Chooseday: The smart choice for your wedding

If you are getting married soon, or know someone that is on the verge of taking the big leap, we have a great one-stop online resource to assist through this chaotic time. Matha Stewart Weddings is a website that provides you with the most amazing planning checklist  tool, as well as budget manager to help make a success of your special day.

It keeps track of all your invitations sent, replies received, sends you reminders when what vendor needs to be paid and when to contact whom. It also provides an interactive table outlay page where you set up the venue size and floor plan. You are then able to seat families together with a click of a mouse and move people around, without forgetting to move their spouses.

The site also provides great real-wedding examples, provides templates and other DIY wedding ideas and is just in general your one stop wedding resource.

 

  

Chooseday: Have you ever...

...seen such delightful biscuits in your whole life? These are so pretty that you dare note eat them! The cookies were first created for a Church bazaar in Botrivier (have no idea where this is) and were so popular that they are now sold and couriered all over South Africa.


These are excellent for weddings, tea parties or even just to have in your home for the odd occasion!

Source: The Pretty Blog

To order contact:

Charlotte +27 (0) 82 494 5236 or Robyn , alternatively you can email them for more information. 

Online: NotOnTheHighStreet.Com

"Seeking out the people who create the unusual,  the inspired and just plain ‘out there’.  That’s what notonthehighstreet.com is all about."

I have made a brand new discovery just by using Google to search for doorstops (Which still proves to be rather futile in South Africa). After Etsy, this is now my favourite online hangout.  This online shop was found by Tucker and Sophie Cornish, in 2006, they aimed to create a place where one could find charming, unique and carefully-made things that you just might stumble on by chance. Everything sold on the site is designed, made or selected by an independent small business. The shop is UK based and all their prices are reflected in GBP whereas Etsy is in USD.

In future, I will aim to provide you with more of my finds on this site, but I discovered the following shop that offers great wedding gifting and ideas, called Letterfest. A really special and unique gift idea is the following personalised sketches of the newly wed couples' first house or alternatively their wedding venue. You simply send them a picture and they send you back a piece of art! (unfortunately only for UK delivery though, an ideal chance to get to know someone there!)

                          
                   

Online: "I Do" the cherry on top

I have seen everything from aliens, Lego and even the Corps' Bride that you can use for a wedding cake topper! The latter might not be an ideal start to your journey :). Here with some of the ideas and suppliers that I managed to find on etsy as well as a photo of my own wedding cake toppers in July 2010.

Here with a photo of my own wedding toppers, I made the little flags with words myself, using a toothpick and a little pearl bead at the top of each one. I ordered the dolls from Goosegrease on Etsy and personalised them myself as well.




Formal

    

From left to right: Love by Buttons N more buttons, Naked Lovebirds by sweetie caketopper (also salt and pepper shakers), Transparent purple color butterfly by Butterfly bazaar, customised wedding couple by Subtle Details, dragonflies by Clear cut crafts 2007, Love by Blue butterfly design.

Not so formal





From left to right: I carry your heart with me by Cottonbird designs, Benedict and Louise by Lesley Wellington, True love by dear Jes , We Do by Bragging bags, Love by Crafty pagan, Custom lovebirds by Country Squirrels RUS,


Cartoon


    
All of the above by Kikuike

Online: You + Me

What a lovely idea for a wedding! I first saw the idea on Roula & Schalk's wedding photographed by Melanie Wessels (also my wedding photographer) and had to go looking for a supplier. Sjengraving is a company on Etsy that does custom engraving on stones, check out their shop for more great ideas!

 

DIY: Become a bookmaker!

I got married earlier this year, at Ducks Country House and Venue, a quaint little place on the bank of the Klipriver in Henley-on-Klip, Gauteng. Melanie Wessels was responsible for my gorgeous and unique photos, with Ilana from Cosmetiek doing my make-up.

I made a scrapbook album for our memories of the day, that contains all our wedding stationary, seating arrangements and church songs sang, but felt that I still wanted something smaller to take with to others as a brag book.

I am an absolute internet addict and found a following company called Blurb online. Their books are cheap and super easy to make and you have a wide variety of choice when it comes to colors and outlay. You can even sell your book online at no cost!

Here with a preview of my book that I am expecting in the post any day now:

Kelly Wedding by Karen Kelly | Make Your Own Book