WWW readers John and Katie married in June in a village in Bedfordshire and held their reception in a marquee.

They had a family filled day with their 2 little boys in attendance who looked adorable. John and Katie wanted their wedding to be relaxed with a country fair feel. They used Cath Kidston to inspire their décor, using the pretty fabric for table cloths, napkins and cushions, which looked so gorgeous.

Katie looked stunning in a dress by Ian Stuart, while John wore a navy blazer, cravat and cream chinos. Oh so stylish.

Thanks so much to the wonderful Sharon Cooper for sharing her photographs with us today.

 

The Proposal… After I returned home from a night shift at the maternity unit, John had raided the children’s dressing up box,  sporting a huge red dicky bow  with flashing lights whilst our eldest son Efan dressed up as Batman, in charge of the ring!

The Vision for the Day… Vintage , country fair, relaxed,  informal, Cath Kidston and a touch of Welsh!  I had some original ideas as to what I wanted, and also took inspiration from websites such as yours.  A  marquee wedding was always my dream, the cottage and river side setting was a perfect combination.  Inspiration for dressing the marquee and grounds came from furniture and antiquities we have in our home. Inspiration also evolved from designing the Invitations, cleverly made by my sister Helen and her husband Kirk.

The Planning Process… This wedding took 23 years in the making! Having met in 1989,  we moved to England with our jobs in 1998.  We now have 2 children Efan aged 5 and Morgan 2 and we wanted the celebration to be as much  about  them as the wedding itself. The detailed planning started in earnest a year before, collecting pieces such as the silver teapots, candelabra, claret jugs, tea sets and plates , throughout the year.  The only things we hired was cutlery – our home resembled an antique shop!

We knew that choosing a marquee wedding and doing it ourselves would involve a lot of work in the planning and labour intensive in the immediate run up to the big day. We were very fortunate that our families and close friends were only too willing to work really hard to help us achieve our  vision. The result was breathtaking.

Budget… we didn’t keep to ours – in fact we more than doubled it, but as we had waited so long to do it though hang the expense (and don’t regret a penny!)

The Venue… The wedding was in our village church in Great Barford, Bedfordshire, and the reception was in a traditional marquee on the grounds of a riverside cottage within a mile of our home – it was a perfect setting for us.

The Dress + Accessories… I fell in love with so many Ian Stuart dresses and eventually chose the Darcy.  For the latter part of the evening party, I changed into a vintage ivory lace 1950’s dress.   I wore …..Shoes by Jimmy Choo, which were incredibly comfortable for dancing and driving despite their height.  I drove John, Efan, Morgan and Sharon, our photographer from the church to the reception in a my brothers restored 1970’s Land Rover, decked in Cath Kidston.

Headdress was by Polly Edwards, with birdcage veil.  Vintage pearl/diamond bracelet and earrings.

Finding the Dress… From Shades of White, St Ives

Groom’s Attire… We wanted a relaxed look that suited all generations of the wedding party from our 2 year old to our fathers. Sourced from Zara and Hawkes gentlemen’s outfitters of Cardiff, and cravats collected from vintage stores via the internet.

The Readings + Music… In church, a reading was given by the minister from our family church back home in South Wales.  The hymns, chosen by John (which took us back to our younger days of school and rugby internationals) were At the Name of Jesus, and Cwm Rhondda (Bread of Heaven).

The entrance music was Trumpet Voluntary in ‘D’ Major (Prince of Denmark’s  march; at the signing of the register – Ar Hyd Y Nos (All through the night); and upon leaving the church – Mandelssohn’s Wedding March.

Beautiful Bridesmaids… Katie’s closest friend Dionne, a friend since school, was the only bridesmaid we had at our wedding. Our 5 nephews ages ranging from 5-14 were our ushers and our 2 boys Efan and Morgan were our page boys.

The Flowers… Marquee flowers all done by with my sisters, mother and Zoe at 11pm the night before the wedding, collecting finishing touches from hedgerows and fields in the dark – we had a hoot!

The Cake… Was a three tier roughly iced syrup infused sponge cake made by our friend Zoe which was amazing.  We had many other cakes baked by friends, my parents legendary Welsh Cakes, and some provided by our caterers.

Your Photographer… Sharon Cooper – amazing.  Got to know about her work through a friend, and having seen her work knew she would ‘get it, get us, and provide us with beautiful memories.

The Details + Decor…  Cath Kidston tablecloths, napkins, cushions and runners for hale bays, Welsh cushions from Cwtch, Bridgend, made from Welsh blankets. Vintage tea cup and saucer with a luggage label as place setting.  Country bunting in abundance.  We used dressers, tables and garden furniture from our home to decorate inside and out.  We purchased some really great large glass drinks dispensers where guests could help themselves to Gin and Pink Lemonade, Pimms, Elderflower Fizz. They were served in glass jars decorated with Cath Kidston ribbon, topped off with retro paper straws.  We filled old tin baths with ice and bottles and cans of lager, cider and beer.

The food-We had High Tea sandwiches served to the table on an eclectic mix of silver cake/sandwich stands which we had collected, followed by scones with jam and cream.  In addition, people helped themselves to the selection of cakes from the cake table. Cakes were made by some of our friends and awarded prizes. My parents welsh cakes which went down a storm.  We played tea dance music in the background whilst this was served.

The evening, we had a traditional ice cream bicycle (Andrew’s Ice Creams), a cheese tower with a selection of bread [which was a wedding present from my sister Sally and her family] Guests were served fish and chips from a van in the grounds, this being provided by our brilliant caterers, Wedding Catering Company.

Julia is one of the owners of the catering company, and she also coordinated the running of the day,  she did a magnificent job ensuring that everything ran smoothly.

We hired a bouncy castle which both the children and adults enjoyed.

With 150 guests we hired security to patrol the grounds and to assist with car parking.  Moulton Security were fantastic.  The two guys were really friendly, welcoming, professional and just great fun – the younger children had a blast playing football with them.

The Honeymoon… My family had stayed at the cottage on the grounds of the wedding venue until the Sunday.  From Sunday to Thursday we enjoyed our honeymoon at the cottage.   We did manage to get away for one night – to  Legoland !!

Memorable Moments… Being driven to the wedding by my father with our boys in the Land Rover, decorated with some Cath Kidston bows! The moment  most people have commented on was on walking into the marquee upon arrival and seeing how beautiful it looked.

The speeches – just like the day itself, we didn’t want anything formal.  Each person spoke from the heart – the father of the bride David’s speech was so him, the groom’s speech pretty much off the cuff, and there was a great impromptu speech from one of the grooms oldest friends Stuart.  However, the best man’s speech (the groom’s brother Matthew) trumped them all – filled with a mix of humour and warmth.  His closing line nearly took the roof off the marquee – “And so, in the words of my ex-girlfriend “I’m leaving you now!!””.

The first dance, when after the first verse, our 2 boys joined us.  Our youngest, Morgan, sat on the my dress train whilst being swept along the dance floor.  He then barged John out of the way to dance with me.  When we were able to dance together later in the song, our boys ran around  and between us, shortly followed by most of the young children at the wedding – a beautiful memory for us.

After saying goodnight to the last few revellers, us having the marquee to ourselves and dancing  to some old favourites at 3am – priceless.

Advice for Other Couples… Just relax and enjoy– things may happen that you don’t plan, but that is all a part of the memories you will look back on as a part of your special day.  Set aside 15 minutes at some point in the evening – the day flies by, and it was lovely to take a little time out and just think on the day so far.

Credit Where Credit is Due…

Marquee – Nick at Fairytale Marquees – www.fairytalemarquee.co.uk

Photographer – Sharon Cooper – www.sharoncooper.co.uk

Caterers – Julia and Graham Ashley of The Wedding Catering Co Ltd –  www.weddingfishandchips.co.uk

Security – Moulton Security based in Hitchin, Herts. www.moulton-security.co.uk

Vintage Ice Cream bike – Andrew’s Ice Cream – www.andrewsicecream.co.uk

Bouncy Castle – www.koolbouncers.co.uk

My hair and makeup – Christie Smith

Such a happy family wedding. Thanks so much to John and Katie for sharing their beautiful wedding with us today XOXO Lou