Colourful Happy Home Made Countryside Barn Wedding - Whimsical...

via

What better way to introduce my new intern than with her very own wedding? I am so thrilled to introduce the very lovely Anna as the newest member of the WWW team. Her own wedding was utterly gorgeous and you are going to fall head over heels for her pretty wedding to Sam xo Lou

Hi, nice to meet you! I'm Anna, 28 years old and currently an Executive Assistant living in London. Originally from Bedfordshire, I moved down to London three years ago with my now husband, Sam.

Outside of my full time job I am super organised but creative. I love cooking, baking, all things arty, and although very much a beginner, sewing.

After spending two years planning, pinning and DIYing my own wedding with Sam, I felt a little lost once it was all over. Joining WWW means that I can enjoy it all over again and escape from the corporate world of my day job to inject some colour and creativity in to my life! I'm very much looking forward to working with Lou and being part of this lovely blog that helped me plan my own big day.

Sam and I tied the knot on May 31st 2014 in a medieval barn in Bedfordshire. The day was full of DIY details for a personal touch to our colourful wedding.

Our garden party theme included wheelbarrow ice buckets, a tractor and even a family of gnomes!

A big thank you to Binky Nixon Photography for capturing our day.

THE PROPOSAL | Sam and I had been together for almost nine years when he got down on one knee during our holiday in Rovinj, Croatia. After five days of cloudy evenings, we finally had a beautiful sunset and Sam popped the question at a restaurant overlooking the sea.

THE VISION | We both knew the most important thing was a big party surrounded by our friends and family. We also wanted to have some traditional elements, but keeping the whole day as relaxed as possible.

THE PLANNING PROCESS | We'd already found the venue before even getting engaged so all we had to organise were the details (the fun part!). The planning was certainly a joint effort; I would pin a hundred ideas and Sam would pick the best from there. With two years between the proposal and the big day, we had plenty of time to refine our ideas and make it a day to remember. I love looking back over my Pinterest board and seeing the ideas develop into our final plan.

BUDGET | We were very lucky to have the support of our parents to help with the cost, but we also didn't want to go overboard. We made a lot of the decorations ourselves, and had lots of help from friends and family too.

THE VENUE | The ceremony took place at St Nicholas Church, Hinxworth, Hertfordshire, followed by the reception in a private tithe barn in the next hamlet. The barn was a blank canvas so we really could put our own stamp on it. It was perfect for the relaxed, garden party we wanted, being surrounded by fields.

THE DRESS & ACCESSORIES | My dress and lace jacket were from Ellis Bridals. I fell in love with the dress instantly after trying it on just for fun! I wanted sleeves, so the jacket worked perfectly, and the lovely ladies at Hinxworth Bridal adapted the bow on the dress so that it could sit over the top. My shoes were by Miss KG and my earrings were found on Etsy.

FINDING THE DRESS | Dress shopping was a bit of a mixed experience. A few places were very pushy and wanted me to buy there and then. However, the two places I enjoyed shopping the most were insistent that I don't make a decision there and then, but to go away and sleep on it. Great advice that I would definitely pass on to other brides! I also tried on every style I could find and came out with a dress that was nothing like I originally planned.

GROOM'S ATTIRE | Sam had planned on wearing tails, but decided that it wasn't the right style for the day. He had always wanted to buy himself a tailor made suit, and what better time than his wedding day to do that. He found Jack Bunney's was coming up on all his searches so made an appointment there. They made his suit, and the groomsmen were able to hire the same style. Sam's shoes were from Reiss, and the groomsmen's bow ties were from Mrs Bow Tie.

THE READINGS & MUSIC | One of our close friends and her brother played Pachelbel's Canon on violins as I walked down the aisle. We had two readings; 'Blessing for a Marriage', read by two friends and 1 Corinthians 13, read by Sam's mum. Our first dance was 'First day of my life' by Bright Eyes. I played the song to Sam a few years back and he instantly agreed it was perfect for our first dance.

BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS | Picking the bridesmaid dresses was one of the more stressful parts of the planning process! I knew the style I wanted, and had originally planned to have each in a different colour but struggled to find the right fabric with a big enough colour range. After months of searching, I came across Monika's Etsy shop. She had the perfect dress, and just enough fabric left for my six bridesmaids! Each dress was made to measure, and when one of the bridesmaids became pregnant, Monika redesigned the dress to fit over a bump and offered to wait as long as needed to give her measurements. I couldn't recommend her enough.

THE FLOWERS | The flowers were from Flowers! Flowers! They made the bouquets and supplied the venue flowers which our mums and sisters helped us to arrange the day before the wedding.

THE CAKE | My sister and brother-in-law made our fabulous cake as a wedding gift to us. Each petal was individually handmade, and there was a layer each of Victoria sponge, chocolate and fruit cake. It took some serious logistical planning to get the cake from the house to the barn in one piece but it made it and was perfect!

YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER | Our photographer Binky, of Binky Nixon Photography, was actually a close friend of my sister. We loved her natural style and the way she captured the emotion of the day in every photo, especially the emotional roller-coaster through the speeches! Strangely, Binky had also had her own wedding at the barn so she knew the good spots for photos. The fact we already knew Binky really helped us to feel more relaxed. I'd definitely recommend making the most of engagement shoots to get to know each other and be comfortable in front of the camera.

THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | All of the details and décor were home made by us, our friends and family. It was definitely stressful at times but worth it to know that the day really did represent us.

My maid of honour is incredibly talented and designed all of the stationery after we took a walk round the venues one afternoon. She even hand painted the map for directions between the church and the barn.

My mother in law and I sewed the napkins, and my sisters helped with the table numbers which were made from photocopies of the bridesmaid dress fabric on paper mache numbers. We spent a very cold afternoon in the barn folding tissue paper to make the pompoms, and my sister put together the back drop for the cake table from streamers and pieces of fabric. Our favours were handmade chutney, redesigning the pickle label to make 'Cranston pickle'.

THE HONEYMOON | We took a short break to Palma, Majorca straight after the wedding to relax after the busy week before, but waited until February this year to take our official honeymoon to Mexico and Cuba which was incredible!

MEMORABLE MOMENTS | For me, the most memorable moments were two complete surprises to me! We left the church to find a tractor and trailer decorated for us to ride from the church to the barn, a wedding gift from one of the guests! The other was a beautiful surprise from Sam. My favourite movie scene is the flash mob band at the wedding in Love Actually. Sam had tried to recreate the moment for me in the church but the church was just too small. So after dinner Sam took to the dance floor and the band began to play 'All you need is love'. Definitely an unforgettable surprise!

ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES | The most invaluable piece of advice I can give was actually passed on to us by one of Sam's colleagues. Once the evening is in full swing, take your new husband/wife and a couple of glasses of champagne and find a quiet spot to reflect on the day and really take it all in.

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |

Photography | Binky Nixon

Brides Dress | Ellis Bridals from Hinxworth Bridal

Grooms Outfit | Jack Bunneys

Bridesmaids Dresses | Mokkafiveoclock on Etsy

Hair and makeup | Katie Dear

Videographer | AF Illustrations

Stationery | Katie Sunflower [email protected]

Flowers | Flowers! Flowers!

Catering | Canapes and service - It's Grilled

Main meal | Fish and Chip Catering

Band | Harry's Tricks