I grew up in the North East, so going ‘to town’ always meant a trip to Newcastle when I was a child. Its therefore really lovely to feature a beautiful wedding at one of the most iconic venues in the region, the Baltic, which sits proudly right on the banks of the river Tyne.
Fay and Karl married on Monday 23rd October 2017 at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, after meeting eleven years before while at University in Newcastle. They got engaged in Rome in 2016 and straight away knew where they wanted to say their vows.
““We gravitate towards a clean and modern look so we chose a neutral palate of navy and grey and, as I love copper, we used that as an accent colour. I was really happy with how everything came together.”
Images by Belle Art Photography
These beautiful and atmospheric photographs come to us via the talented lens of Becy at Belle Art Photography.
“I found Becy on Instagram and we were blown away by the quality of her work. It was totally what we wanted – nothing cheesy or forced. She had such a lovely style that had an almost film-like quality to it. We chatted a few times over email before the day and she was such a pleasure to have with us on the morning – it was like having a friend there. It’s impossible to overstate how thrilled we were with Becy and the photos we ended up with. We can’t choose a favourite, though she did manage to capture our son’s cheeky spirit amazingly well.”The elegant invitations were from Papier, while table numbers and ‘find your seat’ signs were by Made With Love Designs. The place names were homemade by Fay and Karl, using Copper and Solder tape.
Hannah of Wildflower Florist was responsible for the beautiful bouquets and floral arrangements.
“I love eucalyptus leaves and really simple florals and wanted to keep to a green and white palate if possible. I had seen Hannah’s work on Instagram and knew I wanted her to do our flowers- her style is so beautiful and I was really excited to work with her. I met with her to have a chat about what we wanted and she got it straight away. As I didn’t give a clear outline of exactly what I wanted for the bouquets, they were such a nice surprise on the morning of the wedding. They were exactly what I didn’t know I wanted and I even had a succulent in mine which I have since planted.”
Fay looked perfect in ‘Carmen’ by Maggie Sottero, which she purchased at YAP Bridal in Newcastle, alongside her beautiful floor-length veil.
“I thought I would simply go to a high street shop and buy a nice dress and be done with it. A couple of weeks after we booked the venue, Mum and I went to London for a try on. It was a really fun day and I bought a dress thinking I could tick it off my list as a job done. It took one try when I got back to my parents for me to realise it just wasn’t right.”
“I made appointments at a few bridal shops in Newcastle and invited my Mum and sister up to help. My mum and I went to the first appointment at YAP Bridal and Heather showed me some dresses which were exactly what I had asked for. They didn’t suit me at all! I had a wander around the shop and stumbled upon a dress which was nothing like I ever thought I wanted, tried it on and it was the one instantly. YAP were amazing and I can’t recommend them and their service enough (Anne from Diva Designs who does all the alterations is phenomenal).”
On her feet Fay wore custom River Island heels with her new surname and the wedding date on the insole, made by her super talented sister in law. For scent she chose her favourite Dries van Noten by Frederic Malle, while for accessories she opted for a faux pearl and gold hairslide from LeLet NY at Net a Porter and a gold Kate Spade bracelet, a gift from her mother in law.
Hair and make up were the work of talented friends and family and I love Fay’s choice of an elegant but relaxed up do (which has a touch of Downton Abbey baout it, don’t you think?) and dark rep lip and nails.
“The Baltic was always our first choice of venue. The views from the top floor where we had our ceremony are phenomenal and the food is fantastic. We had been visiting the Baltic throughout our relationship and it was one of the first places we took our son Milo after he was born. It’s also five minutes from our house!”
“We had less than thirty people for the ceremony and the meal and we were able to book out the viewing box and the restaurant for our day before moving down to River Terrace for the evening.”
Karl wore a two-piece suit from Sandro, with shoes from Barkers Shoes and a tie and pocket square from Selfridges, while the couple’s adorable little boy wore a suit from RJR. John Rocha at Debenhams, paired with Adidas Gazelles.
Fay’s dad drove her and her sisters to the venue, before accompanying Fay down the aisle to ‘Proximate Distance’ by Kyungso Park.
“We went for the standard vows but Lynn from Gateshead Council managed to make it really personal and beautiful. We had planned for our little boy to hand the rings to us which we knew was risky but luckily he was quite happy to and even gave us both a kiss.”
“Karl got his plain gold band from Goldsmiths in Newcastle while I wore my great nan’s ring as I was picking up my wedding band on honeymoon in New York. I chose the Medium Herringbone ring from the same designer as my engagement ring, Satomi Kawakita.”
As is traditional, Fay and Karl were covered with confetti by guests after the ceremony, only theirs was not only biodegradable, but made specially to their wedding colours by Confetti Wishes Store.
The bridesmaids exuded elegance in navy one shoulder dresses from John Lewis, which they wore with their own jewellery and a silver knot ring from Gill Pottle Jewellery, a gift from Fay.
“Food was definitely one of our priorities and the tasting was one of the highlights of wedding planning! Our meal was in the restaurant Six at the top of the Baltic and everyone commented on how great the food was. The evening food was provided by Fresh Element.”
“For decor we had loads of vanilla candles from IKEA decorated with stickers from Copper and Solder. We dotted origami cranes (made by Origami by Russell) and paper origami spinners (from Origami Est) around the tables too, while the copper frames were an amazing find from Home Bargains and the wire copper baskets were from TK Maxx.”
“The personalised chalkboard was an amazing addition from Chief Chalker. The copper geometric lights were from The Range and the concrete copper letters were from Bells and Whistles Make on Etsy. On the tables, we had succulents in concrete pots to go with the eucalyptus leaves in short grey vases that I got from Marks and Spencer. “
“We are lucky to have Mason and Rye in Newcastle, the instore bakery/café in Fenwick’s, who do delicious and beautiful cakes. As we had some guests attending who are vegan, we also had a small vegan chocolate cake made by the The Lovely Little Tearoom, who are based in my mum and dad’s village.”
Evening entertainment came in the form of DJ Bride and Groove, who kept the dance floor full and were popular with guests young and old.
Words of Wedded Wisdom
“Even if you don’t end up buying a dress from a more traditional bridal shop, I would encourage every bride to make at least one appointment. Wedding dresses aren’t something that you try on all the time so it’s impossible to know what will suit you until you try a few on and they really do know what they are talking about!
Also make a spreadsheet. My wedding spreadsheet is one of my greatest achievements.”
Huge thanks to Fay and Karl for sharing their beautiful day. I have a real yearning for the North East now- Becy seems to have captured its spirit just perfectly. If you’re as big a fan of the Baltic as I am, take a look here for some more weddings at this modern and contemporary venue. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Much love,
Shona x
Credits & Thanks
- Photographer - Belle Art Photography
- Venue - Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead
- Bride's Dress - ‘Carmen’ by Maggie Sottero, purchased at YAP Bridal, Newcastle
- Veil - YAP Bridal, Newcastle
- Shoes - River Island
- Scent - Dries van Noten by Frederic Malle
- Hair accessories - LeLet NY at Net a Porter
- Jewellery - Kate Spade
- Bridesmaid dresses - John Lewis
- Jewellery - Gill Pottle Jewellery
- Groom's outfit - Suit, Sandro; shoes, Barkers Shoes; tie + pocket square, Selfridges
- Pageboy outfit - Suit, RJR. John Rocha at Debenhams; shoes, Adidas Gazelles
- Flowers - Wildflower Florist
- Rings - Goldsmiths (groom) + Satomi Kawakita (bride)
- Invitations - Papier
- Find your seat signs - Made With Love Designs
- Confetti - Confetti Wishes Store
- Catering - Six + Fresh Element
- Cake - Mason and Rye
- Entertainment - Bride and Groove