Dear Readers, I hope you’re having a lovely day! I’m battling jet lag right now after returning from a trip to Canada!
But the beautiful wedding we’re sharing with you today has perked me up, with its simple yet stylish colour palette of whites (with added greenery), and a moving ceremony performed by both fathers of our couple, who also both happen to be vicars, too! This was followed by a reception in the incredible surroundings of a historic walled garden in the summertime, and one fantastic, energetic evening party to remember!
Images by Green Antlers Photography
Mary, a Primary School Teacher and Matt, a Quantity Surveyor celebrated their marriage on the 14 July 2018, with a ceremony held at Christ Church, Warley in Brentwood, Essex and a reception at The Walled Garden at Stubbers Adventure Centre, close to Mary and Matt’s respective family homes, and also where Mary had worked (at Stubbers Adventure Centre) for a number of years.
“It was a special place to our family…We wanted it to be simple, elegant and for the venue to speak for it self. Our service was a Christian service led by our dads (who are both vicars!)”
I love the natural arrangements of white roses and other neutral blooms together with olive branches, eucalyptus and other foliage that Mary and her bridesmaids carried. These were the work of florist Liz Pinks.
“Liz was happy to help from the beginning and said yes to our crazy ideas! She was so easy to talk to and we loved her ideas. I always wanted as white as possible flowers and we chose the wild green foliage to go with the venue.”
With that wish to keeps things simple in mind, Mary chose a minimalist bias cut gown by Pronovias, which she chose at Ella Bridal in Edinburgh. The dress also featured exquisite beaded embellishment on the low scoop back – just lovely!
“It went with the theme of simple elegance, was not too fussy and I think it suited my body shape!”
On her feet Mary wore suede block heel slingbacks from Office, and for jewellery, a pair of custom-made pearl drop earrings from Rosie Brown.
Make-up Artist Rose Williams gave Mary a perfectly radiant look, while her hair was styled by Vogels.
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To her hair, Mary added a lace and pearl trimmed mantilla veil by Pronovias, which she was able to pick up second hand from eBay.
The bridesmaids wore pretty wrap maxi dresses in a delicate shade of dove grey from Maids to Measure, which they all teamed with their own shoes and jewellery.
“We originally met at church as Matt recognised my Essex accent! Then we were friends for a few years before dating. We became engaged in October 2017 and married in July 2018.”
To the musical piece Arrival Of The Birds by Cinematic Orchestra, Mary was accompanied down the church aisle by her dad, meeting Matt, who looked handsome in a navy blue three-piece suit from T.M. Lewin with a printed tie and pocket square from Woven Durham. The groomsmen wore matching ties with suits from Marks & Spencer.
The ceremony was led by Church of England vicar, Rev. John Dunnett, and Mary and Matt chose to say traditional vows to one another. For readings, the couple chose two, the first being 1 John 4: 7-12, followed by John 2: 1-11 (The Wedding at Cana).
As well as exchanging vows, Mary and Matt also gave rings to one another, which they chose at Hatton Jewellery, Leigh-on-Sea.
“Matt’s family has always used Terry Hatton for their jewellery so we couldn’t go elsewhere on such a special occasion!”
These wonderfully light and bright images are by Green Antlers Photography, who really captured the spirit of Mary and Matt’s day.
“We were impressed the whole way through the process of our wedding with their help, guidance and the final product! Sam was discreet and captured lots of natural photos, which is exactly what we wanted. The photos are bright, happy and we can’t wait to print them!”
The reception marquee at The Walled Garden was decorated with strings of festoon lighting, and an array of fantastic greenery hoops, which had been made by Matt’s dad and then decorated by florist Liz. I just love them hanging from the ceiling canopy – really stylish, fresh and modern.
Across the dining tables there were garlands of huge white roses and fresh foliage, and as table names, fantastic 50 Shades of Scotland cards by Emily Mackenzie.
Place settings were a stylish three-in-one creation of name, menu and napkin, adorned with a single thistle on each.
After drinks outside, everyone sat down to a wedding breakfast (including beef bourguignon) by Ridgeway Catering Company.
Mary and Matt’s wedding cake was a towering three-tier pink ombre creation by an old school friend of Mary’s – Jess, of Jessie’s Cakes, decorated with fresh and pretty roses and hydrangea blooms.
“Jess…makes the most gorgeous cakes. She was such a reasonable price and made an incredible cake!”
“Our favourite bit of the day has got to be the speeches and the evening party, as we were able to relax and have fun but we enjoyed it all!”
And what an incredible evening party it looked to be! First of all Mary and Matt enjoyed a first dance together as a newly married couple, choosing Signed, Sealed, Delivered, performed by their live band of choice.
“We didn’t want a cheesy slow song and wanted to get everyone dancing!”
It was the London Party Band who ensured that Mary, Matt and their family and friends danced the night away and had the very best time.
Words of Wedded Wisdom
“Take time to be engaged before trying to plan everything.”
“Expect to be shattered after!”
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“Don’t tell everyone your plans – too many opinions are stressful!”
Mary and Matt, many congratulations and thank you for sharing your stylish, fresh and modern wedding day with us. Those foliage hoops are genius! Many thanks to Green Antlers for their incredible images, too. See more of their work on Love My Dress right here. Did you also know we have a whole section of our blog dedicated to lovely walled garden weddings? Take a look here.
With love,
Laura
