Ali and Warwick’s late September wedding took place at Warwick’s father’s home near Bruniquel in the French countryside. This intimate celebration was all about family, nature and the couple’s deep appreciation for simplicity and sustainability.
From the handmade wedding dress to the thrifted accessories and homegrown floral arrangements, their sweet and lovely day reflected the kind of thoughtful creativity that we love to celebrate here at Love My Dress. Captured by Love MY Dress recommended vendor, Corrina Tough Photography, Ali and Warwick’s day is a reminder that you don’t need extravagance to create something magical – just love, intention and a sense of place.
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Our venue was Warwick’s dad’s beautiful property near Bruniquel, France. We chose it as their property had all the character, charm and views you could want, while keeping an intimate, family feel.
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A Handmade Dress
I handmade my own wedding dress and thrifted my veil and shoes. A friend made my jewellery. I would highly recommend this experience to other brides if they like a challenge, it was incredibly fulfilling.
I already make my own clothes and my mum taught me how to sew as a child. I wanted a completely one of a kind dress that I could tailor exactly how I liked, and challenged myself to make a beautiful wedding dress. I loved the experience of being able to wear something I made on my wedding day.
Both my veil and shoes were thrifted, so second hand, and my necklace was made by a friend using second hand pearls.
I wore ‘Devotion’ by Dolce and Gabbana – a understated lemony scent perfume, that I loved and I thought that Warwick would love as well.
I loved my hair crown, a string of pearls that draped in between my two-point veil that my close friend made me specifically for the wedding. It was so special to wear and unique, along with the matching necklace and bracelet she made from second-hand pearls.
I did all my own makeup on the day.
My bridesmaids all chose their own dresses within a nature-based palette, inspired by the French countryside around Toulouse. They were all linen, cotton or silk, and from various retailers.
The Ceremony
Warwick was accompanied by his mum, while his dad played bagpipes. I walked in to the ceremony to Heaven’s Knife, by Josh Garrels.
Warwick wore a Manx tartan kilt and his grandfather’s Sgian Dubh (a knife that is traditionally worn in the top of your sock), while his dad played the bagpipes at the beginning of the ceremony to honour their Scottish heritage.
We wrote our own vows, keeping it very personal and unique to our relationship. Warwick’s were deeply tied to our experience with nature, and the parallels between the deep roots of a tree and our relationship. As part of his vows, he promised to continue making us wooden rings for every year of our marriage, just like the rings of a tree.
We included the ‘Wedding Poem’ by Whitney Hanson, read by Warwick’s aunt, mostly just because we thought it was beautiful and resonated with our relationship.
Warwick handmade our rings out of Yellow Cedar from one of our favourite walks near Victoria in BC
We chose Corrina due to her beautiful ‘documentary-style’ photography, that crafted an elegant but honest view of the wedding day, that is not staged. We would definitely recommend her to others!
How They Met
We met through a mutual friend in Squamish, BC, Canada. We spent a few months as friends, and started dating as adventure buddies, spending our dates sea kayaking, rock climbing and hiking the local mountains.
We got engaged on the Isle of Man, where Warwick grew up, where he surprised me with a home-made Douglas Fir box with nature-y knick knacks from various places that have been important to us. He proposed on a coastal walk called The Chasms, with cliffs, ocean vistas, and sea birds as the backdrop when he got down on one knee.
Our dog Jasper thought it was a very exciting dog walk! We were engaged for just over a year before our wedding day.
Shane Tough provide our catering – it was fantastic food and service. All our napkins and table decorations were made by Warwick’s two grandmas. Warwick’s mum and aunts made a five layered cake made of various local cheeses, with figs, rosemary and olive branches grown on the property where we got married.
All the flowers from the wedding were from Jardin Cantous, a local flower farm and boutique near Saint Antonin Noble Val, France. This was both convenient, but also simple, beautiful flower arrangements that were in season and sustainably grown.
Our first dance was to ‘Hugging You’, by Tom Rosenthal. We played this on our second date, and it has been our song ever since!
Words of Wedded Wisdom
Make it as true to you as a couple as possible. If you feel like someone else’s advice doesn’t ring true to who you are- you don’t have to take it!
And, you don’t have to spend a tonne of money to have a beautiful day, you can have a small intimate day with mostly second-hand and homemade things and still have an absolutely magical experience.
I would have preferred to have a little less wind, so we could have eaten outside where we had originally planned, but c’est la vie!
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The following recommended vendors love to work in France – so if you’re planning a French wedding, do get in touch!
