Inspiration

Serious flower envy alert! I absolutely adore the use of coral peonies by Honeysuckle Flower Co.. They have literally taken my breath away they are so immense. The bouquets, the flower crowns and floral centrepieces bring such a vibrancy to the vintage china tea cups, mis-match blue bridesmaid dresses and gorgeous Cripps Barn wedding venue. The whole fantastically bohemian vintage tea party concept is an explosion of colour and fun. With quirky details including rose gold spray painted animals as place settings and a polaroid picture station. All the details are delicious, but it's no wonder when Bride Sarah is a ridiculously creative art teacher. She is also stunningly beautiful in her Watters Emerson bridal gown from Coco & Kate Boutique. The diamond lace detail on the strapless gown is so pretty. As are her pink Irregular Choice shoes. This wedding is such a feast for the eyes, captured beautifully by Lovestruck Photography and Lara Elliott Films. Shall we take a look...?

The Dress

Sarah the Bride: We were determined to have a beautiful wedding, but on a budget! For me, it was important to find a beautiful dress and I adored the offerings at Coco & Kate’s boutique in Warwickshire. I was lucky enough to find the gorgeous ‘Emerson’ dress by Watters, in the sample sale. I adored the detail in the dress, and the diamond pattern mirrored my mum’s wedding dress which made it extra special. I decided to wear a lace edged veil for the ceremony, and managed to bag a Joyce Jackson bargain on ebay. I finished the outfit off with pink, glittery shoes by Irregular Choice, and a rich, colourful necklace by Anton Heunis. My entire outfit cost around £500! I also chose a delicate, vintage inspired eternity ring by 77 Diamonds to complement my rose gold engagement ring from the same brand. My hair was coloured by Anthony John Salons of Lichfield, and the bridal hair and make up was crafted by Jodie and Nikki, from Make Up by Jodie.

Grooms Attire

Richie wore a modern fit navy blue suit by Paul Smith, which we bought at the outlet store at Bicester Village. He had his teal waistcoat and matching groomsmen ties made at a local tailor, Elite Bespoke Tailoring of Walsall. The personal touch was added by the lego men we had our florist wire into the boutonnieres. Richie had another unique touch as his wedding ring was crafted for him out of meteorite and palladium!

Venue

We chose to get married at Cripps Barn in the Cotswolds. We only looked at one venue; we knew it was perfect for us! The barn was so intimate, pretty and yet laidback and we loved the idea that guests could warm up by a bonfire and set up camp for the night. We loved that the venue felt like it was in a world of it’s own despite being close to Cheltenham and Cirencester. A visit to the New Inn sealed the deal as we sampled the famous Cripps Kitchen catering. The staff were just wonderful on the day and we felt completely looked after. We stayed at the Casina Cottage, and they also provided us with a sleek blue Bentley for the journey to the barn. Guests were well looked after at the New Inn, and we had a camping crew that stayed on site.

Colour Scheme & Decor

We wanted a bohemian glamour theme to the decor, again crafted on a budget! We have a passion for all things Mexicana so there are elements that creep in from our travels too! I designed our tropical inspired wedding invitations, and had them printed using the website Printed! We added some handmade details such as bands and confetti in the envelopes. I hand dyed the pink and teal table linens and stitched metres of bunting from Designers Guild fabric remnants I had scavenged! We chose to have a quintessentially english afternoon tea menu, so I used this as the basis for the teacup table plan and other finishing touches. I used ribbon to add splashes of colour to the chairs and soften the overall look. I scoured ebay for vintage china and glass cake stands to add to the decor.

Flowers

The flowers were just incredible; Christiane from Honeysuckle Flower Co. just exceeded our highest expectations and created lush, vibrant and deliciously feminine blooms that brought the decor, and the bridal party fashions, to life. I utterly adore my flower crown and my full bouquet, Christiane was able to locate the most stunning coral peonies, and even included beautiful berries in our flower crowns which was an incredible, whimsical touch.

Bridesmaids

Our beautiful bridesmaids wore dresses from the high street; our stunning maid of honour Jessica wore a dress from Jarlo which perfectly suited her model proportions, and the other lovely maids wore dresses from the ASOS bridesmaid ranges. I wanted each bridesmaid to be styled uniquely and ensured that they felt comfortable and gorgeous. Richie’s mum Yvonne made all the girls bracelets, so there is a perfect personal touch to each outfit. Again, Make Up by Jodie completed the look with pretty hair and make up. Our groomsmen wore navy suits from Next, complete with their lego boutonnieres and lego cufflinks.

Ceremony

Our ceremony was just perfect. We had a very small wedding with just 26 guests including the bridal party. It was amazing to walk down the aisle and smile at our guests before Richie and I fixed our eyes only on each other! Our ceremony was sweet, informal and yet intimate with lots of kisses shared throughout! My aunt Janice and Richie’s mum both chose moving readings for us that reflected our fun loving personalities and our love based on mutual weirdness!

Food

We had the most colourful, delicious afternoon tea as our wedding breakfast. We chose Pimms and some canapes to graze on after the ceremony which kept guests happy until the main event! We had a spell of fine weather, and had decided that an afternoon tea would look stunning as well as enable our guests to nibble or scoff as much as they’d like! I am an afternoon tea addict, so having cakes, tea and prosecco on tap was an absolute dream, and the vintage crockery from Cripps set it all off perfectly. There were stacks of food, the Cripps team kept bringing platters and stands full of treats! We were concerned that the wedding breakfast might be too delicate but even the largest of appetites were beaten! We loved the haddock scotch eggs and the chocolate cherry cakes. We had a delicious cake crafted by Cut Above Cakes, who matched the theme of the decor perfectly with copper touches. When our evening guests joined us, we had incredible pizza crafted for us by Baz and Fred, who set up their kitchen on the terrace outside. The music was provided by DJ Richie S of Stylish Entertainment, although the lawn games and outdoor fire pits kept the party outside until the early hours! A fancy dress box and instant camera also added to the fun! Our friends are incredible party people who made the evening a total blast (and somewhat of a blur!)

Photographer

The wonderful ambience of the day has been perfectly captured by our photographers, Lovestruck Photography. Juliet and Laimonas are incredibly talented and professional, but relaxed and a joy to be around. Our friends and family instantly clicked with them, and it shows in the photographs that they were part of the fun! Richie and I have been spamming them with friend requests ever since and we are looking forward to meeting up for girly cocktails soon!

Videographer

We chose Lara Elliott to create our wedding film as we knew she could capture our quirkiness and make the wedding video informal yet lively, beautiful and emotive. Both of these wonderful vendors captured the massive amounts of love felt on the day; Richie and I are blessed with the most incredible friends and family and thank each and every one of them for making our day so special. Our most heartfelt and warm thanks go to our beloved parents who made it all possible!
Lorna Shaw

Written by Lorna Shaw

Dress Designer: Watters - Emerson | Boutique: Coco & Kate | Veil: Joyce Jackson | Bridal Shoes: Irregular Choice | Necklace: Anton Heunis | Eternity Ring: 77 Diamonds | Hair & Makeup: Makeup by Jodie | Grooms Suit: Paul Smith | Waistcoat & Ties: Elite Bespoke Tailoring | Venue: Cripps Barn | Florist: Honeysuckle Flower Co. | Bridesmaid Dresses: Jarlo | ASOS | Groomsmen Suits: Next | Cake: Cut Above Cakes | Pizza: Baz & Fred | Entertainment: Stylish Entertainment | Videography: Lara Elliott

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