Animal attraction

Some more inspiration from Etsy for cute cake toppers. I prefer a generic type of topper, something that is symbolic rather than too closely matched to us! Besides, it is much cheaper that way for a detail that I think is lovely but not necessary.

There are some very cute animals out there. For some reason I am drawn to the birds. The thought of putting a piggy couple or a pair of cows on my wedding cake does not appeal to me, although there are some cute representations if you are so inclined!


PassionArte in Italy
Fliepsiebieps in The Netherlands
Country Squirrels-R-US from the US
Red Light Studio from the US
kikuike from Japan

On top of the world

We have a rough idea now what we would like our cake to look like. One more detail that we have to confirm is what we would like on the top of our cake.

There are some interesting ideas out there, some funny and some just a little bit tacky. There are people who will customise a topper of the bridal couple with details of their outfits and hair. This is a lovely detail, and a great keepsake.

We do not want to be too fussy about it, but a sweet idea - with basic customisation - are the toppers made by Enchanted Belles from pegs, as seen above.

Wedding blogs

I have to admit, I do not mind checking out a "real wedding" or two. Especially the ones from the US... twelve bridesmaids, over the top styling and obsession with detail.

Usually I cannot get over how expensive the whole event looks and how much time they (or their team of wedding planners!) would have spent making sure every detail was perfect.

Generally I admire the shoes. There are some lovely shoes out there!

It is the extensive detail that gets me though, I do not want to get too obsessed with getting the day "perfect" and hopefully my sister and friends will keep me in check if I get out of hand.

The "real weddings" serve as a good reminder for me to keep it simple and to not take myself too seriously.

Image here

Too good to be true...

I love this fantastic detail from the wedding of Sarah and Ben, thanks to Real Weddings. It seems that the happy couple's friends collaborated to bring them a special song at the conclusion of their wedding ceremony. Click on the link and watch the second video to see what I am talking about.

The part I like? The song that they sing! Can't take my eyes off you... The musicians in the crowd too are awesome. Not just one or two of them but about ten, including a man with maracas. Gold!

One of my favourite film moments is when Heath Ledger sings on the bleachers to Julia Stiles in Ten Things I Hate About You, accompanied by the school band! Yes, sad but true.

Image here

My mother is more organised than I

My mother has her outfit for our wedding. Dad emailed E and I a photo of the shoes she has bought to go with her dress! All she needs now is to accessorise. Not bad!

I have many things about my outfit to organise still, including shoes, underwear, headwear and accessories. Think it might be time to get a hurry on!

With respect to shoes for me, I have been keeping an eye on the shops but it is definitely winter shoes weather at the moment. I am looking forward to the spring shoes coming out and hopefully I can find something I like in the new season collections.

A fruity affair

Chad went on a shopping mission to get bits and pieces for our wedding cake. His Mum is on baking duty and we supplied her with some of the necessary goods. He said he managed to get all Australian fruit. I am so proud! It was trickier than I had thought, he had to try three shops to get everything that we needed.

Ingredients included currants, raisins, sultanas, dates, blanched almonds and glace ginger and we also needed some brown paper!

His mum had all of the other bits and pieces and his Auntie had cake tins so the baking will begin soon!

Images from here, here, here and here.

Guest favours

Simple and interesting packaging for guest favours. The last picture looks more appropriate for a child's party than a wedding!





Images 1, 2, 3

Wow - what a cake!

I was doing a quick search for some wedding cake inspiration and came across this made locally by Avanti Cakes.

Umm. Wow. Very impressive! Although to my untrained eye it looks like two different cakes (in stacks of three) stacked up.

Cake ideas

Chad's mum has offered to make our wedding cake, and his auntie has said that she can decorate it. We are both keen on fruit cake so that part is easy, but how to decorate?

There are so many examples out there, a lot of them far too frilly to suit either of us! We are hoping for something simple and elegant.

I really like the cakes produced by Kayle Mitchison and shown on her blog Delicate-Lee. She has shown us some very gorgeous and elegant examples.




I think this cake is extra awesome and so much fun!


All images here

A nautical theme

Chad and I met with our celebrant last weekend. It was all fairly straightforward. We had to sign the Notice of Intended Marriage and fill in the details, to kick off the legal part of the process. We discussed the ceremony and bits and pieces. He explained that there are certain parts of it that are legally required, but otherwise it is fairly flexible.

We will be sent a sample format in the next couple of weeks and then we can really start thinking about what we wish to say and do.

It would be nice to have a reading! The celebrant suggested I Corinthians 13 as a standard piece. He read it to us but it is perhaps too formal. I think that something with a nautical theme would be great since Chad loves the water so much. There seems to be some ideas online and I might need to start trawling through my high school poetry books.

The celebrant will supply the table and chairs for signing the registry, but he does not use a microphone and speaker so we will need to organise the sound system for background music and the all important task of walking down the aisle!

We also need to start thinking about what music we will play. I would prefer something contemporary, but it has to be relevant as well. One thing for sure is that there will definitely be no Celine Dion!

Image here

Bridesmaid shoes

Tongue in cheek this week I suggested to my bridesmaids that they wear hot pink shoes. Noone rose to the bait - I guess they all know me too well!

E and I were in Myer today and saw these shoes. They fit the hot pink bill (they were much brighter and pinker in person I promise) and apparently last time we were there I had made the suggestion that I wear them!

There are quite a few hot pink shoes to choose from on the Myer shelves. Unfortunately not as big a selection in blue, my personal preference. I shall have to start looking in earnest soon for a pair of shoes for our wedding!

More drink dispensers to drool over!

Following on from this post, some more gorgeous drink dispensers to inspire.

These would also be awesome for an afternoon tea party, to serve up homemade lemonade, iced tea and more!

Now where should I start looking?




Image 1, 2, 3

Bridesmaids in Blue

Some inspiration for bridesmaids. I do love the colour blue!

I like the simplicity of the flowers in the second photo, and it looks like some of the girls also have a rose in their hair.







Images 1, 2, 3

Accent colour - antique rose

I really like this shade as featured by Polkadot Bride.

I could see it as an accent colour for the bridesmaids to offset against the blues.
A pretty flower in their hair.
A bouquet of antique rose.
A gorgeous evening bag for lipgloss and tissues.

Image belongs to Polkadot Bride

Third time lucky

J, the bride from the wedding we attended last week had a tricky time finding herself a wedding dress. She lives in country Western Australia, and initially tried to save herself some travel miles.

The first dress was ordered online. The vendor was in China and I understand that money was paid and measurements sent however no dress arrived and queries have not been responded to.

I am not entirely sure how the second dress was ordered, but it was in Melbourne and to be sent over to WA. It failed to appear on time so the bride and her bridesmaid set off in the car in search for dress number three.

They found it in a bridal shop in Rockingham. I am guessing that it was on the rack. A few adjustments needed to be made and the dress was perfect!

Dress number two did arrive in time for the wedding; in fact on the drive to Rockingham she received a call that the dress had arrived, but they decided not to tempt fate and continued with their mission to search for a dress.

J wore dress number three. Dress number two came along to the wedding for the ride but who knows whether dress number one will ever turn up?

In the end it all fell into place and she looked gorgeous, but I am sure that she could have done without the stress and hassle!

Fingers crossed that we so not see any drama with our dresses. Everything is being made locally so the only thing that could trip us up is availability of the silk!

Something blue... or silver?

Thank you to Martha Stewart Weddings for some beautiful inspiration. I am looking at either blue or silver for my shoes and accessories.

A flower

I was drawn to this flower at the Karridale Tavern.

Getting married - the legal stuff

Chad and I have the first meeting with our our marriage celebrant on Sunday. He is a friend of our family and it is lovely to have someone we know able to perform our ceremony.

Chad and I are both a bit in the dark about what we need to do, so I did a search today to research online the legalities of getting married in Australia.

It all seems fairly straightforward. You have to warn the government that you are going to get married at least a month and a day in advance, and make sure that you have the right person to perform the ceremony.

We should be in good hands and good time for our wedding!

Image here

Bridal shoes

One of my workmates has suggested shopping for shoes at Benelli Shoes in Osborne Park. They have many different styles of shoes, and they will make your shoes to measure. Benelli Shoes boasts a selection of over 100 colours! Shoes cost between $189 to $249 to have them made to measure, and they take three to four weeks.

Now that is not a bad idea! I always struggle to buy shoes. I prefer a mid height heel, and the fashionable styles tend to be either completely flat or too high!

There are also a few online sites that provide a made to measure service, however my preference is definitely to be able to try on a pair of shoes before I take them home.

Image here

A beach wedding

Chad and I headed down to Margaret River for the wedding of C&J on Friday. It was a very simple wedding, attended by the bride and groom, their two sons, the best man (Chad) and bridesmaid and their partners, the bride's parents and the groom's mother and aunt.

The bridesmaid's partner H and I were both asked to take photographs for them of the day, and I managed to snap 276 over the course of festivities. It was pretty bright out so lots of squinting went on and I need to do some more learning on how to take photos and also edit them!

C and H came to our room in the morning for C and Chad to get ready. From there we headed to the Karridale Tavern to meet with everyone except the bride and bridesmaid and to the wedding venue at Hamelin Bay. After the ceremony we headed back to the Karridale Tavern for lunch and to relax.

Hamelin Bay is a gorgeous location! So peaceful. The bride's aisle was the sand and the processional music the sounds of the ocean.

Not looking too nervous.
Chad and me.
Mother of the groom sorting out the flowers.
The blushing bride.
Bridesmaid A with BabyR, Bride J and her father with BabyS.
Pledging their love.
Joined together.
Kiss the bride!
Happy family.
Just married.
Gorgeous bridesmaid.
Beautiful colours.

Send in the cows!

C and I went down to Margaret River for a wedding yesterday. There is a Cow Parade happening down there, and I managed to get a couple of the cows to pose for photos.

These two were spotted cruising at the Karridale Tavern and surfing the roof at Settlers Tavern.

Cute shoes!

These cute shoes say it all!

By Louisa Bailey via Polkadot Bride