Bead Barmy

A great time was had by all at our own handmade extravaganza filled with music, dancing and, of course, beads! 

A family and friends affair

My wedding to John took place in Brighton in 2005. It was a very homemade occasion. I made everything from scratch including invitations, table decorations, my dress and accessories. I also made one of the bridesmaid’s outfits and friends and relations made the other two. I wanted it to be as much of a family and friends affair as I could, so all the talented people I know would have a chance to show off their skills! I also wanted the wedding to be stylish but comfort was a factor too!

Not my best side – but it shows off the handmade hair decor quite nicely!

I was adamant that I wasn’t going to wear white, as I look awful in it and was terrified of food or wine spillage. I opted for burgundy with gold accents. I thought it imperative that the bridesmaids felt relaxed in their outfits too, so I just chose the fabric and colour, a soft gold, and let the three girls choose their own style. As it turned out, the two older ones, independently, went for scalloped edging on their tops so they matched quite nicely.

Instead of flowers, for the bridesmaids I made them each a little handbag in the same burgundy I had used for my dress decorated with a single beaded flower. They each had a matching flower for their hair. I had a gold bag but I also had a bouquet of antique pink roses. Because it was a lot to carry, the partner of one of my bridesmaids ended up carrying my bag for most of the ceremony. He may beg to differ, but I think it suited him very well!

Music is the food of love

A moment of pre-wedding nerves with Dad. I never realised Hot Love was such a long song!

We also really wanted the day to reflect our love of music. For my entrance we had two friends play I Will by The Beatles on the acoustic guitar and flute. As the guests arrived and I was nervously waiting to go in we had Hot Love by T Rex. That song never seemed so long, just how many rounds of ‘na na na na na na na’ are there? Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys and The Way You Do The Things You Do by The Temptations played through the signing of the register and people departing.

Later, at the evening do, we did our first dance to The Ace of Spades by Motorhead, not an obvious romantic choice but it worked for us! This was followed by my brother’s band and my husband’s band both taking it in turn to do hard rock covers and sixties garage classics.

The Mother of all cakes

Marvelling at the marvellous wedding cake

Lynn Davidson, the mother of one of our witnesses, made a fabulous cake unlike anything I’d ever seen outside my own head. I’d had the idea that I wanted it to look like parcels piled up on top of each other.

I could never have guessed that Lynn would realise my dream so perfectly. It, of course, included beads in the decoration and curls of the I Will sheet music.

Sharp shooter

A couple of reportage shots from James Pike

James Pike has been snapping beads for Beads Unlimited since the year dot. He is also a talented and experienced wedding photographer so he was the natural choice. Originally, we’d thought Jim would just photograph the ceremony, but he suggested coming to the reception meal and the night do.

I was a bit worried about people being a bit self conscious having a camera shoved in their faces whilst they were eating.  However, Jim was so unobtrusive we hardly knew he was there and he snapped some great, natural shots. His reportage style suited what we wanted down to the ground.

Beaded Brighton rocks

Wedding favours, stick of rock name places and a happy bridesmaid!

Carrying through the theme, the invitations also had the sheet music to the song printed on the front. My favour bags, which I made, had miniature rolled up scrolls with the lyrics printed on them.

The bags were decorated with a couple of beaded tassels.
For the place names I bought small sticks of Brighton rock, as a tribute to the place we live and love, and wrapped peoples names round them.

Do it yourself

John has a little boogie as we sign the register and our first dance – The Ace of Spades by Motorhead

I had such great fun designing my bespoke wedding. Although making everything seemed time consuming, I would probably have used up that time trawling round shops for something much more impersonal. I would definitely recommend anyone with artistic or crafty leanings to give it a go!

In the first in our Wedding Belles series – The Diary of a Bride To Be - we followed Vicky in the making of her veil and the run up to her big day.

Don’t forget to check back soon to see Vicky’s progress, directions to some of our favourite wedding sites and much more.

Posted by: JoBlogsIt