Montauk Honeymoon Shoot by Trent Bailey

Seriously could these people be any more beautiful!! This whole shoot is just divine and I love the concept of a couple going on a bit of an adventure/road trip honeymoon. Featured in Magnolia Rouge Magazine, this gorgeousness was styled and photographed by Trent & Dara of Trent Bailey Photography.

"Tucked away on the east end of Long Island is a little beach town we absolutely LOVE called Montauk. Since moving to Manhattan three and a half years ago, we have made it a summer tradition to escape the city for our favorite town. Just past the Hamptons is Montauk, home to many famous residents, with Ralph Lauren being on the top of that list. For our shoot we envisioned a couple that had just tied the knot, cruising out to Montauk in their Jeep Wagoneer for their honeymoon. The couple would stay at Ruschmeyer’s (one of our favorite hotels in the area), a summer camp inspired lodge. The hotel is inspired by the property’s original function back when it was first built in the 1950s –a summer camp. Their stay in Montauk consisted of ping pong matches, hanging out in the teepee, snorkeling at the beach, swinging in the backyard, and relaxing in their camp inspired bedroom complete with hammock."

Photography, Concept & Styling | Trent & Dara of Trent Bailey Photography, Hair & Make-up | Holly for FaceTime Beauty Concierge, Wedding Dress | Douglas Hannant available at Gabriella New York Bridal Salon, Vintage earrings | Gabriella New York Bridal Salon, Shoes | Aruna Seth available at Gabriella New York Bridal Salon, Film processing | Indie Film Lab

Beach Wedding by Quinn & Katie Photography

After being in contact via email for the past couple of years I was thrilled to finally meet Katie from Quinn & Katie Photography at the recent workshop that Kate Robinson held. And I'm just as thrilled to have them up on the blog again today with this lovely surprise beachside wedding of Janelle & Mark's. The guests turned up thinking they were there for an engagement party but no... a wedding it was. And a wedding that Janelle had organised from Italy where Mark was playing rugby. Looks like they pulled it off beautifully. Janelle shares more about their day with us...

We had such a neat and beautiful day, the key to that I feel was being well organized and keeping in mind that although you wish for your big day to be amazing and beautiful, the real point of it is marrying the love of your life and sharing it with whom you wish, when you wish and how you wish to - its yours and your husbands day after all. Although we were lucky to have some lovely trimmings, I kept the big picture in mind on the day itself.  That and my beautiful relaxed and fun bridesmaids (and the guys too), helped it to be all we had wished for.

Mark really caught me by surprise when he proposed, we had been together for 7 years so although we knew it was inevitable, I still thought it was a while away. It was just before Christmas and we were sitting getting some fresh air at Mount Maunganui beach, in the drizzle, sheltered under a Pohutukawa tree. Mark popped the ring under my nose and at first I thought he was joking, but he wasn't, and I eventually said yes. We kept it to ourselves for the rest of the day, just taking in the news and treasuring the special time.

The dress must have been meant to be, trying dresses on was a spur of the moment thing mum and I decided to do before a date for the wedding had even been set. In we walked for the appointment and there was this dress hanging up in the entrance - they had just got it in the night before. It was the dress I had imagined for years, as girls do. Tried it on and it was perfect I tried on many others just to be sure I wasn't making an impulse decision, but kept on going back to this one. Vanilla bridal were brilliant and ordered one in for me made to fit.  I truly love it and it's still hanging in the spare room at Mums as I'm too sad to put such a beautiful dress with such fond memories away!’

Photography | Quinn & Katie Photography, Venue | Trinity Wharf Tauranga,  Cake Artist | Kerry McKay of Sugar Town Cakes, Hair Stylist | Karl from Salon One, Wedding dress | Essense at Vanilla Bridal, Flower artist | The brides sister Angela

Relaxed Beach Wedding by Swift & Click

Why hello there! I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend (New Zealander folks that is) despite the mostly miserable weather. I had a fabulous time at the Kate Robinson Planted with Light workshop. Kate did an amazing job, and it was thoroughly enjoyed by all the attendees. We did a fun little shoot with the stunningly gorgeous Claire from Claire Mossong Photography stepping in front of the camera for a change alongside her husband Alex. Hope to have some images to share with you very soon!

Rachel from Swift & Click sent in this gorgeous Papamoa Beach wedding that she worked on with the fabulous Shaye from On My Hand. As friends this was the first time they'd managed to work together on a wedding and I love what they've produced as a team.

Being lovers of the ocean we knew we wanted to get married on the beach, somewhere that felt organic and free. We also wanted a place that had meaning and we felt connected and comfortable. We chose a spot on Papamoa Beach that we spend most of our summer days surfing and playing with our son. It was perfect for a beautiful, simple beach wedding in an environment we love, with the people we love. Our main priorities for the day were having a lot of fun and a party with friends and family, having great photos and having beautiful surroundings. Our vision for our day was a mix of beach, boho and vintage- something really nature inspired to go with the beach theme. To achieve this I acquired the help of Shaye Woolford from On My Hand vintage hire and styling. Shaye really got the vision and style I was after, from the arranging of my bouquets and flower crowns to the hand made details at the ceremony to the decorating and styling of our reception venue.

Styling, props and floral design | Shaye from On My Hand Vntage Hire & Styling, Venue | Ceremony Papamoa beach, Reception Harbourside restaurant, Photographers: Swift and Click 

Bali Wedding by Loren Ioppolo

Boy oh boy do I have a treat for you on this Friday morning!! A fabulous Balinese wedding that will have you jumping on the phone to book your next holiday! I mean holy moly it's gorgeous!! Australian photographer Loren Ioppolo captured the magic of the day in such a beautiful way for Brent and Karrie-Anne... who ever so kindly shares her details of their gorgeous day with us. The light, the special moments, the joy... go and feast your eyes (then head to your nearest travel agent!!)

Brent and I have visited Bali many times over many years so it holds a special place in our hearts. We actually sat in a restaurant around the corner from Mu many years ago and said... "one day we'll get married overlooking this ocean" and almost 5 years later, we did!

We had never been to Mu (our venue) when we booked it for our wedding, but a friend recommended it and it seemed to fit exactly what we were looking for. We wanted somewhere unique, rustic, private, on the beach and a place we could have everyone stay with us! Seriously, words can not describe how amazing this venue is. The bungalows were absolutely beautiful, the view breathtakingly spectacular, the hospitality impeccable and the feeling of the place, simply magical.

The style of our wedding was beachy boho and we decorated the day with lots of white, natural burlap & twine and splashes of fluro yellow for some fun! We wanted the day to feel very relaxed and intimate so we had a small guest list, didn't follow tradition with a bridal party and had floor cushions and benches for seating.

As our guests traveled from Perth, Gold Coast and Canada, we wanted to make sure we could spend as much time with everyone as possible. We didn't want it to only be about one day so we had lots of wedding festivities which included sunset cocktails for the girls the night before our wedding at the Rock Bar, the boys had afternoon drinks at Single Fin Bar and we had a pool party and lunch the day after our wedding for all our friends and family to relax and recover together.

It is so clique, but the whole day was truly amazing! I would have to say walking towards the aisle seeing my husband-to-be's sillouette with the ocean in the background and all our family and friends looking towards my Dad and I, was pretty special.

All our married friends has told us to take some time out together on the night, so Brent and I consciously took a few moments throughout the day and night to step back and watch everyone having fun. We had to pinch ourselves that it was actually our wedding day and that everyone there was there for us! Bride & Groom deets I bought my dress before we were even engaged almost 2 and a half years ago! It is called 'butterfly effect' designed by Aurelio Costarella and when I saw it I had to have it. Butterflies remind me of my Mum who is no longer with us so it has an extra special meaning to it. My headpiece was something I was so excited to wear especially because I was not a traditional bride and was never going to wear a traditional veil. I think it fitted the bill perfectly! I decided not to wear any shoes at the last minute (bare feet all the way!) and I had a change of hair and earrings just in time for the partying! My gorgeous friend Natasha Walker (from Natasha Walker Mobile Hairdresser in Perth) whipped up my hair styles and the lovely Anja Burck did my make up for the day. Brent was decked out in Politix - all bought in one quick visit! 

My talented friend Katherine Scott did all the graphics and designed our invitations, wedding poster, welcome door hangers and drink coasters. Music was a key part of our day so we enlisted the super cool, DJ Nick Kasli to mix our tunes for the evening. I made a lot of the decorations myself including the 'LOVE' twine wrapped sign, love heart garlands and we decorated the area with dreamcatchers, photos, quotes and other little hand made items bought from Etsy!! 

West Coast Beach wedding by Kate Robinson

This week seems to unintentionally have turned into beach wedding inspiration week! Three stunning beach weddings in one week... what a treat! And another gorgeous Bali one coming up tomorrow. This Karekare wedding highlights the west coast beaches of Auckland so beautifully... it's quintessential New Zealand scenery. Kate Robinson captured this lovely heartfelt wedding that seemed a celebration of family and community as much as it did the gorgeous couple. I'll hand you over to the capable hands of the beautiful bride Charlotte to tell you a bit more about their day.

Our wedding was held at Karekare beach on the west coast of Auckland where I grew up and where my immediate and much of my extended family still live. What made our wedding day so special was the amount of help and love that our families, friends and the community gave us in planning the day and with the day itself. In the days leading up to the wedding much of the extended family and many friends could be seen at my parents house scrubbing windows, dropping things off and getting things ready. On the day of the wedding itself, I left the reception venue in the morning to get ready in my Granny's library and the Aunts and neighbours swept in to take charge of finishing off setting the tables and so on. Many of the Karekare locals also contributed towards making the wedding what it was. My grandmothers gardener Carlene collected buckets and buckets of foliage to decorate the reception tent with.

The inspiration for the day came from Karekare beach. It is a stunning west coast beach with black sand and ever changing surf conditions and is in a league of it's own of all the west coast beaches given the huge expanse of sand dunes that separates the sea from the road and civilization. Everything was kept very simple for the ceremony on the beach, my Dad made the signing table out of a flat piece of driftwood attached to a thick branch and dug into the dunes to stand up right and the overall colours were quite neutral, beige's and greens to complement the beautiful scenery.

The vast majority of the wedding was DIY. My Aunt and Uncle spear-headed the catering with help from the rest of the family. With a family catered wedding out of a domestic kitchen which was smack bang in the middle of the reception venue, it was crucial that there was someone in charge so that both sets of parents could relax and enjoy the day. We both really wanted to have a sit down dinner and managed to fit 100 people into a 10 x 4 meter tent (it is possible!). My sisters decorated the tent with foliage and tumble weeds (they are much more beautiful than their name would suggest). We made lanterns with twine covered in glue and glitter wrapped around a balloon (which you pop once the glue is dried) and also bought plain white lanterns which my sister painted designs on. We bought a big supply of glow sticks from Trade Me to hang inside the lanterns and also had fairy lights strung around the tent. It was definitely cosy in the tent but it meant people really got to know each other! 

Photography | Kate Robinson Photography, Flowers | Bethany Gardens Flower shop and Hannah Gordon (Brides friend), Ceremony | Karekare Beach, Reception | Brides parents home, Karekare, Invitations | Ink Invites, Shoes | David Elman, Dress | Anna Schimmel, Rings | Polished Diamonds, Jewellery | Necklace given to Charlottes grandmother by an old boyfriend 50 years ago, Hair & Makeup | Carron Wells, Celebrant | Barbara Harvey