A Delightful Mediterranean Inspired, English Garden Wedding

Andrea and Jonny were married on 2nd August 2025 in West Sussex, beginning with a religious ceremony at the local church before hosting 120 guests at Jonny’s family home. With Andrea from Málaga and Jonny from Sussex, they set out to create a Mediterranean inspired celebration set within a quintessentially English garden wedding setting.

The couple had originally considered marrying in Spain but chose the UK, now Andrea’s home, so they could gather family and friends at a place that was a special part of Jonny’s history. With the support of talented wedding planner, Matila Wilson Events the garden was transformed with an Oyster Pearl tent in Cornish Cream, suppled by The Pearl Tent Company, olive trees and jasmine sat alongside dahlias and hydrangeas, and Spanish ham was carved for guests beneath the summer canopy.

Andrea designed her own wedding dress with her mother, working with a talented, retired dressmaker back in Spain to create an elegant gown using the final two metres of a discontinued private collection of precious lace. Later, she changed into a silk Mango Capsule cocktail dress with ivory and blue florals and fringe, referencing traditional Southern Spanish dress – and completely surprising and delighting her husband with the dress change!

Enjoy these beautiful photographs by Kelsie Scully and film by Mike Nolan of Black Sheep Films.

We chose to get married at Jonny’s beautiful family home in West Sussex and have a religious ceremony at the local church where his mum, who passed away several years ago, rests. This home held so much history for us; it was the site of Jonny’s 21st birthday and the place where I was first introduced to his inner circle. Returning there to say ‘I do’ felt like a beautiful, full-circle moment for our relationship.

We had a beautiful Oyster Pearl tent for 120 guests in the stunning Cornish Cream pattern, provided by Katherine at The Pearl Tent Company. Our closest friends stayed in fun and beautiful glamping tents in the garden, set by The Happy Glamper.

We hired the wonderful Tilly from Matila Wilson Events, who acted as wedding planner and wedding day coordinator. The styling was done by myself and my mother, with support from the The Pearl Tent company staff.

My dad walked me down the aisle to Cloths of Heaven, by Paul Carr and sung by the choir.

Jonny’s sister read from the Old Testament (Song of Songs 2 vv. 10-13, and 8 vv.6-7) and my brother a New Testament reading in Spanish (1 Corinthians 13). They were readings that embraced the importance and power of faith, hope and love, perfect for our special day.

We were highly recommended by friends ASR Gems in Hatton Garden. They created our beautiful yellow gold wedding bands in just a few weeks.

Our photographer was Kelsie Scully. What we loved most about Kelsie’s work is how perfectly she captures light (very important since we weren’t sure if it would be sunny on the day) and candid moments.

Mike Nolan of Black Sheep Films was recommended by Kelsie as a videographer who she liked working with in the past and brought a similar magic to his work.

His video editing was perfect, and he managed to capture our day beautifully.

We met when we were both twenty years old, in our second year at Falmouth University, at a friend’s birthday party picnic. We went on a few lovely dates and soon realised we really liked each other and began dating officially.

Even though we both lived in separate countries after graduation, we made it work and dated long-distance for a few years until I moved back to the UK permanently for work.

Fast forward ten years after our first date, he took me back for a long weekend to Falmouth – the first time we’d both been together since graduation.

Completely oblivious to the situation, I didn’t realise Jonny was taking me to the exact spot where ten years prior he asked me to be his girlfriend, only this time, he asked me to be his wife. We were engaged for approximately 18 months before we got married.

We had the most wonderful Spanish reception music with Los Amigos (band of four including vocals and Spanish guitar) and a fantastic party with Opulence band (wonderful jazz played while having lunch then disco heaven for the best boogie!)

We had tiramisu to honour my mum’s Italian roots, made by the very talented Chris Coughtrey from Mid Sussex Catering, who was also in charge of the food for the day.

Chris was wonderful – he was able to combine mediterranean and British food in a smart and delicious way. The reception included a fun combo of laid-back tapas of chorizo, bruschettas, scotch eggs etc. The wedding breakfast included great quality meats and fish, delicious fresh sides and herb sauces. He also prepared a delicious hog roast for the day after brunch for a smaller group of friends and family.

The most wonderful provider of Spanish ham and cutter himself, Jose of Spanish Ham Master, brought magic and authenticity to our reception.

The ham was Pata Negra and perfectly cut. It was one of the biggest highlights for our guests. 

All the food was beautifully placed in the loveliest linen table sets from Just 4 Linen and crockery from Well Dressed Tables.

Maria Hardy of Tangle and Wild was instrumental in materialising my vision! She knew how important it was for me to honour my Spanish culture, so she managed to bring olive trees and jasmine, which she beautifully combined with fresh dahlias, hydrangeas, daisies, citrus fruits and wild foliage. She did a wonderful job making our special day elegant and memorable.

For guest favours, we provided lots of citrus fruits! We ordered over 200 fresh oranges, lemons and limes and had Maria Hardy display them. We ended up gifting fruit to all the neighbours. Then friends who stayed the night before with us helped by writing our guests’ names in labels attached to small glass bottles with Spanish extra virgin olive oil.

A graphic designer and I worked on the wedding booklet and individual food menus. Then friends who stayed the night before with us helped by writing our guests’ names in labels attached to small glass bottles with Spanish extra virgin olive oil.

Although it’s not the tradition for the bride to give a speech, I wanted to honour my husband and our journey together, so I prepared a few words. I’m not a natural public speaker, so I focused on a simple structure that would allow me to stay present and speak from the heart calmly without using notes: thanking my parents for the privilege of studying abroad (where I met Jonny), followed by three pivotal moments from our ten years together that proved he was ‘the one.’

I spoke after my dad’s short and very sweet speech, but before Jonny’s. This felt right for me, and a way to relax by not feeling I was repeating anything that was previously said by Jonny or his groomsmen.

We took a first dance to Volare by Gipsy Kings! It wasn’t too serious; it brought the mediterranean vibe and a great tune to get everyone to join us on the dance floor…

I have three very special memories from the day’

• Entering the church and seeing it for the first time fully decorated with all the stunning flowers. I was in awe of how bright, elegant and serene the space looked.

• A quiet moment chatting with my dad over how happy we both were and how perfect the day was turning out, while overlooking the beautiful marquee, all the flowers and our family/friends having a good time.

• My husband’s face when he first saw me in my second dress, which I kept as a surprise. His expression was priceless!

Embrace the blend of cultures: If you and your partner come from different backgrounds, don’t be afraid to lean into that. We wove a Mediterranean thread through our music, food, and ceremony readings, which created a beautiful contrast against the English garden setting. It made the day feel uniquely “us.”

Don’t be afraid to delegate the admin: A great deal of my stress came from trying to manage everything myself. Whether you hire a professional wedding planner or enlist a highly organised friend, having someone take the reins as the date approaches is invaluable.

As a bride, don’t be afraid to find your voice: If you want to give a speech, go for it! It doesn’t matter if it isn’t “traditional,” and it certainly doesn’t have to be a long, scripted performance. Speaking from the heart was a highlight of my day and created a wonderful memory for our guests and my family.

Be firm with your RSVPs: If I could do one thing differently, I would have been much stricter with deadline dates. We were still chasing unconfirmed guests until the day before the wedding, which added unnecessary stress to the final table plans.

We did a relaxed brunch the next day for our close friends and family members, where we all enjoyed a lovely hog roast prepared by Mid Sussex Catering.

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