Watercolour

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on January 4, 2017

04 Jan

Floral dress is Zac posen – on runway

For the bridesmaidsLovely watercolour look fabrics from talented Japanese designer Nani Iro

Try Etsy for invitation designers using…..

Here is a simple tutorial for making watercolour table numbers, the technique could be applied to any of your wedding stationary. The lovely textured paper is essential and it should be available at any art supplier along with the latex masking agent used.

Here some lovely watercolour dipped paper cups used for holding lovely little floral arrangements.

Apple season

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on March 3, 2015

03 Mar

If you have driven between Canberra and Bega recently you may have noticed that all the road side apples are coming into fruit. This is good news for anyone who likes to make free cider or anyone who is having their wedding this time next year and is looking for something unusual to include in their flowers.

In truth the apples were probably best to use for floral arrangements a few weeks ago, if they are too ripe they are more likely to drop off their branches.

Above are some apples growing between Candelo and Bemboka. These are red but I have also seen green apples in places if that will match your colour scheme.

Apples included in a bouquet.

Here apples are included in the table setting.

Banskia

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on February 27, 2015

27 Feb

The banksias are coming into flower. soon I will grab myself a huge bouquet to enjoy indoors. If you are not lucky enough to have your own supply here are some for you to enjoy.

I am assuming a blow torch was what has given the wonderful black char to these banksia pods. Just keep them away from the dress.

Lush bouquets mixed with softer foliage and smaller flowers. Most native flowers will last well when cut so arrangements like these can be made days before an event.

I included this lovely print by Australian artist Margaret Preston. The graphic lines on this wood block print are the perfect inspiration for invites. Printing paper with that soft natural colour is available from any good art shop.

Single stems with their leaves are an easy choice as they last well and can be arranged by anyone.

I had some fun playing with banksias from my mum’s garden.

Crocosmia

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on February 4, 2015

04 Feb

Another local ‘weed’ that has caught my eye is the brilliant orange crocosmia. It is currently flowering in abundance along the side of the road between Tura beach and Merimbula. I am lucky enough to have some in my garden and I am going to make sure I collect some bulbs to put into my new garden when the house is finished. I had never thought of it as a wedding flower until I started imagining what was possible outside of what is available commercially.

Crocosmia cut and left tall for a lovely farmyard wedding. This bride also used wild fennel which is flowering at the moment too. The tall leaves she used are actually young stalks of corn.

Crocosmia mixed with garden roses and Oregano flowers.

Crocosmia in a more yellow shade mixed with ginger flowers for a tropical elopement.

Wild Fennel

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on January 10, 2015

10 Jan

Blooming now along side the Queen Anne’s lace is the wild fennel. A similar flower but yellow, it is just starting to bloom properly now (late december, early jan) around Bega. I didn’t pick any of this when I stopped, the stalks are too hard to break so I can’t give any advice about their longevity in a vase. I can suggest you bring some secatures.

Here is a small selection of wedding flowers using wild fennel (or wild dill as it has an almost identical flower)

Twigs

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on December 30, 2014

30 Dec

Try including a fragile little twig in your wedding, They offer the contrast of a solid line against the softer blooms included in a bouquet. consider painting them as a way to add some colour. Green twigs will be less fragile as they will bend before they break but sometimes only the dry ones will do as they are more delicate.

Sticks used for decoration of the reception. Firstly was a marquee so there was no issue with the bride suspending an incredible stick chandelier. The second is in a restaurant so may require some sweet talking to your venue owner. Lastly twigs painted gold for some extra glamour. These would look wonderful used in a vase with lots of white and coral pink peonies, highlighted with foliage and their little yellow centres.

Twigs wound into hair. Etsy has an incredible selection of jewlery made from cast silver or gold twigs if you would like to buy one but I think that with a little time and spray paint a crown of golden twigs could easily be made. If you use fresh green twigs they won’t be so brittle so will last well all day.

Queen Anne’s lace

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on December 14, 2014

14 Dec

Blooming all over the Bega valley right now is Queen Anne’s lace. A very romantic name for what is essentially weed carrots but either name a lovely white flower. The above photo shows Queen Anne’s lace flowering along the Wolumla-Candelo road.

I have found some lovely examples of brides using this flower in their celebrations. My favourite is the basket loaded with flowers that could easily be colected.

It is interesting reading comments from people outside of Australia about not picking them from the wild. Luckily we live in Australia and they are an introduced species and technically a weed so are fair game as long as they are not in someones garden.

These photos show the flowers I cut over 24 hours ago, still looking lovely in a vase. They did droop a little on the way home but perked up as soon as they went into water. Perhaps a bucket to keep them wet the whole time would be advisable if you were collecting a large bunch.

The spent flowers look just as lovely

Tulle, I love you

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on November 13, 2014

13 Nov

Tulle is an incredibly versatile, cheap and fun fabric to use in a wedding gown.

It comes in huge widths for flowing skirts. It doesn’t fray so there is no need for edging it, this saves time in making but more importantly the edges have no weight added to them. Tulle can be dressed up for the evening but works equally well for a day dress because of its matte finish.

Below are some examples of the way tulle can be used in wedding gowns. All of these ideas can be used in a made to measure dress and most will be a great way achieve drama without a dramatic price.

A playfull sweetheart dress with a draped tulle skirt from Love Yu

Tulle here is used to make a dramatic but soft fishtail. Raw edge strips are woven around the body creating texture.

Marchesa uses the cut edges to great effect with a hankerchief cut skirt.

I love the shape of this dress from Charlie Brear, A bias cut sheath would fall beautifully over the body and the tulle add a layer of movement without any bulk.

Silver tulle , no source. Colour can be a little trickier to find in a softer weight tulle but isn’t impossible. The right type of tulle can be dyed. Colour tulle (black is available and sexy) is also perfect for any other formal event where you want to make a scene.

this Blue skirt a has a single layer of contrasting tulle over the top. This tulle is a little stiffer than some other examples here so it sits out from the lining skirt.

A skirt of a single layer of tulle draped from a jewel encrusted sheath. I love the way this skirt falls like a waterfall from the edge of the beading.

Lovely tulle sleeve seen on Style me Pretty. A gorgeous addition to any dress.

Another from Style me pretty is this wonderful wedding where the bride isnt the only one who gets to wear an amazing tulle skirt. I love the way the bridesmaids have paired their skirts with a simple stretch fabric tee.

Tulle gives a layer of etherial softness to a sequin gown without dampening the sparkle underneath. This simple shape is turned into a shining star through an inspired choice of tulle and sequins. The photo of this dress at the top of the post also shows tulle used for the straps.

Another wonderful use for tulle is for table cloths, in white on white and as a pale contrast to a moody grey.

Pink Peppercorn bouquet

by Kathleen Brewster. Posted on October 4, 2014

04 Oct

I have a love for peppercorn trees. I have vague memories of climbing them in the hot sun somewhere in central Victoria at second cousins houses. The smell of the leaves, the papery crunch of the little pink berries and the twisted branches are all wonderful.

When I noticed these bouquets using pink peppercorns I needed to share. I dont know if your florist could find them but if you have a tree available consider including them. As well as the leaves, green corns, pink ripe corns there are also tiny little white flowers that would be lovely as bouquet filler.

image above from an Australian beachside wedding on ruffled.com

Below are a few ideas, photos link to original sources.

I love this moody colour palette, perfect for a winter wedding. Warm mulled wine before dinner and a handmade pack of spice mix for making your own as a gift on each plate.Fantastic tutorial for a garland using silver eucalyptus and pink peppercorns.

Pink flowers and pink peppercorns with a hint of orange.