A Pronovias Gown for a Pastel Colour Japanese Garden Wedding

wpid397636 pronovias italian villa garden wedding 201

Happy Tuesday to you all and I hope you’re having a jolly week. I have the loveliest Spring wedding to share with you this afternoon – meet Jenna and Martyn, who married on 10th April 2015 in a breathtakingly beautiful and Japanese-inspired location, The Italian Villa in Dorset, with pictures expertly captured by Peppermint Love Photography. Jenna, an Art Teacher and Martyn, who works in IT at Cisco, handcrafted and personalised much of their day, thanks to the very creative and arty bride.

“We knew we wanted outdoor space, grey and pastel tones with a rustic feel to the décor, complimented by sumptuous, yet simple floral accents. The inclusion of handmade elements was really important. I loved using the sewing machine; being able to hand-pick fabrics, personalise name tags and add beautiful typography to seating plans and invitations was so much fun and made everything really personal to us.”

Photography by Peppermint Love Photography

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

The arty bride also made the delicious-looking cake. Oh dear, I think it’s time for a sugar hit, my mouth is watering!

“I decided to make my own cake as I’m a keen baker! I went for an ombre styled cake to fit the colour palette we had chosen and opted for a laser cut acrylic ‘Mr & Mrs’, which came from Not On The High Street. The interior of the cake was made from various layers of vanilla and chocolate fudge cake….yummy!”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Jenna’s pretty ‘Dalia’ Pronovias dress, veil and hair accessory were found via Anya Bridal Couture. What a gorgeous train – and a wedding dress with pockets? So very handy indeed.

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography“I went with my Mum to pick my dress. We arrived at Anya, a beautiful barn tucked away in Droxford. I knew that I wanted understated vintage glamour, ideally something Audrey Hepburn-inspired. My Mum spotted the dress I actually chose; once I put it on I just knew that it was the dress for me. I loved the straight-cut neckline, button back and puddle train and it had pockets! There was nothing not to love about the dress.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

The beautiful bride’s ‘Breanna’ Dune heels were paired with earrings from Tiffany and Co., a gift from Martyn on the morning of the wedding, and a spritz of Chanel’s ‘Chance’.

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Kasia Nowak from Peppermint Love Photography was the couple’s chosen photographer and, as I’m sure you’ll agree, shot simply stunning, light-filled and colourful images. As a fan of all things Japanese-ey, I’m completely in love with the cherry blossom shots. And Kasia captured so beautifully many ‘share the honest love‘ moments here of the newlyweds.

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“Just over a year ago we started to make those all-important decisions about our wedding. Colour schemes, venue, flowers … the list was endless, however we had decided early on that beautiful photographs that would stand the test of time were a priority. After consulting our friend Google, we arrived at Kasia’s site and immediately fell in love with her breath-taking style and exquisite use of light and colour.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Our love of Kasia’s photography was sealed with an awesome engagement shoot followed by an absolutely incredible wedding day. Kasia was able to capture the most precious moments of our day and was so kind and attentive with her approach towards all of our friends and family. Kasia is so truly lovely and it is was obvious from the moment we met that she adores what she does and we were so blessed to have her be a part of our special day! We would highly recommend working with Kasia, she is awesome.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Jenna’s four maids wore gorgeous long, flowing grey Coast gowns, Dune heels and silver earrings and hair accessories from Accessorize. The sparkly beading around the waist of the dresses complements Jenna’s dress to a tee. And the flowergirl looked very sweet in a crisp white lacy John Lewis dress and pretty braids. Hair was by Scissors in Ringwood, with make-up by Teresa Jolly.

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Florist Clair Lythgoe created gorgeous florals for the couple. My personal favourites are the table centrepieces on top of wood slices and the arrangement on top of the cake.

“When we met just over a year ago on a beautiful sunny day outside a sleepy Dorset pub little did I know how truly amazing our flowers were going to be. After chatting about colours, themes and styles Clair had really grasped what we going for and had some fantastic suggestions regarding flower choices and arrangement ideas.

We decided to go for a sumptuous combination of hydrangeas, stocks, dried lotus pods, trailing amaranthus and the most exquisite memory lane roses. Subtle shades of pink, lilac and green were used to compliment the grey bridesmaid dresses and capture the ‘rustic glamour’ we were going for.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Fast forward a few months and Clair arrived at my family home with the most exquisite bridal bouquet and bridal party arrangements……..amazing! What awaited at the venue continued to amaze and I couldn’t have wished for anything more; all the emails and chats and resulted in the most beautiful table decorations and even a last minute cake topper!”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“Mutual friends had always said how similar Martyn and I were and that they thought we would make a really good pairing. Fast forward a few years and our friend Brett decided to take the initiative and introduce us via Facebook. I think it went something like, ‘Jenna meet Martyn, Martyn meet Jenna, now it’s down to you’. At first I was completely mortified, however once we both got over the initial introduction it was obvious we had lots in common and after our first date the rest as they say was history!”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“We had been together nearly four years when we got engaged. We were on holiday in Florida when Martyn asked me to marry him, I had no idea he had been planning it and even more shocked when we walked into Tiffany’s that very same day, it was definitely a ‘Pretty Woman’ style moment! We were engaged for just over a year in total whilst we began planning our amazing day.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“My engagement ring was from Tiffany and Co. and I wanted something delicate to go with my ring. Martyn had never really worn jewellery before so wanted something hard-wearing and a little bit different. He went for a tungsten carbide ring with a matt finished central section and bevelled edges from Wedding Rings Direct.”

 

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Florist Clair Lythgoe created gorgeous florals for the couple. My personal favourites are the table centrepieces on top of wood slices and the arrangement on top of the cake.

 

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“Martyn and I had visited and fell in love with the Japanese gardens at Kew. The bridges, bonsai, bamboo and cherry blossoms were so beautiful. So when the time came to pick a venue for our wedding a Japanese-inspired setting was at the top of our wish list. Beyond the walls of the beautiful Italian Villa stood an oasis of Japanese planting, running water, stepping stones and ornamental bridges that perfectly complimented the bright and spacious villa itself. The interior of the villa was just as beautiful, the rustic wooden floors complimented by the abundance of natural light streaming thorough the wall of glass just confirmed that this was where we wanted to get married!”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love PhotographyA Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Martyn donned an Autograph Marks and Spencer suit and Jeff Banks for Debenhams tie, with the best man sporting the same stylish look.

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Being an art teacher, Jenna’s talents meant she was able to craft many elements for their decor. She created all the stationery, the table plan, hand-drew all signage, and handmade the gorgeous fabric hearts for the bride and groom, as well as the bridesmaid hearts and drawstring bags for their accessories. I am in awe!

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography
A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“We loved every part of our day, everything that we had planned came together and everyone who supported us on the day with hair, make-up, music, food, the list is endless were just fantastic. We could not have asked for more and it was made all the more special by being joined by all our amazing friends and family. There were so many awesome moments during the day it’s so hard to pick.”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

“We have never laughed or smiled so much, from the best man’s speech with impromptu audience participation relating to life drawing, the spontaneous dance off or the hilarity of the ‘Oops Upside your Head’ moment on the dance floor our day was made so amazing by all the gorgeous people who shared it with us!”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“In the words of Albert Schweitzer: 

Eventually everything will fall into place.
Until then, laugh at the confusion,
Live for the moment,
And know that everything happens for a reason.’”

A Pronovias gown for a pastel colour Japanese garden wedding. Images by Peppermint Love Photography

Albert was a wise man – simple words with huge meaning and highly relevant for brides-and-grooms-to-be. A big thankyou to Kasia from Peppermint Love Photography for sharing these amazing images. And very best wishes to Jenna and Martyn for a lifetime of happiness. Jenna, you’ve inspired me to get crafting and take a trip to my local Japanese gardens on my lunchbreak today!

For more handmade inspo, be sure to check out these DIY weddings we’ve previously featured on Love my Dress.

Have a wonderful rest of week everyone.

Love Jo x

 

Photographer – Peppermint Love Photography
Venue + Catering – The Italian Villa, Dorset
Dress + Veil + Hair Accessory – Pronovias via Anya Bridal Couture
Shoes – Dune
Jewellery – Tiffany and Co. earrings
Scent/Perfume – ‘Chance’ by Chanel
Bridesmaid’s Dresses – Coast
Bridesmaid’s Shoes – Dune
Bridesmaid’s Accessories – Accessorize
Groom and Best Man – Autograph Marks and Spencer suit and Jeff Banks @ Debenhams tie
Flower girl – John Lewis
Florist – Clair Lythgoe
Rings – Tiffany and Co. and Wedding Rings Direct
Cake – Handmade by Jenna
Stationery – Handmade by Jenna
Décor – Handmade by Jenna, plus ‘Mr and Mrs’ sign from Not on the High Street, pink tea lights from Marks and Spencer and holders from IKEA
Makeup Artist – Teresa Jolly
Hair Artist – Scissors
Entertainment – Evertide and Party Dexx

Jo Singletary

Jo Singletary View all Jo's articles

Jo hails from and lives in sunny Australia, is currently working towards her dream of being a career coach and a few of her favourite things are watching the sunrise over the ocean, morning walks on the beach, butterflies, and supporting the guide dogs charity.

3 thoughts on “A Pronovias Gown for a Pastel Colour Japanese Garden Wedding

  1. Personally I needed to read those words of wisdom today. In fact I’ve just read them six times in a row! Words to live by as well as plan a wedding by!! Thanks Jenna and Martyn for sharing those words and your beautiful day with us. I wish you much joy and happiness together xx *I’m now off to tattoo those words on my eyelids* ?

  2. So exciting and beautiful to read this! I’m getting married here in two years and love to see inspiration from other weddings. This article cemented our decision to get married here, hopefully two years flies by!!!

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