An elegant Suffolk Garden Wedding at WILDERNESS RESERVE
When Ariel and Charlie realised they needed some support wedding planning for their elegant Suffolk wedding at The Wilderness Reserve, they picked up the phone to me following a recommendation to them from one of my favourite luxury makeup artists, Emily Chantal.
Ariel and Charlie had this incredible vision for their day and wanted me to support them on the day itself with my ‘On the day coordination’ service. But we bonded on our first conversation and I knew this was going to be such a stunning wedding in many ways. To start with, some of my most favourite suppliers were also coming along for the ride!
The couple had chosen the sought after The Wilderness Reserve in Suffolk and trust me when I say this must be a place you visit. We met and walked around the venue along with their wedding coordinator at the venue and their caterer whilst we planned, tweaked and organised the logistics of the day and I fully grasped exactly how beautiful it would look once we’d spoken about everything.
In the morning of this gorgeous sunny June day, Ariel was being looked after by her makeup artist email and hair stylist Sally-Kate (Hair by Duboux) with her stunning Bridesmaids in the comfort of this dog friendly venue… see how Oakley and Willow feature in the wedding later on, it’s a treat!
Next revealed the most beautiful Armeria wedding dress from fashion designer Alena Lena and it could not have been any more perfect for the gorgeous Ariel. She wore designer Loeffler Randall shoes and accompanied the dress with delicate white florals from Figa and Co.
The ceremony was performed by family and contained the most sweetest readings filled with laughter and the occasion tear whilst the guests listened to the beautiful harmonies of Gemma Daltrey & Jonny.
Delectable Canapes and the wedding breakfast was served by local catering team, Gather and Feast in the outdoor stretch tent from Events Under Canvas with table decor provided by CMA Hire
Remember the cake from Pink Face Cakes I told you about earlier? Isn’t this the cutest thing…
Afterwards, everyone danced the night away and enjoyed an array of drinks and cocktails from the fabulous team at Beyond Bar hire - wow! What a party!
This wedding could not have been captured more beautifully than it was, courtesy of the incredible Sharon Cudworth along with second shooter Laura Williams and fabulously talented Mike Savory on video
So if you are looking for inspiration on an outdoor, romantic garden wedding, I don’t think you can get a more beautiful aesthetic than Ariel and Charlie’s wedding.
An elegant English barn wedding with a touch of Greek sophistication
As an Essex based Wedding Planner, I was recommended to Georgia & Alex in the build up to their wedding day by exceptional hair artist, Carly Williams. I instantly knew that if Carly was involved, this was a wedding I definitely wanted to be a part of and I wasn’t wrong!
When I met with Georgia & Alex, we clicked instantly and I knew the visions they had for their day would be met based on the fantastic suppliers on board. They had chosen beautiful 17th Century barn, Blake Hall for their big day and popular venue stylists JF Styling and The Blossom Company were on hand to transform the already beautiful barn.
On the morning of the wedding day, Georgia and her Bridesmaids were busy sipping Champagne whilst high profile makeup artist Kate Glanfield looked after Georgia, then Amy May and Rebecca Claire worked with the Bridesmaids before Georgia slipped into her stunning Ersa Atelier dress from Morgan Davies Boutique in London topped with a pearl headdress from Botias Accessories and the look was completed with iconic Dior shoes.
The ceremony took place at Blake Hall and the couples request for draping wisteria on the beams and elegant flower displays to line the aisle was created beautifully. Georgia walked down the aisle to her excited Fiancé whilst music played on the mezzanine by string quartet OM Strings and sung by her equally beautiful Chief Bridesmaid. Soon after they slipped through an archway of aromatic confetti from Shropshire Petals.
Wedding guests were then treated to Processo, Beer, Orange Juice and Cloudy Lemonade with a delectable selection of Canapes provided by Caterers Waters Edge.
To entertain the guests further, the couple had arranged for the fluffiest alpacas from Hilly Ridge to wander around which made for the cutest photo opportunities.
Meanwhile, JF Styling and The Blossom Tree company were busy transforming the main barn in preparation for the wedding breakfast. Tables were laid with gold detail crockery & cutlery with bespoke grey table linen. Stationary was lovingly crafted by Georgia’s friend at Mag & Marge whilst tasty biscuits laid on each place setting providing favours to each guest. A gorgeous unique 5 tier black cake made by multi award winning cake designer Amelies Kitchen stood in the corner of the room.
Making sure the couple made the most of Alex’s heritage, Greek music was played towards the end of the meal which was a great addition and really got everyone in the mood for an amazing night of music arranged by Creation Events.
Georgia quickly transformed into her Greek themed evening outfit from Erin Kelly Bridal with a stunning number from designer Catherine Deane and matching headpiece from Victoria Percival she looked simply breathtaking.
The whole day was captured by one of the most talented photographers I know, Alicia, owner of Aurora Grey photography whose Dad is also Greek so the couple had a great connection with her. She was accompanied by contemporary videographer Robbie from RJ Wedding Films who shot the day and all the magical moments that came along.
Thank you to Georgia and Alex for letting me be a part of your day and to the most amazing team who put this vision together. Georgia & Alex, I wish you endless years of happiness and love together.
Additional thanks to:
Lovelight Entertainment (Uplighters & Canopy)
Shropshire Petals
To enquire about hiring Hayley as your wedding planner, click here.
A beautiful English garden wedding
Take an Essex wedding planner, a home along the Thames, a wonderfully happy couple and a bunch of fantastic suppliers and this is what you get…
On the banks of the River Thames, Lucy & David were finally able to go ahead with their beautiful marquee garden wedding party in Maidenhead, Berkshire. It was shortly after the number restrictions had been lifted so there was a huge weight lifted off everyone’s shoulders when that news came through (phew!).
Lucy had approached me back in early 2020 to say she needed a wedding planner but I was not prepared for supporting one of the most organised brides I’ve ever worked with (fact). As soon as she, David and I spoke, I could visualize exactly how they wanted their day to look and Lucy was already working hard in the background preparing for their big day!
Fast forward to the wedding day and I arrived on site to the most beautiful location at Lucy’s Mum and Dad’s home which backed onto the River Thames (I mean, just WOW), it was so tranquil and had a beautiful English country garden feel to it, Mum and Dad had clearly been working hard to make sure it looked perfect for their day, it was laced with stunning Rose bushes and was very well kept. Baytree Events had done a fabulous job with the marquee even with all the last minute changes that Covid forced upon us.
Whilst Lucy and the girls were getting ready with Abbie at The Studio Effect, their Daughter Immy was getting more and more excited about the day ahead and looked stunning in her Sage sequined dress completed with a cute headband. David was in a hotel preparing for his journey to their local Church in Taplow and Abi the photographer for the day, worked closely with Shannon & Jack from Forever Curious who were the videographers for the whole day and boy did they capture some beautiful moments!
Lucy and her Dad enjoyed a journey to the Church in a beautiful Silver Bentley S3 supplied by Christophers
With Weddings having been stuck in lockdown with so many restrictions, it was refreshing to watch Lucy and David get married at their local 7th Century Norman Church. It went without a hitch (almost) as David managed to ‘do a funny’, unsure of whether to say ‘I do’ or ‘I will’ the Vicar kindly reminded him ‘The answer to this is, I hope, I will’ which David then repeated word for word, the whole Church roared with laughter and it was such a funny moment at a time which is usually very serious.
Then apart from dropping the ring (eek) everything was perfect and the Ushers had all clearly done their homework with their duties, they were on point!
What followed was an absolute gem of a day! The guests arrived back to the house being serenaded by the wonderfully talented Lawrence Hill, a room whose table plan from Helen Scott Design had been designed heavily based around music that Lucy and David love, the marquee was adorned with flowers from Lisa at Petal Power (she did flowers for the Queen don’t you know!) and Lucy’s mum had hand made the centerpieces and various displays around the marquee - what a talented woman! The couple chose favours of Gin & Tonic (my kind of wedding!) and an exquisite cake from the lovely Lauren at The Mix Cake
The wedding party then tucked into a delicious menu from Rachels Event Catering but made sure they left enough room for the tasty Pizzas served in the evening from Team Knead.
Before dancing the night away with BE Smart Events, of course…. they got to watch the Semi Final on a huge TV where Ukraine played England! What an atmosphere!!
Thank you to all the suppliers mentioned above who made this stunning garden wedding possible!
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