We definitely looked to WWW for inspo for our wedding! There are so many unique and gorgeous wedding schemes and styles out there, it helped us narrow down what we felt would represent us!
Ali and Ellis – Summer Boho Wedding
Well isn’t that just a super lovely way to start this spectacular real wedding? I am thrilled to have WWW readers Ali and Ellis join us today with their summer boho wedding held on the 31st August 2019 at Colan Barton in Cornwall. They envisioned a relaxed summery day, with boho vibes and a nod to their fave things; the outdoors and surfing (look out for an awesome surfboard guest book you guys)! The results were just so gorgeous. I mean take the stretch tent in the grounds, it was decorated so beautifully with long wooden tables and chairs, swags of blooms and festoon lights. Their ceremony was held outdoors and they also held their first dance beneath the stars surrounded by sparklers, it looked magical.
I really love Ellis’ bridal style, she chose to wear Megan by WWW Supplier Love members Grace Loves Lace and she looked incredible, that train, gasp! I also think her peony and dahlia bouquet is just to die for. Ali’s outfit hit all the trends, mismatched jacket and chinos, cool loafers and an open collar too, all the smart casual vibes.
Wild Tide Weddings captured their whole wedding day so perfectly, the shots in the fields are really special, thanks so much for sharing them with us guys.
The Vision
Both Ali and I are very laid back in our personal styles. We always wanted a small wedding, encompassing all our favourite things – wild flowers, our love of the outdoors, surfing and a relaxed, chilled out vibe! We wanted to get married outside, and our wonderful wedding venue made this dream a reality for us.
The Planning Process
The planning process was actually really enjoyable! We both work away from home, and at the time of planning our wedding we were working abroad, not returning to the UK until a month or so before. We managed to plan the entire of our wedding remotely in a pretty small time frame! We relied heavily on Pinterest, Instagram, word of mouth recommendations. We took on the task of planning the wedding ourselves which really paid off when we saw it all come together on our big day.
The Venue
Our venue was the absolute show stopper of our wedding, in our opinion. We got married at Colan Barton near Newquay, Cornwall. A beautiful farmhouse with a pool, acres of land, a rustic farmhouse kitchen with an Aga and a secret jacuzzi to boot! Our hosts, Sarah and Ross are the kindest people you will meet and they went to great lengths to ensure that our day went perfectly. As we had our ceremony and reception at the venue, each part of our wedding day was designed to flow into one another. We had our ceremony in the field by the lake, canapés and cocktails by the poolhouse and our reception in a beautiful tent from Jabula by the pool. We added a fire pit with cushions and rugs to add to the relaxed vibe that we were aiming for.
The Cake
Debbie from Red Robin Pantry in Falmouth delivered a delicious semi naked, vanilla wedding cake with buttercream, raspberry jam and adorned with David Austin roses. The cake was absolutely devoured in the evening and the day after so it was a huge hit!
The Details & Décor
As mentioned, we wanted an outdoor wedding from the start. We had a canvas style tent which was covered in lovely festoon lighting from the guys over at Jabula Tents. We went for two long trestle tables, with food planks placed on large logs for people to help themselves too. Our ‘top table’ consisted of our lovely wedding cake and our obscure guest book! Ali is an avid surfer and to remember our wedding day, decided to create a Custom RetroFish surfboard with Keith of Freeriders, Falmouth for all our guests to sign. It was a really unique idea and added a different touch to the wedding.
Our colour scheme was quite muted, mostly pinks and greys. We bought our wedding decor from H&M and the cushions and rug that surrounded the fire pit looked brilliant.
Beauty
When it came to hair and beauty I decided that I wanted to keep it as natural as possible. I used the Charlotte Tilbury make up artists for a few trial runs before the big day, and recreated this look with the help of my bridesmaid. Hair was really simple – loose curls. This came out in the end due to the wind so I’m glad I didn’t go with something more elaborate!
Your Outfits & Accessories
Ali wore a custom made suit designed by Richard James of Saville Row. He went for a Blue Jacket and White Tapered Trousers, with shoes from Dune finishing the look off perfectly. Accessories were kept to a minimum, no tie or bow tie, only a button hole and pink pocket square.
I was lucky enough to wear the Megan gown designed by Grace Loves Lace. I had seen this dress a while ago and was lucky enough to be able to head to the London store before ordering. When the dress came it fitted perfectly!
Accessories worn with the dress were minimal. The dress really speaks for itself! I accessorised with a pair of rose gold pearl drop earrings from a great boutique on Etsy, and a small Rose quartz and gold bracelet that we had picked up in Indonesia a few weeks before. For shoes, I went for a pair of Steve Madden Block Heels in Cornflower Blue for contrast! When the heels got too much I had a pair of leather sandals that were a godsend.
Bridesmaids
We had two bridesmaids on our wedding day. My sister who wore a multiway maxi dress from Silkfred and our goddaughter who wore a little white flower dress from Next. It complimented my gown perfectly.
The Readings & Music
We chose not to have readings, however our music playlist was very much a nod to our favourite artists. During the ceremony, the bridal entrance was ‘Marry Me’ by Train and the recession ‘On top of the world’ by Imagine Dragons. This set the theme for the rest of the wedding and reception, edging into more upbeat songs after our wedding breakfast.
Your Photographer
We struck gold when we stumbled across Alan and Philly from Wild Tide Weddings. We had been following a local photographer with a similar style for a while but when we decided to get married in Cornwall we were drawn to these guys for their unique style, talent at catching casual photographs and their professionalism. We had a pre wedding shoot with Alan a few days before hand and he put us completely at ease! We really wanted to have relaxed photos to remember our day by. These guys were great and we felt that they achieved exactly the style we were looking for.
The Flowers
We were really lucky in securing the wonderful ‘Flowers with M’ for our wedding. Marissa was a star in putting together what we wanted for bouquets, buttonholes and table arrangements. She really understood the look we were going for and bought in to life! Big, bloomy peonies and greenery were the key aspects and the bouquet was exactly what I had dreamed of.
The Honeymoon
We both love to be by the sea and explore, so we chose to go to the Mentawai Islands in Indonesia and West Australia for our Honeymoon.
Memorable Moments
Being able to see our friends and family from all over the world come together. We felt really blessed that people had travelled from all over the UK and from as far as the middle east to celebrate with us and this was a gift in itself!
Advice For Other Couples
Have fun and enjoy planning your big day! It can get stressful at times, but it is really rewarding standing back on the day and seeing what you have both created, it really is a labour of love.
Credit Where Credit Is Due
Photography
Wild Tide Weddings
Wedding Venue
Colan Barton
Tent
Jabula Tents
Flowers
Flowers with M
Food
Chef In My Home
Bar
The Copper Cat
Prop Hire
The Prop Factory
Dress
Grace Loves Lace
Wedding Directory member – Bridal Fashion
Suit
Richard James
Wow, the perfect summer boho wedding, am I right or am I right?
Ali and Ellis, thank you so so much for sharing your incredible wedding with us xo Lou