Cute Shabby-Chic Cake Toppers

In cakes as in fashion, there are trends for every season, and the fashionable cake this spring/summer will be mostly topped by lovebirds. It all stems from the eco-chic craze, and combines an emphasis on locally sourced products with economical, recycled materials. UK-based textile artist Cotton Bird Designs is right on trend with her gorgeous feathered friends, which she hand-stitches in her countryside studio. Take your pick from her flock, or request a custom design, with a ring pillow to match, and add a bundle of cute to your big day.

♥ Want more cake wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about wedding detail ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

Real Vintage Welsh Spring Wedding: Llior & Will

Vintage-loving brides are going to adore this beautiful Welsh wedding. Llior and Will tied the knot at the beautiful Soughton Hall in Northop, in North Wales. The house and grounds look incredible, particularly the grandeur of the old gates and turrets. I'm loving all of the 1920's wedding details, from the bridesmaids' cute lace gloves and feather fascinators, to the vintage transport {cute car!} and Llior's elegant wedding dress, which she designed herself! Also love the idea to bring in the 'Something Blue' tradition with the bridesmaids' hydrangea bouquets and the ribbon on Llior's garter. Tonnes more wedding inspiration as you scroll through the pictures - Llior has very kindly filled in Before the Big Day's Bride's Questionnaire, so you can be sure to snaffle all her wedding inspiration. Huge thanks to Victoria Phipps Photography for these beautiful pictures - don't miss the reception shots, which I'll publish later this afternoon.

My original plan was to wear a wedding dress that I had made on my career break trip around the world. But when I tried it on when I arrived home, it didn't feel that special anymore. Plus my mother missed out on all that first bridal fuss, and the experience of seeing your daughter in her wedding dress for the first time. So we both decided to start from scratch with my own wedding dress design.

We set off around local fabric stores looking for a seamstress. We found a fab local lady and she interperated my wedding dress design and thoughts so beautifully, it was amazing. From week to week the dress just transformed, there was a lot of 'let's let the fabric speak to us moments'. My mother and I pinned the veil together on the morning of the wedding {something to do at 6am when you cant sleep for nerves}, so it was very much a DIY project for the two of us.

For my bridesmaids we chose the dresses and shoes from a mish-mash of small boutiques in London, plus lovely Coast faux-fur maroon shrugs.

We chose Fresh Floral Design in Chester for our wedding flowers. I had a bouquet of white roses, and we picked blue hydrangeas for my beautiful bridesmaids. The table flowers were a combination of white Peonies, white roses and white hydrangeas.

We wanted our wedding to be simple and elegant, with a 1920's vintage theme. Our main aim was to create fabulous lasting memories.

Will had his wedding suit made at King & Alan Tailors in Wimslow. {It all went a bit wrong though. He was meant to have a round collar and cuff shirt, and a full fabric tailored three-buttoned waistcoat, but these didn't come about because they forgot!}.

Victoria Phipps was our wedding photographer. I saw her pictures advertised in a wedding magazine and I loved her style. A few months prior to the wedding we had a lovely engagement shoot in London with her, which was a great way to get us relaxed before the big day. Victoria's pictures are so timeless and I like her easy and beautiful approach to wedding photography.

♥ Want more spring wedding ideas? ♥ Or how about vintage wedding ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

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? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

Introducing Girls of Elegance for Affordable Wedding Accessories

When I was planning for my wedding, I often wished there was just one street in London for wedding shops, so I could sort everything out in one go. Instead I rushed backwards and forwards across town, squeezing in wedding tasks in-between work and wedding blogging. If only I'd heard about Girls of Elegance. This fantastic one stop shop for wedding shoes, bridesmaid dresses and bridesmaid shoes, stocks all the best bridal suppliers, including Charlotte Balbier.

Established over eight years ago, Girls of Elegance also offers hard-to-find services like wedding shoe and handbag dyeing, so you can be sure your bridesmaids' accessories match your wedding colour scheme. Just take a look at their affordable bridesmaid dresses in a rainbow of colours. I'd be tempted to dress each of my girls in a different shade!

They also stock Charlotte Balbier hair accessories and wedding gowns, along with over 125 styles of wedding shoes, including Rainbow Club, Paradox of London, Filippa Scott and Belle in their new showroom in Poole, in Dorset. I love these Rosebud shoes, only £65 with 40% off right now.

But my favourite find of all has to be the limited edition Just Married Ugg boots. They look soooo comfortable, and under a full-length wedding gown, no one needs to know what you're wearing on your feet! Check out the Girls of Elegance website before they sell out!

♥ Want real weddings? ♥ Or how about wedding theme ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

This is a Sponsored Post for Before the Big Day - The Best UK Wedding Blog.

Pronovias Wedding Dress Sample Sale

Prepare yourselves for a big one! Top wedding dress boutique Pronovias, is hosting a huge sample sale on Saturday 16th of June. With 75% off on selected sample gowns, it's your chance to save a fortune on your wedding dress! With two venues - Harrods and their store at 94 New Bond Street, you'll want to get your name down fast, so you can be first in the door. Appointment only, book online here.

♥ Want more wedding offers? ♥ Or how about real weddings? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

Reasonable But Dreamy Vintage-Style Wedding Dresses

Finding reasonably-priced wedding dresses is incredibly difficult, which is why I'm so excited to introduce you to Belle & Bunty. This gorgeous duo make dreamy, vintage-style wedding gowns, without the crazy price tags brides have {unfortunately} come to expect. Every dress is elegant and flowing, with beautiful dipped backs, and discreet luxurious embellishments. With ten wedding dress styles to choose from, you're sure to find a gown that works for you. Beautiful shoot pictures by Media Light Bulb.

♥ Want more wedding dress ideas? ♥ Or how about autumn wedding ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

Designer Wedding Maps & More

Worried about your guests getting lost en route to your wedding? Or just planning a destination wedding and want to have a bit of fun with the Save the Dates? Try these gorgeous mini-works of art by Couture Maps. For $400, Stephannie Barba will draw a bespoke design, with as many of those cute icons as you like. You can then use the map on invitations, welcome bags, napkins, tablecloths, favours....you get the idea. Stephannie also designs wedding stationery, so if you're looking for a one-stop-shop, she's your girl!

♥ Want more shabby-chic themed weddings? ♥ Or how about destination wedding ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.

Real Pretty Marquee Wedding: Lottie & Jake - Part 2

With a little bit of vintage and a lot of charm, stand by for Part 2 of Lottie and Jake's gorgeous shabby-chic marquee wedding. There's tonnes of wedding ideas you'll want to steal for your own wedding day, from the elegantly lined marquee, to the gorgeous hedgerow-style table flowers from The Real Cut Flower Garden. I'm loving the dark blue accent details; the napkins, the pottery vases and the table stationery. Nearly every wedding detail was DIY'd - including the music, most of which was arranged by Lottie's father and performed by members of her family. As you scroll through the pictures, do take a look at Lottie's answers to the Before the Big Day Bride's Questionnaire to find out more. Beautiful pictures published with thanks to Fiona Kelly from Fiona's Wedding Photography and FO Photography, with a helping hand from Lisa at County Marquees. Don't miss Part 1 here.

Music was an incredibly important part of our day. We didn't want to go with standard ceremony music, we wanted it to really be about us. We walked in to 'Absolute Beginners' by David Bowie {brilliant lyrics for a wedding!}, during the ceremony Jake's sister sang 'Stay With You' by John Legend, and we walked out to Jackie Wilson's 'Higher and Higher'.

We really enjoyed planning our wedding, although it did get a little stressful at times, particularly with concerns about a venue for the ceremony. It was very difficult to find a registry office big enough for all our guests, and for a while it looked like we would have to cut down our guest list, which would have been very difficult. I really wanted to married in front of everyone.

In the end we came up with a fantastic compromise. We partitioned off part of the marquee and had our ceremony in there, officiated by one of our close friends. Afterwards, we hopped in a taxi with both sets of parents and drove two minutes up the road for a five minute legal ceremony, and got back before any of our guests noticed we were gone!

My grandmother’s house is basically the hub of my family. My mum grew up there, my parents had their wedding reception there, and various bits of the extended family go there for lunch on a weekly basis. I have always known that I wanted to have my wedding there in the garden.

A marquee {from County Marquees} was a no-brainer as August is pretty unreliable in terms of weather. The decorations just came together by themselves – I really liked the idea of having bunting, and I wasn’t keen on having everything perfectly colour-coordinated.

We initially wanted to have a great big chocolate wedding cake, but we were concerned that in August it might melt and/or not be eaten on a hot day. Instead we decided to have five flavours of cupcakes from Primrose Bakery which went down very well. Lots of guests took them home with them as wedding favours.

Our photographer was the wonderful Fiona Kelly. We looked online at lots of photographers and we really liked Fiona's pictures, as well as her easygoing and friendly personality, which was really clear from her website.

Our good friend Jenny Shayler designed our wedding stationery. During the design process she emailed asking for photographs of us both in profile, as she wanted to try out an idea using our silhouettes. We were both sceptical, but we really liked the final result, and ended up using them for our orders of service as well.

My advice to other brides is, don't feel like you have to do things in any particular way, than how you want them. We didn’t really have a wedding theme colour {other than touches of navy blue} or a wedding theme. For us the most important thing was celebrating with our family and friends.

♥ Want more shabby-chic themed weddings? ♥ Or how about marquee wedding ideas? ♥

If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up for our free newsletter. 

Before the Big Day - the Best UK Wedding Blog.