Emma & Saket

If florals are your thing, then you're going to LOVE this afternoon's real wedding. Bride Emma's very talented florist Mum oversaw the floral design with a little help from Emma's other two florist friends. Honestly - three florists to call your own?! How lucky is Emma! As expected, the floral details are just sublime, installations, bouquets and flourishes galore. You're going to love it! The wonderful Pennard House was Emma and Saket's venue of choice and it's so lovely to see that the sun shone and the couple could make the most of those gorgeous grounds with an outdoor ceremony. The gardens were also in full bloom too, making everything look extra beautiful. The relaxed and natural images from Helen Lisk are just perfect too, enjoy this one flower lovers!

Our Wedding

Emma The Bride: It is a curious thing planning your own wedding when you’re a wedding planner yourself. My friends just assumed that I had everything organised before Saket even proposed! The reality was that we went on the same journey as the couples I work with; some decisions came easily, others proved unexpectedly difficult! But what a happy journey it was, and a useful one at that because of course I experienced planning a wedding from the bride and groom’s perspective. It is lovely to be able to re-live it here and we hope that our photographs give you some ideas...

The Bride

I discovered the Parisian designer Laure de Sagazan after I saw an advert for The Mews Bridal in Notting Hill. Her gowns are effortlessly chic and I remember browsing them online and thinking that was exactly how I wanted to look on my wedding day. Believe it or not, ‘Verlaine’ was the first dress I tried on! I loved the exquisite French lace, the pretty capped sleeves and the deep ‘V’ shaped back. I chose open-toed sandals by Rachel Simpson and I deliberately kept my accessories simple, wearing a pair of drop pearl earrings and a diamond bracelet that was handmade in India and given to me as a wedding present by Saket’s parents. But if choosing my dress and accessories seemed straightforward, deciding on my makeup was much more difficult. I’ve never been comfortable wearing a lot of makeup. I had several trials, but even when I asked for a ‘natural’ look, I still felt it was too heavy. I began to think that I would do my makeup myself, when I discovered Bellitudo in nearby Bruton. Tiffany - the owner - was an absolute angel – not only was my makeup exactly what I wanted, she helped me put on my dress and even tidied the bridal suite after we’d finished getting ready! Louise did my hair immaculately in a half-up half-down style, tucking some fresh flowers in at the back.

The Venue

Pennard House was one of the first venues we discovered although we initially dismissed it for fear it would be too far to ask our guests to travel. Eventually however, its tranquil rural setting and glorious rose gardens won us over. The owners, Harry and Georgina, together with their venue coordinator, Charlie, made us feel incredibly welcome. Barring a few house rules, they let us call Pennard House ‘home’ for the duration of our wedding.

The Details

Being a planner, I loved poring over all of the details. I opted for an autumnal colour scheme of berry, peach and gold that flowed through our flowers, bridesmaid outfits and stationery, which was designed and painted by Suzie Foster. Our welcome sign was made by Kayleigh Tarrant. Having taken calligraphy lessons, I hand-lettered our place cards, table plan and menus myself. This took a lot longer than I’d anticipated! We wanted our evening party to showcase the vibrant colours that India is famous for. My friend Jess painstakingly hand-sewed cushion covers in shades of orange and pink and helped us decorate with lanterns and colourful garlands.

The Flowers

I am passionate about flowers and I knew from the outset that flowers had to feature in a big way at our wedding. I’m very fortunate that my Mum is a florist and flower grower and we spent many hours together coming up with ideas. We designed a spectacular installation for the staircase, inspired by a countryside hedgerow. But having been so ambitious, we could never have achieved what we wanted to without the help of my good friends Brigitte and Michelle, also very talented florists. It meant the world to me that my Mum made my bridal bouquet, into which she placed a bracelet belonging to my beloved Nanna.

The Wedding Party

Kate and Katy both wore a striking berry dress from Phase Eight and gold Dune sandals. It suited them both perfectly. Ivana, our delightful flower girl, wore a lace and chiffon dress. Everyone said she looked just like a ‘mini-me’!

The Ceremony

Being able to marry outside in the glorious sunshine, with the birds singing in the background, was truly magical and undoubtedly our favourite aspect of the day. My dear friend Jen read the poem ‘September’ by Helen Hunt Jackson – it was a perfect moment.

The Entertainment

Saket and I both love music. During our ceremony and reception we were serenaded by the Colston String Trio who were excellent, and we danced all night to the jazzy Blue Lion Band. Our first dance was L.O.V.E by Nat King Cole because we love the lyrics so much.

The Food

When we were designing our menu, we wanted to give things an Indian flavour! Besides the canapés, which were British-themed, Caroline Gent and her team created a feast of authentic Indian dishes, breads and chutneys that delighted our guests. It was certainly a bit different to the food usually served at a wedding! We enjoyed our delicious wedding cake with a cup of traditional Indian chai.

The Photography

Luckily for us our first choice of photographer was fully booked and so she recommended Helen. They say things happen for a reason, well, as far as we are concerned no one could have captured better than Helen the colour and fun that made our wedding so special.