A Stroll Through St James' Park

Nothing says 'wedding countdown' like an engagement/pre-wedding photo shoot. We weren't originally going to have one, but I got swept up in all the excitement and contacted the lovely Rik Pennington. And so it was that we met him on a sunny July evening in St James' Park... 

After guffawing and giggling for the most part, (to my shame the fiancé was far more sensible), doing battle with midges, nettles, chasing herons, being shouted at by men in Mercs (well, we were stood in the middle of The Mall), we said goodnight. It was honestly really good fun and I'm fascinated by how he managed to take such beautiful images. He made it look so easy...and I can promise you we did not make it very easy for him! 

Having been on the fence about having these photographs taken, I'm glad we did it. We know we'll have beautiful wedding photographs, but we also wanted something that was just us, in normal places and normal clothes. 


I chose my favourite Allium B dress. The colour is warm and decadent and makes me think of plums and raspberries. The design is feminine and delicate and the dress is feather-light, so I didn't have to worry about it. It was featured in Stella magazine, which is where I first heard of Allium B, and it was love at first sight. 

I accessorised with electric blue courts from Carvela, 1920s sapphire earrings, (which the fiancé bought for our second Christmas - bless!) and an antique necklace from my parents. I plan to wear both of these at the wedding, so it was fitting to wear them for these photos, but the blue worked really well with the deep hue of the dress, too.

For more on Allium B click here or here.
To see more of Rik's work or to contact him, click here.

xo

The Hiatus

The last time I wrote anything here was before we travelled to Vietnam and Cambodia. That was in April...and now it's August. But, I think that is the way of writing. I began a few posts and then they dwindled in my mind and I lost my way.

In the meantime, I got a new job, continued to plan our wedding (10 weeks to go!) and we did the craziest thing of all: we moved to the countryside. 

That's right. We left London - roaring, chaotic, heady London - and bought a house in a village in West Sussex. I still haven't quite got used to that and I keep sneaking back into town just to remind myself that it's still there, though the extortionate rail fares (I'm looking at you, Southern) are doing a good job of keeping me home. 

My friends received the news of our flight from the city with mixed emotions. Some envied us and the unlimited fresh air which will eventually unclog our sooty lungs; others bluntly enquired as to the state of our mental capacity to make such a decision. I don't regret it for an instant. Whereupon I used to wage war with angry shoppers, I am now embroiled in a bloody - mostly mine - battle against bindweed. Not heard of that? Move to the country and you soon will. We now have a garden with a heavily laden apple tree; we collect raspberries to put on our breakfast and we have fresh mint for our Pimms. 

So, you see, I've been lost in the pretence of pretending to be a member of the Bloomsbury Set sojourning in Sussex...only without the writing part. But I have not forgotten. And once I have cooked all the apples and blackberries I will be back to share the loveliest of dresses and, of course, our wedding plans. 

Winging your way soon:

the yummiest apple and blackberry pie recipe

our engagement photographs, taken by Rik Pennington, on location in St. James Park. 

xo