The handbag-sized wedding guide, Wedding Inspirations, has become popular amongst brides-to-be and now promises even bigger and better things for 2010. This evolution has been prompted by the new Editorial Director, Jacquie Myburgh, who has an impressive background in media (including a weekly fashion column in The Times and being Editor-in-Chief for ELLE South Africa).

Several changes are in store. First, Wedding Inspirations will now be available in retail outlets at a cost, rather than being distributed free of charge. Second, it will be release on a quarterly basis, as opposed to its previous distribution of twice a year. Third, the editorial content will zoom in on the planning and perfecting of a personalised wedding day, with more tips and resources to suit the needs of each individual bridal couple. Content matter will include dresses, rings, venues, flowers, photography, lingerie, honeymoon destinations and make-up tips, amongst many more.

This means that Wedding Inspirations will embrace its role as the “handbag bridesmaid”, providing relevant and valuable resources to more brides more often.

M Couture is renowned for its exquisite bridal gowns, specifically tailored to show off the feminine curves of every bride. Full-figured brides should not have to compromise on their dream day or dress and M Couture assures brides of all shapes and sizes that there is a stunning creation to suit them.

M Couture is situated in Constantia, Cape Town. However, in order to expand our reach to brides from all over South Africa, we are very excited to announce that our new branch has been opened at the Hertford Country Hotel in Lanseria, Gauteng.

M Couture will be at the esteemed Oakfield Farm Bridal Show on the 23rd and 24th of January 2010. Exposing hundreds of wedding suppliers, this expo is designed to create a one-stop-shop for brides- and grooms-to-be; promising novel ideas, special offers and exclusive products and services. Be sure to visit the M Couture stall (Stand S2) in the Summer House area.

For more information, see

• M Couture
• Gauteng Bridal Expo

Or contact M Couture at:

• Cape Town tel / fax: 021 715 1223
• Gauteng mobile: 083 566 4095

2 Inspire U Media, publishers of luxury niche publications including My Wedding Day and @leisure, are proud to announce the launch of their elegant new A4-sized hi-gloss wedding annual, Your Wedding Day.

Says Elna Coetzer, Editor of both magazines: “We have had an overwhelmingly positive response to our glossy, handbag-sized magazine My Wedding Day in a short period of time, including winning a Silver Award from SABIA. Our decision to feature the real weddings of real people has proved to be incredibly popular at all levels – so much so that we decided to bring out this real bridal annual. It is filled with 20 real weddings, amazing décor ideas and lots of useful bridal news and snippets and articles provided by key players in the wedding industry.

Elna has pioneered coverage of real weddings in both My Wedding Day and Your Wedding Day. “We cover more real weddings that any other magazine and very proud to say that we started this worldwide trend in South Africa. People planning their weddings don’t want to look at unreachable and unrealistic fairytales but at real, achievable inspiration, which we provide.”

Your Wedding Day will go on sale from the first week February 2010 at leading news agencies and sells for R59-95.

Contact: Elna Coetzer at elna@2inspireu.co.za for more information.

For those of you who like to watch the I WANNA BE series on MNET on Sunday evenings, may have noticed that last night, the episode featured a couple getting married. We were very excited to catch a glimpse of the show and see how service partners that are feature on Celebration.co.za were used / featured for the couple’s big day!

We thought we would just congratulate the service partners who were mentioned on the show and tell them congratulations on a job well done! To Cakebread and to De Klerk Productions – well done!!

To the couple featured on the show, from the Celebration.co.za Team, we wish you a wonderful life together filled with wonderful memories!

The Aleit Group has recently released a new article that covers wedding trends for 2009. We have added the article for you to check out if you are looking for ideas for your upcoming wedding.

Ideas covered in the Wedding Trends article include confetti, umbrellas, boule, pampering time and more.

More Information:

• Aleit Wedding Coordination

Thanks to all our Celebration Facebook Fans for taking part in our last Wedding poll i.e. What season are you getting married in? The majority of the results show that Summer is the most popular season to tie the knot! Well, we have a new poll running at the moment – your wedding budget – how much are you planning to spend on your big day. We will post the results the end of August, so make sure to cast your vote!

Please visit Celebration’s Facebook page to take part in our latest poll!

Celebration.co.za recently joined Facebook! We have a fan page which we will keep updated with the latest bridal events and expo’s as well as any exciting wedding industry news. If you become a fan of Celebration’s fan page, you can also participate in fun online polls, chat with other brides about your special day, post photos and join our discussion board. Be sure to invite your friends and family members who are planning their big day! The fan page is still in its developing stage, but we will ensure to keep you updated with any new developments and news.

Join our Celebration Fan page here:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Celebrationcoza/7165913291

Carte Blanche recently did an insert on a wedding photographer that has received numerous complaints from clients. This episode caused quite an uproar amongst wedding photographers as well as bridal couples.

Clients were complaining about the quality of the photographer’s photos, the fact that this photographer was late for weddings or in some cases didn’t even show up. Instead, this particular wedding photographer sent another photographer and videographer in their place! Other couples told stories of  the wedding photographer in question, dissapearing with their deposit money or how they have several cellphone numbers that keep changing.

This episode highlighted yet again the importance of choosing the right wedding suppliers. It is crucial that bridal couples familiarise themselves with wedding suppliers’ portfolios and to check their references before they start planning their big day. Wedding suppliers, whether it’s your caterer, your DJ or your wedding photographer, play a vital role in the success of your wedding day. The last thing brides need on their special day is stress, caused by incompetent and unreliable wedding suppliers.

For advice and helpful hints on how to choose the right wedding suppliers for you special day, please refer to the following article:
http://www.celebration.co.za/wedding-articles/articles/96/1/How-to-choose-the-right-wedding-suppliers/Page1.html

The full Carte Blanche interview can be read here:
http://www.mnet.co.za/Mnet/Shows/carteblanche/Story.asp?Id=3703

More information:

• Choosing your DJ
• Choosing a Caterer
• Who should make your wedding cake
• Choosing a Videographer
• How to choose your Wedding Photographer

A new South African wedding movie has recently been launched and is available now for bookings via Ster Kinekor, Nu Metro and Computicket websites. The movie offers viewers offers a fun and romantic story – perfect for those looking to tie the knot in the near future and who knows – get ideas or inspiration or just have a good laugh to clear the mind… Write up on the movie below.

PHENOMENAL OPENING WEEKEND BOX OFFICE FOR
“WHITE WEDDING.”

WHITE WEDDING, the locally produced road-movie-rom-com banked its first R1million on opening weekend.

The film grossed over R1.1 million at the Box Office this past weekend when it released on circuit in South-Africa. These results are in line with the opening weekend performance of the smash hit SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE ’s  gross earnings on its opening weekend in March this year. WHITE WEDDING has garnered 48 000 attendances since its release on Wednesday 29 April, and outperformed X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE at sites like Ster-Kinekor Maponya Mall, Sterland, Savannah Mall, Southgate and The Wheel amongst others.

‘We’ve watched every kind of local audience watching our movie, and what every screening has had in common are the smiles on people’s faces when they leave the theatre. I am elated with the way SA audiences have received the film.’ said director Jann Turner in response to the unprecedented performance of the film to date.
Writer-producer-actor, Kenneth Nkosi concurs: ‘South Africans are sending us a message, they want to see themselves and laugh at themselves on the big screen.’

WHITE WEDDING sold three times more tickets than the hit gangster movie JERUSALEMA did on its opening weekend, and twice as many tickets as Academy Award Winner TSOTSI did at the time of its release.  WHITE WEDDING’s opening weekend gross is comparable to the Martin Lawrence in COLLEGE ROAD TRIP. The film also sold 3% more tickets than Tyler Perry’s WHY DID I GET MARRIED sold on opening weekend.

Says Helen Kuun of Ster-Kinekor Distribution: ‘Both Kenneth and Rapulana have starred or featured in many successful local feature films in recent years (Max and Mona, Hijack Stories, Jerusalema, Tsotsi) and subsequently have built up a big-screen fanbase. WHITE WEDDING’s results illustrates that local star-power can bring people to cinemas in equal numbers to those that US star-driven films do.’

WHITE WEDDING stars Kenneth Nkosi and Rapulana Seiphemo who also co-wrote an co-produced the film with director Jann Turner. The film was released by Ster-Kinekor Distribution and is playing in cinemas nationwide.

More Information:

• Wedding Movies
• White Wedding’s Official Site

It’s that time of year again when we start looking into what is happening next year when it comes to bridal fairs, wedding events and wedding expos. So, we’ve done some investigation and have put together the list of South Africa Wedding expos that are taking place in 2009. There are a few that we are still waiting for dates and costing for, so make sure to keep an eye on the upcoming expos regularly.

If you are a bride to be or a groom to be, check out our wedding expos area if you are keen to meet up with potential wedding service providers or want to get some great wedding ideas for your special day.

More Information

• South Africa Wedding Expos
• Wedding Expos (an article of interest for those wondering if an expo is worthwhile visiting)