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What Is Love?

January 24th, 2012

*Your chance to win pretty within this post!

For all you new readers (*waves*) who may not have heard of Coulson Macleod before then you are in for a treat, for all of you that have then you are also in for treat – fairs fair and all that.

Coulson Macleod are a UK-based art business specialising in the design and production of handmade, typography-based artwork printed onto natural and reclaimed materials including wood, metal, stone, fabric, and recycled paper. Their stuff is immense. I have a Love Makes The Ride Worthwhile piece in my hallway and it always receives a whole heap of compliments and subsequent requests for the source of purchase.

A couple of my current Coulson Macleod favourites are:

“Lovenotes“

and “Kissed“

Hannah and Mark who founded the company are not only ridiculously talented, they are also planning their own Big Day and have been huge supporters of Rock My Wedding since we first launched in September 2009. And today they are giving away not one but TWO of their “What” prints, one handmade on solid oak (worth £239) and a solid limestone version with a reclaimed timber frame retailing at £169.

What is Love in Oak:

What Is Love in Limestone:

The words of “What” were written by Mark Coulson for Hannah Macleod when he fell in love with her (I know – when Hannah told me I may have cried a bit…) and many brides ask if they can use the piece as a reading at their wedding, to which of course Hannah and Mark always say yes.

Not only would one of these look amazing in your home, it would also be a beautiful piece of decor for W-day – I’m thinking dessert table, or just displayed somewhere “look at me” in your reception venue such as a window ledge or fireplace surrounded by single stems or swathed in candlelight….

Both of these prints will be bespoke in terms of your wedding date, names and the colour of the text and all you have to do to be in with a chance of becoming the proud owner of one of these pieces of pretty is enter the competition.

“And how do you do that?” I hear you ask….

Simple.

Just drop an email to hello@coulsonmacleod.com with the subject “RMW What Is Love” and include your name, address and the print you would like to win. You then just need to come over and drop us a comment on this post with which version you chose and where you are thinking of displaying it.

Hannah, Mark and Team RMW will then choose two lucky lucky winners.

The competition closes at Midnight on Monday the 30th January so get entering folks – you’ve go to be in it to win it.

Big I Wish I Could Enter Love

Charlotte xxx

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A Splash Of Contemporary Colour.

December 19th, 2011

I am currently having a moment over carnations, the big blousy variety all tightly packed together to create a pouff of extreme pretty. I am also having a moment over colour, bold bright clashing shades such as hot pink, red and orange in particular. So it was like Christmas (literally) after such a successful run of romantic rustic affairs when the uber contemporary inspiration shoot styled by Andri of Always Andri Wedding Design, landed in the RMW inbox…

There are quiffs. There are crimson lips and patent platform shoe candy. There is a selection of sexy stationery and foxy fashion. And there is ceremony decor of epic proportions….. seriously people, if the venue where you are saying “I do” is a blank canvas then all you need is one of these laser cut paper drape creations.

I know there has been more than a couple of requests to feature some modern cool on these pages of late so here it is, with great big ruddy bells on.

All of the gorgeous images are courtesy of Chanelle Sergerius-Bruce.

Andri of Always Andri Wedding Design: I’ve wanted to do a very modern inspired bridal shoot for a while now, so when Chanelle from Segerius Bruce Photography, contacted me to ask if I’d like to work on one together I instantly knew what look I wanted to go for.

For the modern bride who is looking to have a clean crisp minimal feel for her wedding I decided that Altitude 360 would make the perfect venue with its clean white walls, polished white floor and panoramic views across London. Such a white space can end up looking very stark so I decided to use strong accent colours of hot pink and red to accentuate the details and avoid the overall look feeling too clinical.

The Suppliers

I was very keen to make the shoot paper heavy so had two stationery companies in mind who both came onboard with some great ideas. My first call was to the fabulous Helen at Cutture, as I felt this shoot was a great opportunity to showcase some of their stunning 3d laser cut paper work. We discussed creating a ceremony installation with laser cut paper ribbons and large oversize paper flowers to line the aisle and from the initial concept drawings to the final installation on the day they really didn’t disappoint.

With such a blank canvas space I think it is well worth creating a beautiful alter focal point and you can also use it again during the reception as a photo booth backdrop. They also provided some of their Perspex pieces which worked really well with the Ghost chairs I’d hired in from Well Dressed Tables.

To complement the laser cut paper creations, Amma at Beyond Beyond designed the bold graphic stationery for the orders of service and menus which added a punch of colour as well as the modern guest book ‘tree’ cards to clip onto the Umbra footfalls photo holder.

For the cake I approached Cakes by Krishanthi who designed two beautiful cakes that perfectly complemented Cutture’s paper pieces. Rather than traditional cake stands I used glass vases, displaying some of the paper flowers inside the taller one – you could also easily use coloured water inside the vases as an alternative contemporary twist for your cake display.

The flowers were by Leanne at Wildabout. When you’re going for a clean contemporary look, using block colours of a single flower variety works really well in creating striking focal pieces; here we used carnations. Now I know carnations are often overlooked or seen as a cheap filler flower, but when used en masse as we did here I think they look just stunning.

The Fashion

When it came to choosing the dresses I thought it would be nice to showcase a variety of designers and price ranges. I had seen this stunning Naomi Neoh dress at the Designer Wedding show and just love the simple classic shape of the dress which is totally transformed by adding the long sleeved shrug with wrap around ties.

Naomi makes all her dress with internal corsets too so they give you a fabulous nipped in waist. We accessorised this look with some lovely silver jewellery from Not on the High Street retailer Bijou Jewellery and sparkly shoes from Aldo.

The second dress was from new online bridal range Kitty & Dulcie. They have a wonderful range of dresses all at amazing prices; we used the short Bobbi Dazzler dress. I accessorised this look with a stunning headpiece from Kirsten Goss, if you’re looking for really contemporary jewellery then I highly recommend you take a look at their range as they have some dazzling pieces.

For the final dress I used a Two Birds Bridesmaid dress which are not only great dresses for your maids but make fabulous wedding dresses too, if not for the whole day then a great option to change into for the evening , (this dress is one of their custom colours).

For the menswear I went to bespoke suit maker Delvero, Italian ateliers based in London who make all their suits maid to measure. We had two looks for our Groom, a silk lined modern tuxedo and a three piece dark navy suit.

On the day of the shoot everything came together so well, (apart from the weather – we were in the clouds all day!) so a big thank you to the whole team for translating my vision for a modern wedding style so perfectly and for those brides out there who like the modern city vibe I hope the shoot  will inspire your day.

Hair And Make-up

Gemma Sutton: Lipstick is HOT right now, I think go red and bold with a bridal twist. Celebs like Gwen Stefani, Georgia Jagger and Katy Perry are all lovers of a brighter, vintage-esque sexy fuller lip.

My Top Tips to get your perfect red point.

• Smooth concealer over your lips to lock down the colour.
• Work in thin layers, starting from the middle of the lip and work outwards.
• Apply lip liner after the lipstick and Use a lip brush for a smother finish.
• Add clear gloss after to make lips look even fuller.

My favourite reds are Colour Fever Lipstick in 151 by Lancome, Signature hydra lustre lipstick in Rich Red by Estee Lauder and Moisture Drench Lipstick in Dare Devil by No.7

If you want a modern look with an edgy hair do, why not try a curvy modern mohawk. This is a look both male and female can do! Adding curls to the your mohawk will make the look softer and more refined.

Venue – Altitude 360 & The River Room

Photography by Sergerius Bruce Photography

Design, planning & Styling by Always Andri Wedding Design

Styling Assistant Anna And The Ring

Hair & Makeup by Gemma Sutton

Ceremony installation & Perspex Stationery by Cutture

Paper stationery: Menus, Order of service by Beyond Beyond

Flowers by Wildabout

Cakes by Cakes by Krishanthi

Long wedding dress by Naomi Neoh

Hammered silver necklace & earrings by Bijou Jewellery via Not on the High Street

Short dress Bobbi Dazzler bridal gown (£285) by Kitty & Dulcie

Long silver dress by Two Birds Bridesmaid (tied in the Grecian Twist Cross Back)

Menswear by Delvero

Ghost Chair hire & White Linen Well Dressed Tables

Behind the scenes video by Dreamday Films

See what I mean about the laser cut flower drape?

Immense.

Anyone having this kind of red/pink colour scheme for W-day? thinking of donning a scarlett pout or a gold glittery shoe?

And if your venue is a blank canvas but with a modern edge what are your decor ideas?

Big (Pouffy) Carnation Love

Charlotte xxx

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Breaking Dawn.

November 16th, 2011

I will begin with asking the obvious question, how many of you are Twilight fans?

Have you read all of the books?

And how many of you are intending on seeing Breaking Dawn on the 18th November? (for those of you who don’t know it’s the one with THE wedding in it….)

Well folks, if you are a dedicated lover of Stephenie Meyer and her tales of the immortal we have a huge treat for you….and even if you don’t go ga ga for vampires, we have a shoot captured by Chanelle Segerius-Bruce, produced and styled by Sonia at Want That Wedding and inspired by the Twilight series that has plenty of covetable pretty regardless.

And is it me or does the male model bear more than a slight resemblance to Robert Pattinson?

This is also the first time I have been tempted by a dark red lip. Usually reserved for my talons only, this winter I may have to embark on a love affair with a rouge-noir esque pout…..

Sonia From Want That Wedding: Hello lovely ladies ~ so why did I decide to create a {Twilight} Breaking Dawn styled shoot? Well, for me the story of Edward and Bella is a modern day love story for our time, a tale of two worlds colliding… a modern day girl meets, falls in love with and then marries a rather dreamy vampire who is locked forever in his 17 year old, turn of the century body! What perfect wedding inspiration for any future bride to be (!)

I took my inspiration from the twilight novels visualizing how Edward and Bella’s dream nuptials could translate into reality. Edward was turned into a vampire in 1918 so I wanted to reflect the Art Nouveau period, you can see this in the style of the wedding stationery and wedding cake created for the shoot.

For the flowers I envisaged lots of romantic white blooms and green foliage. I thought it would be a stunning contrast to complement the blue from Bella’s hair-piece and so incorporated the blue thistles into the flower arrangements, I believe this added to the overall beauty of these incredible wedding flowers.

In turn I was inspired to select a pretty, vintage duck egg blue as the dominant colour in the colour palette. I chose to mix in a spectrum of colours from the dark red of Bella’s lipstick and the redness of the apple, to the navy blue of Edwards’s suit. An array of subtle accent colours were also used which can be seen in the styling of the sweetheart table.

To complete the look I chose a dramatic Georgian Mansion as a backdrop for this Breaking Dawn styled shoot to add an old fashioned English twist. The result ~ I think you’ll agree is an incredibly romantic, intense and vintage inspired {Twilight} Breaking Dawn styled wedding shoot.


Jodie From Make-up By Jodie: Sonia’s brief to me for ‘Bella’s’ makeup was to be ethereal and very beautiful. I decided to keep her skin very flawless and fresh looking to reflect her age and beauty with a very beautiful haze of iridescence around the eyes and a subtle smoky definition. The lips and nails were appropiately a dark blood red.

For Bella’s skin I used a fine layer of Jemma Kidd Light As Air Foundation just to perfect and even out her skin tone. I wanted to create a very soft peachy flush through her cheeks so I used Jemma Kidd Blushwear in Paw Paw and Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow in Iced Gold to highlight.

For her eyes I used Estee Lauder Double Wear Gel Liner in Black to darken her inner eye then used a mix of Mac Pro Pigments on her lid to create a shimmery iridescence that would catch the light and make her look slightly other wordly. I added lots of Ardell Individual lashes to create a very fluttery but natual lash line.

Finally I finished the lips with Jemma Kidd Lipstick Duo in Boudicea and the classic Chanel Rouge Noir on her nails.

Produced & Styled by Sonia at Want That Wedding

Vintage Props & Venue Styling by Kim and Tiggy at Idyllic Days

Photography by Chanelle Segerius Bruce

Venue – Nonsuch Mansion

Models – Gingersnap Model Agency

Flowers by Jamie Aston

Hair by Love Hair

Make-up by Make-up By Jodie

Wedding Gown – ‘The Petal’ + Veil by Belle & Bunty

Grooms Suit by POSE London

Hair-piece by Jannie Baltzer at Luella’s Boudoir

Wedding Stationery by Elle Is For Love

Wedding Cake by Janet Mohapi- Banks

Cake-pops by Gingercups

Bridal Shoes by Rachel Simpson

Table Cloths by Shabby Chic Originals

Chess Piece Card Holders by Kate Aspen

Shabby Chic Sign by Delightful Living

Napkins & Grooms Cravat handmade by Sonia at Want That Wedding

Material & Vintage Keys Purchased From Cloth House

For details of the full Breaking Dawn shoot then pop on over to Want That Wedding right about now lovelies.

I have a sneaky feeling the actual W-day of Bella Swann and Edward Cullen won’t be too far away in terms of colour scheme and decor – what do you think?

And I think that backlit floral archway is one of the most romantic pieces of aisle pretty I have seen in a long while…. I’d like one for my living room at Christmas.

Big Eternal Love

Charlotte xxx

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I’m In Heaven.

October 8th, 2011

I don’t pretend to know the sheer amount of time it must take, the type of dedication and the kind of organisational skills that go into planning and executing a luxe wedding, but I can imagine. And someone who definitely would know is Mark Niemierko, named Britain’s top luxury wedding planner by Elle Magazine and renowned UK wide for designing and styling truly beautiful events.

Mark submitted the video highlights of a spectacular W-day to Rock My Wedding recently that is both decadent and spectacularly pretty in equal measure and is the perfect piece of escapism for you gorgeous lot to emerge yourself in this weekend.

Enjoy lovelies.

Mark Niemierko: This wedding was planned in just less than 4 months, so goes to prove how quickly a large scale wedding can be pulled off rather quickly. It was held at Cliveden House, in Berkshire on Tuesday 21st June. The longest day of the year…

The couple and their children lived all over the world, from Windsor, Santa Fa and most regularly spending their time in Singapore due to work commitments. Although the Bride was English and the Groom Swedish So I had a lot of cultures and styles to merge into one day!

The ceremony was held at a small village church across the Road from the couple’s home in Binfield. This couple had been together for well over 10 years, and already had 2 children who happened to be Christened in this church so it had real personal meaning to them.

With the church we wanted to keep the country, rustic feel and add some colour and polish to it. I’m so use to keeping ceremonies white and fancied a change! The Mulberry ad campaign from earlier in the year inspired me to go a little OTT with colourful hydrangeas, pink, green and lilac. We installed them everywhere, from the back of the church by the alter railings to an oversized arch outside. We hired McQueen’s flowers for the church as the Bride and I felt they understood our brief the most. The scent in the church came from the pew-ends as tied to each pew were stocks in pale lilac and cream, bound with natural seagrass.

When the guests arrived at Cliveden the drinks reception commenced on the front drive. Waiting for the Bride and Groom to arrive. The guests weren’t aware the couple were arriving by Horse and Carriage.

Then onto the West Wing terrace for the remainder of the drinks reception. Ruinart champagne was served along with canapés. Whilst the Urban Soul Orchestra entertained the guests, florist Rob Van Helden was my choice as the reception venue floral designer.

We’d gone for a more contemporary outdoor feel for the drinks reception. With white furniture and vases. We installed a stone like bar to fit with the exterior of Cliveden.  The columns along the Pagoda had wonderful ivy garlands going up them, with a mixture of white peonies, hydrangeas, lilies as well as clusters of fresh granny smith apples! The white flowers and vases were a perfect contrast to the gardens and view that people were looking out onto.

A 3 course Dinner was served in the Terrace Dining Room. With a combination of 3 different table centres to create varied heights on the tables. Including a tall lantern tree stand placed in the centre of 4 of the tables, clad with glossy dark green foliages, interspersed with clusters of all white Peonies and all white Avalanche Spray Roses. The three branches at top suspended a hanging glass lantern. As it got darker these looked especially romantic.

The other table centres included a silver candelabra and a silver sundial dish, filled with water and white floating candles. Really beautiful. Dinner was perhaps the most traditional part of the day.

The menus were cut circular to fit into the charge plates perfectly.  These doubled up as a place card as they included the individual guest’s names on them. We also arranged for Ladies and Gentlemen’s napkin rings. The gents had a silver flower pot napkin ring and sprig of flowering mint whilst the Ladies had the same but with a white rose added.

There were a large number of children at this wedding so they all dined in the french dining room at Cliveden. The three flower girls hosted their own table. They each had a different coloured sash on their dress, ice blue, duck egg and candy pink so we incorporated those colours subtly onto each table with ribbon napkin rings. The room is very ornate and grand so we kept to gold candelabra’s. We arranged for each child’s place setting to have a slate tile and chalk bucket which works perfectly for children to keep them entertained during dinner.

After dessert the guests were asked to make their way back out to the Front of Cliveden House for the cutting of the cake. However when they reached outside there was no cake, just an empty plinth. This was the part of the day were I incorporated Singapore and that influence on the couple, I was inspired by 1940’s Shanghai and also Colonel Singapor – think Raffles Hotel. Once all guests were outside authentic Chinese music started playing and Shaolin Monks appeared from both sides of the drive.  Arriving in front of the guests to perform.  A lion dance also came across the lawn – with live music behind it.  The monks went to the side as the Lion Dance continued.  From the side the Monks reappear carrying a large Art-Deco style cake, designed and created by Peggy Porschen, including hanging Crystals -Six tiers in total. This was Niemierko’s grandest and detailed cake ever. The cake reached the Bride and Groom and one of the Monks handed the couple a Sword…..As they cut BANG, a four minute firework display began, synchronised to Black Eyed Peas “I’ve Got a Feeling” and U2’s “Beautiful Day”. WOW.

Now we had to top this amazing act and firework display off and keep the momentum going, the guests made their way back into the House and into the Great Hall which had been turned into a Nightclub. Palms were installed around the room, a large square dance floor, the couples monogram had even been given an Asian makeover.  There was a chrome topped bar with aubergine velvet along it, black poser tables with mirrored tops and ambient lighting all around the room. The first act when the guests entered was female strings group Bond. The guests enjoyed the 10 minute performance whilst perched on low seating sofa areas, upholstered in aubergine ribbed silk.


 
After Bond’s performance, the Rockabellas came on. A 1940’s female trio act singing everything from Candy Man to Beyonce’s Crazy In Love. Without doubt they were the highlight of the night.

After their 20 minute set the main and final act of the evening The All Stars came on to entertain the guests until the very end.

Cigar girls and late night cocktails and canapés ensured the guests continued onto the early hours!

Video credit: Allora Visuals
Photo credit: Keith Appleby

I am occasionally left in awe of W-day details, and this is one such example – already a lover of hydrangea this is my idea of heaven.

With HUGE thanks to Mark Niemierko for sharing the amazingness, you can see more of his unique skills in his portfolio and on his blog.

Big Luxe Love

Charlotte xxx

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The Party Of The Year.

May 27th, 2011

Sometimes we see little snippets of party pretty that may not be strictly “W-day” related an first glance but the ideas, decor and colour schemes can easily be utlised for any kind of celebration.

This is what I thought when I saw the beautifully designed birthday of Love Lust List member David Long’s cute-as- a-button son Rafferty a few months ago. David’s partner Claire and planner Louise from Purely Events set about creating a fun filled village fete theme for Rafferty’s special day and used a selection of DIY down-loadables and easy to replicate supermarket finds to achieve the finished look.

Lovelies….

This is perfect for a hen party, big day reception or indeed a similar birthday bash you may have in mind for any of your little ones in the very near future.

I’ll hand over to Claire to share the whole “How-to”

Enjoy!

Claire: Inspired by the many beautiful weddings, parties and events seen on the Internet and in magazines I enrolled Louise from Purely Events to help create the 3rd birthday party of the year.

I had some amazing ideas about how she wanted the party to look with a village fete theme, the most exciting of her ideas was an ice cream parlor and sweetie table! The challenge was that this was all decided just 2 weeks before the big day!

We wanted a village fete style party with a pretty feel, using lots of bunting, bright balloons, lucky dip, tin can alley and hook a duck!

All kids love ice cream and sweets – and when we thought about how to present these we decided we could get really creative with it using an ice cream parlour and sweetie table. Rafferty’s age group also really enjoy dressing up and with my partner David Long frequently setting up Photo Booth’s at his weddings we thought why not emulate this for the kids.

We wanted the tables to be clean, crisp and light so kept the color palette simple. Both tables were heavily inspired by Amy Atlas and the beautiful tables she creates for parties, weddings and other events. Taking her ideas, downloadable graphics and the ice cream parlour concept from Eat Drink Chic we personalised them and made them bespoke for Rafferty’s Ice Cream Parlor!

We measured the tables at our local village hall where the party was held and bought some mdf wood of the same length to create a backdrop to rest behind each table which we covered with blue and white stripy wallpaper. Backdrops really do add something special to the tables and are a great way of pulling together your colour scheme. The wallpaper used here was bought from Laura Ashley.

We chose pure white tablecloths for the ice cream parlor, as we wanted to highlight the pretty tone of blue that we were using in the signs/napkins/spoons etc. The tablecloths were £3.50 each bought from John Lewis. We were really pleased with the quality of these cloths, as they were paper made to look like linen. Most of what was on the table was sourced from our own homes – or charity shops. We were lucky enough to find some lovely wooden trays in a charity shop and painted them white. The main topping dispenser was just 3 cheap box files from Ikea which we superglued together and also painted white.

We picked up some pretty card in our colour scheme from a local craft shop and used these to give colour to the white ceramic plates, which held the meringues.

The glass drink bottles were actually just tonic water bottles bought from Sainsbury’s. We washed them with soapy water and scraped the labels off – which was surprisingly easy to do. We used nail varnish remover to completely clean the bottles of all the glue. I had seen stripy paper straws on an American website and we managed to search the internet to find them in the UK from Pippi. This was another great way of bringing the colour palette to the table. The “drink me” labels were designed by Michelle Fiedler and were just printed on address labels. Using the Amy Atlas downloads from her website we passed this onto our designer Michelle who changed the colours and played around with wording adding Rafferty to the Ice Cream Parlour signs and Ice cream cups.

The topping signs were stuck onto paddle sticks bought from the local craft shop.

The ice cream cups were 9oz cups bought from the local party shop and using the cutout designs from Amy Atlas we glued them onto the paper cups. This was really easy and quick to do. You can use any toppings you like for the table – but keeping the colours soft and within your colour scheme where possible does help. We used only blue smarties and the popping candy was really popular!! We filled a drinks bucket with ice to keep the ice cream cold for the duration of the party.

We had a separate sweetie table. Again we sourced mdf wood for the backdrop and covered it in the same wallpaper. We created a sign for the backdrop and also created tags that were tied with pretty ribbon to each jar with wording such as EAT ME, YUM YUM , SWEETIE HEAVEN. We bought white paper bags from e-bay and using a hole punch and pretty ribbon from a local craft shop we tied personalised gift tags to them. These bags were used as going home presents and each child could fill their own bag, which added to the whole experience. Our jars were sourced from The Wedding Of Your Dreams, Asda and also from local charity shops.

The sweetie scoops were sourced from the internet. The sweets themselves we bought from supermarkets as they were reasonably priced. The pretty bunting was sourced from e-bay and borrowed from friends.

The little guests and their parents were in awe of the fabulous ice cream and sweetie tables and everyone commented on how amazing they looked and what fun they added to Rafferty’s birthday party.

The children and adults loved dressing up to have their photo taken in the photo booth and the photographs made a lovely memento of Rafferty’s party which were then used on thank you cards.

Photography – David Long

Styling – Claire Baird and Louise at Purely Events

Sweet Table Inspiration – Amy Atlas

Wallpaper – Laura Ashley

Table Cloths - John Lewis

Straws – Pippi

Label Designs – Michelle Fielder

Downloadable Graphics and Ice Cream Parlour Concept Inspiration – Amy Moss at Eat Drink Chic

Sweets? Ice Cream? Fancy Dress?

Sounds like my kind of party ;-)

Do let us know if any of you gorgeous lot are planning a creative affair for your hen, birthday or just for the hell of it (!) anytime soon and tell us what you have in mind, any excuse to gossip about styling and decor!

Big I’m Stealing All Of These Ideas Love

Charlotte xxx

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Dolly Pop… Part 1

May 4th, 2011

Well, Hello Dolly ;)

We said we wanted to inspire you… and by that we mean ALL of you, so we weren’t messing around when we said we wanted to play with some different themes. And the one I was most excited about? Dolly Pop.

You see, I’m a sucker for colour. Bold, bright, juicy, punchy, every-colour-of-the-rainbow hues. Think candy colours, sorbet shades and beautiful brights. I love it all and if you do too, then Dolly Pop is for you.

We compined Pop-Art, Pop-Culture, Eye popping brights and fun fashion.

I hope you like.

Doll Face

As I said, Dolly Pop was all about colour, and we wanted to show that doesn’t have to stop at the accessories for W-day. After Charlotte’s Spring time beauty Queen with a fresh green eye went down a treat we thought, why not rock green for bridal, and charged Katy with creating a wearable green bridal eye. A pop of coral on the lip finished off a modern face for a youthful and fun bride…

It’s over to the talented and super-lovely Katy Messer (Make Up By Katy) to share more Dolly beauty secrets…

My brief here was to keep it fresh but vibrant and I loved showing that a sheer wash of a bright colour can be so wearable and flattering! I circled the eye with a mid-toned green that I pressed on denser at the lashes and then buffed out towards the brow bone. This was lifted with a slightly lighter shade of green at the inner corners and I placed individual lashes from Ardell all along the lashline to add volume but at the same time keeping it fluttery and natural.

Whilst the eyes were very soft and sheer, I wanted to inject some real colour on the lip. I started by lining the lips with a Laura Mercier lip pencil in Petunia, keeping the edge clean and sharp and filling in the whole lip (this increases longevity and helps lipstick wear evenly) and then I layered 2 thin coats of OCC Lip Tar in Memento all over and blotted.

Bow-Beautiful

I won’t lie, this is an idea I have been dying to use since we shared The Soho-Sexy with you… but taking it one step further, part tongue in cheek, part full on fun, we wanted to reference Minnie Mouse with a stand out bow style, right on top of Chara’s head.

It might seem a little comical for W-day and as with everything on these pages, it’s about finding something that’s you, but this Dolly is fun-loving, quirky and individually stylish. The bow makes a perfect base for adding a short veil for more retro styling and continues the theme working with such a fabulously feminine yet flirty dress.

Cassandra did a wonderful job of putting the brief into action and here’s how she went about it!

Chara surely Popped her Dolly Pop look with a Disney Minnie Mouse inspired Massive Bow and a large Bun. I neatly combed her hair into a sleek high ponytail which was split into two sections and pinned to create the Bow effect. With Chara’s second look I back combed her hair as Big as possible but kept it in the high ponytail to create the bun. I then smoothed her hair out and pinned it in place to give the bun a sleek apperance. (More on this look later…)

Let’s Play Dolly Dress-Up

There was only one choice for Dolly Pop when it came to frocks and that was short. However that’s not to say all short dresses have to be big-skirted… but more on that later. ;)

The very first dress that popped into my head? This lace and tulle, swinging skirted creating by Morgan Davies Bridal’s own label. The very lovely Annaliza at Morgan Davies Bridal was kind enough to loan us this one (and as a matter of fact the other version of the same dress with a more solid, silk taffeta skirt). We loved the vintage look lace and neckline, retro skirt, feminine layers tulle and the adaptable nature of this dress. It would work just as well in a much more restrained theme but worked perfectly with the fun factor we wanted to inject here.

Of course, there are some absolute must have’s when you’re wearing such a fun outfit, killer colour-pop heels, the shorter retro-look veil we mentioned above (also from Morgan Davies) and some serious swishing!

We chose some lime green suede skyscrapers from Dorothy Perkins to subtly pick up on the make-up, (very kindly loaned by my friend Jess.) They’re last Summers collection, but lucky for you guys, you can find similar in any high street store currently while colour-blocking remains a huge trend.


Accessories were of the juicy but plastic-fantastic variety, picking up on the pop art theme and props we used. The Button Bracelet was by Blue Pebble from NOTHS and also had a matching necklace.

The scrabble rings (you can choose any letter combination you fancy!) were from Rock N Rose.

Dolly Pop was also an exercise in how to have fun with your decor. More and more, Brides are turning their attention to really ‘styling’ the venue, with tables laden with photos, vintage trinkets and cakes. But it doesn’t have to be all about pearls and cake-stands! Particularly if that’s not your style. We used retro style kitchen memorabilia and edibles (Fluff from Selfridges and a Mason Jar filled with Love Hearts) along with single flower heads scattered on the table top and a stylish clock. The important thing is to pick out your co-hesive colours and work them together, candy pink, sky blue on a background of mixed pastels – this little arrangement was almost leaning towards a 50′s American Diner feel, but whatever portrays your personal style will work just as well.

Sorbet Scoops

Charlotte and I don’t pretend to have a structured approach to planning these shoots… more often than not they’re the product of brainstorming madly and bouncing ideas around like ping pong balls, while flashes of inspiration hit us like a virtual light bulb switching on above our heads. So here’s a little peep inside my mind…

…Pop – Colour Pop – Spots – Round – Dots – Balls – Brights – Buttons – Bouquet – Ranunculas…

…I told you it was a little bit random!

So for Dolly Pop’s bouquet and their perfect little swirly rounded scoops of sorbet shaded petals, we couldn’t beat a packed dome of ranunculas in shades of mango, peach, coral, lemon, cream and pale green tinges. I’m a little bit in love with this bouquet, this colour scheme.

I’m a little bit in love with this Dolly.

Photographer - Julia Boggio

Bouquet - Robbie Honey

Hair – Cassandra Rizzuto (Love Your Hair)

Make Up – Katy Messer (Make Up By Katy)

Venue – Nonsuch Mansion, Cheame, Surry.

Dress – Morgan Davies at Morgan Davies Bridal

Veil – Morgan Davies Bridal

Shoes – High Street

Button Bracelet – Blue Pebble at NOTHS

Dolly Pop Letters – Alphabet at Pedlars

Pink Lady Art Work – Jasper Goodall

Scrabble Rings – Rock N Rose

Fluff – Selfridges

Mug – Find similar at Pedlars

Styling – Rock My Wedding

And you know what? We’re not done yet. Dolly Pop was so cool we’ve got a whole other look to share with you all, coming right up later. Pop Chic meets Pop Art and oodles more colour.

Yours (I’m Dolly Pop) Truly,

Rebecca
xoxo

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