Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

UK

Under the Spotlight – Vicky Trainor Stationery

Kat

April 14, 2010

Vicky Trainor Stationary are a design led studio based in North Yorkshire who specialise in fabulous unique designs and original wedding stationary ideas. Everything they produce is done so with love and care 'in house' enabling them to not only give the best bespoke and personal service possible but also to keep the costs down (which are then passed onto you of course!) They also offer a fab 'off the peg' service in their online shop The Paper Store.
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Light-hearted & Personal

Kat

April 14, 2010

I love a quirky London wedding just as much as the next person so I whooped with joy when Connie & Jonny's was send my way. "We wanted to bring all our friends and family together for a massive party to celebrate us getting hitched" the bride began. "We kept certain traditions - getting everyone to sit down and have a big feed, and speeches etc, but we weren't keen on all the flowery formal bits, so to keep things lighthearted and personal we had the lovely ukelele band. We put our friends and family on a routemaster bus back to the reception (at Lena Restaurant, 66 Great Eastern St, London) Amazing food, great party space downstairs with loads of champagne. A friend drove my dad and I to the town hall in his VW camper van, and took Jonny and I (with music booming, a healthy supply of champagne) back to the reception (we drove back via regent’s park and stopped off in the sunshine to take it all in). Not really up for flowery delicate invites, we got Hanway print centre to print us some bright orange postcards. Jonny’s dad made the wedding cake and my mom and friends organised the flowers."
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All the Fun of the Fair

Kat

April 13, 2010

Amy & Darren are a gorgeous, fun and music-loving couple who are getting married this June in the New Forest. The idea for their engagement shoot was just to follow them having fun and sharing the things they love. "We started the shoot at their place in Blackheath, London" photographer Sarah told me "with me shooting from the mezzanine down on them lying amongst a fraction of their 5000-strong record collection, even Martha the cat wanted a piece of the action!" "Next, we took a trip up the road to take advantage of the gorgeous evening light at the May bank holiday fair on Blackheath, finishing with a stroll through Greenwich Park to the bandstand which holds a romantic significance to them as a couple as it's where they spent a lot of time together when they first started courting."
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Community Spirit

Kat

April 13, 2010

British photographer Dolly Photography may be new to the scene but she sure knows her own passions and one of her dreams is to raise awareness and support her local community. "I come from Barnsley, a very small Northern mining town that is still recovering from the depression of the pit closures" She told me "I have loads of work I'd love to submit, but this one is close to my heart. I did a Rock The Dress shoot last week for Barnsley Hospice, a charity that looks after terminal cancer patients. They have 8 charity shops and wanted to promote the fact that they sold second hand wedding dresses - some for as little as £40 a dress!" So, she asked her sister to model for her in a gorgeous £40 dress from Barnsley Hospice and carrying a vintage umbrella that she found on ebay for £10. Her hair piece was also a bargain at £10 in the sale from Diva Bridal, Barnsley.
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Brighton Rock n Roll

Kat

April 11, 2010

There are a select few UK photographers that I truly love and I think Pippa Mckenzie may be joining that group. I fell in love with her relaxed, documentary inspired style and couldn't wait to share this rockin' Brighton engagement session with you. "Natalie & James live in Surrey, and often hang out in Brighton" Pippa told me. "They are young, quirky and very successful property developers. They are such a cool, hip and fun loving couple and we wanted to really capture their characters in their e-Shoot. They had a few costume changes for the shoot to contrast the beach shots with classy rock n roll amongst the Brighton Lanes. We thought the edgy surroundings of Brighton really complimented their characters."
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Fun, Casual & Romantic

Kat

April 9, 2010

Will & Myriam's ceremony took place at Pencarrow House in Cornwall and then it was all back to the parent's house for food and drink! "There's not much to tell" Will began "We did everything the way we did because we had known we wanted to be husband and wife for ages, so it was more a question of getting the day out of the way! We didn't want to make a fuss about the day, or do anything cheesy, we just wanted it to be 'a fun and casual get-together with romantic bits' and we had an ultra-minimal budget" Myriam wore a dress from Monsoon, Will's bespoke suit was found at Ferguson Nash in Warwick and their hilarious tee-shirts were from the aptly named Fuckuall.
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British Boudoir

Kat

March 31, 2010

This fabulous Boudoir/Pin up style shoot was set up by British photographer Shaneen Rosewarne Cox. "My Make up artist is fabulous at creating that seductive, lashtastic pin up look" She told me "She also styled the models hair and I loved how the retro bouncy curls turned out. Accessories are all mine and are mostly props from the studio. The STUNNING blue Manolo Blahnik shoes are actually my "something blue" from my own wedding day. All in all it was a really fun day full of bucks fizz, pearls, blue shoes and vogue magazine!! A perfect way to spend a Sunday in my opinion. "
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A Wedding on Water

Kat

March 31, 2010

Julie & John got married in September 2008 at Luss Pier in Loch Lomond, Scotland. Although originally from Manchester, they chose this location as it was perfect for their ideal wedding - small and intimate - with only about 30 of their closest friends and family. They hired a boat from Sweeney's Cruises where they had their ceremony and drinks. Afterward they walked along the beach to the Lodge on Loch Lomond where they had their meal and the rest of their evening.
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Under the Spotlight – Toast of Leeds

Kat

March 29, 2010

I really really love doing my Under the Spotlight interviews as it's great to talk about the genius behind the lens for once. Today, I'm excited to share with you Shelly of Toast of Leeds - a fabulous photographer from - you guessed it - Leeds, who blew me away with her recent Punk Bride shoot. Enjoy! Who are you and what do you do? I’m Shelly Mantovani from Toast of Leeds. I shoot people. Where are you based and what cities/countries are you available to for work in? I’m based in Yorkshire but don’t let that put you off! I love to get on a plane or a train, it forces me to read books I keep buying and never get round to finishing.
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I Love Rock n Roll (Bride) – The Movie!

Kat

March 26, 2010

Anyone that knows me will know that I'm terrible at keeping secrets...so this has been very very hard for me to keep schtum! Last week I got an email from Richard of FX Films (based in Oxford) asking if he could pop round and make a little film about little me. Of course I jumped at the chance. I am a big show off after all! Stand by and prepare yourself for some serious awesome. Richard is an actual genius - he made me look so good and the music choice is utterly perfect! The only thing I stipulated was that Henry & Rachel my Maine Coon kitties were in it (and they stole the show didn't they!) Oh the cute... So here's me on a 'normal day' - getting up, kittens, make up, blogging, shoes, car (I love my car!) and hanging out in the park. So. Much. Fun. If you're on the lookout for a funky, fun filmmaker for your wedding, engagement shoot, save the date etc then be sure to go check out his website. I can not rave enough how much fun this day was and how easy he was to work with.
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English Country Garden

Kat

March 26, 2010

Jennifer & Ian's vintage garden engagement shoot is just so British - I love it! The slightly damp weather, the funky patterned wellies, the wheelbarrow and the greenhouse... I'm very much looking forward to seeing this couple's vintage themed Scottish wedding in May and I hope photographer Fjona will be sending the images straight over to me afterwards - think VW van, Scottish tablet in jam jars, old fashioned luggage labels and more wellies. It's going to be awesome I'm sure!
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Funky, Punky, British {Part 2 – Wedding}

Kat

March 25, 2010

After seeing Emma & James' funky engagement session I couldn't wait to see the wedding and I certainly wasn't disappointed. Emma dress was a 1930's inspired design that was handmade for her in champagne crepe backed satin by 'Rags to Bitches' which is a vintage boutique on Tib Street in the Northern Quarter of Manchester. She teamed this will gorgeous peach, sequinned shoes from Karen Millen and a gorgeous vintage style headband which was made from glass beads and pearls from a bridal shop in Poynton, Cheshire called Timeless Bride.
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Under the Spotlight – S8 Films

Kat

March 22, 2010

When I received the initial email from Roland of S8 Films I was blown away. Not only did I instantly adore their work but I was delighted to discover they are London based (in fact right around the corner from my soon-to-be-part-time 'day' job!) The Super 8 format has been growing in popularity over the last few years. From it's grainy texture to it's raw, 'real' appeal, it's easy to see why brides all over the world have fallen in love with it. In fact if we had made the decision to have a wedding film made, I know Super 8 would have been the way we'd done it.
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Cherish the Dress

Kat

March 20, 2010

This beautiful British bride had a gorgeous 'Cherish the Dress' session with her friend and photographer Caro Hutchings. "Jemma got married two years ago and wanted some images of her dress and detail shots to print out and put up in her new house." Caro told me in her email. "We had loads of fun with props and made a feature of the amazing hair pieces we found – especially the peacock feather piece which we fell in love with from ebay. Her dress was byLinea Raffaelli and we had Robina's of Marlow doing her hair and supplying the rest of the hair accessories. The location of the shoot was an amazing house in Bourne End, Bucks known as ‘The Oak House’ which has just been finished. The shoot was actually the day before Valentines day which was very fitting for our romantic heart theme and got us all in the valentines mood."
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Sew Magazine – April 2010

Kat

March 18, 2010

When I told people I was going to be featured in this month's Sew Magazine (out in shops tomorrow), the usual reaction I got was a screwed up face and a look of confusion. "Sew magazine? but you don't sew!" Well no my dears I don't but I've always wished I was a bit more crafty and if we were to plan our wedding again, I know I'd be making some terrible attempts at diy-ing the lot. However after receiving my shiny new copy in the post this morning, I have to say I feel positively converted. I'm seriously not just sayingthis (because I'm in it!) but this April issue, a Special Occasions Special, is literally fit to bursting with fabulous wedding diy and craft ideas. From making cute little stitched thank you 'cards' out of mismatched fabric, to making your own dress - from adorable fascinator ideas and even a tutorial foryour own veil (and we all know how expensive a cathedral veil is to buy - ouch!) - this magazine would be an absolute god send to any bride lacking inspiration in the do-it-yourself department.
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Come Fly With Me…

Kat

March 18, 2010

Follwing the popularlity of the 80's themed engagement shoot I featured on Tuesday, I wanted to share Emma & Micheal's cabin crew themed session sent over by the wonderful Julia Boggio (who also shot my Vintage Boudoir session.) When Emma told Julia her idea about doing her pre-wedding shoot in the Virgin Atlantic rig, she jumped at the chance! "After all, Daniel Craig had been filmed in the rig for one of the Bond films and where Daniel goes, well, I go." Julia told me. With Emma living in the UK and Micheal in the US, Virgin Atlantic played a huge role in their relationship so far - ferrying them both back and forth across the pond. "Emma contacted Virgin about her idea and they were more than happy to oblige. " Julia continued "They love a good love story! The Virgin Atlantic rig, or Miss Rigorous, as she is named, is used mostly for training purposes at VA. It's an entire interior of a Virgin plane. Because the rig is quite dark and the lighting is suitable for an airplane, not a photo shoot, I had to come to the party equipped with loads of Broncolor lighting, colour gels, and an assistant. Emma rented an old style hostess outfit and Michael played the role of lusty Business Class passenger. We had a great deal of fun and I'm really looking forward to their wedding later this summer."
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