A Bride in a High Street Top + Skirt for her Nature Inspired Wedding on the Family Farm

farmyard wedding photography beki mark claudiarosecarter 383

There’s such a great feeling of fun about this wedding celebration we’re sharing today, with the couple’s modus operandi being to hand make and re-purpose as much as possible, and to make it all about families, with lots of activities for children.

It’s also inspired by its setting – a working farm – and by the surrounding nature and countryside. Photographer Beki and Mark, an Electronics Engineer were married on the 30 June 2018 in a ceremony at The Henley Room, Stratford-upon-Avon, and a reception at Highfields Farm in Warwickshire; Mark’s family home and his parents’ working farm.

Images by Claudia Rose Carter

01 Farmyard wedding

These images by Little Book member Claudia Rose Carter are just breathtaking. I’ve had the privilege of writing about weddings she’s captured on a few occasions now, and her work is fine art brilliance with such heart and emotion.

“I am a wedding photographer so really enjoyed this part! Have always loved Claud’s work and after a chat on the phone, I had a big girl crush on her too. It was no contest and she was fab.”The couple first met at a 30th birthday party for Beki’s cousin 10 years ago.

“We then moved to rural Dorset (specifically the ‘grow a beard and go weird’ part), renovated an old cottage, grew a human…. And then finally got engaged one morning in bed when Mark casually popped out a ring. I had morning breath and my PJ’s on but had waited so long it didn’t matter!”

2 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“Our wedding was inspired by the countryside and nature around the farm. We used things found on the farm and loved being resourceful, making and being creative. We wanted to have ‘a do’ that was good for families and all the kids, without spending loads, but importantly having loads of booze. The motto for anything to do with preparation was, ‘If it’s not fun, we are not doing it’.”

3 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“My best friend Sophie has a very stylish mum so asked her to bag up loads of bangles for me to borrow. Sophie also bought me a lovely gold anklet.”

4 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

 

In her hair Beki wore a fresh floral hair comb with roses and wild greenery. This, together with her gorgeous summer posy were made by florist Lucy Walker.

Beki took care of her own make-up using lovely products from Bobbi Brown, and for her wedding day perfume, chose Eternity Moment by Calvin Klein.

5 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding6 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding7 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding8 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding1 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Beki’s dad sadly passed away two years ago, and so she walked down the aisle with her brother by her side, and chose Cinematic Orchestra’s To Build A Home.

“It’s a beautiful song Mark introduced me to years ago when we were doing up our house and building our home. It has a bit of an epic tear jerker vibe to it!”

9 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding10 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Beki and Mark said their vows to one another and also exchanged rings, which they sourced from eBay.

“Three of our nieces read our son’s favourite bedtime story – Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney. Poetry didn’t really suit us, all our favourite song lyrics sounded a bit wrong when we tried them out so we went for this. The message of the story is about a parent’s love and it kind of marks where we are in our lives right now. Also was really cute for the kids to read it.”

11 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“I know everyone says it but it is true: My favourite part was coming in and seeing Mark. He looked so emotional, which made me feel really connected to him and what we were doing. I loved saying our vows and actually getting married, it was a totally joyous feeling.”

13 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding18 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Following the ceremony, everyone headed over to Highfields Farm to continue the festivities in the sunshine. To make sure everything ran smoothly, and so that they and their parents could fully enjoy everything without worrying, Beki and Mark secured the services of Nicola at Behind The Scenes Events.

14 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

The farm was decorated beautifully, with cheerful bunting and terracotta pots of bright summer flowers, handmade signage and hay bales.

15 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

The cow shed was strung with festoon lighting and filled with more planters and small trees, and seasonal wildflowers in all kinds of containers from milk churns to plastic piping and beer tankards, and tables covered with colourful table cloths. There were crates for cards and lots of lovely family photos, too.

16 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“My friend Emma Hardicker is a printmaker and she painted a nature inspired mural on the walls of the cow shed we were in. We wanted to use as much from the farm as possible to decorate, hay bales, tree branches, old wooden gates, cattle feeders, bits of machinery, tractor tyres.”

17 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“We had an old boat full of grain from the farm for the kids to play in. Then brought in the colour with homemade bunting and lots of colourful and patterned blankets.”

19 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding 20 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding22 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding21 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding23 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding24 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding25 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding26 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding28 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding29 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding30 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding31 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding35 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Mark chose a suit from Next, which he wore with a red and blue checked shirt and navy blue tie (I love the mix of prints and colours!).

39 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Beki wore a long, romantic tulle skirt from Monsoon, which she paired with a cropped lace top from Hearts and Guns for a dreamy, laid back boho look, together with leather sandals made in Greece by an Etsy seller (no further details provided).

“My top was from an independent shop in Frome Somerset – designer Hearts and Guns. It looks like it’s made out of an old lace table cloth… each item is unique.”

“I liked the idea of not wearing a wedding dress so separates appealed. I wanted to buy something on the High Street and mix with a unique handmade independent item. The skirt and top came to £110 – I liked the price!”

40 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding42 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

As well as the grain, there was the chance to create a piece of art for Beki and Mark’s wedding gallery across one wall, and they also set up a bar filled with soft drinks, wine, spirits, mixers and beer for everyone to enjoy. The Lazy Pig laid on a barbecue and hog roast, which went down a treat.

“We parked up a trailer as a stage and had a gorgeous father and daughter folk duet, then a band called The Daggers, then a friend and DJ.”

43 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

As the golden summer’s day came to a close, Beki and Mark enjoyed a first dance together as husband and wife, to All I Want Is You by Barry Louis Polisar.

“It’s an awesome song from the film Juno. It’s a fave at home for crazy dancing in the living room with Theo, and the first dance had to be the three of us galloping around to this!”

44 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

“What would I have done differently!? Definitely would have gone away after the wedding to keep riding the wave! We did the clear up and resumed normal life straight away which was a bit of a bump to Earth as we have a toddler and we all got a tummy bug the following week.”

45 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“I really thought I was immune to getting stressed about the wedding. I felt really relaxed and like I had a good perspective in the lead up. But the day before I turned into the stressed cliché.”

“So maybe my advice is just accept this will happen –it is a rite of passage –if you don’t get stressed and loose your mind over a wonky bow the day before, how could you ever empathise with anyone getting married?!”

“I wish Mark and I had planned some time alone together to reflect and celebrate on our own. We are going to Sri Lanka for our Honeymoon…but I wish we had just maybe had a night away somewhere in the UK straight after.”

46 Nature inspire homespun farm wedding

Beki and Mark, a huge thank you for this glimpse into your beautiful, handmade day. Claudia Rose Carter, thank you so much for these truly lovely images also. See more of her sensational work on our blog pages right here.

With love,

Laura

Credits & Thanks

Laura Callan

Laura Callan View all Laura's articles

Laura is a freelance writer and content creator who loves telling stories. She has keen eye for photography and art, and lives with her husband, cats, and huge amounts of books.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Close
Top