Board#224: Spring Blues

I don't know about you but boy am I glad to see Friday here... in fact I'll be even more happy at the end of the day! Been a wee bit of a challenging week. Lots on, lots happening, and then night before last hubby got a lovely dose of food poisoning in the middle of the night, resulting in very little sleep for both of us, and consequently me walking around like a zombie for most of the day! Might have to try and book in for a little pampering over the weekend me thinks!!

Happy Thanksgiving to my North American friends!!!

Photos from top left; Bridesmaids | The Youngrens, Cake | Jose Villa, Flowers | Ingrid Henningsson, Dress | Laura Murray, Groom | Desi Baytan, Cookies | Just call me Martha, Bouquet of Orchids | Martha Stewart Weddings, Lace | Janne Peters, Bouquet with blue ribbon | Martha Stewart Weddings

Board#214: Bohemian Beauty

Photos from top left; Girl | Loreta Blog, Model in blue | Elizabeth Messina, Dusky Pink Blouse | Amy Merrick, Gold Sandals | André Teixeira of Brancoprata, Flowers in cup | Loreta Blog, Lace Bodice | Smallpigart, Cake | Zoe Clark Cakes (photo Sarah Gawler), Head piece | Twigs & Honey

Board#210: Blue Emerald

Happy Friday everyone! How has your week been? We seemed to have turned a bit of a corner with puppy Charlie, who is now making life a little easier for us and letting her Mummy get a bit more work done... thank goodness!! And we've found a puppy friend a few houses away so I can have a cuppa and a chat for half an hour while the pups romp on the grass and wear each other out. It's perfect!! We had a fun {MAG}rouge shoot midweek too... only a few weeks off Issue 4's launch day!! I hope you have some lovely plans for the weekend. K xo

Photos from top left; Green & Blue Kitchen | Christopher Drake via Design Sponge, Striped Tie | Leo Patrone, Blue Building | via Art n Light Blog, Blue Shoes | Denise Bovee, Couple in green room | Tec Petaja, Cake | Martha Stewart, Bouquet | Polly Alexandre, Daffodils | Jose Villa

Colour Study | Green with Cornflower & Honeydew

Happy Weekend everyone!! Do you have anything nice planned? We have a dinner with some lovely friends on Saturday night, and a couple of puppy walks I'm sure but the rest of it will be spent charging along with Issue four of {MAG}rouge. I'll leave you with a bit of fresh green and blue colour inspiration, love greens in this combo... hope you have a fabulous weekend!

Board#206: Icing on the Cake

Ugh, it's been one of those Mondays!! Feel like I took one step forward and about ten back!! Here's hoping for a better rest of week!!

Photos from top left; Cake | Claire Mossong, Couple | Jose Villa, Shoes | Tec Petaja, Mini Cake | Claire Mossong, Pink dresses, Blue striped suit | Davina & Daniel, Table setting | by Saipua via Once Wed

Board#197: Beautiful Blues

Well it would seem little miss Charlie is on the mend since she's inhibiting my work flow once more... 'play with me, play with me' she keeps saying with her little puppy dog eyes! Back to puppy daycare for a day next week so I can charge on! These days the moment hubs walks in the door I hand over all puppy responsibility and work for the evening while they cuddle on the couch!! Gosh how naive we were when we thought about getting a dog! I have my gorgeous wee niece coming over to stay tonight so they're going to have great fun!! 

I love the idea of using one colour for your wedding in a range of different and complimentary hues. Also bringing in texture to mix things up, like the beautiful rusted patina on the teal milk can below. All blue is such a soothing look, and whilst blue flowers are a little hard to come by there are some super sweet little varieties at the right time of year, like tweedia, forget me knots, and of course the ever popular hydrangea.

Photos from top left; Dogwood | Dreamy Whites, Bride | Polly Alexandre, Wooden Sign | Katie Stoops, Dresser | Vintage Rose Garden, Cake | Millie Holloman, Bride on beach | Karen Wise, Macarons | My Sweet & Saucy, Blue flowers | All the Beautiful Things

Lobster Bake Inspiration Board

I had the honour of guest posting for Chandra from Oh Lovely Day last week, and I shared this fun summery Lobster Bake board. I've always wanted to have a holiday in Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard and of course these colours transport me there! I think having this as a theme for your wedding would be SO much fun... have any of you considered this idea?

Popsicles | Sutherland Kovach for {MAG}rouge, Couple on beach | Trent Bailey, New England Tablesetting | Trent Bailey, Invitation | Ruby & Willow, Stripy Straws | Elizabeth Messina, Aqua Drinks | Sutherland Kovach for {MAG}rouge, Sorbet | Cannelle et Vanille, Starfish | Stacey Hedman

Board#184: Peonies & Pickups

I don't know about you but I have such a thing for pickup trucks... you've probably figured out by now that I'm quite the rustic girl at heart, so anything like this really floats my boat! I'd love one parked in a corner of my property... preferably with a mass of pretty blooms in buckets as a permanent fixture too!! (Not sure what the hubs would have to say about that however :-).

Right I'm off to take Charlie to the beach to make the most of this amazing autumn weather we're having!! Have a fabulous day xo

Photos from top left; Pickup truck with flowers | Lisa Lefkowitz, Bride & Blue Pickup truck | Aaron Delesie, Pink Peonies, Flowers in bucket | Loreta Blog, Green Pickup truck | Jose Villa, Bridesmaids | Jill Thomas

Easter Sweetness

Happy Easter everyone!! I can't believe how amazingly nice this week has turned out. We were forewarned of a 'weather bomb' for most of the week... expecting torrential rain and gale force winds, and whilst it's been fairly windy (although that seems the norm over the past 6 months!) yesterday was one of the hottest days we've had all summer!! Even though it's now autumn! Craziness. But I'm thrilled since our friends from San Diego arrive tomorrow (yay!!) and sunny weather always, always makes a holiday better!! We're heading off on a road trip next week so I'll be out of here for about 10 days, although I do have some prettiness lined up for you!! For today some pretty Easter pastels... this makes me want to paint my eggs and display them... think I might have to try this one day it looks so effective. Wishing you a fabulous long and fun weekend everyone... and enjoy those hot cross buns and choccie eggs!! I'm looking forward to tucking into my favourite chocolate marshmallow eggs!! xo

Eggs | Hotel | Outfit | Bouquet

Board#181: Blueberry Woods

Why hello there!! Boy this puppy business takes up a LOT of time doesn't it? Between playing and cleaning up and searching for her... well my computer time is seriously reduced. Although that's probably a good thing as it stops me sitting for too long and gets me up and outside for regular breaks. 

I adore the woodsy feeling of this board... and I love the fern incorporated in that bouquet at the top. You don't see ferns used a lot these days but it's such a lovely way to bring the outdoors in. 

Photos from top left; Blueberries | Rikki Snyder, Fern Bouquet | via Green Wedding Shoes, Green Tie | General Knot & Co, Girl in blue quilt | Anna Kern, Model in green dress | Stephanie Williams for Ruche | Anemones | Cameron Ingalls, Check shirt & logs | Kristin Vining, Cushions on swing | Loreta Blog

Board#176: Seersucker & Stripes

Phew... it's Friday!! I'm am in 'lock-down' this weekend working on the magazine since the hubs is heading out of town for a couple of days... and it starts today so I'm looking forward to getting stuck in. The {MAG}rouge girls were very lucky to attend the launch of Natalie Chan's beautiful new range of head pieces last night... check out a fun photo of us playing dress up on our facebook page! We've had some beautiful real wedding features this week and we're ending off with a fresh summery blue inspiration board. I don't use a whole lot of blue, but there really is something very serene about it. I love the centrepiece with the buttery yellow flowers mixed in with the blue. And how good do those meringues look? Have a superb Friday people!!

Photos from top left; Centrepiece | Jubilee Photography, Meringues | Fresh New England, Blue Suit | Davina & Daniel, Milk with mini kite | Caroline Tran, White jug | Simply Bloom, Teacup | Max Attenborough, Blue crackers | Martha Stewart Weddings, Flowers | All the beautiful things,
Stationery | Jose Villa, Bouquet with blue dress | Katie Stoops

Croatian wedding by Carmen & Ingo Photography

Today is a little bit of enviable travel inspiration mixed in with some stunning wedding inspiration... a perfect combination if you ask me!! This stunning Croatian wedding is from my lovely friends Carmen & Ingo Photography. Looking at these shimmering blue seas has me salivating for the summer we never had!! And check out the brides entrance on that boat... I love it!

Steffi & Alex go to Croatia on holiday each year so it was an obvious choice for their destination wedding. Steffi did a lot of DIY; the bunting, the candy bar signs, the ring holder and more... all made by themselves. Looks like they had an amazing day!

Board#173: Southern Stripes

Well hello there! I've always wanted to visit the south (as in the American Southern states not our South Island :-) - been there, done that! I think it's a combination of the grand old plantation houses, the old fashioned sensibilities it's known for, and in particular the charm of the people that you hear so much about. Not to mention seersucker, sweet tea and the like! To me this has that sweet southern charm, and I would certainly like to be swept up in the images on this board for a while! Love the addition of stripes into the table decor... so simple but make such an statement piece.

Photos; Boutonniere | Beautiful Day Photography via Inspired by This, Flower Display | Ariella Chezar (photo Suzy Clement), Couple on road | Christine Meintjes, Placesetting | Jo Tyler via Sarah Kaye, Outdoor Lounge Area | Ariella Chezar (photo by Jose Villa), Blue Shoes | Denise Bovee via Wedding Chicks, Blue Truck | Jose Villa, Striped Napkin | Davina & Daniel via Style Me Pretty

Board#166: Melon Sorbet

Doesn't this just scream summer? Summer... hmm, we're supposed to be in the thick of it but it doesn't even feel like it's started. I would say we've had a handful of summery days at best. In the seven years since I've been back living in New Zealand, this is by far the worst it's been... we were so incredibly spoilt last year with hot sunshiny days. Here's hoping it's late to start and stretches on well into autumn!!

Teal and red, baby blue and melon, aqua and coral... they're all such fun colour combinations. This calls out for a wedding that doesn't take itself too seriously. How much do I want one of those drinks trolleys? Just to pull around my house when I have guests!! And that melon sorbet is looking tempting no matter what the weather is doing!

Photos; Sorbet | Cannelle et Vanille, Bridal Party | via Style Me Pretty, Melon on plate | Martha Stewart, Beach scene | Olaf Szczepaniak, Drinks Trolley | Brides.com, Invite | Hello Lucky, photo by Abby Jiu, Outdoor table and caravan | Polly Alexandre

Board#165: French Lace

If you're anything like me you'll be yearning for a European holiday after seeing this board. Oh to be wandering the cobblestone streets of Salzburg, travelling through the lovely villages in the South of France, exploring the narrow alley ways of Venice, taking in the beauty of the fiords in Norway, gazing up at the amazing churches in Estonia... I could go on forever! I feel so lucky that I have managed to see a lot of Europe but it's been a few years now and I am itching to return, quite simply to just wander and soak it all up. When I travel I just love to explore (the husband not so much... he likes to know what we're doing!!) and see how the other half live. I always want to immerse myself into their lives just for a short spell! Anyhow before I get too carried away with my soliloquy, where does this board take you to? Or where does it have you wanting to visit? Wherever it is I'm sure you'll agree it makes for the prettiest of wedding inspiration right? Living in a young country like New Zealand we don't have these types of amazing buildings and I always think they make for the most elegant of venues.

Photos; Bride in Ruffle dress and Lace dress | Polly Alexandre, Ivory Cake | Jose Villa, Tablesetting | styled by Jill La Fleur, photo by Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty, Car | Polly Alexandre, Le Domaine aux Quat Saisons by Polly Alexandre, Courtyard | Cooper Carras via Snippet & Ink

Board#163: Apple Pie & Ribbons

I know, I know, I kinda launched a magazine and all but disappeared!! But this week I'm back with some stunning real weddings and a couple of inspiration boards. I'm trying to get all my stationery jobs in order before taking a few weeks off over the summer (that is if summer ever decides to arrive!! Seriously it's been the windiest three months I can ever remember, and now the next 10 days... rain, rain and more rain!!). I also plan on getting some things done around the house and garden... have finally made major in roads in my dining room decor which is VERY exciting, and will hopefully finish decorating my office too. We will also be working on Issue number 2 of {MAG}rouge which is very exciting and I will spend some time catching up on photographing stationery jobs from the past six months (see aforementioned weather rundown as to why I'm so behind!!) as well as releasing some new designs. With the addition of the magazine to my work load I'm going to take some time out to reassess Ruby & Willow and the direction I want to take it in!
Don't the colours in this board just make for the most fun wedding? And really who doesn't want a rope swing with ribbons at their wedding? 

Credits from top left; Apple Pie on blue chair | Lisa Lefkowitz via Style Me Pretty, Ties | General Knot & Co, Centrepiece | Jen Huang, Swing with ribbons | J & M Marantz, Paper Ephemera, Couple with Truck | Union Photography, Cake | Jose Villa

Board#159: Cobalt Sunshine

Well hello lovely people. I thought we'd start the week with an injection of bright sunshiny goodness!! This palette is so fresh and summery I can't help but feel happy looking at it! The weather here is finally starting to warm up and show signs of summer which is exciting! I have another full and busy week ahead but looking forward to getting stuck into it!! I hope you all have a productive week! (I know I have an obsession with exclamtion marks... it's been pointed out!)

Photos top left; Olaf Szczepaniak, Table setting | Anna Kuperberg, Bride with bouquet | Gina Zeidler

2nd row; Kusmi Tea, Lantern | Olaf Szczepaniak

3rd row; Wooden Cake Topper | Goose Grease, Gramafone | Loreta Blog, Desserts | Canelle Vanille, Coasters | via Green Wedding Shoes

Blue & White French Country Dinner Party...

A couple of weeks ago my lovely friend Erin of Sparkle & Hay featured this shoot from a dinner party I recently styled and I thought I'd also share it on here today. It was a French style Raclette Party for a 50th birthday party, and I'm sure you've probably guessed but the fabulous rustic style macaron tower was beautifully crafted by the amazing Judit from Artisan Cakes, as well as the rooster cookies, and the stunning photography was by Jasmine from Sutherland Kovach. I just love working with these ladies!! We were going for a country vintage feel inspired by the amazing blue toile fabric. To keep it interesting I combined it with a ticking cloth for that quintessential French look. I love how the blue looks with the greenery (note the amazing rustic florals by Annie Oxborough) and the olives!! The invitations were printed on kraft to add a rustic appeal, and the menu's had guests names attached using my favourite item... mini wooden pegs. I even branched out and did some DIY for this shoot... I had a wooden frame (kindly made by Judit's husband I should add!) which I covered in foam, and then the toile cloth before tacking chicken wire to the back. This was used as a board with guest name tags on and would be fabulous as a seating chart option at a wedding. This was such a fun dinner to style and I  have since had my dining table set up like this I loved it so much!!

Fresh Blue & Yellow DIY Wedding by Vela Images...

Isn't this just the sweetest happiest little wedding you ever did see? Greta from Vela Images has done a spectacular job of capturing the essence of Cherie & Rob's day. They have put some many little touches into it to make it their own, it's lovely to see couples infuse so much of their personality into the decor. I particularly love the dahlias & billy buttons in their bouquet. The gorgeous bride tells us their story...

Rob and I knew very early on that we were the ones for each other. We had a friendship that slowly matured into love. We got engaged on our one year anniversary and spent three years travelling and being together before we set our date. Our wedding was held at Rob’s parents in Opotiki, Bay of Plenty New Zealand. They have an amazing view of the sea and the east coast that just takes your breath away. Our ceremony took place on a hill with the view behind us. We held refreshments at the neighbour’s house while we took our official photos and our reception was held in a marquee on land that had previously been a kiwifruit orchard. Our style is new and retro fused. I have a lot of retro things and I wanted to include these influences into the wedding and the theme. For anything we didn’t already have there was a lot of hunting and searching online and in vintage shops. We used yellow and blue as the basis for our theme without sticking to it entirely. We are relaxed and not fussy people so our wedding was casual and relaxed I used many of our friends and family and their special skills to help out with preparing for the wedding. It made them all feel like they were a part of the day. As we were getting married in a small town we also wanted to use as many vendors from there as possible. So we tried to get everything locally. Our best friend (and the best man) is a designer. So I used Michiel and his advice lots. He designed the handkerchiefs invitations, the website and together we came up with the table cards and overall table themes. He spent so much of his time on our wedding and we really appreciated all his hard work.