Wedding inspiration celebrating soft beauty & Inner strength

I'm loving the simplicity of the imagery in this feminine shoot by MARIA SUNDIN. Pretty paper goods by FEATHER PAPER and a delicate custom veil from ANAQA HEADPIECES are just two of the features we're loving the most.

Maria tells us, "As a photographer I can often times get lost in the world of creativity for days on end. And other days there is too much noise to be able to go into my own shell and dream up something that’s real to me at all. For the longest time, I have wanted to work with the simplest forms, to peel away the noise and just go back in time and connect with something real. I have wanted to use a blank canvas, just a backdrop, a model and a stylist who would understand my vision.

The inspiration came from a quote I read in high school when we were reading Jane Eyre, that sort of stuck with me. "I am no bird, and no net ensnares me. I am a free human being with an independent will". This quote has defined some of my choices in life and I have used this quote to find strength, and to keep myself on my own path, where I always come back to a desire to explore and challenge myself creatively. To me, Jane Eyre is a symbol of female strength and even if she is perhaps mostly described as somewhat plain looking, I wanted to explore the beauty in her. Her, being any woman and any woman being her. I wanted to explore the beauty and innocence of strong independent women, a mix that I feel is thankfully becoming more common today, especially in this world of female entrepreneurship. We can be both strong and soft at the same time. Blending layers of soft beauty but always keeping our inner strength."

From the stylist: "When Maria came to me with her vision, I loved the idea of exploring something that was so connected to femininity. In this part of the world, our women are reputed for being incredibly strong and carry themselves with pride, and so I loved the idea of mixing this soft touch with female strength.

I was working with a pared back palette sticking with grey's and light browns as a general theme. I used strong pampas grass to create soft wings as a point of both innocence and strength, and hydrangea leaves to play with and sort of softer more romantic texture. Angelique, our hair & make-up artist, advised that we went with a slightly different colour palette for the eyes, to play into our concept. Here in the Middle East, we say that the eyes are truly the mirror of the soul, and what you hide in your heart can be read in your eyes. So, to play with a stronger eye felt important. Robyn, from FEATHER PAPER used our vision to create some beautiful calligraphed pieces on handmade paper and added personal touches of gold and Arabic writing which I felt complemented this look."