Hello readers. I hope you had a wonderful weekend? With Easter almost upon us, today marks the beginning of two four day weeks. Hooray! What better way to celebrate than with a relaxed and elegant garden party wedding in the picturesque, seaside resort of Lyme Regis. Verity and Ed tied the knot on the 12th September, 2015, at The Guildhall in Lyme Regis, Dorset, followed by a reception nearby, at the bride’s parents’ home, overlooking the English Channel.
“We wanted our wedding to have a relaxed, garden party vibe and we were inspired by the seaside setting. In keeping with the laid back feel of the day, we decided not to have a formal three course meal, or a seating plan (other than the top table), instead we opted for a Sri Lankan buffet, ice cream served from a bicycle and a cheese tower to finish.”
Photography by John Barwood
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We are delighted to be sharing these beautiful images, captured by the husband and wife duo behind John Barwood Photography. John Barwood Photography is a member of our Little Book for Brides, a carefully curated directory of the best wedding suppliers in the business.
“John and Sophie were amazing and so professional. They captured our day perfectly and we love all of the photos.”
Verity looked stunning in a 1930s inspired ensemble from Halfpenny London. Our bride paired her beautiful, oyster coloured, silk dress with an ivory lace overlay and an art deco inspired belt…
“I loved the elegance and simplicity of my dress – I felt amazing in it. I went back to try it on again on my own before I made the definite decision and I just knew it was the one. The ladies at Halfpenny London were so lovely too and the shop itself is beautiful.”
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“Ed and I met in Bristol, in 2008, through friends. Ed arranged a dinner party at a friend’s house and ensured that I was invited – he cooked an amazing homemade pizza and spent the evening charming me.
We got engaged at Hix in Lyme Regis six years later. Ed hadn’t planned on proposing that weekend but after a few G&T’s in the afternoon, and a few more glasses of wine at Hix, he had the courage to get down on one knee and pop the question. We bought the engagement ring in Lyme Regis the next day.”
“We didn’t have a wedding planner, but we were so lucky that Ali McLaughlin, who lives locally and owns Dottie’s Kitchen on Broad Street in Lyme Regis, put us in contact with so many fantastic people including Nana who did our amazing Sri Lankan food and Victoria Cottle who managed everything on the day for us and arranged all of the waitresses and bar staff.”
In a nod to the wedding’s seaside setting, our bride asked her ‘maids to wear navy coloured dresses…
“The bridesmaids all chose their own dresses, all I stipulated was the colour: navy. They wore gowns from Whistles, Mary Portas, Monsoon and Closet.”
Our bride accessorised simply and elegantly with a pair of pearl earrings and fresh flowers in her hair.
Meanwhile, Ed looked very dapper in sandy coloured chinos and a grey jacket, both from Kestin Hare, a Liberty print pocket square, a straw hat and a pair of Visvim shoes. The groom’s spezzato style ensemble perfectly suited the relaxed, seaside setting (spezzato describes the Italian art of putting together trousers and a jacket which are not a suit, but complement one another.)
Verity and Ed said ‘I do’ at The Guildhall in Lyme Regis. In a break from tradition, our bride asked her parents to walk down the aisle ahead of her. I absolutely love Verity’s mum’s mother of bride outfit!
“My mum and dad both walked down the aisle in front of me. I decided that I didn’t want to be formerly given away. I followed behind with my bridesmaids. We all walked down the aisle to ‘By Your Side’ by Sade.”
Our couple opted for two readings: ‘All I need to know about life, I learnt from my dog’, a poem by an unknown writer, read by Ed’s sister, and ‘I rely on you’ by Hovis Presley, read by Verity’s sister.
“We have a rescue dog called Minnie who inspired the reading about the dog. We have had her for a few years and she is very much a part of our family. The second reading was one we saw and really liked so we chose that too.”
Verity and Ed travelled from The Guildhall to the bride’s family home in their 1980s VW camper van…
“We bought a 1980s VW campervan last year, which we call Daisy, so we decided to use that as our wedding vehicle.”
“Our favourite parts of the day were the drinks on the lawn in the sunshine and the speeches, although it’s tough to pick one part and as we enjoyed it all so much.”
The couple held their reception in a marquee on the lawns of Verity’s parents’ house, overlooking the sea. Such was the beauty of the garden setting and expansive sea views, that little decoration was required.
“We had a wonderful marquee and very posh cabin toilets from Barny Lee Marquees. They were very efficient and I can’t recommend them highly enough, we were so impressed. The toilets even played music and the marquee was beautiful and far exceeded our expectations.”
Verity and Ed decorated the marquee and gardens with lots of lovely flowers, arranged by florist Clair Lythgoe, and strings of papel picado – a kind of traditional Mexican paper garland.
“One of my bridesmaids lives in Mexico and she bought us beautiful, white, Mexican paper decorations that had ‘Verity & Edward’ written on them. We hung them all around the outside of the house, in the garden and in the marquee.”
“We opted for clear sides to the marquee at the end facing the sea, so the main event in terms of décor was the views of the sea and my parents’ beautiful garden.”
“Lighting in the marquee was really important to me and Barny recommended using up lighting and fairy lights which looked lovely and created a really nice, soft light.”
For their wedding cake, the couple opted for a cheese tower from Justin Tunstall at The Town Mill Cheesemonger in Lyme Regis.
“Our wedding breakfast was catered by Nana, who came highly recommended to us. He cooked an amazing Sri Lankan buffet for our guests with starters which were served with drinks on the lawn before sitting in the marquee. His food was delicious and we loved it!
We love cheese and always buy a mountain of the stuff when we’re in Lyme Regis. We had a tasting session a few months before the wedding and Justin was really helpful.”
For their evening entertainment, Ed and Verity employed the skills of party covers band Coverbeat…
“Coverbeat really got the party going. We chose the songs in advance from a very long list they gave to us. They also played a few songs that we specifically requested that weren’t on their list. They were brilliant and sounded great.”
Words of Wedded Wisdom:
“We had an amazing day and we were so lucky to be able to have our reception at my parents’ house but we didn’t realise how much additional effort it would be not to hire a venue. You have to think of every last detail and buy or hire everything needed on the day including water urns for tea and coffee, fridges, ice, etc. “
A huge thank you both to our couple and to John Barwood Photography for the wonderful images. If you’d like to see more seaside weddings, please follow this link. You can find other lovely Halfpenny London brides here.
Have a great week!
Annora x
Photographer – John Barwood Photography
Wedding day coordinator – Victoria Cottle
Venue – Ceremony at the The Guildhall in Lyme Regis, Dorset, followed by a reception, just down the road, at Verity’s parents’ house.
Marquee – Barny Lee Marquees
Wedding Dress – Halfpenny London
Shoes – LK Bennett
Bride’s Scent – Mademoiselle by Chanel
Groom – Trousers + Jacket from Kestin Hare + Visvim shoes + Liberty pocket square
Bridesmaids – Dresses from Whistles, Mary Portas, Monsoon + Closet
Florist – Clair Lythgoe
Cake – Justin Tunstall at the Town Mill Cheesemonger in Lyme Regis.
Transport – The couple’s 1980s VW camper van
Entertainment – Coverbeat
Rings – Ring Jewellery, Brighton
Catering – Nana’s
Stationery – notonthehighstreet.com
Hair & Makeup Artist – Jane Viner
Oh, beautiful pictures! I love this natural style and vintage look!
What a fun looking wedding, they both look so happy. Lovely photos x
oh how I love this wedding! Lyme Regis is one of my favourite places, and just a few weeks ago I was googling wedding venues…. There aren’t many options for receptions so to have the option to have a wedding at home, with those views – perfect!