Jo and Rick’s London wedding was a stylish and heartfelt celebration of their shared love for cocktails and the timeless speakeasy aesthetic.
Set against the urban charm of Loft Studios, their big day combined elegance with personality. Jo, who works for antique prop hire company Farley Prop Hire, chose a breathtaking Jacquemus dress that perfectly reflected her unique style.
The couple infused every detail of their wedding with warmth and creativity, from intimate and cosy speakeasy-inspired seating areas to handcrafted dried floral arrangements. Their choice of venue allowed them to seamlessly blend the ceremony, reception, and party into one unforgettable day ending in a fabulous party.
Photography by Joseph Allen Keys – enjoy!
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Bridal Beauty & Accessories
I wore an ivory floor length veil for the ceremony purchased from AmeliaEyre on Etsy. My shoes were some little mules from Souliers Martinez. Because of the texture on my dress, I wanted to go very simple with my jewellery so I think in the end I was just wearing some textured gold hoops.
My perfume was Milk, by Commodity – it’s a sweeter fragrance than I would usually wear. Rick wore Moss by the same brand.
I found my makeup artist Anna on Instagram and initially asked her to do my makeup for my hen as the trial. As someone who doesn’t wear a lot of make-up, I was quite nervous but she completely put me at ease and is exceptionally talented.
After receiving some really disappointing dried flowers from a popular Instagram florist, I struggled with confidence in ordering flowers online but also didn’t want to allocate much more time or unnecessary stress to the possibility of another company not meeting my expectations, so in the end the dried flowers that decorated the dining and party space were hand-tied by myself and my wonderful bridesmaids.
These were bought wholesale from Dried Flowers and Décor and had been packed expertly. I would absolutely recommend them and going the DIY route as we saved a lot of money this way. The ceremony flowers were from Botanique Workshop on Exmouth Market.
The Dress
Jacquemus
I wore a Jacquemus dress. I found my dress shopping part of the process the most difficult, in part because I wear jeans and a t-shirt 90% of the time. I think I overcomplicated it by trying on styles that I knew were not going to feel very ‘me’ because I had very little idea what I would look like, but also because bridal sizing is unusual in that you’re very unlikely to be trying on a dress in your actual size which I found bizarre given how expensive they can be before any alterations.
I had a really helpful appointment at Gillian Million in Teddington, she has an incredible variety of dresses and found it refreshing to be able to try some options on in my size.
On a whim, I purchased my dress on eBay and let it sit in the box it arrived in for weeks while I tried on other styles. I even listed it for resale at one point but realised it was ‘the dress’ when someone made an offer for it. With the warm summer ahead, the linen fabric was appealing, and I liked how easily the dress slipped on and how the ecru tone suited my skin. It felt bridal but also unusual without being fussy, and it matched perfectly with my engagement ring.
The Ceremony
We saw several venues but were really taken by the options of space at Loft and loved that we could legally get married in one area and then move directly into dinner and party mode. We could not have been happier with the level of service provided by Jamie and Layla.
We were so lucky to have Harriet Stokes of The Wedding Arrangers running our day. From our first phone call, I knew she was exactly the right person to have with us. Like the Loft team, she was incredibly warm and friendly, and she took so much of the stress away from planning. She guided us through the entire experience perfectly.
My engagement ring is from Ruth Tomlinson and is the most beautiful thing I have ever owned. Rick’s band is from Goldsmiths.
In the ceremony room, I wanted to make the most of the huge windows and natural lighting, while incorporating the soft colours of an upholstered Louis XVI screen circa 1880 – from my employees, Farley Prop Hire.
Photography
Our photographer was Joseph Allen Keys – he was an incredible addition to our wedding day. I messaged him on Instagram after seeing how comfortable the couples in his photographs looked. After a phone call where I explained our ideas, I felt really confident that he would be the right photographer for us.
He was with us from getting ready to the last few hours, moving seamlessly around us and capturing both high-energy and intimate moments where I had no idea he was there. This is exactly what you need on a wedding day. I would recommend him wholeheartedly.
How They Met
Rick and I met through our mutual friend, Jamie, who was the best man at our wedding. In February, we will have been together for seven years.
Rick proposed in October 2023 while we were traveling in Japan, and we made plans to get married the following summer.
Rick bought his suit, a three-piece blue with a rust coloured check running through it, online. His shoes were Loake, and his tie was liberty pattern.
The Reception
Our wedding was inspired by all the gorgeous weddings we had attended for our friends. We wanted to take our favourite parts of them and put them together to make our own. We are completely blessed to have such talented, incredible friends and colleagues who we can’t thank enough for making our day truly perfect – I’d do it again in an instant.
I work for Farley Prop Hire, the UK’s premier antique prop hire company. This greatly influenced the look of our day, as I was generously permitted to borrow items from our collection. In my role, I help people working on films and events to select items from our collection of over 50,000 items, so I quickly formed an idea of the décor and what would work within the spaces we chose to use at Loft.
Rick and I share a love for cocktails and wanted a comfortable, speakeasy vibe with cosy seating areas around the dance floor, featuring burgundy chesterfields and antique screens to create different relaxing spaces.
For our Spritz reception after the wedding, we borrowed a beautiful tiled bar for the courtyard outside and served Aperol Spritz, which were not only refreshing but also picked up on the orange colour in the check of Rick’s suit.
Our caterers were Chew That and Bey Roots We had a sharing style wedding breakfast which everyone raved about. We both love Lebanese food and we wanted something fresh and filling where people could eat as much or as little as they wanted.
Chew That also provided the events team for the day and the bar staff who were brilliant.
We had three cakes from Cutter and Squidge but Rick and I missed out on eating them because we were dancing the night away.
