A peek into my little world of calligraphy!

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These last few weeks have been crazy! May the 4th is a HUGE day for weddings this year – the force is most definitely with all of you lovely people getting hitched this bank holiday weekend!

I’ve been a busy little bee with lots of calligraphy work in my little home studio, so I thought I’d share a little with you today. And if any of you would like to book my services for your weddings later in the year I’d LOVE to hear from you!

My week began with Vikki’s gorgeous place names from Papier – they’re called Mother Amazon and they’re beautiful!

My biggest and favourite project was these gorgeous handmade place names and escort cards, for lovely Emma from Tebbey & Co. They’re from Torn Edge Paper on Etsy and written by hand in a cornflower blue ink I mixed in my studio. (I’ll be teaching the simple art of making calligraphy ink in my intermediate calligraphy workshop in Manchester in August – info and tickets here.) See more...

An alternative to mass production… the best thing about the wedding industry

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Modern blue styling ideas with calligraphy for an alternative beach wedding (46)

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I’m not sure I can think of any UK industry where almost every business is an individual or tiny team. As you plan your wedding, you’re bound to encounter the loveliest independent business people – and I really do love this about the wedding industry. You may remember I wrote a feature for bridal accessories designer Clare Lloyd a few weeks back: this article is inspired by something Clare said.

I believe that it is so important to keep artisan and traditional hand crafting skills alive and every single piece is designed and immaculately made with love and attention to the tiniest little detail. ~ Clare Lloyd

We spend our lives buying stuff: our everyday clothes, food, home decor etc. all come from huge corporations. Hats off to you if you frequent a little veg shop or buy second hand – but in the main our spendybuttons go to high street stores with massive, faceless teams of people in ‘operations’ and shareholders raking in the profits.

Urgh. See more...

Romantic and floral wedding style ideas from Garthmyl Hall

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All the summer florals for a romantic summer wedding, image credit Rebecca Goddard Photography (28)

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I still love styled shoots – they’re fabulous for first glimpses of inspiration and ideas which will gradually make their way into real couples’ weddings on blogs and in magazines. I publish plenty: I send my calligraphy out to a select few. But when Krysta (For the Love of Weddings) asks for stationery or calligraphy I know the shoot will be insanely beautiful, and I jump at the chance to take part!

Working with my beautiful friend Amy Swann makes the process even more enjoyable. Since 2017 we’ve been making wedding invitations for luxury and intimate weddings all over the world. Amy’s illustrations are the perfect accompaniment to romantic, organic calligraphy lettering, and a creative brief from a client like Krysta is so exciting to work with!

Today’s shoot happened at Garthmyl Hall and was beautifully captured by Rebecca Goddard Photography. Planning and styling was by For the Love of Weddings with concept & design by Style & Bloom. The flowers take centre stage – Pheasant Botanica‘s work is always stunning! Our model wears bridal wear by Sienna Von Hildemar with jewellery by Glitzy Secrets. Hair was styled by Tabitha with makeup by Victoria Jones. See more...

Tuscany inspired wedding style, with Sonya Lalla Photography

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Tuscany Italian wedding ideas styling tips with Sonya Lalla Photography on English-Wedding.com (4)

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This dreamy editorial captures hazy Italian days in the most beautiful way. Imagine it’s summertime and you’re miles away from anywhere in the Italian countryside, with a villa of your own for the week of your wedding day – and everything is simply perfect. I adore the lush bouquet by Shining Flowers, the dreamy tablescape by Elisabetta Carraretto and the wonderfully floaty gown by the fabulous Jurgita Bridal.

It’s all captured beautifully by Sonya Lalla Photography, a Tuscany, Florence and Rome destination elopement photographer. Sonya is known for her romantic and delicate photographic style, and got in touch with me a little while ago to ask for some calligraphy pieces for this shoot.

Knowing Sonya’s stunning photographic style, I was delighted to oblige! I created a relaxed invitation suite for an Italian destination wedding, featuring a simple olive branch illustration and watercolour image of the duomo in Florence. The ink I used was handmade, in a soft olive grey, and written on torn edge watercolour paper. I love these images to bits, and they fit so beautifully with the overall styling of the shoot. See more...

Personal post – from Askham Hall wedding showcase

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calligraphy table number sign for Askham Hall from By Moon and Tide

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I’m writing this as I sit behind my little stand at Askham Hall on Sunday – where I’m an exhibit! (with my By Moon & Tide Calligraphy hat on.) This is the one ‘local’ venue I’ve been desperate to explore for years, and never quite made it until today… and it’s beautiful.

I’m here with all of my calligraphy, signage and stationery goodies, all set up for the day. The vibe is magical, the venue is bursting with relaxed and pretty barn wedding charm, and the other exhibitors (‘exhibit’ is just how I feel!) are super lovely humans who’ve made me feel at home.

Here’s a little peek at the wedding invitations and other handwritten / calligraphy-inspired treats on my stand – and the showstopper backdrop I’m so proud of on that stunning copper frame from Tebbey & Co. Emma styled all the dining tables in the barn and main house, and they looked breathtaking – flowers from Sally at Roseberry (it’s Sally you can see in the photo above!) and my little bits of stationery and calligraphy completed the look. See more...

Beautiful spring florals for a luxe and feminine wedding, with Jo Bradbury Photography

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I’ve been so very lucky with the collaborations I’ve been asked to be a part of over the last couple of years. Working with talented people like Amy Swann and Jo Bradbury is an absolute dream – between them they transform my calligraphy by surrounding it with beauty. The florals in this blog post are out of this world – Fletcher & Foley we LOVE you!! I will forever be grateful to everyone I’ve had the pleasure to work with – and I hope there’ll be many more collaborations in the pipelines for the future. My calligraphy pens are ready!

This beautiful editorial was first featured in Unveiled magazine in 2018.

Winter is coming… a Christmas treat!

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calligraphy classes for beginners from Claire Gould at By Moon and Tide, photo credit Zehra Jagani (6)

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Hey lovelies! If you’re in Manchester this Friday come and join me…

We’re getting our glitter ON this Friday in Manchester – with only 3 days to go until my Festive Modern Calligraphy Workshop the last few tickets are just £55!

This promises to be a lovely, relaxing and fun calligraphy workshop and I’m really looking forward to it! Calligraphy kits for everyone will include some special goodies we’ve never used before – and I’ll show you how to make your very own calligraphy Christmas tree (it’s easier than it looks, I promise!)

You get to take home your calligraphy pen and nib, all the worksheets from the class, and some festive goodies… bauble gift tags, personalised cloche baubles which you will MAKE, and your very own, very special Christmas card!

Come and join us – last-minute tickets do tend to sell quickly and we have just four left!!

Calligraphy workshop tickets & info here

Photos by lovely Zehra Jagani (starring Rima!)

A sweet little freebie for all DIY brides and grooms!

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How many of you lovely lot are planning to make your own wedding stationery? Quite a few, I guess – but knowing where to start can be pretty overwhelming!

The secret to stunning, modern wedding stationery that doesn’t look dated and – well, a bit ‘meh’ – is to keep the details super personal, unfussy and uncluttered. Wedding invites in 2019 will be minimal, beautiful and with a real personal touch… and learning just a little modern calligraphy can set you right on the path to creating fabulous stationery your guests will LOVE!

Here’s the thing. As well as wedding blogging I do a little calligraphy. I teach classes around the north west (and I’m planning a bit of a jaunt around the UK next summer so holler if you know a venue and would like me to come and teach near you!) – and I design wedding stationery. This year I’ve even launched my very first Wedding Calligraphy Workshop (places available here – it’s in Manchester in April)! See more...

Wedding calligraphy workshop – brides, grooms, best girls – come and learn with me!

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wedding calligraphy workshop uk claire gould

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Hey lovelies! I have something special for all of you crafty brides and grooms – I’ve launched a nice chunky handful of NEW modern calligraphy workshops for 2019, and one of them will be ESPECIALLY for wedding calligraphy. This is the first workshop of its kind in the UK (or anywhere, as far as I know!) and will focus on helping you create beautifully lettered items for your wedding.

If you’re tying the knot in 2019, have crafty tendencies and love lettering, then this is going to be the perfect workshop for you! Why not bring along your bridesmaids, or your mum or your other half – and I’ll introduce you to beautiful modern calligraphy so you can design gorgeous goodies for your wedding day!

We’ll learn how to write a simple calligraphy alphabet and chat about wedding styling ideas with your beautiful lettering skills! See more...

On the day we’ll write –

Alphabet sample sheets
Place cards for you and your other half!
A personal wedding monogram (with my help!)

Heirloom and heritage wedding style inspiration – grace and beauty from Doxford Hall

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Jane Austen wedding style inspiration from Oxford Hall, with Katy Melling Photography (27)

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Two words I’ve been hearing quite often as we approach 2019 are ‘heirloom’ and ‘heritage’ – brides and grooms are looking more to our culture and history than ever before, for inspiration for wedding styling. ‘Vintage’ as a source of wedding ideas is still hugely popular, with couples now looking for venues with their own character and unique history. So this inspirational feature from Doxford Hall has to be one of my favourite shoots of ALL TIME! It’s a perfect fit for English Wedding too of course, with a nod to Jane Austen and such delightful styling touches! The calligraphy is mine – I’m so proud to have been a part of such a beautiful photoshoot (and my paper goodies get to visit such wonderful places!)

Claire xx

Crafted from mellow stone, with its formal gardens and manicured lawns, featuring Europe’s largest yew tree maze, Doxford Hall is a dreamy, romantic and photogenic venue, and Northumbria’s only four red star wedding venue. To celebrate its bicentenary, a creative team channelled their love of beautiful things and shared passion for the finer things in life, to create a Jane Austen-inspired styled bridal shoot to capture the elegance and romance of this beautiful country wedding venue. See more...

Exclusive offer! 10% OFF our beautiful Serenity wedding invitations

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Happy Tuesday lovelies! Are you getting married in 2019? Will florals be a big part of your styling? Love a bit of greenery? Last question: are you still looking for your wedding invitations? If you said yes just now, then I have a very special offer to share with you, exclusive to English Wedding Blog readers!

Your exclusive 10% saving

Save 10% off these stunning designer wedding invitations, made for the English Wedding Blog by Amy Swann and By Moon & Tide.

We called the design ‘Serenity‘, inspired by the beautiful artwork, which is reprinted from an original piece by Amy Swann. The florals and colour palette are timelessly beautiful and perfect for a spring to late summer wedding.

To save, simply quote code SERENITY10 at the checkout when you place your order.

Click here to claim your discount!

‘Serenity’ is a full wedding stationery collection with Save the Dates, invitations and matching inserts, place names, seating plans, on-the-day stationery and thank you cards. The discount applies to invitations only. See more...

Have you seen…

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Purple wedding style inspiration with calligraphy By Moon and Tide, photo credit Camilla Lucinda Photography (2)

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Earlier in the year I joined forces with the team at Lakes & Cumbria Wedding Magazine to launch their very first issue – and we had an absolute blast, creating a stunning cover shoot with ultraviolet stationery and florals. This year has passed by in a whirlwind, but I wanted to tell all of you beautiful people about the magazine before issue 2 comes out in the autumn!

It’s the first time I’ve worked hand in hand with magazine publishers, and the girls working on the magazine are such lovely, enthusiastic and happy people I enjoyed every second of the process!

The magazine cover shoot was also a fabulous chance for me to work with some of my favourites again – lovely Camilla Lucinda Photography was a star, beautifully capturing the gorgeous editorial I created with Katie from Made in Flowers, Julia Tasker Bridal Couture, Keseme at Le Petit Salon and Ashley from Greg Malloy Hairdressing – not forgetting our lovely hosts The Forest Side and our beautiful bride Jade Hodgson. See more...

By Moon and Tide

A peek into my little world of calligraphy!

An alternative to mass production… the best thing about the wedding industry

Romantic and floral wedding style ideas from Garthmyl Hall

Tuscany inspired wedding style, with Sonya Lalla Photography

Personal post – from Askham Hall wedding showcase

Beautiful spring florals for a luxe and feminine wedding, with Jo Bradbury Photography

Winter is coming… a Christmas treat!

A sweet little freebie for all DIY brides and grooms!

Wedding calligraphy workshop – brides, grooms, best girls – come and learn with me!

On the day we’ll write –

Heirloom and heritage wedding style inspiration – grace and beauty from Doxford Hall

Exclusive offer! 10% OFF our beautiful Serenity wedding invitations

Your exclusive 10% saving

Click here to claim your discount!

Have you seen…

Instagram – @englishweddingblog

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By Moon and Tide

On the day we’ll write –

Your exclusive 10% saving

Instagram – @englishweddingblog

Would you like to get exclusive offers, exciting updates and wedding blog sneak peeks by email?

Would you like to get exclusive offers, exciting
updates and wedding blog sneak peeks by email?