This charming, romantic editorial tells a magical tale of a bride visiting her venue, set within a secret, magical corner of the French countryside, and seeing the space having been lovingly brought to life and ready to receive the wedding guests.
The Autumn/Winter colour tones, sense of decaying decadence and dreamy bridal fashion bring the photographer, Corrina Tough’s vision beautifully to life. The gowns featured here are designs from one of our recommended suppliers, the incomparable and wonderful Katya Katya London, whose gowns I first stumbled over around 8 years ago now and have been in love with ever since. Corrina, another Love My Dress recommended supplier and directory member, shares her vision and how she brought it to life below.
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“I am thrilled to share my bridal editorial, inspired by literature, romantic mystery, aged fabrics, deep dark tones, intrigue and with an ethereal quality. The concept for this shoot had me laid deep within my creative consciousness for a long period – it was born from the need to show the beauty of Autumn/Winter as a season to embrace when it comes to wedding – with all it’s beautiful filtered light and promises for couples seeking something unique for their wedding day story.”
“I also wanted to highlight the ability to create a luxurious and romantic feel with a dark colour palette which became a feature against the muted stone of Chateau Mas de Pradie’s wedding barn and the beautiful vintage inspired gowns by Katya Katya London.”
“The venue, Chateau Mas de Pradie, in Southwest France, is a place for smaller weddings and events. It has quite the ‘Wuthering Heights’ vibe, which added to the mystery and intrigue of our setting.”
“Previous owners had been botanists, so the grounds have incredible and diverse areas ranging from fairytale forests and glades to magical tree lined alleys.”
“The exquisite detail and craftsmanship of the Katya Katya London gowns lend themselves to another era. They could easily have been discovered within great grandma’s attic as much as they could be seen on the fashion catwalk today. Their designs are fresh, modern and relevant.”
“The ‘Lola Hair vine’, by Eden B Studio, finished off the vintage romantic look beautifully. The attention to detail afforded in the craft of Eden B’s hairvines is incredible and quite divine.”
“Working with absolute dream suppliers who shared my vision and brought it to life has been such a joy. Florist Jennifer Fairbanks who also has a sister business of furniture and linen hire as well as all manner of objects to style your wedding (Our fabulous Things), is a master artist and beautiful person to work with.”
“I wanted the florals to be minimal in variety and dark burgundy in tone. The flowers included beautiful roses and hydrangeas. Jen is a magician and brought this vision to reality with her floristry, tablescapes and combined textures, using vintage items, dark toned candles and simple urns.”
“Jen was also key in bringing my concept for the wedding barn including installation of three enormous chandeliers that were battery operated- this was such a fantastic element to show couples what incredible drama and detail can be added on a smaller budget – and in a building with no electricity!”
“Hair was expertly created by Niki from (Nikbridal hair). Looks included a simple swishy high ponytail and a low set chignon.”
“For the make up I was after a dramatic dark lip in the perfect burgundy tone but the rest of the makeup subtle and natural.”
“Linzi is an incredibly talented makeup artist and versatile with all make up styles. She created such a beautiful look that worked in with all the colours of the flowers and our beautiful model Marion.”
“Overall, this Dark and Dreamy look could work well in most settings with a vintage charm and the simplicity but luxurious elements lift it to another level. I felt truly blessed creating the concept, planning and photographing this shoot and hope it inspires couples to think outside summer as a time of year to have their wedding day.”
Credits & Thanks
- Photographer/Concept/Planning/Styling/props - Corrina Tough Photography
- Venue - Chateau Mas de Pradie
- Dresses - Katya Katya London
- Florist + Decor – Our fabulous Things
- Hairpiece - Eden B Studio
- Hair Stylist- Nik Treacy
- Makeup - Linzi Buckley
- Model - Marion Bru
Annabel View all Annabel's articles
Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.
