“I Love You More Than The Moon” ~ A 1940s and ’50s ‘Make Do & Mend’ Inspired Wedding…

I love a bit of pale green and pretty – figures, given my branding loves this colour so much too 😉 I this wedding so, and not just because of the pretty pale green – I feel I know Ellie and Boyd just a little bit, it almost feels as though I was part-present on their wedding day reading through all the wonderful information Ellie has shared. er

Ellie and Boyd have made a previous appearance on Love My Dress, via this sweet 40's inspired engagement session with their photographer Jordanna Marston.

Ellie was a regular reader in the run up to her wedding {"Love My Dress was the main blog, I looked forward to reading this every day for ideas☺!"} and her 1940's/1950’s 'make do and mend' inspired wedding to Boyd took place on 9th June with a ceremony in the Church where Ellie grew up, followed by a reception at the Scott Bader Commonwealth Centre.

"I have always loved anything vintage, shabby chic, retro and sparkly hence the circle 50’s inspired dresses, the victory rolls, the vintage bus, the button and brooch bouquets, the lace and the bunting! I love the idea of ‘make do and mend’ and reusing things and we were doing this wedding on a budget.  We both love relaxed informal big family and friends get together so we tried to combine this with the traditional church service and wedding breakfast.

We also wanted all of our family and friends to be there hence the venue. We didn’t want to be limited by hotel number regulations or the cost of them…"

Love My Dress Wedding Blog – Photography Copyright (c) 2012, Jordanna Marston

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"We stuck to a budget throughout and did as much as we could ourselves. I work as an event planner so I asked favours when it was appropriate. People were more than happy to help out if they could and everyone offered to help, one of my friends designed and printed all of the invites, save the dates and orders of service as our wedding gift which we were very grateful for. These touches made the day a lot more personal…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I knew that I wanted to be a 1940's/1950’s esque bride and wanted a vintage inspired dress. After trying on many dresses in local bridal shops and not finding exactly what I wanted I decided to have a dress made by a local lady who came highly recommended then I could have exactly what I wanted and it would be fit to me and would cost a fraction of the price!

I worked with the dress maker to put together a design which combined all of the elements of the dresses I had seen and loved. I wanted 40's and 50’s glamour and love dancing hence a calf length circle dress would be the perfect shape. I knew that I wanted vintage looking lace involved. I had seen a vintage bridal photo shoot in a local magazine which I where I got the idea for the lace jacket with pearl buttons down the back – this was my favourite bit about the dress.

The lace I chose was beautiful…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I did not get my shoes until 2 weeks before the wedding and I was panicking. As my dress was shorter the shoes were going to be on show and I originally wanted a pair of vintage inspired Rachel Simpson shoes however the pair I loved had gold on which did not fit with the colours I had.

After many hours of searching shops and on the internet and finding nothing I bought a beautiful cream pair of peep toe court shoes from Phase Eight which were amazingly comfortable, looked fab, and fit perfectly with the hem of the dress…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I have always loved the halter neck circle dresses of the 50’s in the candy colours (great for dancing) and having 3 very different bridesmaids the shape suited them all. I originally was going to buy them from a shop where I got the colour inspiration from however I worked with the dressmaker to design these to an original shape so they perfectly fitted each girl. We used mint green duchess satin.

The bridesmaid’s shoes were silver sparkly peep toes from Next which completed the 50’s feel of the dress…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I wanted original vintage jewellery to complete the look. There is a local jeweller in Wellingborough who always has a great selection of second hand vintage jewellery. I was very lucky to find a beautiful 1930’s paste diamante floral brooch form my dresses sash and a necklace which would complement my lace neckline perfectly.

I picked up some fabulous 1930’s past diamante drop earrings which just happened to match the necklace perfectly at an antique fair in Lymington…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

Lovely 'close up' photograph taken during the ceremony.  You need to make sure you will be able to get similar shots at your own wedding – read this feature as it is important

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I walked down the aisle to a classical piece of music played by the organist – Zadok the Priest. Not the traditional track but I wanted something a bit different.  However Boyd and I chose to walk out to All You Need Is Love by the Beatles. We both love the Beatles and their music so it felt appropriate…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"When Boyd and I got engaged my mum gave me a heart made of pearl buttons on wire – that inspired the pearl buttons on the save the dates and invites and the button bouquets. Therefore my mum made each girl a pearl button heart; I bought so many pearl button job lots on eBay for these and had everyone collecting their old white and cream buttons for them. 

My bouquet was also inspired by pearl buttons, so I opted for a vintage button and brooch bouquet.  This was my favourite bit of the wedding (along with the vintage route master bus☺). I ordered this from Lesa at ‘I Heart Buttons’.  / Lesa was amazing. We talked through the wedding theme and colours and she came back with ideas and pictures or the buttons and brooches that I could choose from.

She sourced original vintage brooches for mine and the bridesmaid’s bouquets which I chose. With my order she made a bespoke grooms buttonhole for Boyd and a button hole for my mum. These looked great, really individual and different. Everyone commented on them…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding A make do and mend inspired wedding

"We hired an old route master vintage London bus to pick people up from Wellingborough and Doddington and take them to the church and then to take guests form the church to eth venue. This was one of my favourite things about the whole wedding. I desperately wanted that picture of me swinging off the pole!  

The atmosphere a top the bus sounded amazing everyone had huge smiles on their faces and had a good giggle – it was just a shame that me and Boyd did not ride up there with them!"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Our cake was made by a close family friend and the best mans mum Margaret Baldry. Her cakes are amazing and she has a very high reputation. We opted for a dummy cake and cutting cakes for the day so we could have the cake out all day and night. We talked through our ideas with Margaret as we wanted to include the button theme, she was brilliant giving us ideas and talking through what would work.

It was a four tier cake incorporating the button theme on the bottom and 3rd tier, ribbon and a brooch on the second tier and lace icing around the top tier. Margaret made a beautiful icing replica of my button bouquet for the top…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Our friends had all chipped in and arranged a female Ukele player to play before the band whilst we turned the hall around for the evening as a surprise. She was amazing and played some fantastic songs. She specialises in vintage/ retro songs so fit with our wedding perfectly…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Boyd didn’t want a traditional top and tails wedding suit for him or the groomsmen and wanted a simple tailored suit which we felt would fit with the vintage theme and could be worn again. They went to Bicester and found the perfect suits in Ted Baker. Boyd’s was a darker shade of grey with the groomsmen’s being lighter.

These were bought as the groomsmens gifts. They wore matching shirts and ties…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding


"My bridesmaid Cleo is normally my hairdresser and works at Melanie C’s in Wellingborough. Her boss Mel offered to do my hair and the bridesmaid’s hair. She knew my love of vintage so in the trial put my hair into a beautiful victory roll style.

My cousin Nicola Henderson was my makeup artist. I don’t often wear lot of makeup so she came with me to purchase suitable products and applied subtle make up on the day with the signature 40’s eyeliner and a pinkie red lipstick…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Fitting with the theme I wanted a bird cage veil. After searching on the internet and looking at many (expensive) options I bought some beautiful netting off of ebay which I could then cut to shape to fit my hairstyle on the day.

Again after scouring the internet and looking at some very pricey options I bought a beautiful white silk and diamante hair comb from Johnny Loves Rosie with an offer voucher. I didn’t want anything too big or flashy because my hair was going to be in victory rolls. The comb I bought slotted perfectly into this style…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"My dad 'gave me away' – he was so proud and I was so happy. My mum and dad have both been so amazing…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Our wedding venue, the Scott Bader Commonwealth Centre, a wonderful local venue in the neighbouring village with beautiful gardens and a simple hall big enough for all of our guests and which provided us with a blank canvas to decorate. We wanted a vintage themed wedding with a relaxed country shabby chic style, this venue was perfect…"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"I had been collecting bits and bobs to decorate the venue from the day Boyd proposed.  Our venue was a blank canvas and I have a passion for all things vintage so it was a good excuse to start buying these things.  I knew that I wanted everyone to have a china tea cup for their tea so I scoured charity shops, eBay, car boots and friends and families cupboards and managed to gather 130 tea cups and saucers. Boyd is famous for his love of cakes and sweet treats so in the evening we had a cake and sweet table.

Our friends all made different cakes so we had vanilla slices, cupcakes, ice cream cake and cake pops. We also had jars of our favourite sweets including pink shrimps and milk bottles. I made my own cake stands from plates that I collected and covered the table with crochet and lace cloths.

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"We had polka dot and floral lengths of bunting strung round the room. I purchased a shabby old 1940’s suitcase and strung up vintage letter lexicon cards as a place where people could leave their cards. The entrance to the hall was decorated with 2 old step ladders that I had got off freecycle and my mum painted white. 

We had flower arrangements on each step in various mis-match jugs that I had collected and picked up.   We attached the table plan holder, a shabby chic metal heart, to the top of the ladder with mint silk ribbon. I also placed about the hall wooden letters, a metal bust with pearls and tea light holders to decorate the surfaces…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"K&S Ball, a local caterer, provided all the food. It was amazing and they were so helpful and organised on the run up and on the day. I love ‘mini foods’ or canapés so we had more of these and not a starter. Everyone commented that the food was delicious especially the Pavolova stuffed with Eton mess for dessert chosen by Boyd ☺!

Later on in the evening we ordered Pizzas for everyone which went down a treat!"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

A make do and mend inspired wedding

"Our first dance track was a song written for me by Boyd called ‘I love you more than the moon’. One of my best friends Anna Jaichner is a professional singer and sang this for me at a restaurant on our first valentine’s day as a surprise organised by Boyd. Since then it has been ‘Our song’! Anna then sang it as our first dance…."

A make do and mend inspired wedding

Words of Wedded Wisdom…

"Do it your way – it is your big day and it only happens once so it needs to be perfect for you both not what everyone else would like you to do! Take your time on the day it goes by in a whirlwind and you want to savour every moment!"

A make do and mend inspired wedding

Boyd, Ellie, CONGRATULATIONS! I am so grateful to you for sharing your beautiful day with my readers – thank you 🙂

A big shout out too for Jordanna Marston for sharing her photographs today…

"I love Jordanna's pictures. Our engagement shoot pictures were amazing so I was really excited about having her take our wedding photos. Jordanna made it so easy for us, keeping us both relaxed and smiling. She captures the feeling of the moment in photographs, the little smiles and squeezes of your hands, as well as capturing the era that we wanted to portray.

Boyd has known Jordanna a long time; she is a good friend which made it even easier to work with her."

Who loves this wedding as much as I and which bit do you love the most?

You can see lots more 1940's/1950’s inspiration and more from Jordanna Marston Photography on Love My Dress too. Also remember you have the full real wedding gallery to plunder for ideas!

Much love all,

Annabel

Heart

Photographer – Jordanna Marston
Venue – Scott Bader Commonwealth centre
Brides dress – Local seamstress
Brides shoes – Phase Eight
Brides veil + Hair Comb – http://www.johnny-loves-rosie.com/
Brides accessories – 1930s original vintage
Groom – Ted Baker
Bridesmaids – Local seamstress
Button Bouquet –I Heart Buttons
Prestige Celebration Cakes – Margaret Baldry cake designer, tel 01933 224084
Catering Company – K&S Ball

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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