Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge…

Hi everyone :)  Hoping this lovely Thursday lunch time finds you well 🙂

This latest wedding is one of the sweetest I've featured yet – I love it for it's simplicity; this is nothing but a couple totally in love; No bells and whistles. No fancy-schmancy this or that.  Just the Bride, Groom, their Daughter and an intimate wedding ceremony with close friends and family.  Oh yes, and a boat!  🙂

Hannah and Nick got married on 13 August 2010 at The Swan on Streatley – an idyllic and romantic setting for a wedding if ever there was one.  There ceremony itself took place on a barge that is moored on the bank of the River Thames, that runs adjacent to the hotel.

This lovely wedding was captured on camera by Love My Dress Sponsor, McKinley-Rodgers

"I feel so very lucky to have found Penny. She understood completely
what i was looking for and my image of the day. We had the loveliest
chat over a cup of tea and biscuits and she was as excited as I was over
all the little details. Most importantly she paid attention to all the
details that I felt were really intrinsic to the day and made sure they
were lovingly captured.

I really didn't want hours of formal shots and
Penny and her husband Cameron worked with us and around the day
beautifully. They are such likeable and genuine couple that all our
guests were impressed and I felt they were more like friends with
cameras than official photographers…"

Love My Dress Wedding Blog, Photography Copyright (c) 2010, McKinley Rodgers

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Hannah's lovely lace wedding dress was from Wedding Belles in Banbury

"I
had such strong ideas about my dress. I didn't want white or ivory and I
definitely didn't want lace.   My best friend Sam calmly persuaded me
to try a bridal boutique just to get a feel for big formal dresses. I
tried a few on but felt uncomfortable and none of them were very 'me'.
When I found my dress I knew it was perfect. Not just the way I looked
and felt in it but also how it would influence and strengthen the style
of the whole day."

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Hannah's pretty fascinator was also a purchase from Wedding Belles "…the shop owner picked it out for me from hundreds of possible choices. She really knows her stuff."

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

"I did all the hair and make up myself. Sam's was the most complicated and that took all of 15 minutes.  I swear by Bareminerals and Benefit products. I have dreadful
skin but I think the makeup held up really well and it's so easy to
use. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Flowers were provided by Ferry Lane Florists

"Our florist, Sarah, was just brilliant. I took in my own birdcages,
silver stones and feather birds. I knew I only wanted purple hydrangeas
and how i wanted them to look on the tables. I needed some tall displays
for the barge but florists foam was completely banned so Sarah
suggested the Bay trees which looked so perfect. A late addition was the
Lisianthus. My lovely daughter is called Lizzie and it seemed right
that she had her own little flower in there…"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Going on a Boat Ride!…

"We had been looking for a venue for sometime and nothing had really felt right. We wanted somewhere non religious but it had to have the right feeling for us. We had been on a family day out and our little girl had crashed out in the car. We went for a little drive to extend the nap and took a drive through Goring. Neither of us had ever been there before but we were enchanted by it.

Then we drove over a bridge into Streatley and the river opened up on either side of us just as the afternoon sun was hitting the water and the hotel, The Swan at Streatley, looked just wonderful. I think  made my mind up there and then and after a trip back with my Dad we were all sold on it. It was the the perfect fit for us and I'm so pleased we found it.

On the day itself, as I was getting ready in the hotel, Nick and the boys took out the
hotel's little electric boat for  a trip up the river.  I think they all
enjoyed it and it helped to keep the nerves at bay…"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers... Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Pretty Paper Bunting…

"I
found some lovely paper bunting for the barge from
www.thedotcomgiftshop.com, I dare anyone to go an there and not find
something they love. I think it only cost £20 for the whole lot. I also
got the favour boxes from there as well and they added a real flash of
colour to the tables without costing a fortune. I filled them with old
fashioned sweeties like pear drops, rhubarb and custard and lemon
sherberts.

I had to have chair covers and organza bows which i found at www.addstyle.co.uk.
They also provided the ceiling drapes and fairy lights over the dance
floor. This was expensive but it really finished the room and felt so
romantic."

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Hannah walked down the aisle to a string version of Guns and Roses 'Sweet Child of Mine', by The Vitamin String Quartet

"I
love this track and the string arrangement made it very romantic and
much more suitable for the occasion. The music we selected for the
signing of the register was from movies we love as we are both film
geeks. quite a few of our friends had fun guessing the tracks. We left
to the Indiana Jones theme which made all the guests laugh along with
us…"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

"Nick knows his own mind and decided one weekend he was going to get his
suit. Walked into Debenhams and I think it was the first he tried. The
only input I had was whether or not to go with the waistcoat. I'm so
pleased he did and he couldn't have looked more handsome on the day…"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers... Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Cakes were provided by Catherines Cakes

"Catherine is a genius with cake as
well as being very lovely to boot! We had a great time talking through
ideas for the cake and she helped to make it very much my own. I wanted
cupcakes and a top tier and I even had some little doves to match the
ones on the birdcages. Catherine bought it all together with her magic.
The cupcakes were lemon with a cream cheese icing and lemon curd
'surprise'. We had four different designs and she even made some little
birds to sit on top. Our top tier was carrot cake (my favourite!) with
lovely sugar hydrangeas making a nest on top…"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

First Dance..

"This was really hard to choose and caused some pretty intense
discussions. Nick and I have totally different music tastes so it was so
hard to find something that was true and meaningful for both of us. So
to follow the film theme we ended up with Stand by your man from The
Blues Brothers. We love it and if you listen to the lyrics it's not bad
advice either!"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Well the guests look to be having an amazing time!

"The entertainment was all booked through Scott Jordan Entertainment who were great. Our Band
were the Funky Buddha band and we had a DJ in between sets. They were
both amazing and I didn't leave the dance floor all night. Fantastic.
The best party I've ever been to!"

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...
Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

Words of Wedded Wisdom…

"Don't
stray too far from the purpose of the day, when you are tearing you
hair out because your vision of a centerpiece doesn't exsist yet go and
find your husband to be and give him a big hug and kiss. After all, no
matter how wonderful your day is he is the only part that you truly get
to keep forever.

Also , have good female friends. I was so
lucky to have Sam and Shelly. Sam did all our invitations, order of
ceremony, table plans and menus and they were better than i ever could
have imagined. She has been my partner in crime for so many years now
and no one can make me laugh like her. Shelly was amazing with all the
last minute things and despite being very close to her due date with her
fist baby was always willing to help out. They both listened to me
whitter on about the wedding for hours at a time and never lost their
patience. For their friendship and love I am humbled and truly grateful.

Nick and I have been together for 6 years now and we have the most
delightful little girl together. You don't get to that point without a
lot of reality, some sadness, hard work and the occasional disagreement.
But I'm so lucky that on my wedding day I wasn't taking a step into the
unknown. Nick is my rock and whilst I'm whirling around with my head
full of fluff he holds us all steady. Our day was about celebrating what
we have and another step on our adventure together.

Messing About on the River ~ A Wedding Aboard a Barge - Photography by McKinley-Rodgers...

What a beautiful way to describe the magical experience that is your wedding day – I couldn't have put it better myself 🙂 And like the old saying goes – 'Love is all you need!' 🙂

Thanks so much Hannah for sharing your story, and thank you too to Penny McKinley-Rodgers for allowing reproduction of these lovely photographs 🙂

Much love,

Annabel xXx

Annabel

Annabel View all Annabel's articles

Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.

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