Helsby Tents: Ethical and Sustainable Marquee Wedding Style That Respects The Environment

Blessed be, for it’s that time of year when, touch wood/fingers crossed, the sunshine and daylight hours are playing a much bigger role in our lives and hopefully, encouraging more of us outdoors.

This sweet little set of images was created to inspire those of you planning an outdoor wedding with a celebration under canvas. It comes from an ethical and sustainable perspective, with every supplier involved considering the impact they made on their environment.  Mara from wedding marquee supplier, Helsby Tents, tells us more…

“There seems to be a need for something new, for a step back into elegance within the outdoor wedding trends, and that’s what photographer Elena Popa and her creative team have aimed for here (that is not to say that the other outdoor trends aren’t beautiful in every way!).”

Images by Elena Popa Photography 

“The inspiration was delicate elegance with as little formality as possible – the ‘New Elegant’, if you will. This means a care for the materials used in our weddings, high quality suppliers, and a focus on the conversation between the venue and its surrounding environment – a cohesion and respect for the space around us.”

“This shoot was important to us as it had to really show what we ourselves see when we see the Sailcloth – a bright, elegant blank canvas. The aim was to focus on the roots of this tent, and work with it.”

It was about that connection between being outdoors, not stifled by too many walls and formality, whilst still keeping the essence of wedding elegance.”

“There are aspects of tradition with the tables and white tent, which are broken up by the natural, relaxed florals as well as greenery arrangements.”

“Whilst long tables are more informal, we wanted to make use of the softness of the tent by reflecting its curves within the furniture. The round tables reflecting the bar in shape, and the bar reflecting the wooden chairs in texture.”

“It’s about the couple that want the best of both worlds, both the freedom and freshness of an outdoor wedding, and the high end finish of an elegant location. We wanted to focus on Jess (the model) and her surroundings, to create the intimate moment of first exploring your finished wedding venue, the moment when you can finally breathe, and truly enjoy the beauty of what will be your wedding.”

“It is about the feminine, the moment to connect with yourself before the day really starts, to take it in, all that hard work put into the event, and remember that it’s all for you, by you.”

“Curating a styled shoot that includes a tent is a little different from a location one, as the whole building has to be physically built from ground up every time! Because of this, Helsby Tents then offer the tent, including flowers, styling even the bar and caterers all designed to a high degree,  to a couple looking to get married that same year, without them having to do any of the planning!”

“It is all offered at a discount, and aims to reduce waste in promotional events, as well as to offer a very high end wedding to someone that may have missed out otherwise (we sell out of tents most weekends, a year in advance).”

“On a personal note, it felt like such a privilege to work with so many creative talented minds, each of them excelling at their trade. It really makes the whole thing such a fun experience, regardless of whether or not things go to plan (oftentimes they do not), being able to be inspired by, and rely on all of the suppliers involved in this, was such a pleasure!”

The Dress

Words from My Eden

“The 3D flower dress that was worn on the shoot is part of a new Stories collection I am developing, which is a curated range of easy to wear, very flattering and versatile wedding dresses. They come in three different fabric options; little flower lace (in the picture), satin and velvet and they will have a customisable neckline, back and sleeve length.”

“They are particularly perfect for the evening party, adventurous and destination weddings as they travel well, are very comfortable and super light. Stories is set to launch online in June 2019.”

The Flowers

Words from March Hare Floral Design

“With Living Coral being the Pantone Colour of the Year for 2019 we incorporated this into our warm colour palette for our styling and flowers of the Sailcloth tent from Helsby Tents.  We hoped to inspire couples who might like to move away from the more usual colour palettes to something brighter and bolder.”

“The beautiful Sailcloth tent provided the perfect backdrop for the natural, elegant styling for this shoot.”

“There was an elegant simplicity to the hanging floral installations with the lush green foliage chandelier and the mass of peach carnations hanging from vintage ladders.”

The luxurious garden inspired centrepieces with the stunning Romantic Antike garden roses, apricot lisianthus and peach ranunculus combined with tall foliage designs worked perfectly together and are timeless.”

And for all of us who are trying to reduce our plastic use and be more eco-friendly, all of the floral designs were created without using floral foam.”

“Classically elegant tableware was complemented with vintage brass candlesticks and delicate blush candles which echoed the warm colour palette along with the beautiful watercolour wedding stationery created by Retro Press.”

“The spectacular 4 tier cake designed by Vanilla Pod Bakery was a real showstopper with its ombre colouring and beautiful florals opulently cascading around the cake.”

The Stationery

Words from Retro Press

“Throughout last year and into 2019, watercolour has become a very sought after style.  We felt this leant itself perfectly to the colour scheme, so wanted to come up with something that both incorporated this and also to add something unique and characteristic of our brand; that’s where the geometric lines came in.”

“We chose to complement the soft blush tones with a delicate and elegant typeface.”

The Makeup

Words From Yurga Makeup Artist

“For weddings surrounded by nature, I imagine my bride as natural as she can be and the makeup should only enhance her natural beauty, leaving her feel confident and comfortable on her wedding day. I created a natural makeup look for Jess, paying attention to the skin and leaving it looking fresh and dewy with a hint of blush.”

“I chose to emphasise the eyes with neutral eye shadow tones, eyeliner, and finishing the look with individual lashes. Makeup is all about the balance and it is important that it looks good, not only in pictures, but on the day itself.”

The Hair

Words from Wedlock Hair

“I felt the sweeping height of the Sailcloth tent gave a more elegant and grand feel than your typical marquee. So for the hair styling, I wanted to choose a style that reflected that elegance, but at the same time was relaxed and unstuffy, so it also worked well with the outdoor vibe.”

“I intentionally kept lots of hair around the face to soften the style, and went for texture and detail at the back, to show off Jess’ beautiful coral tones and to keep the look modern and relaxed.”