Allo Governor!

...9 days til Willie and Katie's wedding!!...

i'll be watching with my cup of tea and my pinkie up

cannot wait

so glamorous

Lights, Camera, Action!

There's nothing more tacky than watching your parents Wedding Video.. Opening credits are shown with a backdrop of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Dad's head fades into Mum's veil, the sound quality sounds like something out of 'Picnic at Hanging Rock', the word Disaster pretty much sums it up.

These days weddings are becoming bigger events so naturally Videographers had to up the ante, creating cinematic experiences instead of dodgy camcorder recordings. Two names that automatically pop to mind when I think of my ultimate wedding video is Abraham Joffe - Untitled Film Works and Alan Khan - Hour Glass Video.

Both are geniuses, and are extremely extraordinary at producing cinematic GOLD!

I've definitely spent many-a-night perusing through wedding after wedding, William and Noelle, Nando and Therese, I was left feeling like I actually knew these people. I even cried when watching Mark & Milena Minichiello's wedding as Milena's dad gave a heartwarming 'father-of-the-bride speech'..

But then again I'm a sucker for this stuff! (dont judge me)

So.. you can imagine my excitement today when I received my very own copy of Abraham Joffe's latest promotional DVD - Bring on the tissues!

Designer Spotlight - Steven Khalil...

One of the few Australian designers to completely nail couture wedding gowns is Steven Khalil.

His designs effortlessly compliment the female form, instantaneously transforming the everyday Bride into a couture queen for a day.

One word - Breathtaking

The dream speech..

One of my most vivid dreams, was my best friend W's wedding day.

Like a premonition, it felt so real

I was standing on the podium, heart beating with so much emotion I thought it would burst,

I was about to say my speech..

How do you sum up years of blood sweat and tears in a few paragraphs?

In my dream all I could think about was "How am I going to explain to all these people, the level of love I have for this person?"

I opened my mouth, looked at her husband

(her boyfriend D laughed when I told him about this dream, both D and my boyfriend JK are now used to their girlfriends abnormal friendship)

I looked at him and said, with tears of joy rolling down my face and a choked up throat "Today, you married my best friend..."

I then went on quoting lines from movies... I cant remember the rest of my speech but I know it was heartfelt, it was real, it meant more than a few lines scribbled on a piece of paper.

.... and that's what a wedding speech should be...

So...
The other night I received a message saying.. "Hi my name is J and I am B's bridesmaid, she told me you might have some great ideas for a speech so I was wondering if you could forward me some ideas?"
I know B has always been a long time fan of my random blogging antics i cracked my knuckles and got to work!
Keep in mind - I've never met J before, so I could only pull inspiration from my own long time sisterly friendship with my girl W.

It started something like this..

Good evening

for those of you that don't know me my name is J.

I would like to start off by saying congratulations to N & B, I would also like to thank you both for asking me to be a part of your special day.

It meant so much to me to watch my best friend marry the man of her dreams, the man that makes her eyes light up whenever she mentions him.

This day came quickly and I hope you both take the time to enjoy each moment.

B, where do I even begin?

Your my best friend, my saving grace and the sister I never had!

Your the one person who knows the song in my heart, and can sing it back to me when I have forgotten the words.

You have a heart filled with selfless love, always putting others before yourself you have taught me about true love and friendship and for that I am eternally grateful.

Your an amazing woman, raised by an amazing family and I'm certain that you will continue the tradition of being a one-in-a-million wife and mother - as your mother is.

The woman I see before me is a true vision, an absolute beauty and I'm truly grateful to have you in my life - I love you.

I would like to say that I am honored to be your maid of honour and that I am still amazed at how your personalities completely compliment each other. you are perfect together and I wish you all the luck and happiness in the world.

Remember your relationship was carefully built out of commitment and understanding, hope and love.

May the same love that has touched your lives from the start, always make your home happy, your life complete and be the guiding light in your hearts..

Congratulations on a wonderful future together!

Kristina x

The Checklist..

Bitten off more than you can chew - CHECK

Pain killers for the headache your about to experience - CHECK

Bag full of cement to help you harden the F%*k up - CHECK

Your engagement period is over and it's time to start knuckling down and begin planning your wedding..How do you overcome facing the daunting question being - where do I start?

From experience I've noticed that an organised bride is a happy bride. 'Breathe' should be your wedding mantra otherwise you'll find yourself experiencing a wedding anxiety attack. Use the resources you have available to you, your 'bridesmaids', I hear the sound of bridesmaids cringing as they realise this duty isn't just about standing there and looking pretty on the day.

It can actually be fun, organise a night in with your bridesmaids, it will give you a chance to pick their brains - 4 heads are better than one. Pull inspiration from magazines, blogs or Facebook (stalking peoples 'real weddings' on Facebook is my personal fave) to get an idea of the theme you are going for and the style your trying to incorporate. Once you know what your going for your on easy street!



Click here for rough timeline I found on Brideonline.com.au to help get you organised.


Good luck and stay tuned!

The beginning - a good place to start

Every little girl dreams about her wedding day. We're pretty much programmed through fairy tales to find our prince, fall in love and have the most amazing wedding day. What those fairy tales failed to tell us however was how the princess chose her venue, who helped her come up with a colour scheme? As I grew older my infatuation with wedding planning grew, until finally I was asked to become a Bridesmaid. Many, MANY weddings later and I'm now a walking talking wedding how-to guide.
Being asked to become a Bridesmaid is definitely a bittersweet moment. On one hand your helping one of your nearest and dearest prepare for her big day, but on the other hand you've just signed up to about a year of sleepless nights and double shifts. Bridesmaid duties can consume as many hours as your regular full time job, and suddenly you've realised you now replace sleep - with coffee!
You'll become her stylist, mother, PA, emotional punching bag, shoulder to cry on but most of all - her voice of reason! Planning a wedding is pretty overwhelming and it grows on you like a pimple on an oily teenager - So before you see the bride reaching for yet another meter of tulle - your job is to control the nut bag. Remind her to keep her eyes on the prize and not let this wedding eat her alive!
Trust me it's all worth it in the end, to see that bride walk down that isle without a hitch. You almost give yourself a pat on the back thinking - I helped her get up there!

Lucky for you I have your back - This blog is dedicated to all the clueless brides, and bridesmaids out there who need a little nudge in the right direction.

Hope it helps !

Kristina x