you haven't booked a restaurant yet, although with the 14th falling on a Sunday this year, my money's on most couples celebrating on 13th February. If you haven't bought a card for your loved one, why not try one of these two lovelies? I've been checking out the stationery blogs, including the fabulous Oh So Beautiful Paper, and in my book, these are two of the most original. Check out Something's Hiding Here for the faux bois log, and Mister Rob for this exquisite paper cut and don't miss the special offers detailed below!

Product Credits: Knitted Heart Card: KichyKoo, Cross-stich Heart Pillow: Chocolate Creative, Green Leaf Heart Print: Mengseldesign, xoxo Valentine Pencils: Simple Song Designs, Cut Out Card: Storey Shop, Button Heart Print: Dig The Earth, Fortune Teller: Pop & Shorty, Heart Necklace: Bbel, Pop-up Cards: She's Batty Designs, Cheese Love Card: Storey Shop, Knitted Heart Card: KichyKoo, Miniature Leather Journal: Susan Green Books,  Love Tea-Towel: Chocolate Creative

We ♥ Offers
Susan Green Books is offering free worldwide shipping on Miniature Journals until 1st March - just mention Before the Big Day to the seller to claim your discount.

Real Wedding: Lindsey & Jeff

Plenty of popping colours in this fantastic Our Labour of Love wedding. Lindsey and Jeff tied the knot in a flurry of bright red petals and blue berries on the edge of a forest. Loving the turquoise in Lindsey's bouquet, and the crimson of Jeff's tie, plus the cute scallop-edged name tags. I'm also a big, big, fan of vintage signs, and the 'from this day forward' sentiment adds an edge of fairytale to the whole affair. Simply stunning!

Snippet & Ink Mood Board ♥2

A gorgeous citrus number for you for the start of this week. Kathryn over at Snippet & Ink has done wonders with this mood board, evoking the essence of sumer on a dreary winter's day. Get planning for those summer weddings, and check out Snippet & Ink for product credits and details. Don't forget you can make your own mood board over at the Style Me Pretty Style Circle, just add in all your fav pictures from this and other blogs, and set the tone for your wedding.

♥ Real Weddings ♥

Before the Big Day has now featured over sixty real weddings, all for your inspiration-delectation! Don't miss a single idea, click here to see them all, or check out the theme list. A huge thank you to all the photographers, brides and grooms, who have happily let me publish their pictures! If you'd like your wedding to be featured on Before the Big Day, then please in touch here.

Man Friday

Traditionally on the morning of the wedding, the groom gives the bride a pearl necklace. Yup, on top of the engagement ring, paying for the honeymoon, and possibly even the wedding itself, grooms are expected to shell out once again. Now if you're a future bride reading this, I reckon it's time to turn the tide, and take a look a what gift you could give your future husband. After all, he's already donated the sparkler on your ring finger, and in the days of equality, it's only fair he should get something special! And as ever, don't miss details of the offers and discounts on these gorgeous items under the picture.

Product Credits (from top left) - Inital Cufflinks: Beads in the Belfry, Engraved Guitar Pick: JC Jewelry Design, Engraved Ring: BD Designs, Save the Date Key Ring: Punky Jane, (middle left) Collar Stiffener: The Silver Diva (bottom left) I Love You Cufflinks; Smashing, Heart Cufflinks: Ali Bali Jewellery, Monogrammed Beer Glass: Whitewash Sundries

We ♥ Offers
The Silver Diva and Whitewash Sundries are offering 10% off
BD Designs are offering free shipping with any purchase
Smashing is offering free shipping within the US or $5 off priority international shipping
With all the deals, just mention Before the Big Day to the seller to claim your discount.

Real Wedding: Emily & Ryan

If you're getting married in the UK, the one thing you can almost guarantee is that the sun will remain determindedly out of sight. But that doesn't mean that your photos need to be gloomy. Just check out Emily and Ryan's gorgeous winter wedding. Despite the sun refusing to shine, these fabulous pics from Our Labour of Love show that all you need is a big dollop of creativity, and your pictures can be super-special!

Hole Lot of Punch

Feeling inspired to craft? It's a sure-fire way to personalise your big day, and a whole lot of fun in the meantime. If you're frightened of glue guns and glitter, try paper punchers to get you in the crafting groove. From simple patterns, to shaping and scalloping corners, the possibilities are endless. And when you've punched hundreds of holes, you can use the discarded shapes as table confetti! Try Glitter Monster Crafts for the shapes below.

BBD Theme: On Your High Horse

If you're getting married in the countryside, then why not consider an equestrian theme? Totally romantic, it harks back to a more chivalrous era, and would set a genteel tone to your big day. There's also endless motifs to add charm to your stationery and reception, starting of course with the lucky horse-shoe. Use rosettes as button holes and favours, encourage your page boys to carry hobby horses, and why not ride side-saddle up the aisle? And after a barn-dance or hoe-down, gallop into the sunset with the man of your dreams (hopefully not the best man!). Great news! Several of the vendors below have agreed to give discounts to Before the Big Day readers. Check out the details below.

Product Credits (from top left) - Horseshoe Stationery: Creative Ris, Horseshoe pendant: Bri Guys Girls, Hobby Horse: Rustic Horsehoe, Wedding Gown; B Trousseau Vintage Horseshoe Locket: Cosmic Girl, Red Horseshoe Heart: Altered Iron, (from middle left) Crocheted Rosette: Ninon, Corset: Jills Corsets, Lucy Horseshoe Ring: Michelle Chang Jewelry, Vintage Cowboy Boots: Trivial Pursuit, (from botton left) Horse Motif Stickers: Seasonal Delights, Fine Gold Horseshoe Pendant: Metal Made, Confetti: Not on the High Street, Persian Horsemen Stationery: Drenculture, Lucy Horseshoe Pendant: E Ria Designs

We ♥ Offers
Michelle Chang Jewelry is offering 15% off from now till end of Feb
Rustic Horsehoe and Altered Iron are offering 10% off
Cosmic Girl and Jills Corsets are offering free shipping with any purchase.
With all the deals, just mention Before the Big Day to the seller to claim your discount.

New Zine in Town

Already a huge fan of the e-zine Utterly Engaged? Well there's a new zine in town, and it's just as fabulous! Just launched, fresh off the press, and totally brilliant, it's called NonPareil magazine and the theme for the first edition is Beautiful on a Budget. Full of ideas for creating a wedding masterpiece, you'll be brimming with inspirational ideas after just a couple of pages!

Lavender & Honey

The French definitely know their food and drink, and they're a pretty stylish bunch, but I'd recommend looking further than gay Paris for inspiration. Just north of the Cote D'Azur is gorgeous Provence, the land of lavender, olives, sage, rosemary and honey. Check these mood boards out for a veritable feast of stealworthy ideas.

Keeping it Green

Favours have become one of the major cards to play for a couple looking to make their big day stand out from the crowd. There are millions of ideas out there, and I'd recommend a virtual stroll through Etsy if you fancy a few ideas. That's exactly what I just did, and I stumbled across Ormolu who isn't just massively talented, she's also super-eco-friendly, as her favours are professionally printed on recycled papers with soy inks using wind-power. That's a whole level of green that I didn't even know existed! Each of the 26 alphabet tags have their own particular sentiment... my favourites are "D is for delight", "J is for joy", "R is for remember" and "U is for us".

We ♥ Competitions

One way to keep down costs for your big day is to win competitions. It's a long-shot, but someone's got to win them. Try these links on for luck!

♥ Win your honeymoon, and Italian reception, and a gorgeous corset plus much more at You and Your Wedding (registration required).
♥ Win an amazing honeymoon in Malaysia at Brides Magazine. 
♥ Want a two night stay at the super luxe Taj Hotel in Boston’s fashionable Newbury Street? Enter the competition on the Elegala site by telling them your unique, buzzworthy, wedding idea.
♥ Win Helen Carter's Wedding Planner software worth £75 through the Wedding magazine.

♥ Win a Pixcellence Digital Wedding Photography Package worth £1250

Lets Hear it for Wood

**Trend Alert**  This summer, weddings are going to be all about wood. "???"  Stay with me here, it'll make sense in a sec. As we all get greener and more eco-friendly, our moods are turning towards natural products, and that's coming out in the number of woody products on the market. Don't believe me? Well check out all the stationery products below - don't you know, paper is soooo passé!

Product Credits (from the top): Love Tags: Perch Papiers, I love you Wood Cards: Palomas Nest, Bird Cards: Cabin, Wood Wedding Invitations & RSVP Card: Baumbirdy, Eco-Friendly Log Card Kit: Co Design, Faux Bois Cards: Paper Pumpkin, Wood Gift Tags & Placemarkers: Emililies, Printed Wood Cards: Night Owl Paper Goods

Snippet & Ink Mood Board ♥1

There's a fabulous wedding blog in the States called Snippet & Ink, and I've long admired author Kathryn's gorgeous mood boards. Here's her latest, entitled Juliet & Blue, which just makes me long for a summer garden wedding. Check out her site for all the picture credits. Meanwhile if you're keen to create your own board, click here for the magical Colour Palette Generator - it's amazing.

Something Borrowed

Every now and then someone comes along with a truly genius idea. And it's often so simple, you can't believe you didn't come up with it first. Josephine Sharp from Your Something Borrowed has had one of those eureka moments, and created a gorgeous archive of handmade jewellery and hair accessories. It's a boutique, but not as you know it, as every piece can either be bought, or borrowed, depending on your budget or desire. But it gets even better than that, because the collection itself is gorgeous! Sitting somewhere between 1920’s Paris and 1950’s Hollywood, you can pick up everything from a lustrous multi-strand pearl and marcasite necklace to a glittering tiered Deco tiara. Yum!! Josephine is offering 10% off to Before the Big Day readers, just use the code Big Day when you check out.