There’s something truly special about the North Yorkshire countryside. I know because I’ve been lucky enough too live there for the past decade – and even more fortunate to be located only a minute’s drive away from todays wedding venue, the glorious Egton Manor – a beautiful, privately owned country house wedding venue, nestled within the North York National Park’s protected landscape.
Victoria and Ryan chose this magical spot for their relaxed and colourful June wedding, and it couldn’t have suited them more perfectly. Their day was captured by the incredibly lovely and talented photographer, Georgina Harrison, whose dreamy mix of digital and 35mm film photography and ability to document all those wonderfully unplanned moments are always an absolute delight to share with you on Love My Dress.
Victoria and Ryan filled their day with thoughtful details and the creativity of a trusted team of local suppliers and talented friends, including bestie Lianna-Maria Arjona. The fully seasonal flowers were all sustainably and ethically grown just two miles from the venue by local florist and grower Philip Beeforth of Moonwind Flowers (who also happens to be my husband!). Everything was seasonal, lovingly grown and styled in a way that felt effortless and full of life. Makeup artist Amy George brought her fresh, natural style to both Victoria and her mum, helping them look and feel their most beautiful.
From heartfelt vows and a first look in Egton Manor’s glorious gardens, to romantic moments beside the heavenly and in full-bloom rhododendron bushes, to an impromptu game of football on the lawn, this was a wedding full of love and laughter all the way and it is a complete joy to be able to share it with you today. Enjoy!
Shop Items We Love
I grew up in North Yorkshire – my family home in the village of Ruswarp was the first trip we took together as a couple, back in 2015. We wanted a wedding venue that was naturally beautiful in a location that we loved, so we could revisit many times in the future.
We were guided by the natural beauty of the venue. Egton Manor has huge Rhododendron bushes that were the primary inspiration for our colour palette and style for the floral designs. We used these as a feature backdrop for our photographs.
The Dress
Love & Liberty Bridal
Love Spell Design was the fourth dress shop I tried. I was struggling to find a dress which had every detail I had in mind. I found the Love & Liberty designs online and knew instantly that they were my style and suited the venue and aesthetic I was looking for.
Once in the boutique , I still couldn’t decide between the many beautiful styles and fabrics, my stylist recommended that I choose parts of each dress I liked, and I ended up with my very own , one of a kind custom dress.
I would highly recommend this experience to future brides, the custom option you don’t usually get in bridal shops made a huge difference.
Egton Manor has many wonderful areas to explore around the grounds. I wanted to try to achieve a different look in each of the areas. For the ceremony I wanted a soft flowy look, which was achieved with a detachable over skirt and sleeves. Throughout the day I would detach certain parts until I was left in a sparkling backless gown for the reception.
I wore a cathedral length veil made from the same tulle to blend with my over skirt. One of my amazingly talented bridesmaids hand embroidered our favourite phrase ‘You, me & Capri’, which represents our first holiday, our honeymoon, and our beloved pet cat. I wore a pair of Jimmy Choo Rosie 100 satin sandals and my wedding day scent was Gucci Guilty Eau de Parfum Intense. I’ve worn this scent since I was 18.
My Jewellery was my ‘something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue’. My ‘old’ was my engagement ring – an art deco ring from an antique shop in Brighton Lanes. My ‘new’ were my diamond and pearl drop earrings from Lily and Roo.
My ‘borrowed’ was my pearl bracelet from my mother in law – she also, incredibly generously, gifted my platinum diamond eternity ring for my wedding band. And finally, my ‘blue; was an art Deco sapphire and diamond ring I treated myself to for my 21st Birthday.
My makeup artist was Amy George, who I found on Love My Dress and discovered that she works alongside our photographer, Georgina Harrison.
I love that Amy specialises in natural beauty, and I was especially impressed with her work on mature skin, which was important to me as my mum wasn’t overly confident about wearing lots of makeup but Amy’s work is flawless and we both left our trial beaming.
My bridesmaids were my closest friends – I asked them to choose a dress that they would find comfortable to wear on the day, regardless of the style or colour. To me it was more important that they were comfortable and smiling, than matching.
I gifted my bridesmaids, to thank them for being so amazingly supportive. I gave them each a signet ring from Astrid & Miyu which they found inside their goodie bags and we all wore on our pinkies.
I wanted to use local suppliers to the venue, Moonwind Flowers was recommended to me by the venue owner and I loved that our vision and ethos were aligned.
From the initial call with Philip, he helped me understand the process and the personal touches included throughout were so heartwarming, choosing a flower to represent each family member, growing some from seed specifically for my wedding, and of course the beautiful blooms I saw on my day.
Ryan’s suit was a black tux from Hugo Boss. He wanted a classic and timeless look which wouldn’t look dated in the future. He wore his father’s Rolex watch, which is a treasured family heirloom.
I arrived at the ceremony accompanied by my dad, to the sound of ‘I Get To Love You’ by Ruelle.
Photography
I found our photographer, Georgina Harrison, though a recommended suppliers list from Egton Manor. I knew instantly she was the photographer for us and didn’t need to look elsewhere.
Georgina’s work speaks for itself. I was reassured further when I also found her work on Love My Dress and knew it was the right decision to book her. We fall more and more in love with our photographs every time we see them, and are forever grateful we found her.
The Reception
Ceiling installation and on-the day styling was provided by my friend Lianna-Marie Arjona. Lianna created the most spectacular ceiling installation in the covered courtyard. Her attention to detail is impeccable.
The whole experience with Blues Catering was exceptional. From the initial contact to our tasting opportunity we were blown away. The food was probably the main part of the day we were looking forward to and they did not disappoint! We still have guests compliment our wedding food to this day!
Our cake was a wedding gift from my aunt – I had no idea what it would look like or how it would taste, and miraculously it completely matched my wedding bouquet which was a wonderful surprise! The cake was unbelievably delicious and was by Nelson Bakery.
Our prop hire and audio guestbook were provided by To Have & To Hire. Having an audio guest book was a wonderful addition to the reception. We love listening back to everybody having fun and sending well wishes.
Having portable flower pieces created by Moonwind Flowers was the best idea as we could move them around from ceremony cocktail hour to reception, meaning the blooms could be enjoyed throughout the event.
Using images of my favourite flowers, Lydia of Love Bumble managed to come up with a completely unique design to use as a print for all of the backdrops on our wedding day.
I had the design printed onto fabric to use as the table runners and backdrops on the bar making the decorations completely personalised to our day.
Egton manor gardens became a temporary football pitch on the day! Having a “North vs South” penalty shoot out probably isn’t on every brides wedding day itinerary! But it was so much fun and a brilliant way to get our wedding guests involved and celebrating. After the photographs of course!
Evening & Dancing
Our first dance was to Callum Scott’s ‘Biblical’. For my birthday present Ryan surprised me with dance lessons to learn A short simple routine with some lifts, to make sure there was no awkwardness on the dance floor.
Musical entertainment was provided by Mark Thompson. Mark and his team of live musicians were the perfect addition to the ceremony, cocktail hour and created the most beautiful ambience during the wedding breakfast.
Tobi Ripley did what he does best, bringing all the good vibes and atmosphere with his wandering bongos!
Ryon the DJ completely exceeded our expectations. The dance floor was full to the very end. The music on our day was very important to us and he absolutely smashed it.
Words of Wedded Wisdom
Do what feels right for you as a couple.
Research and invest in your suppliers.
Don’t stress the small details.
Choose one or two priorities to focus your budget on. The rest is made simple.
Accept help when it’s offered. Controlling every detail is overwhelming.
We were working from ‘vibes’, rather than budget. Luckily it worked out for us – but our budget definitely caused some unnecessary stress in the lead up.
I enjoyed every single part of the day. I wouldn’t change a thing. However, if I could go back. I would try not to stress as much the day before and enjoy the time with friends and family.
Planning a Wedding in North Yorkshire?
We recommend these amazing vendors. You’ll find more in our trusted and fully curated wedding directory.
