A Magical Forest Wedding at Wilderness Woods for a Lovettes Bride

Do you ever have days when you just absolutely adore your job?  When I opened these photographs this was definitely a ‘love what I do’ moment- when else would I be able to spend my time looking through other people’s amazing wedding photographs, read all about their day in their own words and then write it all up for you lovely lot to devour over your coffee break?  Today’s wedding is an absolute delight- a magical fairytale woodland affair full of lights, smiles and floating fabric.  I’m so in love with it and completely blown away by the sheer amount of talent and love that has gone into every part of it.

The beautiful bride is one of our blogging brides, who we affectionately term our Lovettes.  Caroline, after several fab posts for Love My Dress, married her Cinematographer and super 8mm filmmaker fiancé Will on the 12th of September 2015, gowned in a bespoke dress and wearing the biggest of smiles.  Buckle up, you’re going to adore this one.

“We dreamed of getting married among the trees, in a natural setting so this was definitely our starting point.  Wilderness Woods inspired and continues to inspire us, aesthetically and as a community, as it is run by an incredible family, as well as many volunteers and talented craftspeople.”

Photography by Tarah Coonan

Caroline’s stunning two-piece dress was made for her by friend Vicky Sanders (currently senior designer at Matthew Williamson) from the silk from Will’s mum’s wedding dress, with additional applique lace pieces.  How incredible to have a dress made exactly for you by a friend?

“The dress turned out to be so much more interesting and exciting than I could have ever imagined and Vicky also came to the getting ready party in the morning to help me get into my dress which was lovely.”

Photographer Tarah Coonan is the talent behind these beautiful, light filled images.

“Tarah is a good friend and fabulous photographer, who we met through filming weddings.  Thanks a million to her for being there on the day and taking fabulous pics, as well as being a calming and fun influence over the whole party.”

“For scent, all the bridesmaids and I wore Rose by Roger & Gallet, so we would waft the scent down the aisle.  Jo at Love Hair styled my hair and Ana Ospina did my make-up.  I’m so pleased that I invested early on in the getting ready bit as it was such a lovely chilled morning.”

“I loved the creative process of designing my dress from start to finish-  I got to spend time with my lovely friend and enjoy the collaborative process with an amazingly talented designer. She knew exactly what would suit me and every time I went to her flat, I was blown away with the results.  It has our initials embroidered into the bodice, as well as personal details such as an embroidered bicycle and a cat.”

On her feet, she sported the fun and fantastical ‘Disney Cinderella’ for Melissa.

“I originally went into the store in Covent Garden looking for a pair of Melissa’s with a tartan bow or heart (as a nod to Will’s Scottish heritage) but these ones were rotating on a glass plinth, glittering away like every little girl’s dream.  My Maid of Honour accompanied me and the girl is nothing short of a shoe fiend, so she wouldn’t let me leave without trying them on.  Obviously, that was that.”

“We filmed a wedding at Wilderness Woods in 2013 and fell in love with the place so when we got engaged, it was the first place we enquired about.  They only have a licence to hold six late night events per year, so we were really lucky to be allowed to hold our wedding there.”

“Luska, who works at the Woodland, helped us in the lead up, as well as on the day itself.  Among her skills were rigging up the lighting, sorting us out with local suppliers, and co-ordinating the shenanigans on the day itself. She also foraged for and concocted the nettle, elderflower and berry cordials for the cocktails – I don’t know what we would have done without her.

Dan, who owns the woodland was also there, moving hay bales with his dumper truck, and bbq-ing midnight snacks for us. The whole team involved were brilliant and so friendly.”

“My Dad drove me to the wedding in his 2CV. He spent a long time doing it up and re-carpeting, upholstering, polishing and fine tuning it before the big day and when I got in, my favourite song was playing. He decorated it amazingly with sunflowers and bows.”

Not to be outdone by his beautiful bride, Will looked wonderfully smart in his kilt, made for him a couple of years ago at LochCarron, worn with a belt and buckle from Centaur Design.  His groomsmen sported hired kilts from A1 Kilt hire.

Caroline and Will chose a humanist ceremony in the woods, led by celebrant Felicity Harvest, so they wrote their own vows (which they did together one Sunday morning in bed- gorgeously cute).  I love the level of personalisation possible with a humanist ceremony.

Caroline walked through the trees to her groom on the arm of her Dad, who provided both moral and practical support on the way down the slightly bumpy aisle.  As musical accompaniment, Caroline’s brother played the guitar while a friend sang ‘Blackbird’ by The Beatles.

For readings our couple chose The Owl and The Pussycat and ‘An Apache Blessing’, which gives me a lump in my throat every time I read it as its so lovely.

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there is no more loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies, but there is one life before you.
Look to the future that lies ahead. A long and winding, adventure-filled road, whose every turn means discovery, new hopes, new joys, new laughter, and some tears shared.
May happiness be your companion, May beauty surround you both in the journey ahead; And through all the years to come.
Go this day to your dwelling place and enter into your days together.
May your days be good and long upon the earth.
Your adventure has just begun!

Caroline’s veil, by Elizabeth Dickens, was a present from her Dad, while her antique necklace was a gift from Will and her bracelet a present from her mother.  Her pearls were from Cellini and her garter a gift from another talented friend, Sarah Denise Lingerie.  Caroline had planned to simply wear fresh flowers in her hair, but found a pretty gold and pearl headband in H&M while shopping for her wedding ring the week before the wedding, so wore this once she took off her veil.

Caroline’s beautiful bridesmaids wore different dresses in various shades and styles, but all gold, glitzy and gorgeous.

“My lovely bridesmaids have all such different colouring and shapes and I wanted them to all be comfortable and have a great day, so they all chose their own dresses (from Coast, Monsoon and Debenhams) within the theme of gold and sparkly.  Although rustic, I wanted a bit of glam on the day as it’s such a momentous occasion and gold also sits beautifully with the green of the trees.”

The little flower girl wore dresses from Monsoon, paired with fairy wings, while the pageboys dressed as oversized bees in outfits from Amazon.

The happy couple had several musical accompaniments to the various parts of their day.

“Fiona Bevan and my brother Peter played the music during the ceremony.  I was lucky enough to live with Fiona in London and listen to her beautiful music around the flat.  Since those days she has released an album and written for One Direction and with Ed Sheeran and if you get a chance you should go and hear her perform as she is mesmerizing.

We also booked a band for the day at the last minute called Zoot Zazoo– they were brilliant and helped to create a lovely atmosphere- and we had a great ceilidh band called the Boondock Band for the evening entertainment, which was a really fun and easy way of including all ages at the reception.”

 

Sitting out in among the trees to eat your wedding meal must be one of the best things I can possibly think of- I am so incredibly envious.  The food was the work of Pan Global Catering.

“Kevin was a great guy to work with from the very start. He understood exactly what we wanted and made a completely bespoke package for us, including serving the ice cream we made ourselves.  He couldn’t have been more helpful or flexible and the food was delicious and beautifully served.”

Will’s Mum made the wedding cake herself, producing an impressive fruitcake decorated with homemade crystallised fruit, while the cake topper was made by yet another talented bridesmaid, Sophie, who had a detailed description of what our bride and groom would be wearing and replicated them as cute peg dolls.

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“Enjoy it, every single bit, from choosing beautiful scents, to trying on beautiful dresses.  Relish and make the most of it all.

Involve as many people as you can in the whole process, but also be aware that it’s not their wedding so they may not get as emotional about table candles as you do.

It’s not all about you. It’s about joining two families together and giving those people that have been so kind and loving and supportive in your relationship a blooming good time!”

Many many thanks and congratulations to Caroline and Will- its been such a pleasure to share your wedding day with our readers.  Thank you also of course to Tarah Coonan for allowing us to feature her images.  Are any of our readers marrying outdoors?  Make sure you take some time to have a look at our previous woodland weddings here, if so- there is just so much inspiration.

Much love,

Shona x

 

Photographer – Tarah Coonan
Venue – Wilderness Woods, Hadlow Down, Sussex
Celebrant – Felicity Harvest
Dress – Bespoke by friend Vicky Sanders
Jewellery –Pearls, Cellini and gifts from family
Garter – Sarah Denise Lingerie.
Veil – Elizabeth Dickens
Headdress – H&M
Shoes – ‘Disney Cinderella’ for Melissa
Scent – Rose by Roger & Gallet
Bridesmaids’ Dresses – Coast, Debenhams and Monsoon
Flowergirls – Monsoon
Pageboy outfits – Amazon
Groom – Kilt, LochCarron; belt, Centaur Design
Groomsmen – A1 Kilt hire
Hair Stylist – Jo at Love Hair, London
Makeup Artist – Ana Ospina
Florist – Family
Cake – Groom’s Mum
Cake Topper – Sophie Illustration
Catering – Pan Global Catering
Entertainment – Boondock Band, Zoot Zazoo and Fiona Bevan
Tables and Chairs – Rustic Hire
Rings – H Samuel
Stationery – Caroline Cummock