Married life, and our first crimbo as 'Mr &mrs'

So I promised I would share some more of my wedding photos with you, but unfortunatley, I can't as I'm trying to fathom out how to get them all onto my iPad!
Anyway, I'm loving married life, I don't feel majorly different, but there is a sense of feeling settled after you get married.
What I have realised though is how much time all of the planning takes, and then the day is over within a flash!
But I can honestly say, that there is nothing I would have done differently we've had so many complements from people on what a lovely day it was for everyone, I'm pleased everyone had a great time!
Well I've managed to keep myself busy since we got back from our honeymoon, for Christmas my parents bought me some Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, as I decided I wanted to give my furniture a facelift, and make it look a bit more shabby chic! I've got to say I love the stuff, it's a dream to work with, one coat of it is plenty, and it's so easy to distress afterwards! I'm just in the throws of doing my dining room table and I shall share a photo when It is finished, and maybe a tutorial too.
I'm quite busy for this year with orders for my brooch bouquets, I've only got space for July and September left, I'm so pleased my little venture has worked out well, and even happier that people appreciate my work! It's true that I was not a crafter really before I made my own bouquet, but I have always had an artistic flair, I guess that's why I went into the business of hairdressing. I love doing bridal hair as you can really show off your creative side with it!
Anyway, Christmas quickly crept up on us and disappeared just as quickly! I love Christmas time, all the hustle and bustle of getting ready for it, searching for the nicest recipes for Christmas dinner, giving (and receiving ;-)) presents, and getting to spend some quality time with your loved ones!
Our little Alfie had a lovely time, he was really spoiled by Santa, he must've been a very good boy last year :-)
Well Valentines day is just around the corner so I thought I'd share with you a picture of my latest creation, a pretty vintage button wire hanging heart...
I love hanging hearts, I think it's fair to say I have a *slight* obsession with them, they are dotted all over our home! I just think they are so pretty!
Anyway thanks for stopping by, and I promise it won't be too long before I manage to share some of our beautiful wedding photos with you!!
Beckie Xxx

Wedded bliss!!

Well, where do I start???
I am now Mrs Banks!
After 18 months of wedding planning and preparation, the day finally came and everything went fantastically!
From start to finish we had an amazing day, and cannot thank the staff at our venue enough, nothing was too much trouble for them, they made our day truly special!
My Uncle is a photographer and captured the feel of the day perfectly for us. I've had a sneak preview at a few of them and they look amazing. I will be sharing the photos as soon as I get them so you can see what a talented photographer he is.
The night before our wedding, I stayed the night at the hotel where we were getting married, and my now Husband (that still sounds strange!) had organised an extra special surprise for me.
I love the Pirates of the Caribbean films, and have a bit of a soft spot for Captain Jack Sparrow... So David very thoughtfully for the last 12 months or so had been corresponding with a Jack Sparrow look-a-like, to organise him to come to the hotel the night before the wedding, bearing gifts that resemble the last 9 years we have been a couple.
So, there was a knock at the door, and there was Captain Jack Sparrow standing there holding a chest full of treasure! (I had to do a double take as initially I really thought it was him, he was just like the real thing, his mannerisms and everything!)
After the initial shock of having a pirate knocking on my bridal suite door, I invited him in nervously laughing to myself, while my uncle was there snapping away, making memories for us!
So Jack Sparrow opens the chest and passes me the first gift (David had sorted them all in a particular order)
I unwrapped it and it was a plastic toy barracuda fish...which seems a bit if a strange gift, but I understood it straight away, as Barracuda was the name of a bar in the City Centre where we first met...
Captain Jack Sparrow then passed me another gift which was a DVD of the first film we went to see at the cinema,.
The third gift was a bottle of perfume, the first perfume David had ever bought for me.
The fourth gift was a photo of the two of us on my 18th birthday, and a postcard with a Birdseye view of Torquay photographed on it, as this was our first holiday together.
The fifth gift was Alfie's (our son) first pair of booties and a set of lanzarote thimbles, as this was our first abroad holiday together.
The sixth gift was (very funny) wrapped in a map of Billesley Common, which I knew straight away was because that was where David proposed to me. I unwrapped the present and inside was a display case full of grass....Dave had been back to Billesley common and dug up the patch of grass which he believed to be the spot where he proposed...I thought that was hilarious!
The seventh gift Dave had got for me was a gorgeous personalised teacup, with pretty birdies all over that read on the front 'Our Wedding Day 25/11/2012' and on the back 'Love Always, Dave xxx'
I have got to say that the whole thing was the most thoughtful gift ever! He had put such alot of thought in to it, and that sort of thing is the most special gift someone can give as it will be a treasured memory forever!
Anyway I've got a lot more to share with you about the wedding, but I'm going to break it up into separate posts as otherwise you'll never get through it all!!
Here are a few photos of me with Captain Jack Sparrow!
Thanks for reading! xx

Pretty vintage tea cup arrangements!

Hi everyone!

Well, less than two weeks until my wedding!
I can honestly say I've really enjoyed all the planning and DIY-ing thats gone into making our wedding special, I don't know what I'm going to do when it's all over! There have been a few small blips along the way, for instance, I had someone to make my stationary for me who let me down, and kept my deposit! But I picked myself back up, and decided to make it all myself! It was really hard work trying to get it all finished on time, but I managed it and I'm really pleased with the outcome, I shall share pictures of all the stationary I made after my wedding (I don't want to give too much away yet!)

Anyway the reason for my post today is to show you these pretty and unique vintage teacup arrangements!
They are so pretty, and they add a new lease of life to these pretty vintage teacups and saucers!
They'd look absolutely gorgeous on display in any vintage shabby chic home, also a perfect christmas gift for someone special. They'd also make a gorgeous table decoration at a wedding. I thought they'd be nice as an alternative wedding cake topper too.
I can make these in any colour you wish, whether it be brooches or buttons.
I have got a few ideas up my sleeve for these, and I shall get to it straight after our honeymoon!
Thanks for stopping by

Beckie xx

Pretty fabric flowers!

Hello! I just thought I'd share a quick post with you about the newest addition to Something Old, Something New...these pretty silk flowers!
I decided to make something for my grandma to be able to wear at our wedding that she could have as a little memory of the day, and I thought a corsage would be nice. I usually make singed satin flowers for this sort of thing but I really wanted to try something different. So that's how these pretty ones came about, I saw a teacup arrangement with them in on a blog a while back and I thought how cute they were, and thought I'd try my hand at it, and this is what turned out. They are so versatile, they can be made into a corsage, brooch, hair accessory the sky's the limit!
I've got a few ideas for these, which I will be sharing with you in the near future, but for now I thought I'd just share the flowers to see what you think.
Thanks for stopping by
Beckie xxxx

My first vintage button bouquet!!

Hi!
Well, I decided to try something a little bit different and make a bouquet mainly out of vintage buttons, but with a few pearls and embellishments too.
It's not quite finished yet, but it's taking shape nicely so I thought I'd share a photo of working progress...
Let me know what you think!
Thanks for stopping by :-)
XxX

Photos of my most recent creation!

Hi,
As promised, I'm uploading a few photos of the latest bouquet I have made, which is making its way to Jess as I type!
I have used lots of pretty vintage inspired brooches and lots of pearls with a champagne and pink hue to them, some vintage buttons and pretty fabric roses with a bit of sparkle in them!
I have wrapped the handle in an ivory chiffon ribbon, and finished it off with distressed antique style lace. It's very pretty if I do say so myself! I especially love the droplet pearl embellishment on the handle!
Thanks for stopping by x

A bouquet for a Cornish bride!!

Hi, and apologies again for my absence from here!
I have been working on a bouquet for a lovely bride called Jess, who's getting married in January.
She has a lot to do with the wedding industry so I was very flattered when she asked me to make her bouquet for her, after she had seen a photo of one that she liked on my Facebook page.
I shall be uploading photos of Jess' bouquet on here soon, so keep and eye out!
She has her own blog too, which is very good, check it out for yourself...
www.treatalady.com
xoxo