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    Kirsten Jacobs

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    Looking to have a trendy vibe and capture some beautiful memories at your wedding? Incorporating technology into your wedding is sure to make it a unique experience that you will be able to look back on and cherish forever.

    Here are five easy ideas that are worth the extra cost.

    1. GO-PRO CAM

    Go-Pro cameras are a big trend at the moment and are intended to be used in creative ways. If you want to get some interesting videography or photographs, you can attach a Go-Pro to your flower bouquet to capture some hidden moments, or strap it your dog’s collar and let them wander around to all of your guests. You’ll be able to look back and laugh at some incredible moments you wouldn’t have captured otherwise.

    2. SELFIE STATION

    Instead of a simple photo booth, set up a selfie stand kitted out with a themed background, selfie sticks, phone chargers and props that your guests can use to take pictures they will cherish. You can also include a personalised hashtag to use in social media posts, making it easier to get all the wonderful photographs together.

    3. LIVE STREAMING

    If you have guests who are unable to attend the big day, an option is to live stream the event on social media or on a website where your loved ones can watch at home or wherever they are. This way they won’t miss out on any of the incredible moments at your wedding.

    4. DRONE FOOTAGE

    Drones are able to cover a wide range, which is what makes them so suitable for big events. However, they also work well to add a creative aspect to small spaces. You’ll be able to get up close to your guests and catch them all having a great time on the dancefloor from afar. This works well with a Go-Pro.

    5. SATTELITE BAR

    Want to impress your guests? Get a portable and automatic cocktail machine to serve a signature cocktail at your wedding. The robotic machine can be programmed to make a specific drink, and then serve it to your guests. This will be in addition to your cash-bar for other drinks.

    Picture: Unsplash

    Waiting a long time to get married can feel almost criminal. Clearly, one woman took this quite seriously and allegedly decided to take her man to court for failing to take the next step and get married after eight years together.

    According to Kenyan news site Tuko, a Zambian woman named Gertrude Ngoma (26) grew tired of waiting for her longterm boyfriend and father of her child, Herbert Salaliki (28), to say ‘I do’. Despite a dowry being paid, the pair have never lived together and no wedding is on the horizon.

    She took matters into her own hands and took him to court for wasting her time. During the court case, Ngoma alleged that Salalili had promised to marry her but never followed up. In fact, she had caught him texting another woman.

    “He has never been serious, that is why I [brought] him to court, because I deserve to know the way forward and our future,” Ngoma told a Zambian court.

    According to Salaliki, he cannot financially afford a wedding and that is why he has not proposed. He also added that Ngoma does not give him sufficient attention in their relationship.

    Zambian news site Mwebantu reports that the judge, Evelyn Nalwize, said she cannot do anything as there is no formal marriage. However, she advised Ngoma to sue for breach of marriage contract.

    Picture: Pexels

    Trial and error is the key to success and, in this case, a guarantee you’ll look and feel your best on your big day.

    If you plan on hiring a make up artist to do up your face, it is imperative that you do your research. It’s not as simple as booking and enjoying the experience. Here are a few things you need to do to prepare for your make up trial.

    1. BOOK NOW!

    To avoid disappointment, book your dream make-up artist and hairstylist as soon as you know the date of your wedding. This is especially important if your wedding is taking place in the summer months or another busy time of the year.

    Ideally, you should go for a trial one to three months before the big day, depending on how soon you finalise your dress and veil, as these will determine the look and feel of your make-up and hair. If you don’t like the look, this gives you enough time to tweak it before your wedding.

    2. GET INSPIRED

    Spend some time browsing through Pinterest, Instagram and Wedding ETC (of course) to find references for hairstyles and make-up looks you adore and would like to recreate. Bring these with you to your trial and discuss them with the professional. Photos of your dress and veil will also come in handy.

    While having an idea of what you like is important, keep an open mind to your expert’s suggestions too, as they may see your face and hair in a way you haven’t before. When in doubt, go for a more polished version of your signature look instead of trying something completely out of your comfort zone.

    3. PUT IN THE GROUNDWORK

    Prepare for the trial the same way you would for your big day: This means applying self-tan to your face, neck, chest and arms if you’ll be wearing it; having your eyebrows shaped by a professional, and removing any unwanted facial hair beforehand.

    The same goes for your hair: Make sure it’s freshly washed, cut and coloured the way you want it to look on your wedding day. Cut the neckline of a cheap white T-shirt to match your wedding gown and wear it on the day of the trial for a more realistic representation of the look.

    4. STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF

    Having a large, loud gaggle of girls with you at your trial is a big no-no – they’ll only end up confusing you. If you don’t want to go alone, ask a close friend or family member whose opinion you trust – not your overbearing mother. At the end of the day, your happiness comes first and you need to love how you look on your wedding day, so speak up if you have any concerns.

    5. DISCUSS THE DETAILS

    The trial is the perfect time to find out everything you need to know for a well-run wedding. Ask the stylist to go through their game plan for the day, including what time they need to start and how many assistants they’ll be bringing and if they will be styling the rest of your bridal party. Ensure you’re aware of all the costs to avoid nasty surprises. Take note of any products you need to buy for touch-ups on the day. You’ll definitely want to have the same shade of lipstick in your clutch.

    6. PLAN A TEST RUN

    Once the trial is complete, it’s time for some fun. Grab your girlfriends and take them out for a night on the town. Eat, drink and dance to see how well your make-up and ’do last. Comfort is imperative on your wedding day, so it’s a good idea to wear the look for a while to see how it feels.

    Take note of anything you aren’t satisfied with and report back to your expert. Ask a friend to take a few pictures of you, both in natural light and with a flash, from different angles to see how your look will appear in photographs.

    Picture: Pexels

    Traditional bridal shower games can be quite overdone. We’ve put together our top 4 bridal shower ideas that will be super helpful for the bride-to-be and also something that she can cherish for a lifetime.

    1. DATE-NIGHT JAR

    Get a friend to hand out a strip of paper to each guest when they arrive. Ask each guest to write about the best date night they’ve ever had, or a date night idea on the paper. Each guest can drop their idea into a large mason jar and the married couple can pick one out whenever they want to plan a special evening.

    2. RECIPE BOX

    When you’re sending out the bridal shower invites, attach a blank card to it, for guests to write their favourite family recipe. To avoid duplicate recipes, give each guest a category (snacks, appetizers, mains and desserts). Each guest will bring their recipe card to the shower to compile them all in a cute box. Present it to the bride as a gift.

    3. ADVICE/FAVOURITE MOMENT BOOK

    Moms and grans will really appreciate this one. Get a scrapbook and ask all of the married women in the family to fill one page of the book with their best marriage advice for the bride;  their favourite memory with the bride and groom and their wishes for the bridal couple. Don’t forget to reach out to the groom’s family as well!

    4. ANNIVERSARY BOX

    You’ll need envelopes and blank cards for this one. Number an envelope for each guest attending the shower. Each guest’s number will represent an anniversary. Ask them to write a happy anniversary note on their card for the bride and groom. Pop them all in a box and let the bride know that they can only open each envelope when they reach the anniversary number on the envelopes!

    Image: Unsplash

    An unidentified woman in the US is working hard to sell a vintage wedding dress she found in an abandoned old gold rush town while hiking.

    Since returning home with the dress, she claims strange things have been happening to her. The bride is now trying to sell her dress on Facebook Market place for $600 (about R8 900).

    In the Facebook advert for her dress, the bride explains that the minute she returned home with the dress, everything changed.

    “While my fiancé and I were hiking through a small town between Fairfax and Carbanado, Washington, we came across an old gold rush town that was completely abandoned,” she wrote. “Needless to say our curiosity got the best of us and we started to explore the ruins of this ghost town. In one of the rundown remnants of a small cottage we shimmied up into, I came across this dress.

    “It was so gorgeous, I froze at the sight of it. And if I’m being completely honest, it scared the crap out of me all at the same time, but something about its ethereal beauty just begged me to bring it home with me.”

    “First small things like a sock, and my closet door being open in the morning when I specifically remember closing it before bed. Then my cat’s food tray would get thrown at such velocity it would knock things off of the shelf hung on the wall it strikes. This happened relentlessly.”

    Doors would slam, lights would turn on and off, and the couple heard footsteps all over their apartment. If that wasn’t bad enough, their home also began to smell.

    “And then came the smell of rotten eggs and fire that would fill our bedroom. Night after night. Then flies started to pile up against my back windows and swarm around my front door.”

    Life began to calm down after the woman gave the dress to her future mother-in-law for cleaning and tailoring.

    “During the two months that she had the dress it was complete peace, no more tension in the room, no more arguing between me and my partner, no more objects moving or footsteps and my cat was back to her affectionate playful self,” she said.

    “She never got it dry-cleaned and begged me not to get married in this dress because of the energy surrounding it and I hadn’t even told her about what was going on at home because up until that point, I hadn’t even connected the two.”

    The bride is now keen to find a new owner for the cursed dress. However, her Facebook post did not get the reaction she was expecting. Many accused her of stealing the dress, and said she deserved to be haunted for taking something that did not belong to her.

    Others said instead of selling and making a profit off of it, she should return the dress wear she found it to hopefully break the curse.

    Picture: Unsplash

    Power-couple Connie and Shona Ferguson recently celebrated a whopping 19 years of marriage. The actors, who run production company Ferguson Films together, have had a beautiful romance over the nearly two decades of their relationship and are always keen to share it with their fans.
    Naturally, the social media-loving couple took to Instagram to express their love for one another on their special day.
    “I have no idea what you were saying here, but the fact that 19 years later you still manage to make me laugh is everything I’ve prayed for and more! Happy Anniversary my skeem!????? I love you more each day, and thank God for you!” Connie wrote on Instagram.

     

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    A post shared by Connie Ferguson (@connie_ferguson)

    “We are 19. Happy anniversary my love. This life journey is super easy with you by my side. There is nothing we can’t take on together. I love you melaiti,” Shona wrote.

     

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    A post shared by SHONA FERGUSON (@ferguson_films)

    Shona, real name Aaron, met Connie at her Johannesburg home in 2001. At the time, she was already a household name thanks to her iconic role as Karabo Moroka in Generations. Shona was there to drop off mutual friends meeting Connie’s sister Lorato. As he sipped on a glass of water, Connie came out out of her room to greet him and their love story began.

    It was a whirlwind romance for the pair. After only two months of dating, they tied the knot in a traditional wedding. Their white wedding was held soon after and appeared on the December 2001 cover of Drum.

     

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    A post shared by Connie Ferguson (@connie_ferguson)

    In 2011, the pair renewed their vows in a lavish ceremony in front of 70 guests at top Johannesburg wedding destination Avianto.

    For the big day, Connie wore an ivory sheath gown designed by Biji, who also designed her first wedding dress back in 2001. The gown’s corset-style top featured Swarovski crystals, pearls, silver beads and lace.

     

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    A post shared by Connie Ferguson (@connie_ferguson)

    Throughout their marriage, the pair have built an empire that has brought much luxury to their lives. Aside from their production company, Connie also owns a beauty line called Koni Multinational Brands. She is also among the highest-paid actors in the country.

    Picture: Instagram / Connie Ferguson

    Saint Lucia has been named as the top honeymoon destination for the 12th time by the World Travel Awards. This is also the third consecutive win for the island nation.

    It beat out other loved destinations like Jamaica, the Maldives, Mauritius, Paris, Miami Beach, Oman, Maui in Hawaii and Cartegena de Indias in Colombia.

    While virtually accepting the award, Minister Honourable Dominic Fedee said: “Saint Lucia’s internationally acclaimed status is what we strive for daily in our strategic marketing and promotion efforts.

    “The destination undoubtedly boasts of true passion in all key niches and amongst its hidden gems. It is indeed an honour for Saint Lucia to be named once again as the World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination, a sincere reflection of our culture and the people who propel the industry.”

    It seems this destination is quite popular. In addition to its winning category, Saint Lucia was also nominated as the World’s Leading Island Destination, World’s Leading Wedding Destination and World’s Most Romantic Destination 2020.

    Saint Lucia is a sovereign island country in the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It is especially popular for its lush rainforests, towering mountains, secluded coves and vibrant local communities. It is an adventure-lovers dream destination.
    Picture: Instagram / Travel Saint Lucia

    If you’re newly engaged, you may be so in love with your ring that you never want to take it off. While fully understandable, an engagement ring is not a typical piece of jewellery.

    While an engagement ring is designed to be durable, certain activities can cause it to lose its lustre over time. There are obvious moments in time you shouldn’t wear your engagement ring, like while exercising or doing the dishes or any other type of cleaning that involves detergents. But what about when you rest your head at night?

    Sleeping is the least active thing you could do, and for some wearing an engagement ring while closing their eyes won’t cause too much of an issue. Experts are divided on whether it helps or harms.

    Some experts argue that an engagement ring is a fine piece of jewellery, and should thus be treated as such and not be worn during activities that could affect it. Others, however, believe sleeping in your engagement ring is a smart way to ensure you don’t lose your jewellery because where else would it be but your finger?

    However, there is an argument to be made for rough sleepers. Beyond it being precious, your ring can easily get caught in things like your hair or on your sheets if you’re a particularly wild sleeper. This can create friction and may cause the stone to loosen in the setting. If your stone is lower on the Mohs scale of hardness and thus more fragile, sleeping in it could make it more prone to damage.

    The best thing to do is to have a dedicated place on your nightstand where you leave your jewellery. Before you go to bed, just pop the ring off and it will be safe for the night. This will also guarantee that you won’t lose or misplace your jewellery.

    Picture: Pexels

    For centuries, it has been an enduring wedding tradition that a father walks his daughter down the aisle on her big day. As the first moment guests (and the bride’s partner) sees the bride, this is a pretty big deal.

    While usually a sweet and sentimental moment, it comes from less than heartwarming origins. According to wedding historian Susan Waggoner, this tradition comes from the days when arranged marriage was a normal custom in society.

    Speaking to Brides, she explains: “this custom stems from the days of arranged marriages when a father’s looming presence was a good way to prevent the groom from backing out.”

    In many societies, a bride was considered a form of financial liability who could be transferred from her father’s household to her eventual husband’s home.

    With marriage being more of an economic choice than a romantic one, some grooms got spooked at the thought of getting hitched. This is where dads came in. Fathers would act as a physical reminder (and threat) of the deal, making grooms more likely to go through with the wedding.

    Over the years, as with virtually every other wedding tradition, the origins of this custom has become sanitised and romanticised. Today, its a special moment for brides to walk arm in arm with their father on such a special occasion.

    As the times have changed, however, so has the tradition. Some brides don’t have fathers and have alternative family members walk them down the aisle. Some share strained relationships with their dads, and choose to not partake in this tradition at all. In the case of some same-sex couples, it might be a groom walking down the aisle instead of a bride.

    The beauty of weddings nowadays is that couples have choices. Some traditions, while sentimental for some, are outdated or hurtful to others. There is no one way to get married. Traditions are not required, and rules don’t always have to be followed.

    Picture: Pexels

    Veils are not made equal. From fabric and length to fullness and style, every aspect of your wedding veil can make or break your bridal look.

    With thousands of veils to choose from, it can easily feel like an overwhelming task. However, there are ways to refine your search. These are the key veil lengths and the looks they suit best:

    The birdcage:

    For a vintage flair, opt for the birdcage veil. This short veil often features stiff netting or mesh that covers just the forehead and top half of the face. They are usually fastened to pillbox hats or headbands.

    This veil looks best for brides wanting a more vintage, throwback look. It pairs especially well with tea-length dresses.

     

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    A post shared by Rynah by Rynah (@rynahbyrynah)

    Fingertip length veil:

    For a more classic look, the fingertip length veil is perfect. This mid-length veil stops below the waist and is flattering on every body shape. Not too long and not too short, this veil can be dressed up or down depending on how fancy you want your look to be.

    This is truly the jack of all veils. It flatters a range of hairstyles and dresses, so you have endless options with this look. If your dress is quite embellished and dramatic, it may be best to pair it down with a more simple veil. However, a more simple silhouette can be given added drama with a full veil.

    Ballet length veil:

    One of the most popular veil looks is the ballet length. Also known as the waltz veil, it falls below your hips, anywhere between your knees and ankles.

    This look is extra feminine and romantic, and works especially well on petite brides as it won’t drown her out with fabric and make her appear smaller.

    Chapel length veil:

    Most brides traditionally opt for the chapel length veil, which drapes all the way to the floor and spreads out a few inches behind their wedding dress.

    This style is more formal and traditional, making it perfect for brides wanting a classic look.

    Cathedral length veil:

    This style is essentially the extended chapel veil. It’s usually about 30-60cm longer than a wedding dress, and often requires assistance when laying it out neatly behind you.

    Brides wanting a bit more drama but not too much fuss will love this look. It complements ballgowns especially well, adding a special fairytale spin.

     

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    A post shared by Desiree neel (@desireedoesbeauty)

    The Royal veil:

    It’s clear to see how this veil got its name. Channel the drama of Princess Diana with a bold wedding veil that extends not only centimetres but meters behind your dress. Of course, you’ll need some assistants on hand to make sure it looks perfectly sleek and straight, and that no one trips on it.

    Naturally, this veil is perfectly designed to complement a dramatic ballgown.

     

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    A post shared by ALIX LB (@alix_lb.paris)

    Picture: Pexels