A Pale Blue Dress for a Tinder Couple Wedding and their Intimate and Informal House Party Wedding

Sometimes I sit down and think where on earth has this year gone? It’s almost August and I really can’t understand how time has flown so fast! We do however, have plenty time still for a few more weddings before the end of the year, to capture the last of that gorgeous summer sun.

Today’s bride and groom chose September as the month to say their vows to each other, and what a lovely day it turned out to be in the brides parents own garden. Jess and Ian said their I Do’s on the sunny 9th September 2015 in Jess’s childhood garden at her parents house. The bride chose to go down the non traditional route when it came to her dress and chose a beautiful pale pastel lilac dress from Jo at The Couture Company – who we are delighted to recommend to you through our Little Book For Weddings. Jess wore her gown barefoot and with no jewellery apart from her wedding band.

“I had a black dress that was my best ever dress, which I had literally worn to bits. I took its shabby remains to Jo and said I’d like this, except as a wedding dress in a different colour and fabric, and a different length, with pockets, slightly different around the bust but basically the same…And somehow, even with short notice, this miracle worker made something even better than I could have imagined!”

Photography Emma Case

Capturing the intimate, personal and joyful day on camera was Birmingham-based wedding photographer Emma Case who specialises in taking honest images.

“Emma and Pete work from the heart and their joy in your happiness is evident in every frame they sent over. They have a knack for capturing those little moments that make your day unique. Their photos aren’t just about how things looked, but rather capture the soul of the occasion.”The couple met through social dating app Tinder after some gentle persuasion from one of Jess’s best friends, and were married just 10 months after their first meeting.

“I was mad busy when we met. I was travelling with my job for the first half of the week, whilst my two older kids, Ava and Morris, were with their dad. Then, full on single parenting and working from home for the second half. I’d written off romance until one of my best friends gave me a bit of a talking to and bossed me into joining Tinder.”

“After some bizarre and hilarious dates with some quite uninteresting men, Ian and I matched. We met and he was so lovely. I have never felt more immediately comfortable with a man before Ian. He was bright and funny, with an incredibly generous spirit. He says he felt a very strong connection right from our first messages. 10 months later we were married, and I was 10 weeks pregnant on our wedding day! Our son Ray was born in April 2016.”

The bride chose to go down the non traditional route when it came to her dress and chose a beautiful pale pastel lilac dress from Jo at The Couture Company, which she wore barefoot with no jewellery apart from her wedding band.

“I had a black dress that was my best ever dress, which I had literally worn to bits. I took its shabby remains to Jo and said I’d like this, except as a wedding dress in a different colour and fabric, and a different length, with pockets, slightly different around the bust but basically the same…And somehow, even with short notice, this miracle worker made something even better than I could have imagined!”

The bride and her mini maid each carried a stunning bouquet of greenery, foliage and white flowers made by Amy from Ava Event Styling.

“Amy has been a friend for many years. I’ve always adored her incredible flair and impeccable eye for detail.”

Jess chose her daughter Ava to be her bridesmaid who shone in a gorgeous navy blue dress she picked up on a shopping trip with Jess’s best friends.

Ava accompanied her mummy  down the garden aisle whilst her brother Morris was on best man duty for Ian, which included losing the rings in damp grass for a few heart stopping moments! She chose Only One performed by Grassmarket to walk down the aisle to, as one of Jess’s friends Penelope makes up one-third of the band.

“They’re a Canadian bluegrass band and their beautiful album You Are For The Ocean has acted as a sort of unofficial soundtrack to our family as it’s grown. Close To Me from the same album is Ray’s lullaby every night, so it seemed an apt song to walk down the aisle to.”

“My parents house has always been an epic party house with so many special family memories, so it was perfect for us as a wedding venue. We styled everything on the day to enhance the existing warmth and beauty of their house – we wanted the day to seem effortless.”

“Our ceremony was then officiated by our friend Beth who wrote a very personal and beautiful celebration for us, and we both wrote our own personal vows”

“An extract from Ian’s vows read:”

When we spoke for the first time and I said that you looked so beautiful in the light of that wooded glade in Nova Scotia, I already felt that I had met someone special to me.All I knew then was that I had to know more about you.
I could hardly think of anything but the next time I would hear from you, telling me how Paris looked from the window of your plane, or how bleak parts of Switzerland look from the inside of your taxi.
These are the parts of you that are so beautiful and alive, that I loved then and cherish now.
I love your attitude to life, your ability to maintain it is a constant source of excitement and happiness to me.

“And an extract from my vows read:”

The time before I met you, love was rich with lessons.
The nature of true friendship: loyalty, wit, acceptance.
The challenge of parenthood: fully understanding the term ‘unconditional’ and relishing in it.
The embrace of grief: needing strong arms to carry absence.
And among those deep truths, the certainty that you cannot make a promise once and hope to keep it.
Instead my vows must be a daily choice to be your witness, your love and the keeper of the trust between us.
That is my commitment to you, I am very grateful to make it.

Best man Morris looked extremely cute in formal black tie paired with Converse and batman socks, a look he had insisted on himself, and groom Ian bought his blue jacket, dotty shirt and dark suit trousers whilst on a shopping trip around Selfridges.

“Our friend Robin also chose a piece to read, which he chose himself from Love’s Labour’s Lost. Morris was too little to do a best man speech so we pre-recorded his thoughts on Ian and played them as part of the ceremony.”

“Highlights included their shared fondness for Lego, and Morris being particularly proud of Ian being ‘science-y.’

To recreate the vision Jess had for the day, she recruited the talents of event stylists Amy and Amanda from Ava Event Styling to deck out her parents garden with various items and props from their collection.

“Amy and Amanda used vintage glass bottles, clay bottles, hanging lanterns and a host of other charming props from their store to make the garden look even more magical. They hung ribbon from a tree in the centre for people to tie wishes to and created an aisle with huge confetti-filled balloons. The vintage tables and benches were borrowed from the local Scout troop!”

The atmosphere in the garden looked electric with friends and family all getting into the spirit of the celebrations and enjoying the peaceful and familiar surroundings.

Following the ceremony, Jess and Ian went with Emma for their wedding portraits whilst their guests enjoyed the party.

“When Emma took us away to take some photos of just the two of us she asked us some lovely questions to get us to be all sweet and soppy with each other, except when she asked me what my favourite thing was about Ian, we all descended into a comedy rabbit hole of willy jokes!”

The couple then had their favourite local Balti restaurant provide vast quantities of curry, naan bread and rice for their guests to fill up on before kicking the dancing off with a performance by The Rebel Party and their first dance to Ain’t Nobody by Chaka Khan.

“The Rebel Party band brought all of their energy to an incredible set – they were really spectacular!”

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“From a practical perspective: I’m an events professional and there are basically 3 things you need to consider when you’re creating a spectacular occasion; time, money and effort. You have to invest in at least two of them for everything to work and for you to stay sane. So, if you have a small budget, you will need time and effort to pull off your plan. If you want it to be easy, be prepared to pay for things and give yourself a generous timescale. If you want it to happen quickly, you’ll need to be prepared to pay and work hard.”

“Looking back on the day in hindsight, I would have rigged some microphones or sound amplification for our vows. It’s amazing how 140 people can muffle the sound, even in a relatively small space. Other than that, our day was perfect!”

“From a personal perspective: there is no wedding favour, music playlist or balloon arrangement that is more important than your relationships with your friends, family and spouse-to-be. If elements of your wedding are creating difficulties between you and your loved ones, then take a step back and re-evaluate.”

I love how Jess and Ian’s wedding day is so personal and true to themselves and their family. It looked like a party I would have very much liked to have been a part of so big congratulations to the happy couple for pulling off such a spectacular day. A big thank you also to photographer Emma Case for capturing all of the lovely moments so beautifully.

Until next time…

Much love,

Holly x