Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

DIY

A Retro Americana Wedding: Ralph & Carly

Kat

August 22, 2012

Ralph & Carly love all things Americana and retro and so the theme for their wedding was easy to decide on. They wanted to incorporate the feeling of driving through America in an open top car - something they love to do in real life. Ralph had even proposed on a road trip through Arizona, one of their favourite places in the USA. "We love Americana and we feel that there is a big difference between what is retro and what is vintage", Carly explained. "We wanted our wedding to be all things that we love. We love nothing more than booking a flight and a car in the US and then exploring, although sometimes we end up in very peculiar places and cannot wait for daylight to arrive so that we can head out! For the most part though it's the way that we have discovered some of our favourite places. Each table was named after a hotel or motel that we have stayed in on our trips, there have been many others but these had the coolest signs."
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An Elopement-Style Ceremony with Friends & Family: Teresa & Russell

Kat

August 20, 2012

"Teresa & Russell’s wedding was like an elopement which included family and close friends", wrote wedding photographer Melina of Lucinda Photography. "They left their East Vancouver home with suitcases packed for their Montreal honeymoon for which they were leaving only a couple of hours after the ceremony! We did some whirlwind portraits in their neighbourhood before heading to Vanier Park to help friends set up some chairs and refreshments. Guests arrived, they were married, the mingled and they left. It was great."
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Red, Polka Dots & An Ice Cream Van – A Budget-Friendly DIY Wedding: Kelly & Matt

Kat

August 17, 2012

With a budget of just £8500, Kelly & Matt pulled of a wedding that perfectly encapsulated everything about them. From the cute red colour scheme, the DIY details and the relaxed photography, their wedding was one to remember. "We did absolutely everything ourselves for as little money as possible!," began the bride. "We wanted the day to represent us as a couple and to be really personal. We wanted to make it a really relaxed atmosphere and make sure all our guests and we had fun. The theme was slightly retro, with red as the main colour set around black and white polka dots and loads of red love hearts! Everything looked exactly as we had imagined and seeing it all for the first time was one of my favourite parts of the day. All the details looked amazing and we were glad we put so much time and effort into them."
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An Intimate Australian Wedding & A Bride in Blue: Fiona & Andrew

Kat

August 17, 2012

Fiona & Andrew's DIY wedding in Victoria, Australia was themed around the things they love - vintage items, 1950s styling, cherries, hearts and flowers. They took these ideas as the starting point and built their wedding around them. "We wanted the guests to be able to feel as much a part of the day as possible, hence the small guest list of only 45 and the extended weekend long celebration", began the bride. "We made a lot ourselves. I made a ring cushion from the same fabric as my sash/bolero and a piece of fabric from my mum's wedding dress. We had a ring warming ceremony before I arrived where the cushion was brought around my my 5 year old nephew, Oliver, and guests where asked to send a blessing our way."
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A Rainy Brazilian Wedding with DIY Details: Cecilia & Luciano

Kat

August 16, 2012

Cecilia & Luciano wanted a simple wedding inspired by their choice of venue, Pousada Estrela D'água, in Trancoso, Brazil. "My inspiration was the wedding venue", explained the bride. "The village of Trancoso, Bahia, is beautiful and simple at the same time. That's what I sought in all my wedding decisions. I did not want anything too pretentious. For the decorations we used photos of family and tablecloths that belonged to our great grandmothers. The decor had a bit of our history and showed a lot of our personality." Cecilia made her own dress from the lace of the veil that her mother-in-law wore when she married. She also designed and made the bridesmaid's dresses. "There was no specific theme to anything really", she continued. "We just tried to do everything as simple as possible."
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A Rockabilly Las Vegas Wedding: John & Marnie

Kat

August 13, 2012

Australian John & Marnie spent six weeks travelling around the US for their honeymoon after their wedding in Las Vegas. They were in town for the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Festival and they loved the idea of getting married there. The ceremony was held at Little Church of the West, a quaint little 'mini church' looking chapel, right at the south end of the strip and the after party was at Level 107 Cocktail lounge in the Stratosphere hotel - right at the north end!
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A French Garden Wedding: Elodie & Alexis

Kat

August 9, 2012

Welcome to Elodie & Alexis' gorgeous French wedding. If you loved their engagement shoot this morning, then their nuptials are gonna blow your socks off! The wedding ceremony was held in the bride's parent's back garden which they decorated themselves. Alexis picked all the flowers and pulled together a bouquet of wheat for Elodie to carry down the aisle. As I said in this morning's post, the couple are both deaf and found their film-loving deaf photographer Ashton Jean-Pierre at World Deaf Art Festival in Reims, near Paris, last Summer.
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A Garden Engagement with Giant Animal Heads: Elodie & Alexis

Kat

August 9, 2012

I've got a double dose of the gorgeous Elodie & Alexis today, starting with their incredible engagement shoot. Shot by film-loving photographer Ashton Jean-Pierre, this stylish couple flew him from London to Normandy, France to shoot their engagement and wedding. Ashton is deaf as are both Elodie & Alexis. They found Ashton at World Deaf Art Festival in Reims, near Paris, last Summer. Elodie also happens to be a Rock n Roll Bride fan, hurrah! As soon as they met, they knew Ashton was the perfect wedding photographer for them. After 10 months of communicating via email it was finally time to shoot!
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A New York Wedding with an Explosion of Colour: Ali & Jason

Kat

August 8, 2012

What could be better to bright up your morning than this incredibly colourful wedding which was held in the Vanderbilt Museum and Mansion in Centerport, New York? "Our wedding was a kaleidoscope of all our favorite things in life: each other, colors, friends, family, booze, and good times", began Ali, the bride. "The inspiration was simple. For my husband and I, love is about accepting our separate lives as one, and building new memories within us. We wanted to be sure this day was not just about us, but our whole family. My friends had a really tough year - my best friend's dad fell off a roof and we weren't sure he'd make it (he did, and we thank our lucky stars), my other best friend battled cancer (and won!) and other bridesmaid lost her cousin. I myself lost two friendships during the planning process and dealt with a bout of shingles from the stress. It made me realize how important this day was for everyone and a chance to forget about the troubles that so often weigh us down. So I dreamt up the ultimate day, hoping we could all remember what it was like to witness love grow and beauty surround us. I wanted absolute peace and serenity for myself and for the many people we love. Moreover, I planned this day with our friends and family very, very close to my heart. I could not have wished for anything more."
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A Modern Art Themed Wedding & a Bride with Dreadlocks: Chris & Angela

Kat

August 7, 2012

"Arty & creative" replied Chris & Angela when I asked them to describe their wedding theme. "Lots of people on the day used words like 'informal' and 'relaxed' as well which was nice as it was what we kind of wanted. We were glad they picked up on it." The June wedding was held at Underley Grange Cottage in the Lake District. The couple homemade as much as possible, including all the reception decor. "Where do I begin with explaining the DIY?" laughed Angela. "Pretty much everything in the reception room was homemade. One of our favourite things was decorating parasols in the style of modern artists and hanging them from the ceiling. We made our own invitations - including hand making the actual paper! It turned out to be quite a saga; that and folding a hundred paper cranes for the RSVPs was quite a lot of work! On the plus side, as a milliner, the wedding was a great excuse to make lots of fun hats and fascinators for everyone."
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A Black, White & Red Wedding in a Windmill: Suzie & Andrew

Kat

August 3, 2012

Suzie & Andrew wanted a really unique venue for their unique wedding and so chose a Willesborough Windmill in Ashford, Kent. They had just 47 guests (including 13 bridesmaids!) and they really did things their own way. From the DIY catering, to the ice cream van dessert, and the chocolate favours to the lady bug bouncy castle, the day was planned around the things they love. "My main goal for our wedding was that I wanted a day that wasn't strictly structured," began newlywed Suzie. "I wanted a laid back afternoon and evening filled with fun, laughter, eating, drinking and general enjoyment for everyone. All my close family & friends wanted to help which was great and they are contributed so much to our day."
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A Black & Red, 50s Rock n Roll Wedding: Hannah & Lewiss

Kat

August 1, 2012

Hannah & Lewiss' small and sweet wedding was held at St Fagans Castle, the National History Museum of Wales. For their evening party they moved to the trendy Jolyons at No.10, a boutique hotel in the heart of Cardiff. The venue choices were important to this couple and they both wanted places that stood out. Hannah explained, "We both didn't believe in long engagements so we set a date for 9 months after we got engaged. Finding a unique venue was important to us, but this was harder than we imagined. Living in Cardiff, we wanted somewhere in South Wales but it seemed to be flooded with chain hotel venues or vast historic buildings which were too big for the small wedding we had dreamed of. After overlooking it a couple of times we went to visit St Fagans Castle. St Fagans is the National History Museum of Wales, an outdoor museum full of historical buildings from all around the country. The Castle is a Grade 1 listed Elizabethan Manor House set in the most fabulous gardens. Even though it wasn’t what we originally had in mind, we knew straight away it was perfect. Also it’s in the area where Lewiss grew up and his parents still live, so it being local meant a lot to him."
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A Backyard Pool Party Wedding: Kate & Doug

Kat

July 31, 2012

Kate & Doug's backyard wedding took place in Kent in June. Kate designed her own dress, hand-crafted the decor and played in a band with her husband at the reception! She told me all about their magical day. "We have been together for 10 years so we really wanted to have a proper big wedding to cement our relationship and have a blast with our friends and family. I really wanted to get married in the garden of England, Kent, where I grew up and have a proper English country wedding. So we started looking at venues and found Ratsbury Barn, a beautiful 17th century Kentish barn in Tenterden for the ceremony. Then, my Mother's boyfriend who lives down the road very kindly offered to let us use his amazing place for the reception! We got a marquee and extended his pool house area, it was perfect."
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A DIY Farm Wedding with the Ceremony on a Dam: Bobby & Gitte

Kat

July 31, 2012

There are certain weddings that literally made me smile from ear to ear... OK well yes, all of the weddings I feature are flippin' awesome but there are some that just have that extra something. I think in this case it's the bride & groom themselves. I want to be BFFs with Bobby & Gitte please! For their May wedding the couple knew they wanted to do something different - something low key and fun. They spent just £2500 pulling off the event. The ceremony was held on Claerwen Reservoir Dam in Rhayadar, Wales. Although not the most practical of choices, they wanted it there for sentimental reasons. The reception was on a friend's farm in Ballingham, Hereford. "It took us a few days to get the venue together, as there were literally cows and horses – and their muck - in it prior," wrote Gitte. "But once we saw it we had our heart set on it, and didn’t stop until our hands were dirty and we were happy."
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