How a Sad Family Loss Led to a Lovely and Heartfelt Cornish Wedding for One Lucky Couple

Hello lovelies, how are you all today? I hope that you’re wrapped up warm against the November cold. I’m loving our open log fire at the moment – seeing the warm glow makes me feel so cosy and it’s the perfect antidote to the dark winter nights.

Today we’re incredibly privileged to share a very special wedding on Love My Dress, submitted by Danielle Donnelly, who owns wedding planning and styling company The Wedding Hub. The bride and groom are Mr and Mrs Wright, who tied the knot in a civil ceremony in the beautiful grounds of The Greenhouse Spa, Saltash, Cornwall. Marrying on 22 July 2017, they totally embraced the venue’s gardens which are full of English country flowers and created a day full to the brim with pastel colours and more flowers. The bride, a book-keeper, and groom, a health and safety manager, were engaged three years after meeting online, and married one year after the proposal.

The couple won their wedding package in a charity wedding auction organised by Danielle Donnelly of The Wedding Hub for her sister Emma, who was battling brain cancer. This is best explained in Danielle’s own brave words, so over to her.

“Last year I organised a wedding auction in the hope that I could raise money to help pay for the treatment my sister required to fight brain cancer. Unfortunately we were too late and my sister Emma died just days before the event. We continued with the auction and the winning bidders won a £30,000 wedding day package for £10,000. Literally everything was donated, from the venue to a mini-moon in wales, from wonderful friends and colleagues. The money that we raised has been given to my sister’s two young children who are now cared for by my mother and myself.”

Photography Mrs Jutson Photography

“I planned, coordinated and styled every last detail and on 22 July 2017, almost a year to the day of losing Emma, we held the wedding. So much love and hard work went in to making this wedding perfect in memory of Emma. It felt like I was trying to give Leanne and Barry the wedding I could now never give to my sister. She was my best friend and continues to be my inspiration daily.”Danielle called on her fantastic network of colleagues and friends to donate their services and time, and the result is wonderful, full of meaning and emotion. The summertime theme was inspired by the beautiful grounds of The Greenhouse Spa.

“Due to the location and venue that was in the package we decided a rustic feel using wild flowers and pastel colours would be perfect.”

The bride chose a romantic True Bride gown with a fitted bodice and full skirt from Te Amo Brides in Plymouth. The subtle sparkle embellishments on the tulle over-skirt catch the light so prettily, mirroring the fairy lights which adorned the ceremony space and the gardens.

“I tried lots of different dresses but as soon as I tried my dress on I smiled and just knew it was perfect for the day.”

The long train was complemented by a handmade veil made by Alisa Munro, and the bride’s elegant blonde up-do was adorned with a stunning and intricate beaded, floral hair vine from Audrey & Rose. The flattering V-neck of the gown was enhanced by a simple pendant necklace – a surprise gift from Mr Wright on the day. The bride also wore a handmade Magenta Rose Designs garter and carried a beautiful bouquet of pink and blue blooms with lots of fresh green foliage, created by Hannah Burnett Florist and Sharon Mesher Wedding Flowers.

The bridesmaids wore long pastel blue gowns with delicate floral lace detailing on the bodice; I love how they stand out against the beautiful greens of the summer garden at The Greenhouse Spa.

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Their hair and make-up were styled to mirror the bride’s by Kimberley Burns of The Hair Room, Plymouth and Katy Short Makeup Magic.

The incredible ceremony room, surrounded by greenery and looking over the gardens, was dressed up with strings of fairy lights, jars of vibrant flowers, hay bales and simple chairs decorated with trails of pastel ribbons. The bride walked down the aisle with her two brothers and her son Harry was page-boy and ring bearer, bringing the couple’s rings which were handmade by jewellery designer Nicola Hurst.

“We had the wonderful ladies from Cornish Celebrants conduct our ceremony. They added a beautiful Cornish reading afterwards wishing us luck in our marriage which was so, so sweet.”

Luckily the sun did come out during the day, allowing the guests to fully enjoy the grounds with its spectacular flowerbeds and for the newly-weds to spend a few moments together.

Mrs Jutson Photography and Stuart Brampton Photography were engaged to record the day on film, and have captured so many unexpected moments and relaxed shots.

“The wedding pictures were all amazing, we were so lucky to have them both as a part of our wedding day.”

The ceremony room was transformed for an informal, relaxed wedding breakfast. The tables look so beautiful with their vintage crockery and cutlery from Escential Blooms and Time for Tea, and the place names were wedding favour cookies bakes by Edible Essence Couture Cake Co with mini tags from Faithful Designs at The Wedding Hub.

Danielle from The Wedding Hub planned, co-ordinated and styled the day. Having her around was invaluable as the changeable English weather meant that the original plans had to change.

“Danielle changed the room around three times. Due to the torrential rain we had to have everything inside as we had originally planned to use the gardens for the ceremony.”

 

Danielle has some words to share with us, too.

“I will forever be thankful for the love, generosity and donations from all the wonderful wedding suppliers who helped to bring this wedding together. We all felt a lot of emotion on the day, not only because it was a wonderful wedding but because it was in my sister Emma’s memory.”

“I believe so strongly in community over competition and these amazing people really did go above and beyond to help me pull off the wedding of the year for this beautiful couple. It may have rained but there were so many smiles, love and even a double rainbow!”

Despite having a summertime wedding, drizzle on the day meant the bride slipped on a faux fur bridal jacket later – such a cosy yet chic look.

 

Lots of local suppliers combined to create a delicious feast, and it sounds as if food was a definite focus of the day.

Mini pastries and cake came from Te Cake, the guests enjoyed a welcome cocktail from Plymouth Gin, table wine was provided by Turtley Corn Mill and a hog roast from Goonvrea Farm was cooked and served by Trehill Farm.

My eye was most definitely caught by the pretty bicycle-drawn ice-cream cart from The Cowlick Creamery and this incredible dessert table of naked cakes.

“The three cakes were made by The Centrepiece Cake Company and dessert cupcakes were made by Cut Me Off A Slice, topped with bespoke Lotty Lollipop cake toppers.”

In the evening, the bar was donated by Tigermilk Bars and mini Cornish pasties were served up by Pilgrim Pasties. The entertainment for Mr and Mrs Wright’s day sounds like so much fun: as well as live music from Three’s Company, there was magician Kristien Harris who kept the guests amused. Mr and Mrs Wright’s first dance was to James Arthur’s ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’.

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“I’m so thankful that we had Danielle to help with everything. I would totally recommend a planner and stylist to take the pressure off, especially if you do not live in the area where you are getting married.”

Mr and Mrs Wright, sending many thanks to you for sharing your gorgeous Cornish garden wedding with us today. It looks so full of love and romance, and what a beautiful colour scheme. I’m blown away by the generosity of Danielle’s wedding contacts to help raise money and how they all pulled together to create a very special day. Many thanks of course go to Mrs Jutson Photography for these images.

We hope to see more of your work before too long on Love My Dress. It’s been a real privilege to share this wedding with you today; what a wonderful way to celebrate the memory of a dear sister.

Ele xx