A Boho Dreamcatcher Wedding Theme

An old hippy favourite, dreamcatchers are being reimagined for the twenty-first century in a kaleidoscope of colours and designs. I love them as the basis for a wedding theme - they represent all the hopes and dreams of the traditional marriage ceremony, but in a boho style. Use them as wedding decorations, favours and as a motif on your wedding stationery. You could even create a wedding altar out of a giant catcher. More ideas on my Boho Wedding Pinterest page, including lots of Etsy sellers and DIY wedding ideas.

A English Country Garden Wedding with Pretty Vintage Details - Part 2

A vintage tractor, bridesmaids in wellington boots, and military men in uniform - just a few of my favourite things about this quirky big day. Andy and Catherine planned their spring wedding with only four months to spare, and personalised every detail, thanks to the help of their friends and family. In the build-up to their big day, they held craft evenings to cut and sew the bunting, put covers on homemade jam jar wedding favours, and design the wedding stationery. They even prepared an Easter Egg hunt for their guests. Enjoy these fantastic pictures by Sarah Relf at Lawless Rose Photography, and don't miss my favourite wedding detail - the fabulous cake by Dippy Design.

A English Country Garden Wedding with Pretty Vintage Details

There's something uniquely romantic about a military wedding - they have the weight of history behind them, and everyone loves a man in uniform! Groom Andy is a captain in the army, so when he and Catherine left the church, they walked under a fabulous guard of honour, complete with shiny swords. Stunning! The happy couple planned their wedding in only four and a half months, but didn't scrimp on details - this big day is packed with stunning ideas. I love the English country garden theme, the vintage crockery, the gorgeous bridesmaids in sage green, and the beautiful barn venue. Don't miss the fantastic reception pictures in Part 2 - huge thanks to Sarah Relf at Lawless Rose Photography for capturing every detail.

A Lily-of-the-Valley Wedding Theme

Have you heard of lily-of-the-valley? It's the most exquisite flower, with tiny little white bells, and the sweetest scent. It's one of my favourite flowers, and luckily came into bloom just in time for my London wedding in early May. My mother picked it from her garden, and DIY'd my beautiful bouquet. It's a notoriously hard plant to force into flower, so if you want it at your wedding day, you'll have to be lucky! It's even got the royal seal of approval - Kate Middleton chose it for her wedding, and Grace Kelly carried a small bouquet of lily-of-the-valley on her big day. Once you see it, you'll fall in love - take a look at these wedding ideas, and check out my Pinterest page for more.

Wonderful Wedding Blog Links

How can it be May already? This month sees my fourth wedding anniversary, and if you've been following the blog, you'll have spotted I've already republished my London wedding pictures, by the fabulous Caught the Light. You'll have to wait a few more weeks for more of my French wedding shots, unless you're sneaky, and click on this link. The month of May sees the start of the wedding season in earnest, so if you're an upcoming bride reading this post, be sure to send me your wedding pictures so I can blog them {email me}! I've had a bit of time this week to explore the wonderful world of weddings online, so you'll love these links - they're packed full for wed-spiration.

{Photo Credit} Marianne Taylor Photography, Source.

♥  A colourful artist's wedding
♥  A wonderful woodland wedding with animal masks
♥  A cake competition wedding
♥  This eccentric British wedding venue will blow you away!
♥  A French inspired wedding with something blue
♥  The simplest & chicest of London weddings
♥  A festival-themed wedding with a happy boho bride
♥  When only a French chateau wedding will do
♥  The biggest bouquet of peonies I've ever seen!
♥  Gotta love a groom in a floral shirt
♥  Botanical wedding inspiration you can't fault
♥  A bride in leather and lace
♥  Colourful & cute - a trendy east London wedding

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Jenny Packham's New Bridal Collection for 2016

Fashion is a crazy world. Can you believe the designers have already released their collections for 2016? One of my favourite wedding dress designers of all time, Jenny Packham showed her 2016 Bridal Collection at New York Bridal Fashion Week. As ever, the collection is d-i-v-i-n-e! Inspired by Shakespeare's fairy realm and the characters of A Midsummer Night's Dream, it features celestial silk tulles, romantically sculpted corsetry and cascading silk chiffon. Add in a few appliqué organza blooms, ostrich feathers, crystal foliage motifs and delicate floral lace, and you've got a very happy wedding blogger. The collection will be available internationally from July, so autumn and winter brides - this is all about you! And the big question - will you pick one of the mint gowns?

Glamorous Golden Tattoos for Your Wedding Day

There's a huge trend at the moment for golden body art. Personally I wouldn't ever want a tattoo, but these temporary stencils are super-glamorous. They've got the feel of a wild summer holiday, and would look gorgeous on a boho bride. Keep it simple - less is more...... you could always surprise your husband with one stuck on somewhere under your wedding dress! California-based store Creative Swirls Shop will even create a bespoke design for you, but a simple love tattoo set is only £7. London stockists include Karizma and Awsm.Tattoo.

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My Secret London Wedding Anniversary - Part 2

So here we go ladies, Part 2 of my vintage tea-party themed wedding. After our quicky wedding ceremony in Hackney Town Hall {our local}, we headed to Victoria Park for our pictures, where {joy of joys} we found the best photo-prop ever. An ice-cream van! I'd really recommend trying to organise a few photo props - it makes for much more natural portraits, particularly if you're feeling a bit stressed on your wedding day. After our pictures we headed home for our vintage tea party reception. We decorated our Shoreditch flat with handmade white pompoms, white bunting bought from eBay, and a dozens of roses bought from Columbia Road Flower Market on the cheap! Stunning photographs published with thanks to Caught the Light, and I've filled in my own Before the Big Day Bridal Questionnaire, so check out my answers below for all my suppliers and wedding DIY projects.

My Secret London Wedding - Our 4th Anniversary

Four years ago today, we celebrated our secret wedding in London. Why secret? Well our 'real' wedding was in Provence, but legally we had to get married in the UK first. At first we thought we'd just sneak off on a Tuesday afternoon and get married privately with just two witnesses. But then our parents wanted in. And then we realised that the grandparents weren't going to make it out to France, so they snaffled invitations. And then, being a wedding blogger, I got all excited about a vintage tea-party wedding theme, and Chloe from Caught the Light offered to do our pictures. So before we knew it, we were planning two weddings. That's two ceremonies, two themes, two dresses {lucky me!}, and double the details! Take a look, and see what you think!

A 'Blooming' New Forest Autumn Wedding with DIY Details - Part 2

Take one wedding florist, add a graphic designer husband-to-be, and a group of insanely talented guests, and you have a wedding-made-in-heaven. Jen and Lee celebrated their big day in the autumn, and completely mixed up their wedding schedule, to make sure they didn't lose the light for their pictures. This inspired decision meant the party started straight away, and the lovely Ben Goode got to take these stunning portrait pictures in a gorgeous golden light. It's definitely an idea to steal if you're planning an autumn or winter wedding. As long as you don't mind seeing each other before the ceremony, then it's a winner! There's so many other brilliant details, you'll want to save every shot - from their giant, fairground-style, illuminated initials, to the CD favours made to look like mini-vinyls, and the chocolate brownie pyramid wedding cake. And did I mention Jen is a florist? Wedding flowers to die for! If you missed Part 1, don't!

A 'Blooming' New Forest Autumn Wedding with DIY Details

I absolutely L-O-V-E it when a Before the Big Day bride gets in touch with me and asks if I'd like to feature her wedding. It's like being included on the guest list! Lovely Jennifer read this blog in the build up to her wedding day, and sent over the beautiful pictures by Ben Goode. I'm in love with every one, and completely obsessed with all the perfectly DIY'd details. Jen is a florist, so obviously the flowers were sorted, her husband Lee is a graphic designer and hand-made all of the fabulous stationery, a friend made the wedding cake, another friend DJ'd, and Jen's mum is a writer, and crafted a very funny reading for the ceremony out of all their guests' tips. Put together this saved them some pennies, but also made the day so much more personal. There's so much stealworthy wedding inspiration, I'm finding it hard to know where to start.....maybe with Jen's stunning high-street wedding dress, but don't miss the fun vintage VW camper-van, the locally-bought bridesmaid gowns, the flowery cocktails, and most of all the incredible wedding flowers - all designed by Jen herself. Such a dreamy wedding - more to come in Part 2 later today!

Colourful Accessories & Ideas for a Picnic Wedding

There's nothing I like more than spotting something that gets my creative mind grinding! Today it was all about wooden spoons......yes really! Take a look at these fantastic, colourful little spoons from Sucre Shop. Doesn't it make you want to throw a wedding and serve ice-cream in little paper pots? Or strawberries and cream? I can imagine them at a picnic wedding, where everyone sits on blankets and feasts from a central basket, before playing lawn games and roasting marshmallows on open fires. All of that from a simple spoon!! More picnic wedding ideas on the blog & on my Pinterest page.

{I want this!} Variety Pack 20 Wooden Spoons from Sucre Shop, approx £7

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A Magical Forest Wedding with a Secret Nightclub - Part 2

Welcome to the wedding reception of the year! I've never seen anything as gorgeous as the marquee decorations at Nels and Antony's wedding - giant blossom branches, stunning green drapery and sparkly fairy lights create a magical forest-feel. It's all thanks to the creative energies of wedding planner Kelly Chandler from The Bespoke Wedding Company and event stylists, Crescent Moon. I love how they included the pond from the grounds inside the marquee, and added floating hydrangea blooms for an incredibly romantic effect. Other stealworthy details include the hilarious pork pie wedding cake, and Nels' slate wedding favours cum place markers. Also their secret budget buy - an M&S three-tier traditional cake, decorated with flowers, for a luxe effect! Thank you to both Bibi Basch and Crescent Moon for capturing every detail of this gorgeous wedding.

A Magical Forest Wedding with a Secret Nightclub

Can you imagine only having four months to plan your wedding? That's how long Nels and Antony gave themselves, but thanks to the help of wedding planner extraordinaire, Kelly Chandler from The Bespoke Wedding Company, they created a truly extraordinary day. Their wedding reception marquee is like something from a fairy-tale - huge branches of cherry blossom, and a sparkling pond. But the pièce de resistance came later in the evening, when a curtain was drawn back to reveal an entirely differently themed black and white dance area, and then another reveal moment introduced a hidden 'man snug' filled with Chesterfield sofas and whisky. Amazing! Don't miss the pictures in Part 2, published later today. Other details to steal include Nels' beautiful David Tutera wedding gown, complete with extra sparkles, her pretty pink and teal colour scheme, and Antony's seriously dapper vintage morning suit. Huge thanks to both Bibi Basch and Crescent Moon for permission to publish these stunning photographs, and for capturing every detail!

How to DIY Your Wedding Altar & Aisle

The perfect wedding venue is really difficult to find, and it's partly down to the restrictions on civil ceremonies. Marriage is a serious business, but in my view the government is waaaay too prescriptive about where we're allowed to celebrate a wedding ceremony. I'm always getting emails from brides who don't want to get married in a church, but are depressed with the civil ceremony venues in their local area. My solution isn't for everyone, but it worked perfectly for us. We had two weddings; a quickie ceremony in our local Hackney Registry Office, followed by our big 'official' wedding in Aix-en-Provence in France. This gave us the freedom to create our own ceremony {click to read}, write our own vows, and most importantly choose any venue on the planet. If this type of wedding takes your fancy, then you're going to need some serious wedding inspiration for altar and aisle decorations, and that's where the Before the Big Day Pinterest board will step into the breach! Just take a look at these fabulous, colourful wedding ideas - many more here.

{Photo Credit} Kristilee Parish Photography, see more from this wedding on Wedding Chicks blog

The Cutest Wedding Toppers In The World

We didn't have a wedding cake topper. I forgot to find one, and needless to say, it wasn't exactly top of my husband's list. It didn't matter on the day, because the caterers provided a truly dreadful, and therefore hilarious cake topper to finish off our croquembouche wedding cake. However it has led to a slight obsession on my part. I'm now always on the look-out for the wedding cake topper I would have chosen. My current favourites are these DIY'd kokeshi dolls from Wood and Grain. They're just the right combination of cute and cool, with a lovely dash of vintage and rustic. Plus they're custom-made, so you can ask designer Christine to hand-paint them to match your wedding attire and hair-style {and pet!}. They're a lovely idea for a wedding anniversary present as well.

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Shabby-Chic Jane Austen Themed Wedding Shoot - Part 2

Time for Part 2 of this incredible Jane Austen-themed wedding shoot. You've got to love English literature as the perfect wedding inspiration, particularly if you're planning a marquee or country-house wedding. With endless wedding ideas, you're going to want to copy every one of these pictures to your wedding Pinterest board. My favourite spots? I'm loving the blackberries in the bridal bouquet, the indoor as outdoor chandelier in the garden, the decadent picnic set-up, and all the vintage details, including the cake stand, apple crates and quilt. Dress your bridesmaids and pageboys in antique clothing, and add a traditional feel to your wedding day. Huge thanks to Dominic Whiten Photography for these beautiful pictures. Don't miss the list of all the other talented vendors who made this Wedding Shoot possible - after the pics. If you didn't catch Part 1, don't miss it - click here.

Shabby-Chic Jane Austen Themed Wedding Shoot

Romantic brides who love their literature are going to adore this beautiful Jane Austin wedding shoot organised by Melissa Love Design and Orchestrated, and photographed by Dominic Whiten Photography. Theming your wedding around your favourite book is such a brilliant idea, although you've got to hope your husband isn't a fan of Lord of the Rings, or you could find your ushers dressed as orcs! My wedding was loosely styled around The Secret Garden, which meant lots of vintage keys and a wedding reception in a walled garden. This Jane Austin theme sees tonnes of pretty nods to literature and books, with a traditional English tea and picnic, plus croquet on the lawn. Stealworthy wedding ideas include the adorable striped wedding stationery, the antique silver napkin rings {start collecting now at car boot sales and off eBay}, using fruit as table decorations, and traditional English blooms like roses and lavender. I also love the flower crown worn by the 'bride'. Buckets more wedding inspiration on its way in Part 2, published first thing tomorrow!

Wedding Trends of 2015 - Classy Chevrons

Polka-dots, stripes, and tartan, they've all had their day. This wedding season is all about chevrons. The humble zig-zag is finally making its mark. Whether you chose a sequinned table cloth, a patterned paper straw, or a sexy envelope liner, add the classy chevron to your big day. Here's a selection of my favourite looks - find more on my Pinterest Board.

A Pretty Pastel Blue Winter Wedding with a Tea-Party Theme

After years of not receiving many winter weddings, my inbox is suddenly full of lovely photographs! The latest bride to choose January for her big day is Natalie, and I've fallen for her stunning ice blue and gold colour palette. Natalie's Cotton and Crumbs cake was the first thing she ordered, and the inspiration for the rest of her wedding. I love its tea-cup topper, and ornate lace icing, but there's plenty of other wedding details for you - from the gorgeous Coast bridesmaid maxi-dresses, Natalie's stunning Charlie Brear gown and Glenn's specially tailored suit. Enjoy! Many thanks to the lovely Kayleigh Pope for sending over these lovely wedding pictures.