Nicola & Alex’s Old Hollywood Inspired Black Tie Wedding at The Mount Without, Bristol

Nicola and Alex’s wedding at The Mount Without in Bristol was photographed by Tom of Tom Wyatt Co., whose relaxed, natural approach captured the atmosphere of the day beautifully. Inspired by Old Hollywood style and classic black tie dressing, their wedding combined candlelight, swing music and monochrome styling inside this beautiful and dramatic former church in Bristol.

Nicola wore a pre-loved gown inspired by her late mother’s own wedding dress, with a piece of her mum’s dress stitched into the lining. She paired it with a pre-loved veil, pearls woven through her hair and Coco Mademoiselle perfume. Alex wore a custom tuxedo from Suit Supply on Savile Row, designed with a subtle patterned jacket and their wedding date sewn into the collar.

Their ceremony included all three of their children, with Nicola’s eldest son Joshua accompanying her down the aisle – a very special and moving moment for all for reasons Nicola will explain. Afterwards, guests gathered for dinner beneath the breathtaking interiors of their stunning venue, with all-white flowers and jazz music.

Enjoy this beautiful film captured by Ben Radley Wedding Films.

My dress was pre-loved. My mum made wedding dresses and sadly she passed away when i was younger, so dress shopping was always going to be a point of pain for me.

I knew i didn’t want to walk around lots of boutiques searching for a dress as it was really my biggest sadness that my mum could make it for me. So, i found a dress online and took it to a seamstress and used my mums wedding dress as inspiration.

I attached a small piece of my mum’s wedding dress to the underlining of my dress. I also added a photo of her to my bouquet

I also wore a pre-loved veil – again taking inspo from my mums’ day. My shoes were from Lace & Favour and my hairdresser accessorised my hair with some small pearls. My scent was Coco Mademoiselle.

Alex’s tuxedo was from Suit Supply on Saville Row, and was chosen to go with our black tie theme. He went with a custom design with a subtle patterned jacket and our wedding date sewn into the collar.

My bridesmaids choose their own dresses – but their brief was ‘black tie’. Our flowergirl wore a dress from Monsoon and our page boy wore Next.

Our ceremony was lead by Tara The Celebrant. We wrote our own vows and tailored the whole ceremony to make it personal. 

An extract from Alex’s vows; “You motivate me to be more, but I have never been happier with what I already have. Because of you I am enough. So in return, I promise to exceed even our highest highs. And in the darkest days, to be your light.”

An extract from Nic”s vows: “Alex when the years pass and we are older,  the sounds of the children fade and the house falls quiet, I promise I will be there to hold your hand, I will sit down beside you and I vow that my heart will recognise you as its greatest decision.”

A friend read ‘Love Like a River’ by Whitney Hanson and another friend read ‘The Giraffe and the Monkey’, by Daniel Thompson. These two readings stood out as relatable and personal.

We wanted classic white table cloths with a touch of black decoration in line with the Old Hollywood black tie theme. We used a lot of candle light to fit in with the style of the old church.

Our florist was Emma Norton Flowers – we decided to not have any coloured flowers to align with the black and white theme throughout.

Our stationery was designed by Hunter Gatherings and in lieu of traditional wedding favours, we provided guests the opportunity to make a donation to Bristol Children’s Hospital after the care they provided for our eldest son during cancer treatment.

There are only two occasions in life when all your loved ones will gather in the same room for you: Have the wedding you want.

And we would have eaten more when given the chance. Everyone talked about the food and we missed out on most of it.

And whilst we did go over budget by about 30%, we have no regrets!

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