Pastel Boho Beach Picnic E-shoot Inspiration

When we think boho, we often think of a neutral palette, or an organic one – the colours of field and desert and stone. But today’s pretty little styled shoot turns that on its head, and harnesses a bit of boho style combined with a beach location and soft spring pastels to create the sweetest little picnic e-sesh ever. This is perfect inspiration not just for a couple shoot or elopement, but would make for the basis of a gorgeous wedding design too. We especially love the floral teepee, the dreamy dress, and OMG the flower crowns! One combines soft florals with urchin shells, and has given us all the heart eyes at SBB HQ! This gorgeous shoot was created by Deborah-Ann Photography, Wildeflower and their team of talented creatives, and I’m super excited to share it with you today!

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Beach Monochrome Engagement Shoot by Dillon Kin

We started the morning thinking pink, but this afternoon we’re going monochrome with an absolutely beautiful beach engagement shoot from Dillon Kin, a featured member of our SBB directory. Tammy and JP are high school sweethearts and you can tell they already share many years of love and laughter from the easy intimacy that infuses these pics – alongside that gorgeous Cape light! I love the way that they chose to accentuate the scenery with pristine black and white contrast, along with cute accessories like balloons and an umbrella. Congratulations, lovebirds!Read More

Inspiration Board: Castaway

Monday Monday, can’t trust that day… But you can trust that on a Monday morning you’ll have some fresh SBB inspiration to kick off the week! I must say, I am more than a little in love with this one – a combination of rustic beach and watercolour wedding styles, in a gorgeous combination of dark and lighter indigos and soft neutrals. Just add the sea, and you’re good to go.

Colours: Indigo blue, white and beige

Top row (l-r): Bride & groom {Studio 1208/Amy Nichols Special Events}; watercolour invitation {Rad + In Love/Sitting in a Tree/Pitbulls & Posies}; driftwood table plan {Brooke Boling/Maureen Koo}; mussel wedding cake {Alexander James Photography/Pearl & Godiva}
Row 2: Bride {Theresa Furey Photography/Wedding Sparrow}; table setting {Sean Money + Elizabeth Fay}; starfish with rings {Corinna Raznikov}
Row 3: Bridesmaids in grey {Belathee Photography/Matthew Robbins Design}; coral centrepiece {jose villa/joy thigpen}; sand dollar invitations {Concertina Press}; beach tablescape {jose villa/joy thigpen}.

 

Sizzling Sunset Engagement by Vizion Photo

I don’t know about you, but I LOVE hearing the stories of how couples meet- they’re like snowflakes or fingerprints, no two exactly the same. Today’s love story is a modern one, a connection forged online and confirmed in person, leading to a happy ever after for Carina and Wayne. That connection sparked and sizzled on this glamorous beach engagement shoot with the Cape sunset as a backdrop from the fab Vizion Photo, with sunlight sparkling off the sea, and Table Mountain standing majestic on the horizon.Read More

Romantic Beach Elopement Wedding Inspiration by Pickle Photography

You guys. I feel like this shoot is my very own Valentine’s gift. To me, from an awesome team of suppliers, including stylist Sarah Reynolds and photographer Christy-Lee Hosking of Pickle Photography. And from me to you. I absolutely fell in LOVE with this dreamy beach styled shoot the minute it landed in my inbox – the soft Jose Villa-esque quality of a chair amid the dunes and the sky, the beautiful barefoot bride and groom (who are a real couple, how gorgeous are they?) – and who could resist dresses that included a pale blue ballerina skirt? I’m just so smitten by every image, and in a completely non-cheesy way, I think it captures the very essence of romance on this, the most romantic of days. I loved that the team took a pared-down approach, and focused on the love, because as much as we get excited over pretty details here, the love is always, ALWAYS what matters most. So huge thanks to the team for sharing it with us… and here’s wishing you a day full of real love.Read More

Inspiration Board: Walk on the Ocean

Hello lovelies, now for inspiration board number 2 today. This one’s a reader request – always fun to do, as you guys come up with such a unique set of ideas that reflect your personalities and relationships. This particular board was requested by Shimoné, who together with her husband-to-be really loves the sea. Even though they’re planning an elegant garden wedding, they wanted to bring this love into their wedding, so they chose a gorgeous ocean-inspired palette of powder blue, teal, gold and white. I also took this as a starting point for some of the design details, adding a gentle watercolour/ombre element to reflect the salt water, and with sea urchins as a sweet little motif. These are sold on Etsy with little succulents inside, which makes a very cute place setting/favour and is one you could make yourself. I also like the idea of spray painting these shells gold to sit at each place setting, with or without a plant inside. The rest of the scheme is simple and classic – white flowers, especially on the huppah (the wedding will have lots of traditional Jewish elements, and this is one of my favourites), soft flowy bridesmaid dresses with statement necklaces, vintage furniture in breakout areas and gold-flecked macaroons. Simple, classic, but very lovely. Hope you like your board Shimoné!

Colours: Teal, powder blue, gold and white

Top row (l-r): Watercolour invitation; urchin favour {Kristin Rogers Photography/RobinCharlotte}; lace wedding dress {Rebekah J. Murray Photography/Atrendy Wedding}; ombre cake {Jen Huang}; urchin
Row 2: Necklace; gold pear {Sasha Gulish/Shannon Leahy Events}; ties; macaroons {Fiona Kelly Photography/Linen and Silk Weddings}; flower huppah {Heidi Ryder}
Row 3: Bridesmaid dress; hora {David Pascolla}; breakout area {Jose Villa}; table setting with vintage crockery {Love Life Images/Bradshaw Styling}

 

Beach Blush

This afternoon I’m sharing some styled shoot inspiration, courtesy of Joanne Markland and The Mosaic Wedding Company, with a team of talented colleagues from the Nuptian Network of Associated Wedding Specialists. I love seeing industry peeps pulling together, and it’s been a real pleasure to see more styled shoots coming out of South Africa this last season – they’re such a great way to generate ideas and beautiful, inspiring, editorial imagery! This look is particularly do-able, and is the perfect look for a bride who’s having a laid back beach wedding but still wants a classic, romantic look. Simple, lush single blooms combine with natural textures like shells and white stones, with a touch of aqua blue glass from vintage bottles. There’s also a touch of fun with stripey blue straws, cute little cupcakes and the general palette of pink and aqua (which you can amp up or down depending on where on the fun/classic scale you prefer to lie). Add a swishy dress, and you’re set!Read More

Inspiration Board: Tropical Coral & Mint

Hidey ho, neighbours. How was your weekend? Mine has been absolutely chokka with work, and a separate project I have on this November which has really been taking me back in time a bit to a year I spent teaching English in Milan… really wishing I could just jump on a plane and spend some time in my second favourite country again! Anyway, we’re transporting ourselves somewhere else completely today, to tropical Colombia, where lucky reader Clara will be getting married at a restaurant venue. She’s chosen mint/aqua, coral, gold, ivory and white, and I have to say, I don’t think she could have picked a more perfect palette. It’s just the right mix of tropical, modern and romantic. My first find was the stationery set below, which I am completely in love with, and which I think completely gets across the location and the colour scheme. I also love the idea of adding in some fun tropical touches, like coral bands on the napkins and this cute enamel statement octopus ring – maybe a fun accessory for the bridesmaids, in their coral sundresses. Clara also likes shabby chic and lace, and while it’s not always easy to mix this with tropical, I’d do it using pretty tea glasses with coral roses, a fringe garland (why not include lace in this?) and a ruffly dress. The flowers are also a lovely mix between classic and tropical, and I love the bold use of a flash of gold. For the tables, I’d keep things simple – maybe using a nice print (chevron or stripes always work well) in the mint or aqua shade, with gold cutlery and glassware (or just keeping to simple white tables with beautiful stationery accents at each setting for a more sober look). Clara also asked about using flowers for the church and the restaurant and I think she has a few options, depending on the size of the party. If it’s intimate, I’d use smaller arrangements in the church placed at different heights, and then re-use these along the table (even bridesmaids’ bouquets can be placed in vases and double up as reception flowers). Or, if you’re going for big statement pieces in the church, place these standing or on stands around the reception and keep table flowers more simple. Finally, you could keep things very simple in the church – maybe forsaking flowers completely and using lots of candles, for example, and save the flowers for the reception. There are no hard and fast rules – do whatever your budget and wedding size allow. Hope you like your board, Clara, and good luck with the rest of your planning!

Colours: Mint, coral, gold, ivory, white

Top row (l-r): Bride and groom {efeunodos/William Banea}; roses in tea glasses; fringe garland; tropical bouquet {José Villa}; palm print {Stella McCartney}
Row 2: Coral and mint beach wedding invitation suite {Boudreaux by Wednesday Custom Designs}; enamel octopus ring; watermelon margarita pops; cake {}
Row 3: Coral bridesmaids dresses; aqua chevron print table decor {Kate Headley}; coral napkin holder {Wedding Concepts/Annemari Ruthven}; aqua shoes {Karen Hill/Loli Events}

 

Hen Party Theme: Tropical Fever

Sources: Surfer Girls; Beverley Hills Hotel Wallpaper

We’re havin’ a heatwave… a tropical heatwave… (Ha, I wish. I can hear rain on my skylight as I write this.) This is a theme I’ve been dying to do for ages (probably because of just how much I love a kitschy retro surf design) but I knew the moment had come when Amanda of 100 Layer Cake showcased her vintage tiki shower recently. It was AWESOME. This is such a perfect shower theme – ideal for beach bums, coast lovers, surfer girls, vintage fans, kitsch creatives… the list goes on. The best part is that surf retro sort of merges seamlessly with a Hawaiian luau or a tiki bar vibe, and these are the kinds of themes that really get guests going. So fun. In fact, I’m liking this mishmash of a theme so much that I think it’s going to be showing up in my birthday celebrations this year… Anyway, put on some Beach Boys, because we’re going on a surfin’ safari. Here’s how to throw a fabulous tropical/vintage surf bash.Read More

Beach Love Engagement Shoot

I’ve joked in the past about how South Africans are secretly taking over the world (sshh, it’s a stealth mission) but sometimes I really think we are taking over the wedding industry. Everywhere I look on the international scene I come across talented people with a connection to SA, and I have to admit, I love it. It makes me feel homegrown and cosmopolitan at the same time. Like I want to run down the streets of Manhattan pushing a crate of Castle (and if you don’t get that reference, don’t tell me, because you’ll make me feel old). Anyway, Claire Morgan is one of those people. Most of the year, she lives in Austria, where she shoots extraordinarily beautiful weddings, well, beautifully. For about six weeks she graces Cape Town’s photography scene, and this year, she used part of that time to shoot this absolutely beautiful beach engagement shoot of her cousin Elizabeth and her fiance Neil.Read More