four months

Seventeen weeks. One hundred and twenty-one sleeps. However you want to put it, our wedding date is inevitably approaching. Today is 10.08.11, The Wedding Day is 10.12.11. Four months. 

It's at about this time that I've started daily referring to The Spreadsheet - my behemoth list of everything I need to know, do, wrap my brain around in order to actually pull this off. 

Everything.

How many jars I have for our blueberry jam favours, what shoe size my Golden Delights are, what size dancefloor we've ordered, what piece of furniture I want to use and where, which photo booth prop I have organised, which illustration I am using on which piece of stationery. 

Everything.

Projected budgets, deposits paid, contact name and numbers, caterers, marquee hire, dressmaker, cake maker, florist, guest lists, addresses. Needless to say I have back-ups of The Spreadsheet on three separate computers and hard drives!

What the inside of my brain looks like at the moment...

At this point we've nailed the big ones: photographers, band, food, marquee and equipment, hair, make-up, cars, church, minister...Now I'm starting to think details (not that I wasn't before!) 

Questions are bouncing, bouncing, bouncing around in my brain. What earrings will my bridesmaids wear? Will the groomsmen all wear the same shoes? Do we need two tiers or three on the cake? Which car will the kids get to the church in? What's Mr M's cousin's boyfriend's surname for the invite? Is the lawn too sloping to even consider a game of bocce? How long is the bridal table for the table runner? 

Deep breaths.

Image collage by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella, from photos from my pins.

the latest

I thought it about time I update you all on how the wedding plans are traveling. Well, at this point we have booked our band, as well as our videographer, which I am pretty excited about. We've also secured the church, which I couldn't be more happy with after the push and pull I felt about getting married in a church or on the farm. We're so happy that two friends will be taking our wedding photographs, two very talented friends in Lou and Ben. We have also booked the marquee and equipment hire (tables, stage, dance floor) after much debate about whether to go for the clear roof or silk lined marquee I finally decided on the silk lining for a truly romantic feel. Caterers quotes are coming in thick and fast and my spreadsheets are slowly but surely getting a few more highlighted yellow (meaning completed) tasks on them. 

The most exciting news though? My mum recently returned from her trip to Greece and Turkey and managed to purchase the fabric for my wedding gown in the Istanbul Grand Bazaar. Yeah, that's how much my mum rocks. 

It is proving quite tricky sharing details about our wedding day here on Cinderella at Brindabella as well as keep some details about the day under wraps (a lot of my family and friends read my blog - hi!) I am also very mindful of it being an intimate and very personal day for us and our families, so in the meantime I will keep teasing you all with the images which keep appearing on my inspiration radar. Enjoy xxx

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: STYLE ME PRETTY / HUGH FORTE /100 LAYER CAKE /

STYLE ME PRETTY /  STYLE ME PRETTY / STYLE ME PRETTY / S B PRESERVES

the organised bride

Today I am over at Polka Dot Bride again sharing some tips on how to stay organised, focused and sane in the lead up to your big day.

I hope some other brides-to-be can find my advice helpful - I know my endless spreadsheets, sketching, list making and visual diaries are helping me stay on track!

You can go here to read the full post.

Image by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella

diy champagne cork shadowbox

Today I am a guest blogger over on Polka Dot Bride with a DIY tutorial on how to savour a special momento from your engagement. 

When I was approached by the lovely Ms Polka Dot to be a contributor for the Aussie wedding blog extraordinaire I may have done a high pitched squeal and a little happy dance (fists clenched above my head, you know what I mean). I will have more posts in the pipeline throughout this year as I prepare for our wedding, hopefully a lot more DIY tutorials for the budget savvy brides. If there is anything in particular you would like to see please let me know!

Head over here to check it all out.

Photo by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella

wedding style guide

I'm a little slow off the mark but last week I finally picked up a copy of Wedding Style Guide, the Autumn edition, at my local newsagents. And oh my giddy aunt, wow - so much goodness in one magazine. Seriously, it's like the editors are inside my mind! Haha.

The feature of 'a wedding of texture, native, floral and details, that makes for a truly Australian affair' really caught my eye. It is beautiful. Captured by the oh-so-talented Chris Court (brother of Sibella). I loved all the natural details, the woodgrain, the blue and silver gum foliage, the simple white and kraft paper, the twine, the soft florals and the rustic Australian vibe. Very much up my alley.

I think the paper goods is the aspect of our wedding decor I am most excited about and inspired by! And that cake is beautifully simple, something we would definitely consider. The invite below has my head spinning with ideas of how to incorporate ripped linen fabric strips and stitching on paper into our invitations, menus, ceremony programs....

Creative genius behind Eat, Drink, Chic, Amy Moss, has her wedding featured in the magazine also. Her surprise wedding no less - and every detail is cute and personal and gorgeous. I love that she wore her mother's dress from her parents registry wedding. The red door image is definitely being politely shoved in front of Mr M's nose, as he thinks my idea to paint our front door red is ridiculous. The red and white striped straws is something I have already purchased for our cocktail hour and are stored away in my 'wedding supplies' in the spare bedroom.

This image below has me inspired for the skirts I want to make with my mum's help for my Golden Delights (my five nieces). I don't want them to be tutu-frou-frou, just beautifully soft layers of gathered tulle, but still enough to make the girls feel like little fairies. Unfortunately this skirt isn't credited, but I have seen something very similar at David Jones for $74 (!!!) so I think DIY is going to be my middle name for this one.

The thing about Wedding Style Guide that captures my creative eye is the detail, the design and the layout. It is just beautifully put together with a lot of thought and perfect attention to styling, themes and trends. The Shop Stop (Pretty Little Things) features are especially pleasing on the eye, I loved this one featuring a perfectly floral dress (not too grandma-floral, great style and paired well with the men's outfit). 

I'd recommend picking up a copy of Wedding Style Guide even if you are already married or not even engaged - I view it as a total design inspiration overload, not just for bride's. There's great products and suppliers in there for all sorts of events as well as just pure prettiness styled to perfection to drool over. This one will be sitting on my bedside table for awhile to come I think, just flicking it open makes me happy :)

Images of magazine layouts by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella

what will kate wear?

It's the question on everybody's lips this week - what will the future Queen of England wear as she walks down the aisle to meet her prince? Whilst I've been fantasising about what I would wear to the royal wedding, I've also been gathering some ideas of my own as to what Kate will be donning. 

On the one hand I think it will be quite simple, classic, clean lines and modern shape (somewhat like the style Princess Mary opted for, total classic). I don't think she will go with the princess ballgown or 17 foot train, but traditional dictates that she can't exactly go down the path of ra-ra skirt or even strapless. Trust me, as a bride-to-be who doesn't like strapless wedding gowns, they. are. everywhere! As Wills and Kate are getting married at Westminster Abbey protocol dictates that her arms or shoulders be somewhat covered, so I'm thinking lace cap sleeves or a v-neck with calla sleeves to show off her athletic body type.

Then on the other hand I think heck, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity to pull out the tiara and go all out with beautiful feminine detail like soft antique laces for tradition, a long romantic veil and ribbon sash tie for back detail (I think there will definitely be a stunning back-of-dress-shot as we walks down that famous aisle). After all she will be a princess, so perhaps she needs the whole princess-fairytale-gown to go along with it.

Whatever Kate wears (rumour has it she has designed her own dress with designer Alexander McQueen) it will go crazy in wedding trends for a long time to come. And just so you know, I've already decided on my wedding gown design so if she steals it don't think that I am a Princess Catherine wannabe! Here's what I am tipping though...

What do you think she will wear? Any ideas or hot tips? Is what you're envisaging close to what I am or do you think I am way off?

Image board designed by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella.

the royal wedding: what would you wear?

There has been enough speculation about what the future Queen of England will wear on her wedding day (rumour has it she has three different gowns and she will choose one of them to wear on the morning of the wedding, in case one gets leaked to the press).

But while everyone else has been debating taffeta trains and lace cap sleeves I have been patiently waiting by my mailbox for an invitation to the big occassion. I know, how rude to not invite Queen Kate's biggest fan?! In amongst all the hullabaloo about horses and carriages, cavier and champagne and the ten flowergirls I have secretly been fantasising about what it would be like to actually attend such an event. What does one wear to a royal event? A once in a lifetime, tell your grandchildren about it type of occasion? It would have to be ultra fancy and long, yet modern and ethereal with sparkling jewels and the perfect shoes.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8

What would you wear if you were to miraculously find a lost-in-the-post royal invitation in your mailbox? Would you go all out with stylists and hair and make-up as if it was the Oscars or try and blend into the cucumber sandwiches and pims drinking guests? 

Image board by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella.

a bride of portobello

This weekend I have been looking forward to since last year, October last year to be exact, when I was newly engaged. I was casually flicking through a frankie magazine whilst working one day in the gallery back in ol' Yea town having my fifteenth coffee for the day. I saw an ad for a 'boutique bridal market' and I was hooked. This is exactly what I had been thinking of, nothing flashy or tacky or 'look at me I'm a bride'. This sounded right up this little bride-to-be's alley.

Portobello Bride's event this weekend at St Kilda Town Hall should be memorable. Firstly, it's the first of it's kind in my fair city and secondly because it is jam packed full of some amazing suppliers. Amazing. Some of the best photographers, stylists, bridal wear, florists, chefs and wedding related vendors on offer. Think Amy Oliver Photography, Ed Dixon Food Design, Ms Jane, the super gorgeous Georgeous (love pretty much everything about Georgeous), A Vintage Affair and who we very nearly booked for our wedding photographer the talented Adrian Tuazon. 

After witnessing far too many bridezilla's oohing and aahing over hot pink stretch hummers at the big bonanza bridal expo a few months ago  I was totally put off the whole bridal industry. I think Portobello Bride is exactly what is needed in the wedding market. It's come at a time when all brides-to-be like myself are craving a one-stop-shop for all unique and beautiful wedding vendors in the very stylish and forward thinking Melbourne.

The boutique market is over two days (this Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th March). I think what I am most looking forward to is...

• the fashion show by Fleur Wood (prettiness)
• the goodie bag on entry (who doesn't like seemingly 'free' stuff?)
• getting the low-down about all things styling from Georgie Kay from Georgeous and the team at prop.d
• Ed Dixon's pop up cafe (yumminess!) 
• chilling in the Bride To Be Lounge (yeah I know, swanky!) 
• Plus I have my fingers crossed for some serious honeymoon winning action, because basically we are undecided on that front so a push in the right direction should sort us out.

For more info head to Portobello Bride's website for a full list of stallholders and some other nitty gritty details on their blog.

the golden delights

We never planned on having a big wedding party, in fact we kind of hated the idea. But as you know we finally decided that all EIGHT (yes eight) of our attendants were equally as important and special to us, they had to stand up with us on the most important day of our lives. So done deal. One best man, one matron of honour, three groomsmen and three bridesmaids.

However...

Ribbons wands ahoy!

In case you hadn't noticed, my four nieces and Mr M's niece and nephew are kind of a big part of our lives. We simply could not imagine these six special little people not playing a part in our big day. And so we decided that we would include them, in some way, in the ceremony and proceedings of the day. But I still did not want to have 'flowergirls'.

The idea of dressing little girls up as mini-me brides and throwing flower petals around didn't really appeal to me much but we still wanted to give the girls (and Ethan!) special 'jobs' to do throughout the day. Something fun, something they enjoyed and we didn't have the bribe or coax them to do, something which made them feel how special they are to us and involved and loved. But what to call them? I didn't want them to be flowergirls, and I didn't want to single Ethan out anymore than was already blatently obvious as the only boy! Since we are getting married on our potato farm and are planning lots of agricultural nods in our decor and stationery with champagne, latte and soft golden tones we came up with the name: 'The Golden Delights'.

Tutus with attitude - ruffly ballerina skirts - big beautiful silk flower and lace headbands

For those that don't know, Golden Delight is a variety of potato, a variety which we grow, our family helped develop. Mostly I didn't want the kids involvement in the wedding to be a massive stress to their parents (or a financial burden), especially since my sister is already in the wedding party as a bridesmaid. So I am thinking plain white singlet tops for the girls, some sort of tulle ballerina skirt or pettiskirt in a cocoa colour and perhaps Ethan in a super cool tweed waist coat and newsboy cap.

Here comes the bride - pettiskirts + cardigans - white singlets + white shirt

So what do you think? Too much? I'd love to hear your thoughts on mini-attendants at weddings, what you did at your own wedding or how you could incorporate a special junior into a wedding celebration.

behold: bhldn

Just in case you hadn't heard (or have been living under a rock) Anthropologie, goddess of all things beautifully bohemian, has just launched a wedding line, BHLDN (pronounced 'beholden'). And it is gorgeous.

  

There are lots of little gems like feathered capelets, pretty satin sashes and yummy peep-toe shoes. The wedding gowns themselves are beautifully unexpected, with touches of non-bridal styles. I love the Dior 'new-look' inspired shorter dresses and the champagne tones throughout them all.

The inspiration board builder is an exciting feature which I can't wait to try out (much like the one at Style Me Pretty). Even if your not in the market for a certain white gown, I am eyeing off some of the dresses and shoes in a non-wedding related drool fest.

style me prettiness

Be still my heart.

Style Me Pretty has just launched an online magazine featuring the best of the best weddings from 2010. All the gorgeousness of SMP in one handy place, plus a list of suppliers (not so handy if you aren't in the states, but a lot of online goodness as well). Ok enough jibber-jabber, head over there, blow it up big full screen style and careful of the drool.

the countdown

The date is set.

10.12.11 - a good date, no? I originally wanted a Spring wedding, but got panicked about weather, and after much (some may say psycho-bridezilla) searching of the Bureau of Meterology website and studying early December rainfall patterns we decided that early December was a much less chance of getting a rainy day.

I still have all fingers and all toes crossed though because, you see, we are going to have our wedding here on the farm. Our number one priority for our wedding day is for it to a true reflection of us, casual, fun, full of family and all our loved ones having a relaxing, great time. And the farm is so us. It is our home, our work, our love and our life. Plus it is what I have dreamt of since I was a little girl, I could not imagine getting married anywhere else but here at home.

So our theme, if that's what you want to call it, is rustic elegance, rural charm and a whole lot of neutral and natural colours and textures. Think rough burlap with soft lace, twine on kraft paper, handpainted wooden signs, a big white marquee, hay bales, wildflowers, wine barrels and fairylights.

As you can imagine I have been (ok, a little bit psycho-bridezilla, I admit it) trawling wedding blogs, magazines, ripping and saving images, invitations, flower arrangements, scribbling down hire companies, bands, florists, car hire and stylists details. Here are some inspiration boards I have compiled on the ever-amazing Style Me Pretty (my new best friend)...

Hope that is enough to tickle your fancy and have a sneak peek into my brain at the moment...I can see it all, I just need to implement it all! And (now) there's less than twelve months! Before everyone was telling me "Oh, you've got OVER twelve months". Well people, now I don't so let's get moving!

rapunzel bride

 

I saw this hauntingly pretty bride over at Style Me Pretty and thought she looked just like Rapunzel straight out of a fairytale. Pretty.

Simple wedding hair is on my radar...seen anything you like? My mum wore her hair out and long at her crazy 70's wedding. Long and brown like mine, middle part, no fringe, hippy style.

{ images }

100 layers indeed

For the past...well forever I have been typing in http://www.100layercake.com/ and forgetting to put the forward slash and then 'blog'. So I would end up at the 'under construction, coming soon' page. Well, well, well....today is the day my friends when 100 Layer Cake unveils it's true self - an amazing site full of bridal resources to buy, swap, sell, create and DIY your little bridezilla heart out. Amazing.

{ images }

super 8 wedding

On my wedding planning adventures I think I have become a little obsessed with Super 8 wedding films. How amazing is this one from the awesome Shark Pig? 

Surya & Nick from Shark Pig on Vimeo.

For more Super 8 goodness check out here for some local talent or here for some dreamy Parisian action. Wouldn't it be incredible if you went to Paris, filmed one of their cute save the date videos and sent it to your guests?!

Right. Back to packing, no more wedding 'research' ;)

{ Guilty Pleasures }

Well don't I feel guilty for abandoning my blog to actually do some constructive work! Blessedly, my internet ceased to function this morning so I got some serious work done. As boring as I am at the moment I thought I would share with you a snippet of what I've been staring at for the past 72 hours (almost straight!)

I know I've already shared some photos of my friend Courtney's wedding in January - but these ones I was looking at and thought were too pretty not to publicly admire. A few people (who don't know Courtney) have said she resembles Lisa McCune in her wedding photos - what do you think?

For me, it's all in the details - and I loved Courtney's engagement ring, champagne coloured shoes and handbag. She was determined not to be a 'white veil, puffy dress wearing bride'. Mission accomplished. 

The Grand Hotel was a beautiful setting for our pre-ceremony photos, of both the girls and boys. 

When I shoot a wedding my favourite shots are most often the bride getting in her dress (the bridesmaids are always funny) and the newly married couple exiting the ceremony, their first time as husband and wife. Their expressions and body language always say a thousand words.

I knew, went to school with or used to live with most of the bridal party. (And recently holidayed in Tasmania with one bridesmaid!) So it was a fairly relaxed and fun post-ceremony shoot.

Courtney and Brian wanted their wedding and photographs to portray what a classically beautiful and elegant city wedding their day was. I hope I have created what they envisioned!

{ All images by Emma Durkin Photographics }

{ Happy Friday }

I have seen a lot of wedding place setting ideas that I love, but this is far and away my favourite.

Hope you have a relaxing weekend unwinding from the first week back from holidays. This is only the beginning, remember! I will be heading down to Phillip Island where my mum and sister have rented a house. The weather is meant to push past 40 degrees (which means about 45 here on Ythanbrae) so I am hoping for a cool coastal breeze! Here is some more eye candy from this fabulously rustic chic wedding...

{ Found here }

{ A Beautiful Day - Courtney and Brian }

My friends Courtney and Brian were married on the 4th of January 2010 - this is the story of their beautiful day...

The bride and groom both prepared for the day at The Grand Hotel on Spencer Street - the historic former railways administration building. Being only a few doors down from one another was trickier than expected when doors were opening and closing! The girls sipped champagne whilst getting their hair and make-up done, while the boys had a yum-cha feast for lunch and watched the cricket.

 

  

Courtney was the most amazingly relaxed bride. When we arrived at St Peter & Paul's Church in South Melbourne in the 1957 Bel-Air Chevrolet's she waited in the car to fix her make-up and relax before the biggest moment of her life: walking down the aisle to meet Brian.

  

The infamous Father Bob McGuire officiated the ceremony and had everyone in stitches and very relaxed. As Courtney's dad was walking her down the aisle he held back tears, Courtney whispered to him "Don't you dare! Suck it up Dad!"

 

 

Being friends with the couple is obviously an advantage in capturing great shots - but having a beautiful bride, a groom so in love with his new wife and an amazing wedding to showcase helps a lot too!

  

The bridal party consisted of maid of honour Lauren, bridesmaid Tegan, best man Brendan and groomsman James. The bridesmaids wore custom made raspberry coloured dresses made of chiffon with a v-neck and bare backs. The boys wore grey suits with grey ties, Brian wore an ivory tie.

We had a lot of fun taking photos - the fig leaf ones were actually Brian's idea. Both Courtney and Brian were the perfect models - I really didn't have to work hard at all to make them look as good as they did! They were willing and able to jump through any hoops I told them to. 

 

The weather was perfect just to add to the beautiful day. Courtney could not get over the amount of strangers congratulating her and little girls pointing and saying "Mummy! Look at the pretty bride!" We first went to  Treasury Gardens, then Flinders Lane and The GPO, then on to Docklands where the reception was held on a boat, taking us to Williamstown, then down the Yarra and back to Docklands.

      

It really was a beautiful day. Thank-you Courtney and Brian for making me a part of your wedding, it was an honour to document the start of your married life - it is only the beginning.

{ All images by Emma Durkin Photographics }