Afternoon, lovelies! I’m just stopping by to let you know about an exciting feature we have in the works with Luis and Kerry of Piteira Photography. Not only am I a big fan of their gorgeous photography, but this husband and wife team are just the loveliest, and I’m happy to count them as friends. In fact, I’m looking forward to seeing them when they’re working in South Africa this summer wedding season (December/January) and this is where the great news comes in – they have some availability, so if you’re still looking for a wedding photographer over the busy season, you can nab this awesome pair! Their work has been featured all over the place: Style Me Pretty, 100 Layer Cake, Ruffled, Bridal Musings, The Pretty Blog – and of course, right here on SouthBound Bride – so you know you’re in the best hands.
To celebrate their South African trip, Luis and Kerry have offered to step in as our experts for the day. They’ll be answering your questions about wedding photography, posing, light – whatever you’re wondering about. They also planned their own (gorgeous) South African wedding from abroad, so they have awesome insight into planning from afar. So here’s the deal: just leave your question at the end of the post (or on our Facebook page) and we’ll put all the answers together into a special post.
Some days, my job as a wedding blogger just doesn’t feel like work, and I have to say that this morning, as I put these gorgeous pictures of sparkly and shiny cakes together, the only difficulty was in narrowing down the selection. You’ll know by now that I’m a total magpie, and in love with everything that glimmers, but I think that love went to a new level when foiled wedding cakes came on the scene. I saw one for the first time in person last year in Durban, and it really does make an impression. I also love the way that it can be used as a texture, mixed in with ruffles, patterns, flowers, etc. As always, the line between glitzy and gaudy is a fine one, but here are 20 wedding cakes that I think walk the line perfectly. They’re almost too pretty to cut into, but the contrast between cake and metallic makes them look, if possible, even more delicious!Read More
Real wedding time! And boy, am I excited to share this one. It’s so beautiful, with a perfect blend of elegance and rustic goodness, it’s like one of my favourite inspiration boards come to life. And come to life it did, with smiles and infectious laughter, gorgeous flowers and a bevvy of mini bridesmaids. This is the kind of wedding that really shows off what our winelands are about, and why they’re such a sought-after wedding destination, year after year. Plus, the bride (whose nickname is Bubbles – you can’t NOT like someone with such a cute name) is a total rockstar – for her hen night she dressed up as a SuperWife and paraglided off Lion’s Head! Kind of appropriate though, since she was marrying a stuntman. But back to the wedding, in all its loveliness. Desmond and Toni of dna photographers were there to capture every special moment, every drop of sunshine, and a spectacular ‘first kiss’!Read More
Happy Monday SouthBound Brides! And happy first day of the month. Eeks, how did it get to be the second half of the year already? Anyway, for today’s inspiration colour scheme we have… no colour scheme. I’ve gone back to basics, because as much as punches of colour are fabulous, I still love a white on white wedding. Especially when you add some soft, country touches with just a whisper of rustic-ey vintage. Lush garden blooms, a beautiful open-sided marquee, and textured detailing like a ruffly cake and lace-iced biscuits. My favourite idea? Why not hang distressed white-painted mirrors in a row with table assignments written on them?
Let me tell you a story about me. When I was a small child, the day came (as it does for everyone) when my parents decided I was too old for a dummy. They announced this to me, and told me that my upcoming birthday would be the day when I would throw it away and be a big girl. Now, I should preface this by telling you that was not a child who embraced change. I once cried for hours when my mother took away the lamp in my bedroom, even though she was exchanging a large, heavy, ugly brown thing for a dinky one with polka dots. So the folks were understandably not convinced that their little plan was going to work. I was upset, but when the morning came, I solemnly got up and threw my dummy in the bin. And that was that.
Change happens. And not just the kind of change you plan on – the end of school or university, the new job, the much-anticipated baby. There are all those curveballs that show up just when the dust settles – the boyfriend who dumps you, the unidentified lump, the landlady who decides she wants her house back and serves you notice. That last one is what happened to me a couple of months ago. For the last few years, I’ve been sharing a lovely house on the London borders with an awesome couple and their two cats – I work at home during the day in my little upstairs office, then retire to my downstairs ‘suite’; when they want alone time at night, we have a second lounge. It’s pretty much perfect. Especially because I fell completely in love with the cats. And after some turbulent years, I was just settling into a routine – the house was my home; the centre of my world. And then we got our two months’ notice.
So I had a choice. I could cry about the lamp, or I could throw away my dummy. I decided to do the latter. I embraced change, because change was a-coming, so I might as well get on board. And instead of trying to find a new home here in London, I decided to take a break. Enjoy my freedom, and the flexibility that comes with being a freelance writer and being able to work from anywhere.
Of course, once I made that decision, it all got a lot easier. I told my parents to get ready for a house guest through the South African summer – a chance to spend time with them that I am grateful for, having lived overseas since I was 21. Then I decided to take a month off before heading south. I’d been dreaming of Tuscany, so that’s where I decided to go. I found an organic vineyard that needs housesitting and a bit of help for a few weeks and I bought my ticket. Three weeks in Italy, a stop-off in Dubai, and then South Africa until the new year. And after that? Probably London again, but who knows. I’m not planning. After all, we plan and God laughs.
I’m kind of excited about it all. We South Africans, we like to know where to put each other and ourselves. Are you married? What do you do? Where did you go to school? What sport do you play? But sometimes it’s okay to just carry on and see where life takes you. I think of myself at the moment in the same way as Truman Capote described Holly Golightly in the novella version of Breakfast at Tiffany’s: “I noticed that the mailbox belonging to Apt 2 had a name-slot fitted with a curious card. Printed, rather Cartier-formal, it read: Miss Holiday Golightly; and underneath, in the corner, Travelling.”
Anyway, here’s the deal. I’m here until the end of July. It’ll still be business as usual for you all in August, as I am lining up a huge variety of lovely posts, including all the usual features. You won’t even know I’m gone (seriously). Unless you email me, because I won’t reply. Three weeks without social media will be strange, but good. And then, I’ll be in South Africa. For industry and PR people, that means I am available for opportunities, meet-ups, greet-ups, consultancy, networking and, of course, fancy pants parties with champagne. Feel free to invite me. For everyone else, it means getting a refresher on South African venues, suppliers, on-the-ground problems and solutions, as well as working on a big project I have behind the scenes. And sunshine. Always the sunshine.
So that’s my story. Gaby Frescura, travelling. South Africa, I’ll see you soon.
As you all know, I love featuring fabulous South African suppliers, and here’s one I have been meaning to call out for a while, because every time I come across one of Ladies & Gentlemen‘s custom cake toppers I am all, yay adorable! Because they are. The idea is that, instead of plonking some cheesy plastic bride and groom on top of your cake (okay, nobody does that anymore right?) you can have a hand-carved pair that have been painted up to look like you and the hubs. And not just painted – what really gets me about these cake toppers is the detailing and effort that owner Alison Sutcliffe-Smit goes into in recreating the bride’s dress or the flowers in the bouquet, or even the couple’s dog! Tiny protea bouquets, intricate illusion lace back dresses, furry ears (on the dog, not the bride and groom, fortunately), veils, etc. They’re sure to charm your guests, and make a really sweet memento of your big day (at least until your future kids steal them to play Barbies/dinosaurs). In fact, speaking of kids, for couples who already have them I think this is a lovely way of including them on the cake, since you can get mini figurines customised to make up the family. To give you an idea of what Ladies & Gentlemen do, here’s three pretty cakes and their owners…
After a gorgeous outdoor wedding this morning, I thought it was high time for a rustic DIY roundup this afternoon – and nothing says rustic like burlap! Or hessian, as most South Africans call it. This sacking fabric not only adds texture and a bit of a rough feel (perfectly contrasted with lace, or even a bit of sparkle) but it’s also super affordable, which is a win for budget brides. Pick it up in your local haberdashery, or order online by the metre. Most brides use it for table runners, but there are actually many more fun uses for the fabric, and it’s a chance for some creative DIYs. Pick your favourite from these fifteen brilliant ideas and get crafting!
Okay, you all know by now that I love all things wedding (duh) but if there’s one mental image that’s going to immediately push the swoonage count up to the maximum, it’s the idea of an al fresco wedding, under the trees, on a beautiful summer afternoon in the winelands. I’m sort of drooling just thinking about it, except that I don’t actually drool because that would be totes unladylike. But you get the point. So that was what made me immediately fall in love with Annali and Gerhard’s wedding from the fab Just Judy. What I didn’t realise at the time was that they planned this gorgeous day in two months. Two months! Now, I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone, but at the same time, it’s proof that it is possible. The key thing that Annali got right? Making quick decisions based on her personal taste, and not getting too hung up on colour schemes or themes. She trusted her gut, and it worked. As well as the outdoor reception under a sea of string lights (yep, swoonage happening again here), I loved that the couple used bushels of baby’s breath, which was absolutely perfect with the whole look, and easy to boot. Perfection!Read More
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I get the coolest readers. Not only do I love hearing from you all (even if I don’t always get to reply as quickly as I’d like) but it’s a particular pleasure for me to be able to follow some of you through your planning journey. That’s what happened with SouthBound Bride Keri, who also just so happens to have a super awesome blog of her own, Midlands Musings. I first heard from Keri when she asked for an inspiration board, and loved helping her with her French-inspired country colour scheme. In fact, you’ll get to see her lovely wedding for yourselves next week. But first, we’re going to meet Keri and her now-hubby Andrew and hear their super sweet love and engagement story, as well as see the easy going e-shoot that took place on their farm, cows and all. The fab Eileen Laubscher of Bright Girl captured it all perfectly!Read More
*UPDATED FOR 2021* I’m not going to lie to you: seating arrangements? Not fun. SO not fun. In fact, they will almost certainly suck, and leave you and your bae in a hot sweat of how-on-earth-will-we-get-this-done anxiety. (Don’t worry, you’ll make it work.) But if there’s one part of seating arrangements that is suckage free, it’s deciding on your table names. Now, I have nothing against numbers – they’re simple, there are a zillion ways to make them look fab, and they’re easy to follow. The only disadvantage is that sometimes it can feel like there’s a hierarchy (cool people at table 1!), but that’s not such an issue. The reason I do like table names as an alternative is that they’re another opportunity to personalise your wedding details and tell your story. And you know how much I love that by now! Of course, place names are always good, but they’re quite common these days, and you may want something a bit different. So today I have some fun, unique, creative (and, more importantly, completely customisable) wedding table name ideas to share.
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