Real White Elegant Wedding: Lauren and Joe

This is one of those divine weddings that make you want to jump right into it, and party with the bride and groom! Lauren and Joe chose to have their elegant white wedding in Napa, and the sun shone brightly over the palm trees all day. From Laura's gorgeous wedding gown, to the bridesmaids' dusky pink dresses, the flower girl's adorable crown and the page boy's bow-tie, the entire wedding party looked fabulous. I'm also loving the mixture of white table flowers in mismatched vases. I chose exactly the same style for my own wedding - by using cheaper blooms, you get a great effect for half the budget. I'm also enchanted by the romantic maharajah-style marquee with scalloped edges - hire one for your wedding from the Raj Tent Club. The wedding was planned by  Rosemary Events - gorgeous pictures published with thanks to the hugely talented Jose Villa.

Hand-drawn Whimsical Wedding Invitations

It only took one look for me to fall in love with these gorgeous hand-drawn and hand-painted wedding invitations. Designed by illustrator Victoria Whincup, their whimsical charm perfectly suits a British summer wedding. Each picture is unique, although you can choose to personalise the designs in her Etsy online shop. For me they perfectly capture the homespun wedding trend that's so huge this year.

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Real Elegant White French Wedding with Vintage Details

Every now and then I come across a wedding where I wish I'd been a guest! Loan and Andrew's French wedding near Biarritz definitely falls into that category. I'm completely in love with Loan's gorgeous elegant wedding style - her ruffled dress, wavy strapped Jimmy Choos and super-cook fish-tail French plait wedding hairstyle. Throw in the fabulousness of her bridesmaids mismatching but matching dark blue dresses, and Andrew's chic suit, and you've got the best dressed wedding party I've seen in a while. I'm also loving the white peony and berry bouquets, the lace detailed vases {buy them from Ikea}, the vintage getaway car and the ornate gold-frame table plan. Guests were encouraged to write messages on cute tea-stained tags and hang them in a wishing tree, before enjoying a delicious French meal, with multiple wedding cakes. Heavenly pictures published with thanks to Jonny & Morgane from M&J Photography.

A Lucky Wedding Sixpence

'Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue' ...and you'll be needing one of these too! I'm a huge fan of the wedding traditions, and the lucky silver sixpence has been a traditional wedding symbol since the Victorian Era. Glue it to the sole of your shoe, and think of it as an anti-rain talisman! Love this card too - wouldn't it make a fantastic present from the groom to the bride - or equally, you could turn tradition on its head, and give one to your future husband. The silver sixpence is genuine!

{I want this!} Silver Sixpence Wedding Card, £8.00 by Clouds and Currents, who also stock a particularly gorgeous range of chevron straws!

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A Pretty Vintage-Inspired Garden Wedding - The Reception

After a little bit of a delay {building up the anticipation}, I'm thrilled to bring you the amazing detail-filled reception photographs of Lucy and Jim's fantastic wedding. With tonnes of DIY extras, including a veritable fairground of activities for their guests, it looks a complete treat. There's so many stealworthy ideas, but my favourite picks have to be the watercolour-style wedding cake {created by Lucy's sister!}, the lovely teepee venues, Jim's enormous rose buttonhole, and Lucy's pretty-as-a-picture Ellis Bridals short wedding dress. I love how Jim and Lucy wrote their own wedding ceremony, personalising it with sing-alongs and their own special vows. The reception decorations are gorgeous as well, with prettified jam-jars and tin cans, plus fantastic tea-bag and shortcake DIY'd wedding favours. You can't fail to love it! Big love to Lily Sawyer for capturing every perfect detail, and to Lucy for filling in the Before the Big Day Bride's Questionnaire.

We got married twice, the first time on Thursday 25th July 2013 at The Old Marylebone Town Hall in London. This was our legal registry office ceremony, and only our immediate family members were present. Our second wedding was on Saturday 27th July 2013 at North Hill Farm, Chorleywood. 


Our second wedding was a celebration for all our other guests, although we did have an informal ceremony led by our friend. This involved sitting on straw bales, sing-a-longs ('Eight Days a Week' by the Beatles and 'You Give A Little Love' from Bugsy Malone), readings and 'vows' from Jim and I.

A Pretty Vintage-Inspired Garden Wedding with a Short Wedding Dress

Straw bales, a short wedding dress and tonnes of handmade bunting - this wedding is my type of big day! I'm completely in love with the venue, the details, and the gorgeous couple! It's all so English and eccentric and brilliant, with a massive dollop of pretty thrown in for luck! Lucy and Jim celebrated their big day twice {like me!}. Once for the legal ceremony at The Old Marylebone Town Hall in London, and then the second time in serious countryside style, in a field overlooking the Chiltern Hills at North Hill Farm in Chorleywood. I love how they made their wedding day their own - with plenty of activities for their guests, including a balloon race, DIY coconut shy, badminton, giant 'Pass the Pigs', space hoppers and a photo booth. Food came in the very trendy form of two vintage food trucks - one 'selling' vintage ice cream, the other fish and chips. Lucy and Jim wanted their wedding to be a big, informal party, exactly the type of wedding everyone wants to attend! Huge thanks to Lily Sawyer for her heavenly pictures - I've got tonnes more detail shots to come in Part 2 - The Reception.

We got married twice, the first time on Thursday 25th July 2013 at The Old Marylebone Town Hall in London. This was our legal registry office ceremony, and only our immediate family members were present. Our second wedding was on Saturday 27th July 2013 at North Hill Farm, Chorleywood. 

Our second wedding was a celebration for all our other guests, although we did have an informal ceremony led by our friend. This involved sitting on straw bales, sing-a-longs ('Eight Days a Week' by the Beatles and 'You Give A Little Love' from Bugsy Malone), readings and 'vows' from Jim and I.

Wedding Cakes Suitable for a Queen

Do you remember Kate Middleton's wedding cake? It was an amazing EIGHT tier creation of delicious fruit cake, decorated with up to 900 delicate sugar-paste flowers. Fiona Cairns and her team spent five weeks making it perfect, before it was demolished by hundreds of VIP guests. I'd have saved my piece for posterity - wouldn't you? While you probably can't afford a cake as intricate as Kate and Will's, you could still choose a Fiona Cairns cake, either a bespoke design created by her team, or {would you believe it!} from Waitrose. They've started stocking Fiona Cairns' designs, and I'm really impressed with the selection - it's hard to tell the difference! What's more - you can choose the size and flavour of your cake, and have it delivered direct to your wedding venue.

Real Bohemian Tepee English Garden Wedding: Sarah & Andy

Tepee marquees are official the new trend of this summer season. With their vintage rustic charm, they add bohemian charm to an English countryside wedding, and they have much more personality than your bog-standard marquee. Hire them from Stunning Tents or World Inspired Tents. Gorgeous couple Sarah and Andy chose to host their wedding reception in a tepee marquee in a wildflower meadow next to Sarah's parents home in Suffolk. I'm loving all their personlised wedding details, from the peach giant balloons to the DIY wedding flowers {arranged by Sarah's friend Ruth}, Mexican style bunting and the sheep-skin covered benches. I've always been a fan of family-style dining - it adds a warmth to the wedding meal. Sarah and Andy wanted their wedding to feel like a relaxed summer garden party, and with Pimms on offer, and outdoor games for the children, it was the perfect English wedding. Stunning pictures, as ever, from the hugely talented Justine Ferrari Photography.