Hand Made In The Peak District

Hand Made In The Peak District

via

Beth made HER OWN DRESS. I know, how talented is that?! I wouldn't even know where to start. Such an elegant and timeless design too, the shape works perfectly with the fresh natural make-up and pretty up-do. I also love how she added a delicate cardigan for evening - a sensible and stylish way to change up your look.

Now then, I must mention the "naked" cake, I have never seen so many layers in all my life, there is enough to feed 500 guests there at least... although if it was my cake I would definitely be taking home a large quantity for myself. Ahem.

Beth The Bride: Despite being a novice seamstress with little experience, I decided to make my own wedding dress. It took a year to decide on a style, find a pattern (I adapted a 1950s Vintage Vogue pattern), make a toil (or mock-up), source the fabric and then make the dress, on average probably spending one weekend a month on it. It was a true labour of love, and although it was by no means perfect (the hem was a bit wonky!), all the imperfections were more than made up for by the joy I got from making it and the reward from having something unique and personal.

Ian and I now live in our university town, Bristol, however I was keen to get married in the village where I grew up - a picturesque spot in the heart of the Peak District. We decided to have a Humanist ceremony on the Saturday, surrounded by all our friends and family, and were legally married the Thursday before, with just our immediate family present.

This meant we were unrestricted when choosing our wedding venue and we managed to find a fantastic traditional canvas and pole marquee company, Will's Marquees that we can't recommend highly enough. We hired two gorgeous marquees from them, one for the ceremony and one for the wedding breakfast and party, and used the field next door to my parents' house to host it in. I was able to get ready in my parents' house and my wonderful friend Claire hired and decorated a bell tent as our wedding present, for us to sleep in on our wedding night.

Having the wedding in a field also meant guests were able to camp, waking up to stunning views across the valley the following day, and joining us for a walk over the surrounding hills.

Having found the traditional marquees, and hosting the wedding in a field, it seemed only natural to have a relaxed English Country theme. My mum spent a year making over 100 meters of bunting from vintage lace and scraps of fabric that she collected in muted creams, dusky pinks and navy ticking. We collected jam jars which we decorated with lace and ribbon and placed candles inside. My mum scoured vintage markets for ornate cut glass jugs for the flowers. She also made two ornamental 'trees' from broom handles and oasis decorated with fabric flowers, beads and off-cuts of my dress fabric! We displayed pictures of our parents and grandparents on their wedding days and my close friend Rupert surprised us by printing a picture of Ian and me at the registry office with a large white border for everyone to sign.

We found a great local florist to do the bouquets and button holes, they instantly understood what I was after and gave us lots of useful tips and ideas for our own arrangements which they supplied additional flowers for. My mum, mother-in-law and our close family friend, Sue, arranged these for us, supplemented by flowers from my mum's garden. We had Sweet Avalanche and Avalanche roses, poppy seed heads, Baby Blue eucalyptus, antique carnations, thistle, flowering mint, rosemary, sweet peas, Hydrangea Paniculata, Shasta daisies and Ladies Mantle, and plant pots with white geraniums, pansies and ivy to decorate outside the marquees.

The humanist ceremony was truly the most incredible part of the day, I had the sun on my face as my father and I walked up the 'aisle' all the way from my parents' house, across the field and into the marquee, accompanied by Pachabel's Canon, played on a grand piano by a friend from the village. I could see all our guests and felt so lucky that all our hard work had paid off.

We wrote the service with our lovely celebrant, Ian France, and were able to make it very personal, with references to friends and family, as well as sharing the sentiment of Humanism. We saved exchanging rings for this service as a symbolic gesture. My brother read a surprise poem written by my grandpa to my grandma in 1937, and we all sang a humanist poem by Gustav Spiller to the tune of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy".

We chose Sheffield based Coco Catering to supply all our food and service on the day. They are a half-Italian husband and wife team, specialising in using local, seasonal produce that was all delicious! They were able to work within our budget to deliver everything we asked for and completely surpassed our expectations with their friendly and professional manner.

Brides Gown Handmade | Marquee Hire Will's Marquees | Blooms Forests Of Chapel | Celebrant Ian France | Caterers Coco Catering

تسجيل الدخول للتعليق

Follow us on