My favourite brides of all time...

When I was thinking about what I wanted my wedding dress to look like, some iconic brides immediately sprang to mind. I've been inspired by these images at various stages in my life, and I like to think a little of each of them found its way into my eventual wedding dress... From Audrey dancing, feather-light in a gossamer gown on the banks of a stream with Fred Astaire in Funny Face, to Cinderella's pink satin ballgown and Gwen Stefani's rose-stained skirts, these are the dresses that set me dreaming. Dita Von Teese, sailing down stais in regal purple Westwood, as serene and unstoppable as a ship, and Jordan/Katie Price, indulging her inner Barbie as never before (and why not?) in a candyflos frock, with her very own Ken doll by her side.

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to the DIY Bride's Guide blog, which I have created to support my book of the same name. I blogged about the build up to my wedding on bridesmagazine.co.uk, sharing the trials and tribulations of my attempts to create a truly unique wedding while saving as much money as possible. Blogging was so much fun, I decided to write a book too! I love weddings - on TV, in movies and of course, those of my friends and family, and I never ever get bored of hearing about people's plans for their nuptials!

I'm hoping this blog will serve as a meeting space for bored, frustrated, stressed brides (and grooms)-to-be to come and vent, ask for advice and swap and share tips for smoothing the path to marital bliss. If you have a question, please post it and hopefully someone in the frighteningly vast bridal blogging community will be able to help!