Tag Archives: country

Vintage Wedding Tea Party

Thanks to Emma from Oscar and Rose Photography for sharing these gorgeous photos that she took recently at a vintage tea party wedding. Lots of vintage inspiration here …..“I met Elizabeth, the bride, 3 WEEKS before her wedding. She had a very fixed idea in her head of what sort of wedding she was having and couldn’t find any photographers she felt would be in sync with her style. Then she saw a shoot I had done with one of her friends’ children and got in touch. We clicked within minutes of meeting and remain very good friends to this day – so much so, she’s going to be assisting me at a wedding in June.”
Stunning photos – love the suitcase with the Lexicon letters, the organ knobs (is that how you describe them!?) and the birdcages fill to the brim with gorgeous flowers all arranged by the bride! Emma’s (the photographer) website is here at Oscar and Rose and here is a link to the Oscar and Rose blog. If you want still more inspiration then click here for everything vintage on LMW.

Real Wedding 1930′s style * Cerian & Jack, Hereford

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I chose to feature this wedding (photographed by Jack Ladenburg) on my blog, for a number of reasons:
* firstly the relaxed 1930′s village fete vibe – it looks great fun with all the games and activities (and I know you all love a bit of vintage wedding inspiration),
* secondly that it was in Hereford (which is a small little town on the border of Wales where I grew up and its not often you hear about Hereford) and
* finally because it goes to show that with a mix of love and good friends you can have a fabulous wedding well within your budget. I really like the way that Cerian and Jack got all their friends and family involved in helping out on their special day and from the sound of things they didn’t break the bank either. There are some really lovely DIY ideas here so thanks to Cerian for talking me through the day… The wedding was just outside Hereford (where Jack, the groom, grew up) in a secluded village hall with a large green behind it – the couple chose this venue as they wanted somewhere with both indoor and outdoor space. They decorated the hall and the green with swathes of muslin, ribbons, ivy, homemade bunting and hay bales (borrowed from the local farmer). They bought a load of small tables and standard lamps to give the hall the 1930′s feel, and even made the table cloths themselves.
The 1930′s theme was partly inspired by Cerian’s desire to wear a 1930′s dress – she knew she wanted something vintage and found the 1930′s fashions flattering and romantic. She also knew that she didn’t necessarily want a white ‘wedding’ dress to get married in. After scouring vintage shops and fashion fairs, Cerian found her dress at ‘The Girl Can’t Help It’ in Alfie’s Antiques Market in Marylebone, which apparently has an amazing selection of American vintage fashions from the 1900′s onwards. Cerian’s mum styled her hair and she did her make up herself. The hairpiece was bought online from Harriet Head, who provides beautiful fascinators and hats to order (she even matched the colour of the feathers to the dress from a sample of similar coloured fabric). The bride already had the swans down stole but had never had an opportunity to wear it.
The groom’s and best man’s outfit were hired from the National Theatre’s costume store, which according to Cerian has a fantastic range of outfits and knowledgeable staff that are happy to help you to put something together.
“We chose the 1930′s village fete theme for a number of reasons. It is a period we both love – extremely stylish but with a sense of fun. We wanted to have games and stalls to keep our guests entertained throughout the day and we asked our friends and families to man the stalls as we wanted everyone to get to know each other and talk to people they might not know. Each guest had a time slot and no one was on a stall for more than 20 minutes; we think it worked really well as a way to get everyone together. We asked our guests in advance if they were willing to do this and they were great about it, most people wanted to get involved. We also had a knobbly knees contest, a soap carving competition (which got rather competitive!) and a cake competition – which also provided tea later in the day. We had planned to have a few races (sack race, three legged race, egg and spoon race, etc) but these were rained off in the traditional manner. The stalls were very traditional and included a coconut shy, tin can alley, guess the sweets in the jar, lucky dip, smack-the-rat, ten-pin bowling and a fortune teller. As each guest arrived they received a small packet of ‘pocket money’, which were old threepenny bits that we bought from ebay, as we felt it was important that these was some kind of transaction made for each stall or game but we didn’t want our guests to be paying actual cash from their own pockets.”
“We particularly wanted a relaxed and informal wedding and were keen to make sure our guests felt at ease throughout the day. We didn’t want any ‘staff’ or outside people involved in the wedding and therefore the only people we had at the venue who weren’t guests were the caterers. We didn’t want a sit-down meal so a local fish and chip shop came and cooked fresh fish and chips on site”. I love these last 3 photos – the kids in their outfits are so cute and that last one must be the knobbly knees competition!

Wedding photographer, Jack Ladenburg, told me “Jack and Cerian’s wedding was wonderful to photograph. They’d clearly worked hard to make it totally unique and special to them. All the guests threw themselves into the spirit of the vintage village fete theme and the whole day had a real sense of fun which I wanted to reflect in the photos. The best moment for me was when, with all their friends gathered round, they released a paper lantern into the air – it was a magical moment to photograph.” Do make sure that you check out his site, Jack Ladenburg.
What do you think? Is this the sort of relaxed wedding that you would like to have? If you are looking for some inspiration click here for other 1930′s weddings, or for DIY ideas on LMW.

Real Wedding *Katie & Phil, Norfolk

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Is anyone out there getting married in October?? -if you are then be sure to check out the fab inspiration board for an October Wedding that I published earlier this month – I love the russets, the oranges and the golds….Anyway, I digress because today I wanted to share this wonderful wedding with you from earlier on in the year. Its photographed by one of my new finds – a fantastic british wedding photographer called Jay Rowden.
Love the photo of the ‘to do list’! I featured Jay a while back on LMW (Ellie and Babbs get married in Hampshire) and you guys loved it as it was one of my most popular posts ever. (I also just had a bride email me and tell me she had chosen him as her wedding photographer after seeing that wedding on LMW) Here is a selection of photos from Katie and Phil’s wedding in Norfolk…I like the vintagey feel of these photos, Jay explained he used a preset in the lightroom (special software) to create the look, but that he has also given the couple normal graded shots too. According to Jay the weather wasn’t great but it managed to rain and then just clear up in time for the wedding. The wedding took place at the medieval church of St Bartholomews in the village of Brisley
“This was a very special church and the light was out of this world.
In fact the light in North Norfolk was extraordinary.
We all had a fabulous day, in spite of the wind.
In fact, I really liked the windswept images in the field.
Maybe I should invest in a wind machine and bring one along to every wedding???” I wanted to find out from Jay what was the best thing for him about photographing this wedding….
“I loved the intimacy of this wedding. It wasn’t one of those weddings where hundreds of guests were invited who didn’t really know each other. Everybody seemed to know each other and the atmosphere was really fabulous. I’ve also got a bit of thing for country weddings – living in London it’s always a great privilege to drive for miles to get away from the old smoke and be stuck in the middle of nowhere, where for once you haven’t got a reception on your mobile!!!
the bride and groom were also, it was plain to me, very very in love. one, two, three….ahhhhhhh.
apologies, i am an old romantic at heart!”

Yes I think you are! But that is probably one of the reasons that your photographs tell such a lovely story. Be sure to check out Jay Rowden’s site and his blog where you can see more of his fabulous work.
Thanks so much Jay for letting me feature this lovely wedding on LMW and Katie & Phil wishing you a happy future together.

Real Life Wedding * Lizzie & Matt, Bristol

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Lizzie and Matt tied the knot at a very famous and most beautiful church called St Mary The Virgin in Leigh Wood, Bristol, which was built by the Cadbury and Wills families.
The reception was held just around the corner in the shadow of Clifton Suspension Bridge, in the five acre grounds of Burwalls, with the most stunning landscaped gardens and spectacular views over the Avon Gorge and Bristol. This is the second wedding that I have featured recently from photographer, Jay Rowden, the last wedding Ellie and Bebbs real country wedding was one of the most popular real wedding submissions that I have featured so do check it out.
The flowers are absolutely gorgeous -they’re locally sourced and organic and provided by Bristol florists Bella & Fifi (I absolutely love their little green flower van you see that crops up in the photos) Lizzie’s dress is from Sophia Tolli and hair was by hairdressers, Bonomini Matt is Creative Director at a design agency and he designed absolutely everything himself – the invitations, the menus, the sign posts, the Order of Service, the Table Plan – the lot! A very talented guy indeed. He’d even used blue ribbons on the trees which tied in really nicely with all the other elements.Paper napkins, lots of old fashioned flowers and original antique vases to hold them in. They’d also had the most brilliant idea to buy a vase and get all the guests to written a message on it. Much nicer than a guest book which inevitably gets placed onto a bookshelf to gather dust to never be seen again. Ooh and take a look at this delicious looking food!
Jay Rowden said that this was a fantastic wedding to photograph and with photos like these you can see why. Make sure to check out his site, Jay Rowden. Congratulations to the happily married couple – I love this wedding that you organised. What do you guys think? Which photos are you favourites?

The Wedding of my Dreams – just gorgeous

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I love it when a supplier sends me really good professional photos like these as the photos say it all. This is a selection of decorations, favours and goodies from online wedding shop, The Wedding of My Dreams. I asked Gemma, their creative director, to talk me through their top 10 best sellers.
Cream metal bucket – Another country inspired centre piece, churns and buckets are becoming really popular to display flowers in on wedding tables, most of our brides stick to cream for the more traditional wedding but if you’re looking for a splash of colour they also come in hot pink!Hanging glass candle holder with pearls and crystals – One of those little extras that are just so hard to resist, they really do add that extra wow factor to your wedding venue. Ideal for inside or out, hanging from trees in the garden they will look beautiful as the light falls and the evening begins.Mr & Mrs – Ideal for a wedding gift or can be used on the wedding day to decorate the church, venue or cake table.Paper lanterns – Such a simple yet brilliant idea I’m not surprised these are our number 3 best seller, lanterns made from fire proof paper look simply gorgeous with a tea light placed in them. Use them to light up for the path for the bride and groom’s send off as they leave the wedding.Pretty in pink flower candle – What can I say, it’s just so pretty, not just perfect for a wedding but also for your home after the big day.Silver and pearl brooch – All our of brooches are top sellers with this gorgeous pearl piece leading the way, it adds a perfect finishing touch to a wedding outfit or more recently brides have been using them as bouquet brooches, tying them to ribbons on their bouquets giving their flowers that extra wow factor.Soft pink flower heads – These flower heads are ideal for vintage weddings with their soft pink tones, display them in the stems of tall vases or scatter them in a low bowl for a simple yet elegant centre piece.Table Crystals – Table crystals are increasingly popular adding a bit of sparkle to wedding tables. Our stunning table crystals are professionally cut to catch the light as they shimmer across the room.Vintage country bottles with hearts – Perfect for adding a country twist to weddings, you can display singles stem flowers in them or fill them with your favourite sweets.Vintage heart name place holder – These vintage style wire heart name place holders look stunning on wedding tables and can be given to guests as wedding favours to use as a photo/memo holders.