Tell us about the proposal…
Billy proposed spontaneously on a holiday to Sri Lanka. He’d been thinking about popping the question in the near future, but whilst away he was inspired to take the plunge sooner than expected. He booked us into a gorgeous hotel in Yala national park, and after a safari trip, he took me on a walk along the private beach as the sun was setting. It was the perfect moment as there was nobody else in sight, we had the beach to ourselves to enjoy the moment – very romantic!
Where did you get married and how did you pick the venue?
We got married at Stone Barn in the Cotswolds. Funnily enough, it was the first place we looked at online whilst still in Sri Lanka, and we loved the look of it. The open day was a few weeks after we returned so we decided to take our parents along and fell in love with it – a stunning building with an intimate feel, surrounded by beautiful Cotswolds countryside. We only looked at one other place, and it didn’t come close! We live in London and our families are in the Midlands so it was located right in the middle.
How did you find our Boutique?
I had previously visited with my friend a few years ago when I was her bridesmaid, and remembered how attentive the staff were and seeing some gorgeous dresses – it was exciting to return as the bride!
What made you decide your dress was the one & what did you love most about it?
I’d originally thought I’d go for a simple dress, and gave Madi that brief when I came into the Boutique. The dress I eventually picked was hanging up at the front and I commented on how gorgeous it was but ironically said ‘but that’s not what I’m looking for’. Madi convinced me to try it anyway, and the moment I saw it on I knew it was the one for me. The beaded detail was so intricate, I loved the elegant fit and the 20s feel. Until that moment I’d never understood how people could love their wedding dress – it was just another piece of clothing…suddenly I got it!
How did you accessorise, ie, which shoes did you pick? Did you choose a Headpiece or a Veil, or both?
I picked some sparkly silver shoes to go with the dress (if you can’t add glitz on your wedding dress then when can you?), and wore a mid length single-tier veil. I also added some flowers to my hair too. I chose some simple diamond earrings and bracelet to complement the dress – all it needed was some simple sparkle due to the detail of the gown.
Did you have Bridesmaids? If so, what did they wear, how did you pick?
I had 4 gorgeous bridesmaids who wore emerald green dresses from Phase Eight. I had green in mind from day 1, and those were the perfect colour and fit. They also accessorised with silver shoes and simple white gyp – a classic springtime look.
What did your groom wear?
Billy wore a blue checked Marc Darcy 3-piece suit, along with a Libery-print tie. His 5 ushers and our dads wore the same suits, all with different printed ties.
Finally, tell us about your big day .. What was the feel/vibe of the day? Do you have a favourite moment?
The big day went perfectly from start to finish. Everyone commented on how intimate the day felt – from the ceremony to the evening dancing.
We all stayed at the De Vere Cotswold Water Park hotel where we had a grooms’ reception for guests as they arrived – a lovely pre-ceremony gathering. The bridal and bridesmaids’ hair and makeup were expertly taken care of by Holly Preston (Oxford Wedding Hair & MakeUp), and we had a relaxing morning getting ready. The bride arrived in a vintage VW Beetle (from Lovebug Cars) decorated with flowers.
The ceremony was the absolute highlight of the day. We had Jemima Phillips playing the electric harp – her music is beautiful and really complemented the open stone barn. I walked in to ‘Paradise’ by Coldplay, and our gorgeous page boy and flower girl led the entrance to the barn holding hands. We wanted to include a song despite not being a religious ceremony, and so we all sang ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ by Andy Williams which was a brilliant moment – upbeat and everyone got behind it. The barn was decorated with flowers by Go Wild – with lots of foliage and small white flowers. On the tables, we had gin bottles filled with colourful springtime wildflowers.
The food at Stone Barn is amazing, and we dined on BBQed lamb with Morrocan spices for our main course – with each table assigned a chief carver to serve up the meat at the table. We loved the idea of having sharing elements to the meal to bring the guests together. In the evening, Baz & Fred made pizzas for everyone to enjoy. Our cake was made by a family friend, and looked stunning decorated with real flowers.
Our band were incredible and kept pretty much everyone on the dancefloor all night – the Carl Sinclair trio. Our first dance was ‘You’ve got the love’ by Florence & the Machine and set the tone for the rest of the night – endless dancing and lots of fun.
A unique element of the big day was that the TV show ‘The Last Leg’ did a live stream from our wedding!! They were doing a piece on what people were doing as Brexit day was no longer happening on 29th March. So we had a full camera crew arrive for a quick 30 sec cut to us on the dancefloor cutting a cake – very memorable!
Naomi at Lush Imaging captured our day perfectly – we are over the moon with the photos.
