Charlotte & Ben

Super competitive couple Charlotte and Ben run marathons in their spare time, so naturally their wedding day was high energy, with a couple of contests thrown in for good measure. From wedding bake offs, with actual medals, to the tug of war, the whole day was about everyone getting involved and having fun. And it's clear from everyone's faces that they had a wonderful day! As well as Amy Fanton's dreamy images, the couple chose This Modern Revelry to film their big day. According to Charlotte the wonderful Laura & Alan made them 'feel like the lead singers in our very own music video.' Which is surely exactly what you want from your wedding film?! It's a lovely day, with beautiful styling and fabulous fashion choices (including Needle & Thread bridesmaids dresses), so I think it'll be right up your street...

Our Wedding

Charlotte the Bride: The thing to know with any race is that it’s almost always won with good training and some serious prep. So why would we treat our wedding any different? As we see it, we are about to embark on our longest marathon of all; marriage.
 Although time was on our side, the journey to the start line became turbulent pretty quickly. For the first few months we spent many a miserable day venue hunting, we had big dreams but not the big budget. Our first marriage lesson: managing our money as a couple! In the end however, like with most things, Ben’s Mum, Alison, came to our rescue, lending us her beautiful garden in West Sussex.

The Ceremony

Our ceremony took place at The Church of St Mary’s which adjoined Ben’s primary school. My Grandfather joined us in marriage in a light-hearted yet touching ceremony. We chose music that had the congregation split into sides, increasing the volume and raising the energy for the rest of the day to come.

The Photography

When it came to suppliers I was not one to mess around, or be messed with. Amy Fanton, our photographer, was the first thing we secured. She had a portfolio brimming with soft, timeless, and delicate images, exactly the type I had been coveting for many years in anticipation of this day. Light-filled images from a mix of film & fine-art. I knew Amy could and would find a way to capture our vulnerability and intimacy as a couple.

The Marquee

In quick succession we booked the Petal Pole marquee from Tom of Piece of Cake Marquees. I felt like I could entrust anything in his capable hands...even my 94 year old Aunt ;). He worked with our florist Elaine to construct the beautiful floral garlands that wrapped around the two main poles. A running/riding theme developed, horse box bars were added, white horseshoes, gold painted ponies and race-denoting stationery were created. Ben’s Aunt helped us with the printing of all of our stationary, meaning, I was able to indulge in fine paper from GF Smith and a lenient timeframe for the designs. 

Wedding Bake Off

If it wasn’t apparent, and not least expected as runners, Ben & I can be ‘quite’ competitive. Could we leave that out of our big day? Ha. No! We invited our guests to bring along their best bakes, crowning winners with biscuit medals and bubbles. One of the best bits of our day by far! A logistical nightmare for our on the day planners Occasion Queens, but a huge success nonetheless. Bride side vs. Groom side Tug of war and Sumo wrestling spars provided yet more opportunities for our guests to display their competitive streaks.

The Videography

A nod to Laura & Alan, superb husband & wife videographer team behind This Modern Revelry for not only instigating our first wrestle but for making us feel like the lead singers in our very own music video. So much energy, so much fun, check them out!

On The Day Coordination

Planning a wedding at home became quite chaotic, particularly when we had opted for so many activities but Nina, our wedding planner at Occasion Queens, came to my rescue with a timeline fit for a King...no wait...Queen! Guests even commended how well timed and relaxed the day felt. I can’t thank all the girls enough! What girls?

Needle & Thread Bridesmaids Dresses

My Bridesmaids/ Garden Nymphs stole the show in beautifully embellished miss-matched Needle & Thread gowns with hand tied flower crowns and the most exquisite jewellery from Hermione Harbutt.

Hermione Harbutt Accessories

Hermione had a part to play in almost every detail of the wedding. My Mum and I, reasonably subtly, covered ourselves head to toe in her designs. A bespoke back-lace hung in the keyhole of my Intropia gown to match a crystal headpiece that Ben had picked out in Hermione’s Bristol store not long after our engagement.

The Groom

Getting on to my best-friend, Ben, my husband (weird huh!) who kept the unexpected coming throughout all of the preparations, turning his talents to poetry for one of our readings, and surprising me with the wedding ring of my dreams at the alter. I gave him such a hard time for not having things done when I wanted them but he proved my fears were misguided. On the day he looked as handsome as ever wearing all over bespoke Ben Sherman, done in his own way at his own pace. Always full of surprises, I can’t wait to run alongside him into our forever! 

Final Thoughts

Our day did really become the best day of our lives, although we were never going to believe that in the run up, our family and friends absolutely smashed it out of the park for us and we couldn’t be more grateful.

{Watch The Film}