Inspiration

This rustic barn wedding at Owen House Barn in Cheshire and Hayley Baxter's gorgeous style of photography is literally a match made in heaven. The rich tones mixed with all the natural surroundings, raw decor and greenery is definitely going to send you into a frenzy. You will also be swooning over bride Alice's bridal look. Firstly the back of her Rembo Styling 'Oscar' is utterly divine and I absolutely adore her custom made veil from Blossom & Bluebird. Complimenting the blush and gold colour scheme perfectly is Alice's gorgeous Rachel Simpson Mimosa shoes. With many more wonderful moments, delicious details and fabulous decor to swoon over. Shall we take a look?

The Dress

Alice the Bride: It took me a while to find my dress! I didn’t exactly know what I wanted, more what I didn’t want. Nothing too traditional or too bridal-y if that makes sense – I wanted to look like me, but on a really really good day! My bridesmaid who has known me for about 30 years and therefore knows what my style is put me on to Rembo Styling and I didn’t look back – I loved a few of their dresses but in the end it was Oscar that stole my heart. It had the long lace sleeves I’d fallen for, it was very simple from the front and then when I saw the back it was love! I’d dragged my poor Mum all over looking for a dress but in the end I was actually on my own when I chose it – it was a bit scary to make the decision alone but I followed my instinct and didn’t regret it. I chose Rachel Simpson shoes – Mimosa in peach – they matched our colour scheme perfectly, were ridiculously comfy and oh so pretty! When it came to the veil, again I wanted something a bit different. I loved the Juliet cap veils but they were nowhere to be found in bridal shops. I turned to Etsy with a bit of apprehension knowing I wouldn’t be able to try it on. Then I found the lovely Sian at Blossom & Bluebird – she was fab! She listened to what I wanted and made the most beautiful veil that matched exactly what I’d had in my head since the beginning! I can’t express how brilliant she was to deal with and how talented she is! As I wore my hair down, I wanted something to wear in my hair after the veil came off – I’d stumbled across Lou Lou Puchalka in the Leeds Corn Exchange on a shopping trip for John’s wedding suit as it happens! Lou was so lovely, her boutique is delightful and she went the extra mile when Emma and I were designing our handmade hair vines. I really love the look of my silver, pearl and blush pink crystal number in our evening photos. John bought me some diamond stud earrings that I opened on the morning of the wedding – they were perfect.

Grooms Attire

John’s suit was Kenneth Cole from House of Fraser – he’d decided on a light blue colour and it fit the bill perfectly. His shirt, blush socks and pocket square were from Reiss and the ties were from Debenhams. His shoes were from Office. He looked so handsome, I couldn’t take my eyes off him!

The Venue

We chose Owen House Wedding Barn because it really suited the style of wedding we wanted. We were both pretty overwhelmed by the thought of the spotlight being on us so we wanted to steer away from anything too formal and wanted to create a relaxing atmosphere where everyone felt comfortable – we just wanted a good knees up with all our favourite people. OHWB fit the bill perfectly – we both just got that feeling when we walked in and the owners, Vanessa and Dan were so laid back that we knew we were going to get along perfectly. The ceremony room sealed the deal in the end, so intimate, romantic and cosy – just gorgeous.

Colour Scheme / Décor

The colour scheme was blush pink and gold. We incorporated this throughout the décor but kept everything quite simple as the venue has so much character it just doesn’t need too much. We used loads of candles which made it really atmospheric and welcoming. We used a couple of Lily-Flame scented candles and the whole place smelt amazing! I can’t thank my wonderful friend Alison enough, not only did she do all of our super cool stationery, she was also at the venue in the morning bringing our vision to life with a couple of other amazing friends – it was so comforting to leave it in the hands of people that know you so well – utter legends! My seriously talented sister-in-law Emma painted the chalk board itinerary and it was beyond brilliant! She has now set up an Etsy shop after everyone told her how amazing it was – be sure to check it out! The favours were from a local baker Show me Joni in Sheffield that has recently opened a café down the road from our house – we chose salted caramel macarons that were coloured pink with a touch of gold, really delicious and super pretty.

Flowers

My bouquet was stunning, lots of pink roses, berries and loads of greenery. I had bought some hand dyed ribbon from Pom Pom Blossom which was so floaty and beautiful and looked gorgeous attached to our bouquets. For the tables, we opted for hydrangea plants in some plant pots that we had painted blush and gold, rather than cut flowers so that our guests could take them home as gifts. We used lots of greenery in the ceremony room which looked perfect with the candles. I also really wanted a hoop suspended from the ceiling with ribbons that would catch the breeze – it looked lovely and really finished off the look in the barn. Big thanks to Maggie Earl.

The Wedding Party Fashion

My bridesmaid Emma wore a gorgeous nude tulle and gold sequin dress from Little Mistress and wore a lovely gold and pearl hair vine also from Lou Lou Puchalka. She looked stunning. The boys wore hired suits from Moss Bros with pink ties to match John’s. Our ring bearer (my little brother Finnbar) and two nephews wore some really dapper shirts and waistcoats from BHS teamed with pink linen bowties from Etsy – I thought they looked gorgeous, not sure they agreed!

Ceremony

The ceremony turned out to be our favourite part of the day – this took me completely be surprise as I was expecting to be really nervous and I’m definitely not one for public speaking – but the love and support in the room was palpable and lots of guests commented on how emotional, personal and funny it was and we agree! I walked down the aisle to ‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’ by Peggy Seeger, we love this version and I could see a few bottom lips wobbling by the time I walked in – it has that effect! The readings really got to us both too – our sister-in-law made us cry and then laugh with a reading that she had written herself, it blew us away. We had a few laughs in the ceremony too, we got a few words wrong here and there but it just made it more fun!

Entertainment day and night

We spent months putting playlists together for all the different parts of the day and it all worked really well. We kept our fingers crossed for a sunny drinks reception as we had some chilled out dance music planned inspired by some amazing beach bars we’ve visited on holidays – the sun came out right on cue! In the evening we booked a band called Elwood – I had discovered them in 2013 whilst on a friend’s hen do in Glasgow! I asked for their business card that night and it has been in that particular handbag ever since. When we started planning the music I just had to find out whether they’d be willing to travel and also not blow the budget! They were happy to go on a road trip and were such good value for money as they played all night with only a brief break for a bacon butty! We had so many comments about them – they were brilliant, the dancefloor was full all night – they played some absolute classics. We couldn’t have been happier to see everyone enjoying it so much.

Food and Drinks

For the drinks reception we made full use of the venue’s prosecco truck, which went down a storm with the guests – they polished it off pretty quickly anyway! The food was provided by Sue Le Bonne catering. We served cheese on toast instead of canapes during the drinks reception and for the wedding dinner, we skipped starters and went straight for roast pork with all the trimmings. To add a bit of fun, we nominated a carver on each table to act as Dad and serve up the meat, we provided aprons and chef hats and although they all grumbled, I can tell they all loved it really! For pudding we had wedding cake which I’d made myself along with chocolate brownies and also a lemon drizzle cake which John’s mum made (it’s his all time favourite), all served with old school tubs of ice cream complete with plastic spoons! As we were heading to Greece on honeymoon we also did some after dinner ouzo shots so that every time we drank it on holiday it would transport us back to that moment. It definitely got the party started! John’s mum also made some tiffin to serve with tea and coffee. That went so fast, John and I never got a piece! In the evening we served bacon and sausage butties, they went down a treat after all the dancing!

Photographer

Well, the photos speak for themselves don’t they? Hayley was an absolute star from start to finish. The images she has produced are so stunning that I sometimes have to pinch myself that it’s our wedding I’m looking at, we couldn’t be happier. We loved the style of Hayley’s images when we found her website and knew that they would reflect the laid back style that we wanted for our day. Throughout the day, Hayley just quietly did her thing, capturing lots of special moments, lots of laughing, a bit of crying and even a bit of cherry picker action! What a gobsmackingly talented lady! Big love to Hayley.

Stationery

Special thanks to my pal Alison – wow, what a fab job she did. From the save the date cards, the invitations, place names, cake menus not to mention the awesome table plan that had guests going cross-eyed after a couple of proseccos! She came up with all the designs and they were completely perfect. She did so much work for our day, I can’t thank her enough all between looking after her 2 kiddies – superwoman in our eyes! Thanks Al x in-post-rmw-reader-survey
Lorna Shaw

Written by Lorna Shaw

Dress Designer: Rembo Styling | Bridal Shoes: Rachel Simpson | Veil: Blossom and Bluebird | Headpiece: Lou Lou Puchalka | Wedding Rings: Tiago Jewellery | Hair: Cartman and Mason | Makeup: Ellie Knowles | Bridesmaid Dresses: Little Mistress | Grooms Suit: Kenneth Cole at House of Fraser | Shirt: Reiss | Grooms Shoes: Office | Groomsmen: Moss Bros Hire | Ties: Etsy Shop Hemmi Design | Venue: Owen House Wedding Barn | Florist: Maggie Earl | Catering: Sue Le Bonne | Favours: Show Me Joni | Balloons: Pea Green Boat | Chalkboard: LoveLunaStudio on Etsy | Ribbon: Pom Pom Blossom | Entertainment: Elwood Band

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