Alix & Andy

If you're looking for something to take the sting off returning to work after the Easter bank holiday THIS incredibly stylish woodland wedding is it! Bride & Groom, Alix and Andy include all the current wedding trends, with Persian rugs, perspex signs, geometric Edison lights, five food trucks and SO much more. Not only is it all PIN-tastic, they've made sure they listed all of their suppliers for you too. After you've written down your favourites from here, make sure you check out our wedding supplier directory 'The List' for similar suppliers in your area too. Fabulous photographer, Clara Cooper Photography nearly declined this wedding due to it taking place on her birthday day, but she (and us) are so glad she didn't as it was every bit the riot she was expecting, and her captures are utterly immense. There's not many bridal parties that look as fierce as these dear folk. With bespoke burgundy suits, gold sequin gowns and not one but two exquisite bridal gowns for our gorgeous bride. Now are you ready to have your socks knocked off..? Thought so.

Planning

Alex the Bride: I had two extremely integral people to help me pull this wedding off, the groom and my mother. We trawled the Internet for venues, suppliers, caterers, entertainment and furniture to bring our dream to life. We used Wix, a website builder to create a wedding website in order to share details and so guests could RSVP- I cant recommend this option enough. Really easy to create and saves on postage for your guests!

Venue

Some of our fondest memories together took place outdoors, so we knew that when the time came, an outdoor venue would be the only option for us! We wanted the freedom to be completely ourselves and organise a truly bespoke day, luckily for us my mum is an avid walker who happened upon a local woodland (literally, just around the corner from our family home), researched who owned it and began communications about a new venture... woodland weddings! We were given complete creative control and often visited the woodland owned by Wild Woods to scope out the perfect “blessing area”. In the end we married nestled under an oak tree, draped in ribbon in a natural clearing. Perfect for that boho vibe. The reception was held at a local farmers secluded field (again, another one of my mums walking trips, and another around the corner settings!) to accommodate a marquee, festival flags, fireworks and a whole lot of celebrating.

The Ceremony

We wanted something that wasn’t too far from the traditional feel of a wedding but more relaxed to suit our personalities. We had a celebrant, Penny Parker, who was brilliant from the start. She had visited us beforehand to get to know us and provided a full service that lasted around 25 minutes including ring exchanges and readings from our family and friends. Many of our guests commented on the warmness that she brought when conducting the service. I walked down the flower lined aisle to a barbershop quartet singing ‘Lovely Day’ by Bill Withers (trying ever so desperately not to burst into overwhelming tears of joy) as our closest family and friends sat on vintage benches provided by The Poppy Trading Company.

Entertainment

This is where we wanted quality, and wow! Did we get it! We had ambient background songs from a string quartet and barber shop quartet before kicking off the food with The Nouveau Folk Collective, officially opening the dance floor (YES, TO DANCING UNTIL YOUR FEET HURT!), shortly followed by “Pop Gun” a superb band that we could have sworn had travelled straight from the 80s! It’s safe to say the dance floor wasn’t empty from 5pm-1am, with people throwing shapes and singing their hearts out. We had a boomerang/photo booth from Its Social, who created a bespoke border for all our prints, a wedding album and a digital album at a fantastic price. A slow motion booth from Wish You Well brought plenty of laughter as guests queued up to have a go. They kept everybody entertained and it was just a sheer joy to have such wonderful people joining in our wedding fun! Photographer We hadn’t had much luck with a photographer to begin with and I was starting to feel hopeless that we would find somebody who understood our vision and suited the vibe. That’s when I discovered Lucy Clara Cooper Photography. It just so happened that one afternoon scrolling through Facebook I saw an image that took my breath away; I clicked on the link and found the photographer, Lucy. Unfortunately upon first enquiry Lucy was unavailable but after a brief description of the wedding Lucy decided that she wanted in... even though the wedding fell on her birthday! She brought so much enthusiasm... and smoke bombs! Everyone felt instantly comfortable around her, meaning we got those AH-MAZING candid shots.

Videographer

These.Guys.Are.Truly.The.Best. (Disclaimer: we are friends!) We had known for a long time we were going to ask Storyboard Weddings to be our videographers as knowing them, we had seen their work and knew they would encapsulate the day perfectly. We just needed to make sure they would be available as they are incredibly busy through the year and thankfully there were. The highlights video is something that I think we could watch on repeat for a very long time!

Food

We wanted, simple, informal, relaxed dining but most importantly... we wanted flavour! We had 4 food trucks, Wood fired pizza from Jordy’s Pizza, Gourmet BBQ from JR’s Texas BBQ, Curries from Cheeky Chillis and of course... crepes from I Love Crepes. They arrived and parked under the festival flag lined horizon to serve from 5pm-8pm to allow our guests to pick and choose... and of course refuel after dancing! Cheeky Chilli also provided an extensive cocktail list and an excellent flare artist that kept us all entertained, as he performed behind the large circular mirror bar supplied by invisible blue. Andy’s mum made banana bread (a firm favourite) whilst our guests sipped on prosecco served straight out of a bright yellow converted Italian Piaggio Ape 50 van!

Décor

Our vision was always foliage and from there gold’s, white and copper were added. There were a number of handmade items for the wedding for which you need a DIY store, a Pinterest board, a trusty bridesmaid, Etsy and sheer dedication for few hours of your time. Most projects were wood and paint (like the handmade ring box, blessing sign, dance floor sign), to keep the woodland feel but the main attraction was the 6ft by 4ft mirror welcome sign propped up at the entrance of the Marquee. Another centerpiece for the day was the handmade alter sign (made by two very skilled friends of ours who brought to life the image I had dreamed of for the blessing). A perspex sheet, decorated with acrylic pen, stencils the wedding hashtag and erected by a wood pillar and surrounded by twigs and branches found around us in the wood. The aisle was made up of mismatch rugs from Wayfair, lined with pillar candles.

Flowers

Keeping the local feel my mum suggested using a local gardener, Razvan Chisu, to do the foliage- ferns galore! We had fern button holes, gypsophila for the bridemaids, greenery/foliage lined trestle tables, cube glass vases filled with white roses and lastly TWO bride bouquets. One with eucalyptus leaves and ferns with trailing ribbon and another with dark red roses to match Andy. We also had white planters surrounding the perimeter of the marquee with shocking “Catmints” to add a splash of blue/ purple. All from the creatively stunning mind of Razvan.

Interior

I wanted it to be spacious, crisp with a little bit of glam. White carpet was used throughout the marquee (although we advise strongly against if you get a rainy day) and looked fab... for a short while. I created three different areas within the marquee; a rustic section for eating with mismatched folding wooden chairs, vintage wooden trestle tables, geometric shapes and a single white blossom tree from Trees By Design, the dance floor for entertainment, huge “Lets Dance” light up letters and a chill out bar section. Within the chill out section, we had white sofas and stools, mirror top tables and a mirrored circular bar all supplied by the –cant recommend enough- Invisible Blue. Our lighting contractor, Hipswing, supplied the core electrical demands of the marquee as well as a white light up dance floor, upon which we danced our first dance to “Everywhere” Fleetwood Mac as gold confetti rained down upon us. They also suspended a circular structure above the bar with Edison hanging lights and draped ferns courtesy of Razvan.

Groom and Groomsmen

We wanted a suit for Andy that felt unique and a far cry from his everyday work suits. After much searching on the Internet for colours and styles, he eventually decided to try a tailor made bespoke suit. This way he’d get the colour he wanted as well as the design. After meeting Richard Smith Bespoke, a suit was designed within an hour inclusive of all the minor details. The burgundy three-piece suit was complimented with a paisley black tie (And a cheeky little message sown into the lining) This set the tone for what the Groomsmen were going to wear. Andy wanted to match in similar colours. We found a set of burgundy chinos, black braces and burgundy ties in Debenhams. To complete the ensemble, the tie came with a golden bee- another feature important to our love of nature.

Dress

“Naim” Rosa Clara wasn’t at all the dress I went looking for. In fact when I saw it on the hanger I wasn’t keen at all... However, once on, I fell in love instantly. The illusion and lace detail reminded me of wild flowers. As beautiful and elegant as the dress was, I knew my love for letting loose on the dance floor wouldn’t be possible in such a tight fitting dress. That’s where my second dress came in! “Monaco” Bo & Luca (all the way from Australia) allowing my free spirited side shine, both finished with a rose gold hair vine from Britten.

Bridesmaids

The bridesmaid’s dresses were probably hardest to assemble. Each of them had such different styles and preferences. Eventually I chose to stick with the gold, Great Gatsby feel and was practically demanded by all 5 girls to buy floor length sequin numbers for the wow factor from Goddiva. Boy, did they look wonderful!

Hair & Makeup

After my hair and makeup artist let me down at the last minute, I emailed all suppliers I could find. I couldn’t have imaged I would have been as lucky as I was to be answered by Absolutely Flawless who supplied Lauren and Natassja. Two very talented and skilled artist that made me feel a million dollars!

Stationery

We started with “Pencil Us In” save the dates with a mini pencil from Camdeco. The invitations were bespoke made by the truly wonderful Beija Flor Studio. Her designs are stunning and we worked together to create a foliage/boho dream. I then finished off each invite with a piece of string, with a loose knot in the middle that tied once the recipient fully open the card to symbolized us “tying the knot”

Transport

Choosing a mustang for our short journey to marquee was a no brainer. It was a showstopper of a car with an exceptionally professional and polite driver (Tom). Excellent service!

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