Le sigh….. i cannot tell you just how much i love this afternoon’s delightful wedding.

Martin and Charlie were married back in August, on a beautiful summers day in a stunning barn venue. I so love this fashion forward couple, who wanted a home made, family feel, vintage mismatched day that was perfectly rustic in every way. From the cake to the wildflower bouquet, it just works.

Thanks so much to the amazing Brighton based wedding photographer, Ruby Roux Photography for sharing her gorgeous images today, here is what she had to say about the shoot;

“The couple, Martin and Charlie, had a vintage styled tea party at Farbridge, a beautiful barn location, in Lavant, Sussex.  They were a dream to shoot, relaxed, natural and up for anything and their day was a complete reflection of this.  Charlie’s mum and sister collected all the china for the day, the groom’s sister made the gorgeous cake, the bride’s mother’s friend did all the flowers and it was a lovely testament to how much can be achieved through the help and support of friends and family.”

Names…. Martin and Charlie

Wedding Date…. 29th August 2011

The Proposal…. On the 5th October 2010 (My birthday) Martin got down on his knee in a muddy puddle in Regents Park London and produced a vintage owl trinket box containing the ring, he then popped the question, before taking me to The Ivy for dinner.

The Vision for the day…. Vintage, Relaxed, Mismatched and Informal.

The Planning process…. Well it all started with finding the perfect venue, then sourcing vintage crockery from charity shops and family and friends. The rest just kind of flowed from there. My sister was the un official wedding planner and did a fabulous job.

The Venue… Farbridge, West Dean, Chichester.

The Dress + Accessories….. Dress-Cymberline Exalto from blackburn bridal, Blackheath, London. Shoes- Dune, then some more comfy flat sandals from River Island for the evening. Necklace- a broken piece of vintage tea cup, set in a gold surround from Anthropologie. Headpiece- Accessorize. Bracelet- Pandora charm.

Finding the dress…. Working in fashion I already knew exactly what shape would suit me best and had a good idea of exactly what I wanted. I had seen the dress online and kept going back to the page to look at it. To keep my bridesmaid happy I had a token few trips out trying on dresses that I already knew were going be wrong.  I spent my days off searching the internet for a local supplier of the dress, who had a an appointment within 2 weeks (I didn’t want to wait months to try it on, and many of the stockists in london had packed diaries) So when I stumbled upon Blackburn Bridal and discovered they had it in stock I immediately called my best friend Jess (also a londoner) and demanded she came with me the following week. Trying on the dress we instantly knew it was the one and celebrated with drinks by the Thames.

Groom’s attire… Martin wore a simple skinny charcoal grey suit from Reiss. With a crisp slim fitting shirt from COS teamed with a navy blue (need I say it “skinny”) tie and shoes also from COS.

The Readings + Music…. We wanted to keep the service as simple as possible so had no readings. I walked down the aisle to an instrumental version of Florence and the Machines “ Dog Days” and we left to Chairlifts “Bruises”. During the afternoon tea we played a mixture of songs selected by our guests when RSVPing!

Beautiful bridesmaids….. Along with the theme of the wedding I again kept it simple, choosing to have just two bridesmaids.

Laura my old friend from school who wore a vintage green ruffled dress from Coast with a beaded belt.

Polly my 5 yr old niece who for the last 6 months has been telling me that she going to be the most important person at the wedding!! She wore a flower printed dress from Monsoon.

The Flowers… A good friend of my mums offered to help with the flowers, which turned into a masterclass in flower arranging the day before the wedding.

For my bouquet I had planned on simply having 3 hydrangea heads ( inspired by the fact that my engagement ring has a petal pressed from a hydrangea on it) However when we arrived at the wholesaler 2 days before the wedding, the hydrangeas we had ordered to be pink/green (vintage style) were BRIGHT pink!! My mum had a good panic whilst I kept my cool and picked out more wildflowers like the ones ordered for the tables to make a mixed bouquet.

The day before the wedding the dining room at my mums house became a florists as friends and family sat around drinking tea and eating biscuits whilst  filling vintage tea cups with flowers.

We then customised 3 bouquets from what we had using hydrangeas from pots and neighbours gardens to make 3 lovely bouquets.

 The Cake… The cake was our wedding present  from Martins sister laura who made a delicious 3 tiered cake. Chocolate, Red Velvet (AMAZING!) and traditional victoria sponge. Covered in buttercream frosting with handmade flowers and one of our teacups of flowers on top!

Your Photographer…. Liz was a friend of my sisters, so recommended by my sister. She was on exactly the same wavelength as us and knew what we were looking for. We had lots of fun doing an engagement shoot a few months before and the reaction we got when we showed these photos to friends and family was amazing. So we knew she was the right person for the job, we felt comfortable around her too which makes it a lot easier to smile and enjoy.

The Details + Decor…. We ate afternoon tea then hog roast in the evening. We had an old typewriter for the guestbook which proved interesting reading the next day. Bunting in the ceremony room, round the bar and in the courtyard area. Croquet on the lawn. Pix and mix with an old scale and hand made wooden signs. Each table named after a flower which was the centrepiece. Cake stands made by gluing mis matching plates together with sherry glasses in between. Teacups on spikes with candles inside. Birdcages filled with hydrangeas. Vintage suitcases for guests to put cards in. Luggage labels tied to everything!!

The Honeymoon…. Guests had added money to our Mr and Mrs Smith account to pay for luxury boutique hotels around Bali and Lombok. Having travelled a lot, we aren’t the type of couple to spend two weeks in one place lying on the beach. Don’t get me wrong we did spend 4 days in the Gilli Islands (remote sand islands between Bali and Lombok) snorkelling and sunbathing. But we like to spend our holidays exploring the local culture and foods so travelled around the islands getting to see and experience lots of different things. Including early morning treks through rice fields and joining the local running club in Lombok.

Memorable moments… It was all so perfect I think its impossible to pick just one moment.

Advice for other couples… Everyones comments on the day were “ this is just sooo you” So I think its important to keep your theme personal and not over complicate things, go with what you like and not what is stereotypically the right choice.

Credit where credit’s due…

Bunting-http://www.beautifulbunting.co.uk

Venue -www.farbridge.org.uk

Caterers - buns-to-banquets.co.uk

Dress- http://blackburnbridal.co.uk

Photography- www.ruby-roux.com

Cake- http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lauras-Cakes/185658328137640

Thanks so much to Martin and Charlie for sharing their super beautiful wedding with us this afternoon…. have an amazing weekend peeps :-)) before you head off do feel free to leave this couple some comment love below xoxo Lou

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