Pretty for a Saturday...{Happiness Is}

Aren't these illustrations just lovely? All done by local freelance designer, illustrator & blogger Fathima. I want them all printed and block mounted in my home :)

Click here to see her blog, and get in contact with her for any design work you might be wanting, or even just to tell her how great you think her work is (like I just did!). Yay for local talent!

xxx

Yuppiechef Gift Registry

A little while ago I did a blog post (click here) on some idea's of places to open up gift registries (most particularly wedding registries) here in South Africa. After getting back from honeymoon a few weeks ago, we were absolutely spolit when a *BIG* box arrived from YuppieChef.

It was super easy to set up, I just went onto the website, filled in the registration form, and started shopping! Yuppiechef stocks everything and anything your kitchen could ever possibly need, and with brands ranging from Le Creuset to Bodum to Jamie Oliver you really are spoilt for choice!

The team at Yuppiechef kept in touch every step of the way, informing me if things were out of stock, and then giving me an option to either wait until it came in, or to choose something else of equal value...how nice are they!

Every gift that our guests ordered for us arrived in perfect condition, no bumps or scratches (and they came all the way from Cape Town! And guests didn't have to lug prezzies all the way to our wedding, but knew that when we got back from honeymoon, their precious cargo would be delivered safe and sound.

AND it's free delivery on all orders anywhere in South Africa! How cool is that :)

Here are some photo's of Farmboy unwrapping some of our wedding presents...

Thank you Yuppiechef!!

Our Honeymoon in the {Greek Islands}

I have been staggering the photo's from our honeymoon {new readers: we got married on the 23rd September 2012 on my hubby's family dairy farm, Click here to see some of the professional pic's and click here to see the preparation and other wedding related posts}, so as not to bore people with them (and to give me enough time to sort through all 3000 images!) and I am finally done.

For our trip, we flew from Durban to Johannesburg, Johannesburg > Istanbul (click here) Istanbul > Athens (click here) and finally Athens > Santorini where we spent 7 nights in an incredible old winery converted into a villa. The last part of our trip was a ferry ride to the island of Naxos where we spent our last few days before making the 40 hour trip back to Durban.

Here are a few highlights...enjoy! xxx

And we {shared} the backpack responsibilities! That blue backpack is all we took for 2 weeks! I am mightily impressed with myself for being able to pack to light 

Greece, we loved every second of you!

Heart Bunting {wedding DIY}

In the search for the perfect bunting for our wedding {and the cheapest we could get our hands on!} my soon-to-be Aunty Marina had a wonderful idea while perusing down the aisles of Makro. Let's make our own! Ok, I thought not really that original. Let's make our own using paper plates! Um, I thought, now you're getting somewhere...

Here's what resulted from our trip to Makro:

Easy peasy lemon squeezey! I have done a post a while ago on making your own fabric bunting (click here) but I think that these make a nice change don't you think?! 

{Inspiration} Thank you gifts

At the August I Heart Market in Durban, I spotted these really pretty vinyl stickers on little jars at the Little Mud Hut Designs stall.  I was immediately struck with what a cute gift they would make. My mind ran wild with images of buttons, ribbon & lace. These little guys were a gift from Vanessa (who is just the sweetest lady, and the brains behind the Little Mud Hut Designs). I am planning on using these to say thank you to some special friends who have been invaluable to me during the wedding planning. 

I also filled them with some pretty pieces I found at Mr Price, but really, you could fill them with anything {even ingredients to make hot chocolate or chocolate chip cookies would look amazing in these jars}. Why not reuse & recycle by visiting your local thrift store (my favourite is the Hospice and SPCA shops right here in Pietermaritzburg) and get crafty with all the different sizes and shapes of glass bottles there.

Greece {Athens}

After a very short glimpse of Turkey {we had a 6 hour layover in which time we got a free tourist visa, managed to negotiate the mind boggling Turkish Metro, and make our way down to the Bosporus for breakfast and coffee *click here*) we landed in Athens for the next leg of Honeymoon. We only had one night in Athens, and made the most of it exploring the streets below the famous Parthenon {which just so happened to be closed for a strike, can you believe it!} But we still managed to get a few piccies around the base...
Here are some shots of part 2 of our honeymoon {the best is still to come though!}, enjoy!
xxx

Our first ride on the Metro rail in Athens...why doesn't Durban have such a cool underground transport system?!

The Parthenon!

We were hoping to catch a sneak peek of Zeus peering round the corner...

The old and the new...

Loved the look of these shutters

Our first truly greek meal...yum!

Very cool antique shop we found at the end of a side street...pity we didn't have 300 euro's lying around to make a purchase ;)

{Before} The Shed & The Barn

Here are some photo's of the shed (which was to become our reception venue) and barn (our chapel/ceremony venue) before all the wedding prep began. The shed was where the calves were kept after being seperated from their mommy's (Farmboy's parents own a dairy farm, hence the cows) and the barn was being used as a place to shear the sheep and keep bits of junk. Still, even with all that 'natural' stuff (ahem cow & owl droppings) going on, the true beauty of the place is undeniable :)

The Shed...

The Barn...

Wedding Hair & Makeup Trial

A little while ago I posted a sneak peak of my wedding hair & make up (thanks to my very talented mommy for the photies!). While I wait for the professional photo's from our big day, here are photo's of my hair and makeup trial, which is exactly what I had done on the day. Also a few shots of my Bridesmaids hair do's and makeup on the day...all the photo's below were taken by my mom, thanks Sue P!

Thanks to the very talented Alana who did my trial at Makeup Your Mind in Durbs!

Honeymoon Highlights {Joburg > Istanbul}

And we are back to reality! Back to a very rainy and wet Pietermaritzburg, after 2 blissful weeks of sun, sea and sand in the Mediterannean. Here are a few highlights of part 1 of our honeymoon.

Enjoy xxx

Waiting for our plane to take off...next step is for me to get my ID & Passport doc's changed!

Breakfast on the Bosphorus

Sunrise...

The most delicious street saamie!

We only had a 6 hour layover in Istanbul, but managed to at least make our way down to the harbor to see a few of the lovely old buildings

Local brew

Magnets anyone??

Every building had one of these, ornate and golden

Turkish coffee...no one ever warned us it would be so strong!

A trip to Turkey just ain't complete without a little delight...

A few Instagram snaps...

It's our last few days of honeymoon, before reality kicks in on Monday. While we wait for the posh piccies from our photographer, here is a little Instagram sneak peek...

{Honeymoon in Greece!} see you in two weeks!

After an incredible 6 months of very hard work converting Calf shed into our dream wedding, the day finally arrived and sped by in lightening speed! Farmboy and I are at this moment waiting for our plane to Greece where we will spend the next 2 weeks enjoying married life! I will not be blogging during that time (hubby's orders!) so i will be seeing you all in a short while.

Look forward to loads of incredible Photo's of our special day, as well as piccies of Greece!

Love,

Mrs Hutton

aka CityGirl xxx

T minus 1 day!

This time tomorrow, all my bridesmaids will have had their hair and makeup done, and my makeup artists will be starting their work on me! Such excitement happening on this end of the world! Here is a little pic of me doing what I do best, drinking tea! It's always good to take a break every once in a while and appreciate the little things.

It poured with rain last night and I had a very sleepless night worrying about The Shed and whether Farmboy and his groomsmen had done a good enough job of weather proofing it. I'm off this morning to see for myself what damage was done!

 To my left is my very soon to be sister in law Natalie, and of course my very handsome fiance...

A Kitchen Tea {Surprise!}

A few week's ago, one of my bridesmaids organized yet {another} surprise Kitchen Tea for me! What a special day filled with great company, yummy food and lots and lots of laughs. It's times like these that make you realise what special people surround you. Thank you to all the ladies in the photo's below, as well as all those who couldn't make it.

I am currently writing this post in bed, after a very full day of wedding DIY'ing, from putting up chalkboards, to hanging shade clot and hessian to weather proof our farm venues, and of course lots and lots of ribbon and lace tying. The last few days before the wedding have been so special, a time for family, and a time to just take a deep breathe and realise the beauty of marriage.

Enjoy the photies below, lots more posts to come before the Big Day on Sunday!

*And a big thank you to Dear Chloe Photography for the piccies!*

Groomsmen Corsages

Last week I headed into Durban to meet my lovely friend and creative extraordinaire Nadia, who is the brains behind the amazing blog CupcakeCouture. Not only does Nadia have a stand at the I Heart
Market in Durban every month, she also offers a creative consulting business where she will help you give your brand or business the look and feel it needs to stand out from the crowd. Click here to drop her a line to chat about your creative needs.

As well as all of that, Nadia also helps stressed out brides like myself with details to make our day something special. These are what she put together for me for my Groom and his Groomsmen...aren't they gorgeous {and by gorgeous I mean in the most masculine way possible...incase my fiance has a squizz at this post!}

Nadia even included a little extra one just for me, mine has it's own pretty flower on...thank you Nadia, I love it! xxx

Rob & Lee {Wedding}

Yesterday, Farmboy and I headed out to the beautiful Providence Wedding venue in Nottingham Road to celebrate the wedding of my dear friend Lee. The weather was awful, cold and wet, but it did nothing to dampen to moods of those present as we celebrated the union of two very special people, before God.

It's now officially, one week to go until Farmboy and I walk to the aisle! Last night was a wonderful escape from all the hustle and bustle of preparing for our wedding.  It's really important to try and take a break from the all the 'wedding' talk, and gain some perspective into the real meaning behind weddings.

I have had to be reminded a few times by friends that you are a bride for a day, but a wife for life. It's so easy to get carried away {read: obsessed} with every little detail, and worry about this going wrong, or that not happening at the right moment. And ladies, trust me when I say this, your man is going to go crazy with all the wedding talk...make sure to schedule in some 'couple' time where the {W} word isn't allowed to crop up :)

Here are a few photo's I took of the day {you might remember the Hen's party we threw for Lee a few weeks back...if not, click here for a little reminder}

This is a snap of me {left} and two lovely ladies {far left is one of my bridesmaids for next week!}

{The Bridenappers}

Farmboy & Citygirl

xxx

Kitty Cat...

How cute are these little kitties? I found them here on the blog "Just Something I made" which is a place for owner Cathe, to share creative idea's, crafty projects & loads of freebies!  If you are a blogger looking for bits and pieces to spice up your post layouts, then head over to her site and let your imagination go wild! 

Wedding Nails Inspiration & {Inglot Review}

My wedding is just under 10 days away {please excuse the rush of wedding related posts!} and I have been scouring the net for idea's of what to do for my nails. Here are a few pictures of pretty mani's, as well as the shade I will be wearing next Sunday...enjoy! xxx

{Source for all images}

I am loving all the soft pastel shades at the moment, and my wedding nails will be no exception. My nails are very long at the moment {I'm not complaining!} but too much colour is tending toward the 'garish' side of things, and I'm wanting to go more soft and romantic. So I've settled on a soft pearly pink colour from Inglot. 

It goes on smoothly and evenly without too much fuss, and leaves no lingering aroma of chemicals. Two coats were enough to make my nails pop, without distracting too much from my ring. I am very keen to hit Inglot again soon, the colour range was what impressed me most. There were so many nail colours to pick, i cant believe i left with only one in my hand!

Get yours from most Woolworths stores, and designated Inglot counters nationwide for R99.

Wedding Hair & Makeup {sneak peek)

Yesterday I went for a full hair and makeup trial with Makeup Your Mind in Durban. I had spent hours on Pinterest and wedding blogs like100 layer cake, The Pretty Blog, Ruffled & a lovely South African wedding blog South Bound Bride trying to find the perfect style that suits both me and my dress, and then makeup to match.  I was feeling pretty frazzled about the whole thing. I took everything I had to my appointment, and my makeup artist asked me a few questions, had a squizz at my pic's and got busy! I am thrilled to say she has given me exactly what I was after from the beginning...something a little sexy, pretty, and different all rolled into one!

Here a few very sneak peek's, I can't risk Farmboy having a look and seeing me all done up before the big day (which is next weekend!!!!)

*all photo's taken by my super talented mom! Thank you mommy for spending 2 hours photographing every strand of hair and eye lash...I <3 you!*

#HuttonWedding...2 weeks to go!

Yesterday marked the two week countdown to our wedding...eek! Here are a few snaps of our time spent on the farm cutting, hammering, sticking, tying and general DIYing in preparation for our big day. A huge thank you to everyone involved, I hope I wasn't too 'Bridezilla' like in my demands :)

#PhotoOfTheWeek...Spring Has Sprung

Hello everyone...And welcome to Spring! Such a wonderful time of the year, a time for pretty flowers and new beginnings, and my wedding in 2 weeks :)

Here are this week's submissions for the theme 'Spring has Sprung'.

Taken by: Keith

Taken by: Sue

Taken by: Tammy

Taken by: Meg

Taken by: Roxy

Well done to everyone who submitted a photograph. This will be our last challenge for a little while, and we will be back in a few weeks time once I am back from honeymoon! Enjoy the break, get those creative juices going again, and I look forward to seeing your photo's soon!

If you would like to take part in our Photo Challenge, simply drop me an email at (citygirlsearching@gmail.com) and I will add you to our mailing list. The new theme for the week is sent out to everyone on a monday, and then each team member has until that Sunday evening to submit their photograph to me. It can be as edited or natural as you like...so go wild!