A Bohemian and Country Chic Wedding in Devon

I’ve been tasked lately with getting your weekends started with a bang, little lovelies, as I’ve shared such gorgeous weddings on Saturdays. Did you see this desert wedding or this wonderful outdoor wedding? Both gave me serious location envy, so just you wait until you see this couple’s choice of venue and these joy-filled images with a grinning boho bride by the talented Emma from Freckle Photography.

Gemma and Steve tied the knot on 14th May 2016 and chose the gloriously decadent Ash Barton Estate in Braunton, North Devon for their spring weekend-long celebrations.

“We wanted to have a place we could rent out for the whole weekend because weddings go by far too quickly. We also didn’t want a curfew with the option to party as long as we liked and a place where we were able to get married on site and choose our own caterers – Ash Barton ticked all our boxes! We were keen for a very informal affair, whilst keeping many of the traditions, and due to the venue we wanted to go for a boho, country chic feel.”

Photography by Freckle Photography

“We met at University when we were both part of the hockey club. Steve was a talented hockey player, whilst I joined purely for social reasons. We got engaged in Rome, where Steve proposed on the Spanish Steps at midnight following a night walk around Rome – it was beautiful. We had been together for eight years when we got engaged and married two years later.”

In her beautiful Wilden Bride bespoke dress, Gemma looked every bit the boho bride – so relaxed and free, as these delightful images illustrate.

“I had tried on so many dresses that I thought were great, but I was always unsure of a particular part, so I decided to see if I could have it made where I could combine all the features I liked and have the exact dress I wanted.”

“I was a little unsure at first as I am definitely not the creative type, but Charlotte was great, so I went for it. I also loved the process – you choose your wedding dress usually a year before your wedding and I think there is a danger your taste can change before your actual day.”

“With Charlotte, I was able to change my mind and design my perfect dress.”

To complete her look, Gemma added a Wilden Bride veil, New Look heels, earrings as her ‘something borrowed’, a spritz of her favourite perfume ‘Coco Chanel’, and a cool arm cuff.

“I have always loved the look of an arm cuff and I thought why not add to the boho theme and have one for the wedding. Lovely Charlotte made it for me.”

I’ve fallen completely in love with the pretty mix of colourful blooms with daisy accents. What is it about daisies? They really are just right for a boho wedding.

“Charlie’s Flower Shop, one of the preferred suppliers at Ash Barton Manor, provided our flowers. She was fab, knew exactly what we wanted and provided some absolutely amazing designs on the day. One of my friends has dried one of the arrangements and we have bits of it in baubles ready for Christmas.”

“Our hair was by Chantelle Maloney who was absolutely fantastic, so patient and talented – we all loved the result – and make-up was by one of the bridesmaid‘s Amy.”

“My amazing dad Bill walked me down the aisle to Hans Zimmer’s ‘You’re So Cool’.”

Steve looked dapper in a suit from John Lewis and cufflinks via Cuff-Daddy. His two brothers were groomsmen and the best man, Oli, delivered an amazing speech.

“One of our friends Jon wrote his own reading, which was based on David Bowie lyrics – it was so good and had everyone laughing. Our other friend Nadine read ‘Oh the places you will go’ by Dr Seuss.”

Gemma’s wedding ring was from Henricks the Jewellers in the Jewellery Quarter.

“I chose the ring because it is the only one that seemed to fit with my unusual vintage engagement ring (which was my Nana’s) – a rose gold band with small diamonds around the top. Steve’s ring was via Wedding Rings Direct because it was quick and easy!”

Did you catch this image on our Instagram feed of late, where Annabel talk’s about this post that she wrote back in 2013 (just as, if not even more relevant now).

“Emma from Freckle Photography was amazing and made everyone feel so comfortable. She is so talented and captured some incredible shots and we were so happy with our photos. Everyone who has seen them has commented on how amazing they are. I would 100% recommend Emma!”

I’ve recently discovered ASOS for online deliveries to Australia (and quite possibly may be just a little bit addicted!) and the bridesmaid’s gorgeous pale yellow strapless gowns were from this one-stop shop.

They are such a pretty colour and totally complement Gemma’s style of dress and the flowers to a tee. The girls added a ribbon around the waist, flowers for their hair, heels from New Look and a necklace from John Lewis. I adore the look of two of the maids wearing their hair in a long plait.

The couple had the fantastic help of a very good friend, event planner Sarah Long, who was on hand on the day, as well as family for all the decor bits and pieces in the lead-up to the big day. Fairy lights and white lanterns added a touch of pizzazz and atmosphere for the evening.

“We had a big design team (mainly my mum, dad and brother) and we collected thousands of jam jars, decorated these with hessian and ribbon and placed little LED tea-lights inside. We had hessian sashes on some of the chairs in the chapel and a few flowers tucked in, which I think helped to bring the chapel to life. We also hung homemade bunting outside to add to the country theme.”

“Stationery was by my good friend Catherine who is a very talented crafter. She does some amazing designs that fitted with our boho theme. 

We provided little bottles of homemade sloe gin as our favours which were made by my aunt and uncle – it was some strong stuff but went down very well!”

“The speeches and the dancing were my favourite parts of the day.” 

The Whiddon Waggon were providers of delicious fish and chips for all the guests and Gemma and Steve chose to have a cake of cheese from Marks and Spencer.

The newlyweds partied well into the night with their very musical friends.

“Our entertainment was ‘Unholy Matrimony’, a wedding band made up of a group of our very talented musician friends. We also had a group of friends who did DJ sets on the night – DJ McFly, DJ Fingerbang, East Asian Tigers and DJ GoNads.”

“We chose ‘Hoppipolla’ by Sigur Ros as our first dance song. I remember being at Steve’s house at university and he had put a few tracks on – I never really liked his music taste as it’s a bit out there for me – but ‘Hoppipolla‘ came on and I really liked it. Since then I always asked Steve to play Sigur Ros when I went to visit.”

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“Don’t get caught up in the small details, as you won’t even notice them on the day. Remember to breathe and enjoy yourself – don’t let the stress ruin it!

Upon reflection, we might have hired a videographer to capture all the moments as it goes so quickly, but other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

On that last note there – if *you* want to hire a videographer, we invite you to explore the videographer and film maker pages of our Little Book For Brides to find a good supplier!

What a magical way to complete the weekend (and hopefully cheer you up after the rain!).  I hope you’re all feeling relaxed after viewing Gemma and her infectious grin spinning around in her stunning dress. Thank you to the sweet couple for sharing your day with our readers and to Emma for taking such lovely shots of all the happy moments.

Be sure to bookmark this link for more designs by Charlotte from Wilden Bride that we’ve highlighted, especially if you’re thinking of something bespoke.

Have a relaxing rest of weekend everyone!

Love Jo -x-