Confidence. It’s something we all strive to have right? We want to feel comfortable in our own skin, we want to love ourselves, we want to be able to see what sassy, gorgeous goddesses we really are.
But we struggle. We look in the mirror and feel disappointed with our lot. We look at other people and think “Why is that not me?” Well you know what, today I want to remind you that YOU ARE FUCKING FIERCE. Yes, you reading this right now. You’re a total BABE. No matter what your outward appearance, no matter what kind of clothes you wear, no matter if you have “on fleek” eyebrows or insta-worthy make up skills. You are a one-of-a-kind powerful goddess. You have the potential to be whoever you want to be. YOU ARE FIERCE.
My friend and photographer of this most epic of magazines covers, Lisa Devlin, shared it a few days ago in a private Facebook group for wedding photographers and wrote the following… I know she won’t mind me sharing what she said because, without wanting to toot my own horn too much, it made me really, really happy.
“You know I was saying how I feel like it’s all work, work, work right now? It’s so easy to get absorbed into that feeling and not step back and see the bigger picture. I’ve just seen this, the next cover of Rock n Roll Bride magazine and I told Kat that it’s probably my favourite cover of the magazine yet. I can’t wait to see it on the shelves surrounded by vanilla same old, same old covers.
I fucking LOVE that she is a mixed race girl with a shaved head and yet that is nothing to do with why she was in this shoot or why this shot made the cover. She is there because she exudes confidence, joy and being your best self, loving life and wanting to include others in that.
To me that is what this magazine is all about and Kat’s philosophy to business. Most of us are in the ‘alternative’ market and could we just imagine for a second where we would be putting ourselves if her blog and magazine didn’t exist?
I’m going to do my best to keep my head above water for the next few weeks and remind myself to celebrate all the good things. I am so proud of this cover, proud of the team effort that goes into the shoots and chuffed to bits that I shot this. So, what if you think about it, are you chuffed to have achieved recently?”
Thank you Lara Elliott for coming along to the editorial shoot for this issue and sharing this behind the scenes peek for us. And yes, it really was as fun a day as it looks!
Cover shot by the amazing Aimlee Photography, who is based in Las Vegas!
Is planning your wedding turning out to be a massive drag? Are you struggling to choose your suppliers, arguing with your family over your âwackyâ ideas and tearing your hair out wondering how the hell youâre going to get all those DIY projects done on time?
No matter how chill you might be in everyday life, there’s just something about planning a wedding that makes even the coolest of babes have at least one meltdown. And it’s not your fault! It’s a stressful time anyway but the majority of wedding media only perpetuates that myth that this needs to be “the happiest day of your life” and that if it’s not perfect you’ll regret it forever.
This is exactly why I started Rock n Roll Bride in the first place – to cut through the bullshit and share ideas and advice that would actually help you plan your wedding.
Here’s what some of our readers have to say about Rock n Roll Bride magazine:
“I honestly wish I found this magazine sooner. I always knew my wedding would be different and that there were aspects of the traditional wedding that I wanted to reject and itâs been the best tool for inspiration in my planning process. Wedding magazines became my guilty pleasure once we started planning a wedding but so many magazines focus solely on white, heterosexual couples with massive budgets advertising everything from fancy fountain pens for your guests to sign your guest book to monogrammed suitcases for your honeymoon.
When I found Rock n Roll Bride, I cannot tell you how much it meant to me to find a magazine with quirky couples that focused more on the couple and what they wanted than the concept of spending so much to impress other people. My cousin is also planning a wedding and, since sheâs the digital content editor for ELLE magazine I thought sheâd be diving head first into the mainstream bridal magazines – however I found she was having the same experience as me. These mainstream bridal magazines just didnât resonate with her either. Your magazine stands out in so many ways and is so refreshingly different from everything else on the stand. Iâve converted quite a few brides already!
It also honestly means so much to see queer representation in your magazine. For us, same sex marriage hasnât been around long and other areas of the industry are still trying to catch up to this. So few magazines feature same sex couples and so I knew this was the magazine for me.
Thank you so much for all you do – from a fellow cat owner and renovator of a newly purchased house. Even when Iâm a wife, Iâll still be picking up copies.” Gabrielle Leimon
âAs a plus-size future bride, I struggled with trying to find wedding magazines that werenât focused on thin brides, and there was always a guaranteed three-page spread on âshredding for the weddingâ. Thatâs until I discovered this magazine! Not only does it include all body types, but the diversity in other areas is out of this world! I donât think I ever could have felt accepted as a bride if it wasnât for Rock n Roll Bride. Iâd call it a âmagazineâ, but this is a movement. Thank you Kat, Gareth and the whole Rock n Roll Bride team!â Sam Leigh
âRock n Roll Bride is definitely the best bridal magazine around! When I first got engaged, a friend bought me a couple of wedding mags and as much as I loved her for thinking of me, I HATED the mags with a passion. They weren’t me, there was nothing in them that excited me and I just felt so out of place, as if I wasn’t a real bride or I’m odd because I didnât want to do certain things.
I then stumbled across Rock n Roll Bride, it’s completely changed my outlook on wedding mags! I’m always so excited to go out and buy my copy, and my fiancè loves it too! Itâs great to find a mag that focuses on the grooms and same sex weddings too! Everything about it, from the colourful weddings to the hints and tips, even the ads, are brilliant! It really focuses on the fact that it’s your wedding – you do it your way.
Kat is wonderful, she asks opinions, and actually listens to the feedback that we offer. Sheâs on the same page as us, as sheâs been in our position and itâs so refreshing. It’s completely changed my wedding planning experience and I’m so thankful I accidentally found this magazine.âDannielle Robertson
âRock n Roll Bride magazine has actually brought me and my fiancĂŠ closer together. He loves reading it too, and we find all sorts of great ideas. It also gives us a lot to think about after reading the real wedding articles. You grow up thinking weddings are a certain way, and thatâs just how they are done, but reading Rock n Roll Bride has inspired us to discover that weddings can be whatever we want them to be! The thing I love about it the most is that there is something in there for the men too, as I feel they can be so excluded and removed from this side of marriage. I feel like part of a wider community with Rock n Roll Bride, itâs made wedding planning really fun!âNicola Burke
One of my favourite things is connecting with you guys on social media and something I hear over and over in our private Facebook group (where we’re about to hit 13,000 members, whhhhaaaat!?) is that there’s a huge lack of non-sucky, non-cheesy, non-eye-roll-inducing bridal t-shirts available. T-shirts that you can wear on your hen do, to wedding shows, getting ready the morning of the big day itself… or maybe even post-wedding to celebrate your new wifed status.
So I did some research, and while occasionally a high street or online store will bring out a wedding tee, if it doesn’t 100% blow (do NOT get me started on the whole ‘shedding for the wedding’ thing!) it will usually sell out faster than you can add it to your cart and checkout. So I knew what I had to do, I needed to design my own!
INTRODUCING: The Rock n Roll Bride t-shirt collection!!!
We are launching with three designs, available on either black or white organic cotton. Each tee is made using fully sustainable fairtrade approved materials and is printed right here in the UK.
These super-duper soft boyfriend-fit t-shirts can be worn by guys or gals and are all available from an XS to an XXL. The sizing is generous. I’m a UK size 12 and I’m wearing a medium in these photos (tied at the back or tucked in, with the sleeves rolled) however I think I’d fit into a small too if I wanted an overall slimmer fit.
Youâre a non-conformist in your everyday life, so you should definitely bring that into your wedding too – do your day, your way! This design is available in two colour options….
What’s up, babes!? Today’s the day that our brand new issue goes on pre-sale and as ever I’m so excited I could burst! Let’s get right down to it shall we? I know you’re just here for the previews!
Oh HELL yes, the texture on the masthead is meant to look holographic, how COOL are we? And don’t even get me started on this cover photo because, believe me, I could bang on for days and days about just how much I love it. The utterly beautiful Natalie of Style Me Sunday modelled for our editorial shoot this month and I knew as soon as I met her that I wanted her to be our cover star. She just SCREAMS Rock n Roll Bride and I adore her.
Here’s a little sneak of some of the real wedding pages inside too. We’ve got a super eclectic mix of styles this issue so whether you’re having a colourful summer bash, a fashion-forward urban adventure or a Halloween extravaganza I GUARANTEE you’ll find some much needed inspo for your own wedding within these pretty pages.
I am in full-on ‘totally psyched for the year ahead’ mode right now. I’ve got a bunch of new projects in the works and I’m feeling all together really positive about 2018 and what it might hold. A lot in part to all your incredibly kind comments on last week’s post about the future of Rock n Roll Bride. You really have no idea how happy reading all those replies made me.
So, to celebrate this new-found feeling of joy, I’ve decided to drop a surprise giveaway on you. It’s just my way of saying thank you for all being so wonderful. I’ve partnered with my babe Veronica Dearly to give THREE lucky readers a Rock n Roll Bride x Veronica Dearly prize package including the wedding planner, a two pins of their choice.
I am so proud of the wedding planner, and I know it’s really going to help you when organising your alternative wedding. Why? Because I wrote the damn thing (haha)! But in all seriousness, I’ve put all my insider wedding planning knowledge into it so if you’re foundering or don’t know what the hell you need to do, this is the next best thing to having me on speed dial.
Plus it’s hella cute and has STICKERS,
The planner comes in a super fancy A5 ring binder and is going to make you so damn organised you wonât know what to do with yourself. It’s broken up into four sections: Calendar and Timeline, The Nitty Gritty, Fun Stuff and Notes. The 12 month calendar is where youâll jot down all your appointments and generally plan your life (itâs date-free meaning you can start using it right away), and the planning timeline will let you know what to do and when. Thereâs even a budget checklist to keep you on track.
The Nitty Gritty section is where we get down and dirty with every aspect of the planning process. Iâve shared my tips for each important bit (from choosing your dress, writing your invites, managing your guest list and RSVPs, choosing your cake/ flowers/ decor etc) and Iâve even written you some madlibs to make writing your own vows a breeze.
Now I know I’m probably not supposed to have favourites, but this is – by far – the best collection we’ve ever created. Modest, me!? Seriously though, just you wait until you get a load of these beauties. These are veils like you’ve never seen before!
The collection is influenced by two of Sophie and my favourite things – plants and botanicals, and stars – hence the collection name:Â Secret Gardens & Starry Nights!
Just like all of our past collections, each piece has been designed to be customised, meaning you can alter the colours (and in some cases length) to suit your own, distinctive style. You can select your preferred colour of foil and glitter stars (from a choice of 38!) in the Space Odyssey veil, the ombre in the Ombre Dreams veils can be any colour you like and the sequin flowers in the Magic Garden range are available in lots of different colours too! You can even decide if you want more or less (or none at all) sequin bug embellishments on the Secret Garden veil.
Just before you scroll down to look at them all in detail, I made you a little video talking you though each piece.
Float down the aisle in this stunning single-layer embroidered starry veil. Made of super soft tulle with all-over embroidered star design on a tulle wrapped clear comb so it can be easily worn with hair up or hair down. Both dramatic, fashion-forward and elegant, thereâs nothing you wonât love about this celestial-inspired veil.
