Paper Runway magazine

Have you discovered the delightful Paper Runway magazine yet? Produced right here in Australia, this lovely quarterly publication dedicated to all things paper - paper goods, paper craft and paper love. Available in print and online (read here), the magazine is chock-full of gorgeousness. What about this tagline - where passion meets paper. Can you stand it?

The second issue has just been released and is dedicated to weddings. Titled "Ever After", this special edition is online-only and happens to feature a little article by moi! Click through to pages 98-99 to read all about "10 Must-Haves For The Perfect Wedding Day". I was a little cheeky - you know these kind of articles can be dull. Let me know if you get a chance to check it out.

Images: Paper Runway

Craft: Make your own Soy Candles Tutorial

Happy Earth Day! To celebrate all things green and good for you, I'd like to share with you this excellent DIY tutorial to make your own soy candles from talented textile designer Danielle Stewart. Perfect for parties, weddings events, or just for around the home.

Danielle's wedding featured on Wedding Ideas Australia (my other home) and incorporated some fantastic handmade elements. She has graciously shared her step-by-step instructions and photos for making eco-friendly soy candles here.

Get green and get crafty!

Images: Top: Nina Otranto; Middle and Bottom: Danielle Stewart

Danielle Stewart's Handmade Wedding

I totally love this wedding cake. And I get to see a lot of beautiful cakes! This cake is from the wedding of talented textile designer Danielle Stewart (Danielle Stewart Design, formally Danielle Smeets/Of Paper And Thread). Danielle's Mum made the cake, Danielle decorated it with gorgeous ribbons and the darling cake topper was made by Ashley Anna Brown.

Danielle totally embraced the handmade ethic throughout her wedding including gorgeous paper garland hearts from Little Jane St, invitations from Poppies For Grace, and divine linen tea towels hand screen-printed with her own design that she made for guests.

For more images of Danielle's wedding, including an interview and wedding tutorials for paper cones and tissue paper poms, check out Wedding Ideas Australia.

Image: Nina Otranto

Cool Websites: Wedding Ideas Australia

I am so proud to introduce you to my latest online project, Wedding Ideas Australia ... a searchable collection of real Australian weddings categorised by location, colour, theme and style.

There are lots of inspiring weddings featured on the site, from elegant affairs to very casual garden weddings. Brides/grooms share with you the places that they sourced all their wedding details from, as well as tips for keeping it budget-friendly, eco-friendly, and handmade.

I hope to be able to show that you don't have to spend a fortune or conform to a particular style, to have a beautiful wedding. And I encourage you to send me your wedding pics (and those of your friends too!) to share on the site.

Please pass the site on to your engaged friends, or just have a look through for some beautiful colour palettes and interesting craft ideas. Let me know what you think!

Also, a huge thanks to Kim at Udessi for the gorgeous design and Harris for his energy and skill on the programming side and tireless support. Enjoy! www.weddingideasaustralia.com.au

Trends: Tissue Paper Flowers

Ava's bedroom from My NY Life.

Blue tissue paper flower pom pom instructions from Martha Stewart Crafts.

Harper's First Birthday party from Likely Design.

Charles and Nadia's wedding from OnceWed.

From Kiss The Groom.

Wedding table from Martha Stewart Weddings.

Back in the day, we all loved fairy lights for special events (weddings, kids parties, engagements, baby showers, birthdays etc). Then it was cool to use Chinese paper lanterns (still is!). Now bunting is huge. But could dahlia-like tissue paper flowers be overtaking as a decorating trend?

Great minds think alike, and in my web travels this week I noticed these gorgeous paper tissue flowers on quite a few of my favourite sites. I just did a quick search for them, and it looks like they have been gaining popularity for the last 12 months (perhaps not coincidentally after they were featured in Martha Stewart Weddings magazine).

According to Pink Paper Peppermints, these flowers are a traditional Mexican art form. You can find a feature on Martha Stewart Weddings and downloadable PDF instructions on Martha Stewart Crafts to make your own tissue paper pom-poms (and you could previously buy a tissue paper flower kit through the Martha Stewart Craft store). The tissue paper pomanders at this wedding ceremony are a very cost-effective and beautiful alternative to flowers. And Australian textile designer Danielle Stewart's wedding features gorgeous hanging poms. There is even the PomLove Etsy store dedicated to selling tissue paper flower kits.

I just love the look of these flowers and the upside is huge: you can pick exactly the colour you want, they never die, they don't need water, and you can make them yourself! I think I'm going to have to retire my paper lanterns and make some for Sophie's 2nd birthday next week. Have you made them yet?

Cool Websites: Mishy Lane

I was really excited to discover Brisbane photographer, designer and blogger Mishy Lane through Decor8 today.

Mishy's blog takes you through her daily inspirations as well as a sneak peek of gorgeous photo shoots and updates on new logo designs (that you can comment on to provide feedback!). You'll also find some of Mishy's loves, including art, craft, interior design and jewellery. And plenty of Bris Town snippets thrown in there as well.

Check out the Mishy Lane online portfolio for great graphic design, logos, branding and photography. Mishy also specialises in customised invitations and stationary that I can't wait to see. And Mishy has even made it really easy to order a custom logo and banner through the Mishy Lane Etsy store (so clever).

Check out more cool Australian Bloggers featured on Bondville.

Image: Mishy Lane