Natalie & Martin

Natalie and Martin's rustic, sunshine filled day is proof that you don't need to spend a fortune to have a beautiful wedding. With a little bit of careful planning, saving and compromise, you can create the day of your dreams without causing yourselves unnecessary stress. Natalie sounds like a lady with her head firmly screwed on and it's clear that the most important thing to her was just to marry Martin. The pair were lucky with the weather and had the most incredible blue skies and sunshine, making their venue, Ridge Farm, look even more beautiful. There's a lot of gorgeous lace action going on, with Natalie's Lusan Mandongus dress and those stunning cornflower blue Bridesmaids dresses - a total bargain from Kailko at House of Fraser. We hope you enjoy this relaxed, rustic but oh-so-happy big day!

The Bride

Natalie The Bride: I wore a Lusan Mandongus dress, called Heather. The dress was brought from Surrey Brides in Weybridge. My shoes were a BHS bargain for only £35. I decided that I wanted to spend more money on the honeymoon, and as the dress covered the shoes it was an easy thing to save money on! My veil was something borrowed and old. It was my sisters veil.  

The Flowers

A dear friend of mine Pauline Gibbons did our flowers, a very talented lady, who does floristry for a hobby, but in my opinion, she is better than the professionals.  

The Venue

Ridge Farm Studios, Capel, Surrey. We had the 12 bedroom cottage and its entire grounds (inlcuding the swimming pool) from Friday lunch until Monday lunchtime. The pool house was the function room, with the Sunday it returning back to a swimming pool for a BBQ and garden party.

The Decor

Decor/styling: We went for a traditional homemade look. We hand made all the bunting, turns out my husband is very good with a sewing machine. We saved glass jars for over a year and had them as our table favours filled with popcorn. We also used them to make lanterns. We hand made out table plan using an old picture frame and luggage tags, made hessian table runners and napkin holders.  

The Cake

My sister, again another way to save money. She had never made a wedding cake before, and keeping it simple we went for a vanilla sponge cake with simple decorations. Our stationery was hand printed by the Bride and Groom, using luggage tags and card.  

The Food

Our caterers were Red Anywhere. I would highly recommend them. Very organised, and attentive, with good attention to detail. Great food and service. This included canapes and a three course meal.  

The Wedding Party

The Bridesmaids wore Kailko at House of Fraser. The Groom wore Ted Baker, brought at full price, then when it went in the sale, we got Vouchers for the difference so my husband brought a Ted Baker outfit for the Sunday. The Ushers wore Burton Suits, we opened a store card to get 10% off the suits and also got 10% student discount. Suits cost £70 each.  

The Entertaiment

We had singer Sam Lindo for the champagne reception followed by a band from Bristol ‘Three Scotts & a Bar Man’. Highly recommend both. Perfect music for the occasion, including all eras and genres.  

The Photography

Voyteck Photography, HIGHLY recommended. A lovely guy to have around on the wedding day, really pleasant, polite and calm, he blended in without even knowing he was there taking fab photos.