Jess & Simon's colour-bomb, sparkle motion, foodie wedding

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The Offbeat Bride: Jess, Marketing Officer

Her offbeat partner: Simon, Project Manager

Date and location of wedding: Nancarrow Farm, Zelah, Cornwall, UK - May 16, 2015

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

We hadn't originally thought we had a theme, but as the planning progressed, it seemed like there was a lot of colour, and a lot of hearts! Plus glitter, obviously.

One of my favourite, personal moments of the day was while I was having my makeup done. I was sitting upstairs in the converted barn accommodation next to the glass doors overlooking the courtyard from above. I could see Simon and the boys from the wedding party arriving and having a pre-ceremony beer, and the glittery yarn hearts I'd made twinkling in the sun. Suddenly it became very real and was all definitely happening!

During my dad's speech, he was mentioning the fact that we'd all been living together for a few months while we were renovating our new home. He mentioned myself, Simon, and our daughter Daisy. Then Simon shouted, "And Rodney!" (our crazy beagle) and everyone just shouted "RODDERS!" and had an impromptu toast. It was such a funny moment.

Our first dance was to "Heartbeats" by Jose Gonzales, a song Simon and I used to listen to when we were first together, and after that we went straight into "P.Y.T." by Michael Jackson, and the dancing didn't stop from then on. Our band and DJ were awesome - they really kept the party going.

Tell us about the ceremony:

We were so happy that the Cornish weather allowed us to have our ceremony outside as we'd planned! It was very informal, with some guests seated but the majority standing in groups around the aisle.
To line the aisle, we'd potted wooden barrels with rosemary and lavender, then my mum added brightly coloured tulips and gypsophilia in the morning before the wedding - along with a heart made of willow from my cousin's garden. Which we then covered in glitter. They smelled gorgeous in the summer air, and we then gave them to my aunts and friends as gifts after the wedding.

When I was with my dad, my two-year-old daughter, four-year-old niece, and my bridesmaids waiting to walk around the corner, Daisy decided she wanted to hold my hand and walk with me and my dad. This was totally fine until she swang around in front of me as I was walking in and I nearly fell over her. It was so funny, she really stole the show and completely got rid of any nerves I'd felt. Simon's face was priceless as both his girls walked in together.

The ceremony was just relaxed and lovely, my best friend read A Lovely Love Story by Edward Monkton, and the Registrar added her own personal touch to the end of the ceremony by reciting an old Cornish poem.

We walked back down the aisle to "You're My Best Friend" by Queen (chosen by Simon) and all our family and friends showered us with confetti.

Tell us about your reception:

After the ceremony, we had some time for a chat with drinks and something to eat. I'd had the idea of serving Prosecco, but with an option of adding a dash of flavoured cordial to it to make it a bit different.

We'd chosen to combine our canapes and starters by serving big boards of antipasti with the drinks. There were olives, charcuterie, bruschetta with mozzarella, tomato and fresh basil pesto, and blistered courgette and chilli. Plus the BEST beef carpaccio with rosemary salt. The venue itself is a working farm, so all the meat we had at the wedding was reared right there, it was lovely to keep it so local and knowing the animals are well looked after was such a bonus.

After a few photos, we were all seated for the main course: wood fired beef and lamb (cooked outside in the courtyard) with a salad of roasted vegetables and confit garlic, plus salsa verde. The vegetarian option was delicious too: roasted aubergine with torn mozzarella and chilli. Then for dessert we had bowls of Eton Mess with fresh raspberries and mint.

Decor-wise, I'd collected jars, vases, and bottles which were filled with beautiful flowers and sat on mirrored plates. Along with wooden block table numbers which my mum and I had spent ages covering in glitter. Simon's mum and aunt had spent months making individual hanging hearts and sewing teeny buttons on them as favours for each guest which we hung on the back of their chairs.

What was your most important lesson learned?

My best advice would be: soundtrack! It was so important to us to have music throughout the day, whether it was carefully chosen for our ceremony moments or chilled out tunes for drinking in the sunshine. I really felt like it made the whole day flow well and there were no empty moments.