Maria & Keith

Well isn't this just a pastel feast for the eyes? Preston Court is one of my all-time favourite venues because it's home to a real life fairground carousel. And not just any old carousel, but one with gorgeous fairground ponies. It really does make a magical backdrop for photographs and I absolutely never tire of seeing it. I can totally understand why the venue captures so many couples hearts. If you've never seen it before, you're in for a treat...

The Photographer

Amy the Photographer: Everything about this playful, whimsical and bohemian wedding was a dream to photograph and I feel so lucky that Maria & Keith chose me to capture the day for them. Shot mostly on film processed by Richard Photo Lab, we lucked out with one of the hottest and sunniest days in the UK! The wedding was beautifully personalised with a number of DIY projects that Maria’s family came together to create for the lucky couple including a naked cake, all of the signage and much of the décor including the pastel Pom Pom garland. A pastel candy coloured palette kept the tone of the day fun and casual with a number of rustic touches. The bride and groom rented a VW bug and campervan which made for some really fun couple's portraits and towards sunset I took Maria and Keith into a nearby field where we were approached by two very curious horses. The whole evening was filled with magical moments between two people who are beautiful on the inside and out!

The Venue

Maria the Bride: I fell in love with the venue the moment I found it online & I didn’t even need to visit but Keith said we better check it out just in case! Seeing it in person just confirmed my love for it. It was a truly magical day and I loved every single minute of it. The venue inspired me to go with a simple, shabby chic style and I decided to use the pastel colours found on the organ throughout the rest of the wedding details.

The Dress

Finding my dress was surprisingly easy—it was from the first shop I went into, and 3rd dress I tried on! I was just browsing with my mum to get an idea as to what kind of style I wanted so I had no clue I would actually find THE dress! I tried on two mermaid style dresses and could barely walk but when I walked out in the 3rd dress and my mum started to cry I knew that was it. I just walked up and down the shop and didn’t want to take it off ☺   

The Cake

The cake was made lovingly by my Uncle Kyle Lewis-McDonald, he is just a budding baker and wanted to give us a wedding present that would be useful. He made the cake from scratch and constructed the whole thing just after the ceremony using layers of Victoria sponge, buttercream, berries, plums and roses. I knew I wanted a naked cake to go along with the rustic theme, so it was perfect and really tasty!  

DIY Projects

My family took on a number of DIY projects that I was so grateful for—my Dad Phil Lloyd along with my cousin and brother Zach and Jasmine Lloyd helped to create the fairground games & the ‘Marshall Wedding’ pallets that had the timings of the day. I knew I wanted to use recycled materials and was amazed how my talented family helped to create them—everything they created was exactly as I had envisioned and complimented the venue so perfectly! The table seating plan was an old door we found in a skip and my dad rescued it! The easel was also a freebie found in London going to be thrown away. I wouldn’t change a thing if I did it all over again except maybe get some fans as that day was extremely hot, but we feel so lucky to of had such glorious weather!