A Relaxed Northumbrian Wedding Inspired By ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’

It’s the end of January already; can you believe it, lovelies? As well as meaning that spring will soon be on its way (hurrah!), it signals the end of Run Every Day January for me. I do hope that you’ve all had a great start to the year and have enjoyed all of the wonderful, inspiring weddings we’ve shared already in 2018.

We’re travelling up to Woodhill Hall, Otterburn, Northumberland today for the wedding of Mr and Mrs Hartley. The couple married on 5 August 2017 in a beautiful wedding, created around a loose woodland and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ theme. With harmonious shades of dusky pink, bright pink, cream and maroon, the couple’s priority was to allow their guests to relax and chill throughout the celebrations.

Photography Andy Hudson Photography

Photographer Andy Hudson captured these beautiful images, and set up the newly-weds portraits so wonderfully as the sun set over the Northumbrian landscape.

“We met Andy at a wedding fair and totally loved not only his photos but also his personality. Andy is so relaxed and down to earth and really put us at our ease especially as neither of us like having our photos taken. On the day itself he was incredible, so unobtrusive and chilled. Andy managed to capture so many wonderful moments without us even realising and he also really impressively captured the atmosphere of the day. We couldn’t recommend him more highly.”

 

The bride, a contemporary dancer and teacher, and the groom, who is a primary school teacher, hail from the same area and have known each other since they were fifteen.

“We become close friends through a performance company that we both attended but never actually got together until we were 27. We saw each other through heartbreaks and successes and one day it was like ‘Woah, how have I not seen what’s been in front of me all this time?’.

“My locket was vintage from 1936 and carried photos of my grandparents who sadly passed away a few years ago. I also wore a vintage 1930s Art Deco watch that Iain had bought me for my 30th birthday.”

With beautiful Christian Louboutin heels embroidered with flowers and leaves , doesn’t the bride look perfect? I love the tonal contrast between the bridesmaids’ knee-length dusky pink H&M gowns and their bright pink ribbon sashes; they add a lovely contemporary feel to the day.

They wore matching hair accessories, also made by the bride’s mum, with Missguided shoes and wish bracelets from Stella & Dot, given to them by Mrs Hartley.

Mrs Hartley’s romantic lacy gown is by designer Kobus Dippenaar. Its detailed cut-out back is so unusual and the beautifully-detailed bodice against the slinky, flowing satin skirt creates such a gorgeous times-gone-by vibe. The bride added a tiered vintage veil and floral hair accessories handmade by her very clever mum.

“I loved the back and the detailing in the lace work and the contrast in textures from the satin to the lace.”

The groom’s blue suit was found at M&S and he wore it with a personalised pocket watch that the bride gave to him the morning of the wedding. Its lovely inscription reads ‘Adventure is out there. Our adventure continues.’

His vibrant buttonhole adds such a gorgeous splash of colour. They were put together by Stobos Flowers of Wylam, who also created the bouquets of peonies and vintage roses – the bride’s favourite flowers.

“Stobos Flowers of Wylam provided the bouquets and button holes but my mum and auntie did the rest of the flowers. The colours of dusty pinks and maroons leant themselves to the ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ theme.”

The couple chose to marry in a civil ceremony, officiated by Alnwick Registrars. The bride walked in with her dad to the sound of ‘Fortunate Son’ by Bob Thiele and Lyle Workman played on the acoustic guitar. I love the romance of the ceremony room with all of those sumptuous full-blown flowers and the twists of ivy on the chairs.

The ceremony included three meaningful and completely personal readings; ‘The Invitation’ by Oriah read by the groom’s sister Kath and a heartfelt speech written in the style of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘If’ by friend Jo Quilliam.

“My brother re-worked the lyrics of one of our favourite songs, Baz Luhrman’s ‘Wear Sunscreen’, which was incredibly personal and touching and timed perfectly to the music.”

“Don’t be reckless with each other’s hearts. Know that Iain is sensitive and yearns for praise and that Lucy merely needs a little defrosting before approaching. Never forget you are now entwined!”

“Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long but know it is much smoother together. Remember compliments from each other, forget words said in rage. And never go to bed on an argument.”

The couple’s beautiful rings are handmade pieces by jeweller Kirsty Taylor.

“Her jewellery is beautifully made. I chose a rose gold band as it complimented my 1930s engagement ring really well and Iain liked the look and design of the brushed silver bands.”

“I think my favourite part was just after the ‘kiss the bride’ moment as I was finally married to my soul mate. The cheers and applause that we received just echoed our own happiness.”

The couple found their perfect venue in Woodhill Hall, an exclusive-hire venue set in a beautiful, wooded 100-acre estate.

“We chose this venue for its unique style and atmosphere. It was so warm and welcoming and was super-quirky which we fell in love with.”

After the ceremony it was party time! The wedding breakfast was served inside the venue’s light-filled conservatory before the guests moved across the gardens to the teepee for dancing. The first dance was to Ray Charles’ ‘Come Rain or Shine’, and vintage band Fee Fee and The Sentiments kept them all entertained with a full-on set of rock and roll classics and pop songs reworked with a retro twist.

Mr and Mrs Hartley made the most of its woodland location with their loose woodland and Midsummer Night theme, created by including lots of trailing ivy, petals, stones and vintage birdcages as well as softly-flickering candles in glass lanterns.

I instantly fell in love with the oh-so creative tree table plan which is decorated with vibrant pressed flowers. Their wedding favours were personalised galvanised tin buckets filled with sweet pea seeds, and the couple gave a nod to the love of ‘Friends’ with their table names.

“I was a pretty chilled bride and just wanted the day to be chilled so I didn’t do a huge amount of research. I just went with my colour scheme and drew and thought of all the shows I’d been in with regards to style and theme.”

Oh, a word about the cake. The couple’s friend Jo Quilliam baked and decorated the three-tier beauty, perfectly matching the pink icing to the flowers.

“Jo has known both of us for most of our lives and created a beautiful and personal cake which included different moments from our past.”

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“Enjoy it! The whole process. You’ll be amazed at how fast it all goes and then suddenly it’s over so savour every moment. Also it’s yours and your partner’s day so choose what you want and have the guests you want.”

“Lastly, on the big day itself take a moment for just you and your new husband. We had a twenty minute break from the day and it was lush.”

I’m sure you’ll all join me in sending thanks and congratulations to Mr and Mrs Hartley on their beautiful wedding day. Such beautiful flowers, and I love your woodland theme so much. Many thanks also to Andy Hudson for his heartfelt images. If you’ve been inspired by this wedding then please have a peek at these other woodland weddings on Love My Dress.

Ele xx