UK

A Quintessentially British (slightly) Royal Tea Party

Kat

April 26, 2011

The royal wedding is kind of a big deal...people worldwide are gearing up for the 'show' and even London has gone all patriotic for once. Union Jack flats hang above Regent St and pretty much every shop window is littered with red, white and blue tat. I however, am not so excited about the whole thing. I'm not adverse to two people falling in love and getting married...far from it in fact. I'm more than a little bit thrilled that William and Kate are getting married. I love marriage and I couldn't be happier for them! However it's the media charade that surrounds the whole thing that kills me...and the fact that, as someone that works in the wedding industry, this is supposed to be some 'once in a lifetime experience' for me...and seriously, if you'd been sent as many irrelevant royal wedding-related press released as I have, you'd be pretty over it too. Yaaaawn. Most un-Rock n Roll wedding ever. Fact.

Ilka & Mars’ Early 20th Century-Inspired Wedding

Kat

April 21, 2011

"Circa 1991, and like most 9 year old girls at the time, my dream wedding typically consisted of getting married in a castle, having a horse-drawn carriage at midnight and saying 'I Do' to Jason Priestly. So fast-forward 20 years...our castle was in busy Tooting Broadway, wedged in between a Mecca Bingo Hall and a McDonalds, with a KFC conveniently across the road. Our horse-drawn carriage was a local taxi, well beyond midnight. And Jason Priestly? He got bumped for my love and best friend, Mars. It was completely perfect for us. Sad to say, Brandon had been banished to the Peach Pit forever." I love Ilka & Mars already. How about you? Mar's proposed at the airport, just before Ilka was about to fly home to Australia, with her Grandmother's engagement ring. She explained, "So after a couple of years of living together and rarely talking 'seriously' about getting married, I was waiting in the busy security line at Heathrow, about to spend 3 weeks back home in Australia for a Christmas apart, when Mars popped the question. After unknowingly foiling an attempted romantic proposal during a holiday in New York a few months earlier, it was a perfect chance to catch me unawares while I was unsuccessfully trying to stuff the contents of my entire handbag into a tiny clear zip-lock bag, and rush off to board the plane. It was simple and just perfect. After a quick, teary goodbye and my grandmother's beautiful engagement ring now firmly on my finger, I was herded through security and onto the plane. Needless to say, the next 24hours consisted of me taking full advantage of the onboard trolley service, trying to come to terms with what had just happened!"

Laura & Ian’s Hollywood Glamour Wedding

Kat

April 19, 2011

Three week's ago photographer Annamarie Stepney was in Reading (where I live) so she popped by to say hello...to my cats. Yeah people never come to see me any more, it's all about the internet sensations that are Henry & Rachel! Anyway, as we walked Henry round the back garden on his lead (I kid you not) she was telling me all about the wedding she was shooting the next day....at my wedding venue...well in actual fact, what should have been my wedding venue. You see, as soon as Gareth & I got engaged, I knew I wanted to have our wedding at The Forbury Hotel. It's an amazing venue and I wanted it. Bad. But sad face for us, it was already booked on our day. However I am really excited to see how Laura & Ian's Rock n Roll wedding turned out at the venue that should have been mine!

A Sunday Kind of Love – The Niemierko Wedding Academy at The Dorchester

Kat

April 10, 2011

Wedding planner du jour, Mark Niemierko is a genius. In May, at The Dorchester no less, he will be sharing his trade secrets on how to plan a wedding in his own enviable style. Are you a budding wedding planner and want to learn from the best? Well my darlings, this is the event for you... "Following overwhelming demand, Mark Niemierko, the UK’s foremost luxury wedding planner,will share his trade and style secrets at the very first Niemierko Wedding Academy. Consisting of a high-end inspirational experience, the Niemierko Wedding Academy will help equip its students with the tools and contacts to become wedding planners of quality in the future."

A Proud to be British, Camden Bridal Shoot

Kat

April 9, 2011

A little bit of retro and punk glamour was in order when blogger Adelle Frejus of Peonies and Pearls got together with photographer Anneli Marinovich for a photo shoot in Camden, London.

A Vintage Great British Seaside Shoot

Kat

April 7, 2011

This beautiful and creative photo shoot was put together by the ladies behind Dottie Creations and Dottie Photography. It was inspired by their love of the great British seaside. Mandy & Zoe, the ladies behind both companies, styled, crafted and photographed the whole shoot themselves. They made all the awesome signage, the beautiful table decorations and the even the biscuits.

Alejandro & Aurelie’s Frida-Inspired Ceremony

Kat

April 5, 2011

Alejandro & Aurelie's wedding was a small one - tiny in fact. They were wed at Hammersmith & Fulham Registry Office with just a few close friends in attendance. They didn't have a reception but instead will be having a big family party back home in Switzerland later this year.

Lucy & Andy’s Budget-Friendly, “Let’s Do It Our Way” Wedding

Kat

April 1, 2011

This beautiful, vintage-inspired wedding came about after Lucy proposed to Andy on a trip to London. "I took Andy away to Tower Bridge London, to stay in a 5 star hotel on Valentines Day 2010," the bride told me. "He kept saying,'You're not going to propose are you?'. I said 'No of course not, don't be silly'. Then as we were walking back to the hotel under the bridge by the dolphin statue, I placed a ring box shaped like an orange in his hand. He looked at it and said 'What's this?' with a scared look on his face. And I said 'Open it', then 'Will you marry me?'. The colour drained from his face, I cried, he said 'Oh, I was planning to propose to you, and I started saving for a ring, and what is everyone going to say?' I just said, 'Look, I have saved you the bother of saving your money for months and months. Let do this our way'."

Chi Chi Revolver’s Tattooed Bridal Shoot

Kat

March 31, 2011

"I was really inspired reading the winning entry to your Knot Couture dress competition recently," photographer Bethan of Haywood Jones Photography told me. "It was hard to picture how it would feel to be made so uncomfortable in a shop who were clearly disapproving of you, thinking we live in a properly modern society (!) until it happened to me last weekend (not because I have beautiful body art sadly, but much more because I was dressed a bit scruffily and went into a very posh art shop. They actually got another member of security to stand in the shop while me and my friend walked around!!) It suddenly became clear that you really can't judge a book by its cover and that even though the *mainstream* wedding industry is becoming more accepting of the *alternative* side of peoples wedding creativity and gorgeousness, there are still many blinkered people out there who wont look past stereotypes and make you feel less than worthy of their attention."

Emma & Pete’s “Enchantment Under the Sea Dance” & A Big Fat Surprise Wedding

Kat

March 30, 2011

I honestly don't know where to begin describing Emma & Pete's wedding to you all. From the reaction to just the sneak peek post (epic) that I put up last week, I know pretty much the whole of blog-land has been eagerly awaiting to see this wedding too and so I'm pretty flipping honoured that not only was I invited (and let into the secret that it was a surprise wedding!) but that Emma & Pete have allowed me to share it with you all. I have the best job in the world.

Under The Spotlight – Doodlelove

Kat

March 29, 2011

What is it with girls and stationery? I love it. I think its the fact of owning something simple, but beautiful and personal - something you can actually hold in your hand in all it's prettiness (as weird as that sounds!) So needless to say I love love love getting emails from wedding stationery designers. The guys that contact me are always such a creative bunch and it's really awesome to see first hand, and then share with you, what they can do.

Leah & Peter’s Red + Black Rockabilly Wedding

Kat

March 29, 2011

Leah & Peter had a red & black themed rockabilly wedding. They kept the fact that they had got married earlier in the day a surprise from a lot of their guests but made sure all the most important people were in attendance...including their two (very well dressed!) pugs. "We were never officially engaged (Peter bought my my black pug Ziggy instead of an engagement ring!) we just always knew we would get married and with both of us turning 30 in June 2010 was as good a reason as any," Leah told me. !We never wanted to be the kind of people who let the real reason for getting married to be overshadowed by stressing about table placings etc so we focused on what would make us have a good time at the party and turned the tables so people were leaving with things that we had bought!"

Amanda & David’s Stonehenge Handfasting Wedding

Kat

March 28, 2011

Photographer Penny McKinley-Rodgers told me about Amanda & David's Stonehenge handfasting wedding when I met her a few weeks ago. Quite apart from the location, one of the main things that really made me fall in love with this wedding was that the couple got married at 8am and had an actual wedding breakfast - pancakes and all! I am so excited to share this one with you today because Amanda & David really did do things their own way, making them perfect for Rock n Roll Bride! "Our wedding was incredibly informal but was honestly the nicest most relaxed and meaningful wedding" the bride told me. "We also only invited 20 people, who were all our nearest and dearest and that made it utterly special. We both wish we could bottle the day and go back and live it again whenever we wanted as it finished too soon."

Magpie Vintage Launch The Rose Collection…and I Get on a Horse & Jump on a Trampoline to Celebrate!

Kat

March 25, 2011

I sneak peeked this shoot back in February but I had to wait until now to share the full thing...sorry to keep you all waiting, it was hard for me too! I was asked by Lisa & Tania, the vintage jewellery aficionados behind Magpie Vintage if I'd like to model for their latest campaign - the launch of their brand new clothing line. Needless to say I didn't need much convincing, even when they told me I had to get on a horse!

Alison & Tim’s Barbican Wedding

Kat

March 21, 2011

Alison & Tim were married in January at the conservatory in The Barbican, one of London's most iconic arts centres. It was a cool mixture of vintage and modern, reflected perfectly by what the couple wore and their dramatic venue. Alison looked beautiful in a Peter Langner dress, a pill-box hat by Jane Taylor Millinery and Emmy shoes. Tim and his best man both wore classic Cording's green tweed suits.

Annette & Chris’ Fancy Dress Victorian Circus Themed Wedding

Kat

March 17, 2011

Annette & Chris had a fancy dress/steampunk themed wedding in Liverpool. The bride wore a corset purchased from Corsets UK and a skirt from MTCoffinzUnderground on Etsy. "My dress wasn't technically a 'dress' as it was a Corset and a separate skirt," the bride told me. "I bought the white and black steel boned corset for around £60 and the skirt, which was described as a 'Victorian Lace Gothic Ball Gown', cost around £100." She also wore Victorian-style black ankle boots which she hired from a fancy dress shop! Chris hired his unique outfit from a fancy dress shop too.

Emma & James’ Wedding of Love & Laughter

Kat

March 15, 2011

Emma & James had a wedding filled with love and laughter. With help from their family & friends, the couple pretty much handmade everything for their special day. The cake was made by James' brother who has a family bakery, The Cherrytree Bakery, the bridesmaid dresses were made by a family friend and Emma, her Mum and her sisters made all the bouquets and buttonholes.

Star & Kane’s Adorable Floral Engagement

Kat

March 8, 2011

I'm a sucker for adorable florals. Who isn't in fact? The concept of the shoot was formed by Thaoski, who told me all about Star & Kane's gorgeous photo session came about. "The first time I met Star was at a Christmas party last year. It was the first time I had seen her with Kane and I remember thinking she had this old fashioned vintage sweetness about her. Kane is actually a guitar player in a rock band so together they just formed a ridiculously gorgeous 'rock-vintage' couple."

Tommy & Katie’s Bunny Engagement

Kat

March 4, 2011

Photographer Lisa Devlin told me about her plans for this shoot when we met up to discuss my initial ideas for The Big Fat Wedding Blogger's Photo Shoot. She was keen to use the Hasselblad that we'd been lent for the shoot with one of her couples, and Tommy & Katie (and their bunny suits!) were the obvious choice. "I saw some pictures of these two on Facebook dressed in big fluffy bunny suits at a fancy dress party and that sparked the idea for this quirky shoot," Lisa explained. "Tommy is the singer in the alternative rock band Slaves to Gravity and Katie is a gorgeous 50's chick so we were aiming for something a bit vintage and a bit dark. We shot a day in the life of them as this fantasy bunny couple and had a lot of fun. Well, it is the Year of the Rabbit!"

Alice in Weddingland – The Engagement Session

Kat

March 1, 2011

This month Rock n Roll Bride intern and columnist, Alice headed out with her fiance Graham for their very first photo shoot together - their engagement session with photographer Sassy of Assassynation. The engagement session can often be a bit of a nervous time for a soon-to-be-wed couple, as for the majority of people it's the first time they've had a processional photo shoot. So, this month I asked Alice to tell us all about her experiences and why, when you've got your perfect photographer on the job, there really is nothing to be afraid of! I am seriously chuffed to share Alice & Graham's engagement session with you today...seeing these is making me super excited to see their wedding photos too! Also...is is weird that I'm a little bit proud of my Alice when I see these? Awww love... ♥ ♥ ♥ A couple of weekends ago Graham and I ventured into the heart of the Cotswolds, for our engagement shoot. We drove to Sassy’s house, where she settled our nerves by cooking us bacon sandwiches with cups of tea! After Graham got to know her a bit (I had met her for the first time the day before at the Designer Wedding Show) we discussed possible ‘venues’ for the days shoot. Thankfully the weather was beautiful, and we decided that outside would be best, so we could make the most of the natural light. Sassy explained that the shoot would last around a couple of hours, and that what we did in that time was pretty much up to us. When she mentioned an abandoned RAF watchtower and runway a few miles from her house I was beyond excited: I am a bit of a War History buff so the thought of being able to include that element in our engagement shoot was amazing! We got in her car and drove to the tower.

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