So with only five weeks to go now we are steadily receiving parcels through the post of lots of wedding related goodies! I thought I’d share the latest arrival with you from Paloma’s Nest…
I purchased a handmade customized Paloma’s Nest Bouquet Tile with our monogrammed initials and date on it. It’s to sit on my bouquet on the day and has gold leaf around the edge. It can also be used as a little decoration (maybe from the Christmas tree?) after the wedding is over.
Paloma’s Nest also create all sorts of handmade customised clay dishes, cufflinks, homeware and frames but are most famous for their Ring Bearer Bowls.
Keep your eyes peeled for more little tit bits from the upcoming wedding…
Much love
Wedding Sparrow
Hello! I’ve missed you guys! I know I have been away for a while organising my own wedding and I’m kinda glad I did. I have felt much less stressed and much more relaxed about the whole thing. In fact, the most important part is I have enjoyed the planning process immensly. But… I really have missed blogging and am hugely surprised that my blogs stats have remained steady and surprisingly high with old posts getting re-read on a regular basis. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me feel! A huge thanks to everyone that stills reads it even though I’m not updating regularly anymore.
This brings me to why I’m blogging again. It’s yet another flying visit I’m afraid but a important one to me. I will be blogging my engagement shoot photo’s taken by the lovely Debs Ivelja. Naturally this terrifies me to the very core as I’m aware that I will be putting myself out there for critisism and the like but we did this photo shoot for a reason. I am hugely self conscious of the camera and didn’t want my wedding day to be stressful. I’m a typical woman who bitches and moans about how I look but never gets round to doing anything about it. Sure I have a ‘soft’ middle that I want to get rid of for the big day but do I go to the gym? Not when there is prime reality tv on! It’s a never ending self berating cycle so by putting literally my face out there for all to see, I’m hoping I feel better about it. You see, it’s not important how many people see these pictures {in fact, the fewer the better!}, it’s more about just knowing they’re out there in cyber space that makes me feel a little better. I even sweat it if family or friends see pictures of me so I’m jumping in feet first and seeing if I can swim…
The full set of images is available here on Love My Dress and another thanks a million for the lovely comments left there…
Images courtesy of Debs Ivelja Photography
As you can see we went for the ‘picnic in the forest’ theme. We were both wary of engagement shoot themes to begin with as we didn’t want it to seem ‘fake’ or contrived in any way. But on the other side, we wanted to be able to interact with something in order to seem a bit more at ease and natural. We set about finding picnic related items and found a basket from Hetty & Dave (a second hand Fortnum & Mason bargain), some retro looking lemonade and cola bottles from the supermarket, some fresh ‘filler’ flowers, yellow striped straws from Pipii, a dress from Monsoon and Mr Sparrow by my side. Et voila! A picnic themed e-shoot!
On the day we found a quiet spot under a tree in the New Forest that had some fallen apples on the ground which also attracted the wild horses too! There were a few moments where we thought we might have to make an emergency evacuation when the ponies came over for an apple or two!
I hope you’re planning an eshoot before your wedding too as it is a huge help to get used to the photographer and camera beforehand. It was super useful to us and now I’m all the more excited for the big day… 
Drop me a comment with your plans for an eshoot or if you think it’s a indulgent day out!
Much love.
Wedding Sparrow
BEHOLD, within the leafy shade,
Those bright blue eggs together laid!
On me the chance-discovered sight
Gleamed like a vision of delight.
I started—seeming to espy
The home and sheltered bed,
The Sparrow’s dwelling, which, hard by
My Father’ house, in wet or dry
My sister Emmeline and I
Together visited.
She looked at it and seemed to fear it;
Dreading, tho’ wishing, to be near it:
Such heart was in her, being then
A little Prattler among men.
The Blessing of my later year
Was with me when a boy:
She gave me eyes, she gave me ears;
And humble care, and delicate fears;
A heart, the fountain of sweet tears;
And love, and thought, and joy.
William Wordsworth
Much love.
Wedding Sparrow
A personal favourite of mine {and a very popular previous post shown here} is the blush coloured wedding palette. If it wasn’t for Mr Sparrow reining me in with all things blush, I would have a lot more featuring in the upcoming wedding! Here’s some lovely examples to tide us over…
Images ~ Clockwise from top left; Polyvore; MeAndMyKors; The Sweetest Occasion; Alexander McQueen; Dorothy Perkins
Images ~ Clockwise from top left; Elizabeth Messina; Style Me Pretty; The Wedding Channel; Once Wed; Pinterest; Nordstrom
Is blush going to feature in your big day? Or is it too feminine? I’ll be adding tones in the florals throughout both the centerpieces and the bouquets…
Much love.
Well this feels strange! It’s been a while since I last blogged anything and that was purely because I just didn’t seem to have the time. Working the nine-to-five and getting into the wedding planning with a vengeance meant that the blog was not the quality that I wanted it to be nor what you deserved to read. The ideas were flying round my head at the speed of light but the means to create something worth reading were missing.
I do get asked quite often when I will be back and blogging like a machine again and the truth is I would like to do it ‘properly’ as it were and give it 110%. So in the meantime, the blog will be purely personal and document my journey and ideas as the wedding approaches. No doubt there will be discussion points as I always rely on my twitter buddies to help me make a decision! I would love your support and suggestions as I make decisions and try to create our wedding. Don’t forget you can follow me on facebook, pinterest and twitter and would love if you came and said hi…
So, whats been going on in the quiet world of the sparrow? I have been booking, planning and saving like my life depends on it! It has been hard at times (I imagine all you bride-to-be’s out there nodding along about the saving part) and I have gone without my weekly Topshop purchases, random supermarket buys and spur-of-the-moment nights out. It’s got me down at times (I love a good splurge!) but all I need to do is log onto inspirational wedding blogs and sites to imagine what I might be able to achieve on 26th May 2012 and it makes me feel somewhat better.
The last moodboard of the wedding I posted looked a little like this:
{the bride}
{the groom}
{the wedding reception}
{the outdoor reception}
So six months on and what’s changed? With all the internet surfing I’ve been doing lately, the inspiration has been whirring around my brain like a washing machine. It also means that the boy gets a little peeved at my indecision…
Here is the updated versions of the styleboards for the Sparrow wedding…
{the bride}
Images (clockwise from left) courtesy of Style Me Pretty; Elizabeth Messina; Ernest Jones; Coast; Gina; Green Wedding Shoes
As you can see the board has evolved a little with more colour and a stronger sense of direction. Obviously I can’t give away too much on the dress front but the bridesmaid dress above is the exact dress from Coast that I have purchased for my maids. If budget was no problem, the Gina shoes below are what I would buy them as a gift (as it happens we are now hunting down a pair of more budget-friendly nude peeptoes). The floral theme is something I am obsessed with pinning on Pinterest about! A shabbier bouquet featuring dahlias, peonies, succulents and silver brunia will be perfect.
{the groom}
Images (clockwise from left) courtesy of: Wedding Chicks; Ted Baker; and Once Wed
The boy pretty much has stuck to his guns from his original idea (some of us are a little more indecisive!). He has purchased his suit (3 piece grey suit with white shirt and a dark grey tie) and his groomsmen have also bought the same suit but in a two piece. His shoes are the Ted Baker ones above and all he needs is a new belt. He has tried to refresh the boring suit look with a collar bar too (a metal bar that slots through the collar peaks to keep them flat and the tie straight). I’m still doing everything I can to keep him away from his trusty flatcap for one day…
{the wedding interior}
Images (clockwise from left) courtesy of Green House Hotel; Elizabeth Messina; Style Me Pretty; Joy Thigpen; Jose Villa
The patterened wallpaper featured above is a picture I took in the restaurant part of the Green House Hotel (our reception venue). I have been trying to fit our reception colours around this organic Farrow & Ball paper forever. I’m hoping the tones above will do it justice on the day…
Well, that’s all you’re getting from me today I really hope you guys continue to follow the journey of Wedding Sparrow and beyond. Thanks for all your support (and help with the decision making!) in 2011. Here’s to a successful 2012 with a huge relaunch and of course the wedding itself…
Much love.
I know, I know! I’m supposed to be on temporary semi-retirement from the blog but you know when you just see something that makes you think “I wish that was me”, well you just have to blog about it…
Not only am I jealous of the styling but also of the light they get over in the US of A that makes most Californian/West Coast weddings and engagement shoots look amazing. Bognor Regis just doesn’t quite cut it, does it?
These images are courtesy of the lovely married couple Brittany and Hunter from Three Nails Photography. If you don’t know already, Brittany is the stylist to Hunter’s shoots and what a stunning end result this collaboration makes…
Images courtesy of Three Nails Photography
I’m sure you’ll agree that these images wouldn’t stay in a photo album – these would get pride of place on a wall somewhere for all to see… Keep your eyes peeled for any other random blog posts up to the wedding. I told you I wouldn’t be able to keep away for long…
Much love.
Afternoon all!
Well, it’s been a fast rollercoaster to this point today and I haven’t stopped thinking about all things wedding for the last 8 months!
Just wanted to bring to your attention some recent developments in the world of Wedding Sparrow. Wedding Sparrow has taken off like a rocket recently with tens of thousands of readers and suppliers asking about advertising left right and centre. I would love to give the site the attention it deserves and with working a full time job and planning my own wedding this is becoming increasingly difficult. So, it is with sincere regret that I will no longer be updating the Wedding Sparrow blog.
Fear not! The future for Wedding Sparrow is still bright alas! Being a perfectionist by nature, I don’t do anything by halves so I would love to really attempt to make Wedding Sparrow a success and that means really putting the hours in with a new site and advertising. I am planning to re-launch after the wedding so keep your eyes peeled! I will of course still be on twitter and facebook at every given opportunity and don’t forget I am still a bride-to-be so I will always be around to talk weddings!
I have my fingers in a few proverbial wedding pies so I will be popping up now and then guest blogging and featuring my own private wedding photographs (oh yeah, you know you all want a peak!). You can’t get rid of this sparrow easily…
This site is still live so you can re-visit and recommend to others as there are a whole 8 months worth of daily posts on here! And you never know, I may pop up from time to time and post something in the middle of the night Banksy-style…
Much (see you soon) love.
These prints by MadebyGirl are a perfect addition to Wedding Sparrow HQ as well as an addition to your gift list…
The last one is definitely my favourite…
Much love.
Super exciting cogs in motion here at Sparrow HQ this week with the photo shoot gaining momentum. And with suppliers such as:
- Sweet Dream Events
- Carrie Bugg Photography
- Lisa Jane Photography
- Creatiques
- Andrew McDowall
- Genii Cupcakes
- DC Bouquets
- Elle is for Love
…the photo shoot is going to be epic! So, you see bridal shoots all over the internet all the time – what’s so different about this one? The point of this shoot is to create something more original. We are all working hard to ensure you get to see something you haven’t seen before whilst creating a styled shoot that will knock your socks off…
Back to this week, let’s see what you have been reading on Wedding Sparrow…
- Sunday spotted… ~ Cake bunting! Who knew you could get miniature bunting atop your wedding cake?
- DIY ~ Confetti cones… ~ Something I will be attempting to make myself so just how easy they are to make?
- Reception drinks… ~ Are you personalising your own reception drinks? It’s a great way to start the party and you can even keep the drinks to your colour theme…
- Wednesday planner ~ 332 days to go… ~ It’s all about the dress this week and the additions that one might make to one’s dress…
- Real wedding ~ Jimmy & Laura… ~ A destination wedding this week from the lovely Harriet Eaglestone features a gold sequin wedding dress and a dog that looks like a teddy bear…
- Stick a fork in it ~ Bridal photo shoot… ~ A colourful bridal shoot with moustaches on her shoes…
Coming up next week…
Much love.
Love the creativity of this shoot so much I want multi-coloured bunting above my bed! And a sparrow in my hair at all times please… It was the cake with it’s plethora of bows on that drew me to this amazing shoot from Sugar & Fluff Design…
Event Design and Styling : Sugar and Fluff, Photography: Christine Farah, Flowers: Floral Occasions, Cake: Some Crust Bakery, Hair and Make up: Christina Hernandez, Invitations: Sugar and Fluff, Balloon Dress: Ashley Taddei, Ice Cream Chandelier: Anna Marie Francesco, Vintage Props: Ribbons and Rust, Venue: Hold Out Ranch
Off to put moustaches on my shoes…
Much love.
