Laura & Thom

The Bride

Laura the Bride: I only made one appointment to try on dresses and it was at Glory Days - I had a funny feeling I would find something there and it turned out to be the first dress I tried on (I also tried on tonnes of stunning vintage dresses!) My dress was a simple classic shape in ivory silk which looks like liquid when you move! I've never felt so amazing in an outfit. As far as I'm aware there isn't another wedding shop doing what Hayley is doing, other wedding shops always look so dated and frumpy, it was a breath of fresh air to find her shop. I was also SO happy to find my dress in York where we live and that it was made in England and of ethically sourced fabric. My dress was from one of Hayley's collections. I had it in my head that I would get a vintage dress but as soon as I tried mine on from Hayley's collection the fit was insane so I knew that was the one and I needed a vintage veil. I'm quite sentimental and there's something lovely about wearing something that already has a story.  Although I love vintage jewellery I wanted something very simple that wouldn't over power my dress for the wedding. Oh My Clumsy Heart was perfect for this ,beautiful minimal hand made jewellery made in the UK (I also used them for my bridesmaids gifts). My wedding ring was my Nanna's wedding ring which I got re-sized to fit me. (again with the sentimentality)!

The Wedding Party

Grooms suit & shoes & tie were all Paul Smith - one of our ushers works there so we got a hefty discount! Yay! The groomsmen wore Paul Smith, Folk and Bedwin and the Heartbreakers. We didn't want the groomsmen in matching suits, I think it's much nicer to have people in outfits they have chosen themselves and are comfortable in. The bridesmaids wore dresses from ASOS and Monki. Colours were a dusty pink and muted aqua blue. I didn't want matching bridesmaids dresses from naff shops you wouldn't normally shop in...I wanted the bridesmaids to pick their own outfits so they would be comfortable and enjoy the day - they did a grand job!

The Venue

We chose the maze after viewing quite a few barns in North Yorkshire, none of the other barns we viewed had quite the same relaxed feel and beautiful surroundings. We both got a feeling as soon as we got there which made the decision easy. 

The Decor

We didn't have a colour scheme as such just wanted the exposed brick and wooden barn to speak for themselves. We hung tonnes of fairy lights for atmosphere...had lots of jam jars with rosemary tied around as tea light holders and some rusty green metal candle holders...this matched the green foliage we had on tables. We have lots of vintage mirrors which we wrote on with a chalk pen with lyrics to our first dance (Arctic Monkeys - Wanna Be Yours).

The Flowers

Rather than flowers we had bushy leafy bouquets of ferns, eucalyptus, olive branches and lots of other leafy foliage with the odd white flower dotted around. I absolutely loved them and think green goes perfectly with the maze. Lucy also made me an amazing leafy crown which I wore in the evening in place of my veil.

The Ceremony

Our ceremony was held in wooden barn at the maze, I walked down the candlelit aisle to the XX Replica - my fave song at the moment and very dramatic. 

The Entertainment

We had a DJ from Disco Shed - they play at festivals in a shed, wedding bands can be a bit hit and miss, Disco Shed did a brilliant job playing a real mix of all our favourite artists....from Bowie to Drake.

The Food

Cake was a three tier carrot cake with ghost icing by the amazing White Rose Bakes in York and was the best I've tasted! SOOO much nicer than a traditional wedding cake. We had a relaxed BBQ menu of rump steak kebabs, basil halloumi and veg skewers, marinated king prawns and piri piri chicken - all served with crusty bread, oils and salads - everyone helped themselves from little platters on each table - it was important to us to have a no fuss , informal meal, not a stuffy three course meal for the sake of it and the maze totally got us. Pudding was key lime pie with thick cream and fresh berries, made by the chef at the maze - Jason

The Photography

We picked Ryan because he is the only wedding photographer we found who is taking a different approach to wedding photography - none of these naff shots where everyone is lined up with cheesy grins, the natural shots are my absolute favourite and he captured all the tiny bits of the day that pass you by when you are busy making sure all your guests are ok. Not sure what we would have done if Ryan was already booked up on our date!

Favours From Friends & Family

My brother Harry made the amazing invites and they were printed with moo.com. One of our ushers Dom made our seating plan. My uncle Ben gave me and dad the lift to the maze in his shiny new car  My mum made rose and lavender shortbread as favours, I also made Blackberry Gin and Lemon Vodka in mini Kilner jars as favours.

A Local Wedding

It was important to us to mainly use local businesses & suppliers where we could and the day couldn't have gone any better. We may have to renew our vows every year just for an excuse to have a party at the maze again :)