How Do You Know If Your Business Idea is a Good One?

Kat

Janneke Storm

November 26, 2013

Homespun Backyard Wedding with Autumnal Touches: Ashley & Mark

Kat

Jennifer Van Elk

November 26, 2013

Honeymoon Travel Guide: Surfers Paradise, The Gold Coast

Kat

November 25, 2013

Opulent Vivienne Westwood Inspired Wedding: Sashy & Dashy

Kat

Anna Hardy

November 25, 2013

When wedding photographer Anna Hardy told me that she just shot a wedding where the bride wore the Vivienne Westwood wedding dress from the first Sex and the City movie, I was excited, damn excited. As someone who not only owns the entire box set of SATC but pretty much watched in a week straight when I got it, I couldn't wait to see how a real bride looked in this iconic gown. And the answer? FIERCE.

The Blogcademy Down Under: Brisbane

Kat

Janneke Storm

November 23, 2013

With winter just beginning to rear its ugly head over the Northern Hemisphere I was pleased as punch to be heading to the other side of the planet to teach our final four Blogcademy classes of the year, our first of which took place in sunny Brisbane.

Business Bites: Get Over It and Get It Done

Kat

Lakshal Perera

November 22, 2013

Late one night this week, as I was battling the jet lag and working on blog posts way past 3am, I was simultaneously having an email conversation with Paul Jarvis: web designer, writer and all round awesome dude, If you haven't obsessed over Paul's work yet by the way, where have you been?

Marriage Mantras: 50 Pieces of Advice for a Happy Marriage

Kat

Devlin Photos

November 22, 2013

As this Marriage Mantras series comes to a close, I thought I'd conclude with 50 bite-sized pieces of advice that you can implement today and forever.

Utah Mountains Elopement: Patrick & Trisha

Kat

Jessie Alexis

November 22, 2013

Patrick and Trisha eloped in Utah, just off the Alpine Loop Road, in Provo Canyon above the Sundance Resort. They had just a few family members in attendance and the bride wore a short lace dress from H&M.

Thursday Treats: Back Home and Wrapping Up Warm

Kat

November 21, 2013

BRR!! Talk about stating the obvious but oh England you are so cold! I landed back in the UK on Tuesday morning and after nearly a month in balmy (or at least nicely mild) spring temperatures down under the 5 degree welcome was a little tough to take. I'm currently sat on my sofa wrapped up in two jumpers, black tights and a massive scarf, I guess there's no hiding from the fact that winter is well as truly here!

Eccentric Outdoor/ Indoor Garden Party: Lara & Gav

Kat

Ellie Gillard

November 21, 2013

Lara and Gav were married in Lara's parent's back garden. They set up a marquee and decorated it with collected and borrowed items from friends and junk shops. "The garden was beyond perfect despite the rain", explained the bride. "It has been lovingly created and maintained by my parents since they moved in 15 years ago. It has always played host to whimsical parties, and lent itself brilliantly to the occasion."

Honeymoon Travel Guide: Queensland – Dreamworld, Kangaroos & Cuddles with Brandy The Koala

Kat

Janneke Storm

November 20, 2013

When the initial email from Celeste at Tourism and Events Queensland came into The Blogcademy inbox asking us if we’d consider an all-expenses paid trip to Queensland I nearly deleted it, assuming it must be spam. I mean, this kind of opportunity doesn't exactly come knocking on your door everyday. After verifying that Celeste wasn't, in fact, just playing a rather cruel prank, we started to plan our epic adventure down under!

Retro Bowls Club Wedding with the Bride in Black: Agnes & Liam

Kat

Philippa James

November 20, 2013

Agnes and Liam's Balham Bowls Club wedding was full of budget-friendly DIY details. "We did everything we could to not have a theme - if we liked something, we used it, regardless if it went with anything else or not!" the bride began. "We said from the outset that we wanted everything to be a joint decision, and Liam to be as involved as me in our choices."

The Secret of Success

Kat

Shell De Mar

November 19, 2013

I kinda hate it when people ask me what I do for a living. It's not that I'm embarrassed, but when you reply with "I'm a blogger", it's usually followed by a million other questions like "Is that like Facebook?", "What's a blog?" and "How do you make money?" Another round of questions that I seem to get asked a lot are about how I became successful and profitable at something so many others try, and fail, to do. Like I have a secret that others haven't quite figured out yet or something. People always want to know if there was one defining moment or a turning point that took my blog from a small hobby on the side to what it is today... but I'm sorry to report that the answer is always no.

Thrifty Maine Cornfield Wedding: Myles & Cait

Kat

Ryan Eyestone

November 19, 2013

Unbelievably, Myles and Cait spent just $2000 on their incredibly detailed Maine wedding. Held at PLD Auction Barn in Mechanic Falls, the wedding was thrifty and gorgeous. Cait wore a dress made up of two summer dresses from oasap.com, $8 shoes from Goodwill and borrowed jewellery. Myles' outfit was also thrifted from Goodwill stores.

DIY Tutorial: Leather Bow and Skull Shoe Clips

Kat

Laura Power

November 18, 2013

Alongside your new fancy feather ombre skirt you're clearly going to need some killer shoes. However if you can't stretch to buying your dream pair right now, how about updating a pair of old faithfuls with these epic leather bow clips? The bows are made from leather offcuts which are cheapy available from eBay or workshops that use leather, so this is a really affordable idea too!

Eyes Wide Shut Wedding Inspiration

Kat

Wonderfulife Productions

November 18, 2013

OK so it might seem like an odd place to find inspiration for your wedding, but Stanley Kubrick's more than a little weird movie does have some killer style ideas. If you skip over the orgies and secret society-weirdness, the mask ball scenes were pretty darn beautiful.

Wes Anderson Inspired Brewery Wedding: Jessica & David

Kat

Shannon Collins

November 17, 2013

The submission I received for Jessica and David's wedding began "If Wes Anderson was a wedding planner..." so instantly my interest was sparked. The Philadelphia wedding was a quirky Southern BBQ with retro touches. "I never knew what to say when people asked what the theme was", explained the bride. "I'd reply with 'It's a wedding... isn't that the theme?' I guess it was more about the color and the mood we wanted to create. I love retro fashion and I also love all those farm/ garden weddings all over wedding blogs. I also had our budget in mind and keeping in the budget helped make a lot of decisions about said theme... so maybe we can call it a budget retro summer garden party!"

Business Bites: What Goal Would You Set Yourself If You Knew You Couldn’t Fail?

Kat

November 15, 2013

With my adventures down under soon drawing to a close, this week I've really started to think about my goals and plans for 2014. While, yes, it may be a little intimating to ponder a whole new set of tasks and things that need to be achieved, it is one of my favourite things to do. Someone in our Auckland workshop this week asked me why it was important to set yourself goals and commented that she was scared to do so in case she didn't achieve them. I told her what I'm telling you now.

Marriage Mantras: Time Apart

Kat

Made U Look

November 15, 2013

I've been away from Gareth for three weeks today - the longest time we've had apart since I was at University. I'm not going to lie, it's been really, really difficult. As a couple that spend 99% of our time together when we're in the same country (!) I've missed him terribly. Although I've been busy working and having an awesome time with my girls, every night I've been going to bed wishing he was beside me.

Sneaker Themed Wedding in The Philippines: JQ & Barbie

Kat

We Do it For Love

November 15, 2013

I've got a really fun and unique wedding for you today and I'm pretty sure you're going to love it. In all my years of wedding blogging I'v certainly never seen a sneaker themed wedding!