Sarah & Nathan

I couldn't help but add picture after picture of Bride Sarah's dreamy Kate Halfpenny 'Iris' gown for you to swoon over. Every time you look at it you notice more of more of the intricate details, like the stunning lace overlay and those adorable cap sleeves. It looks like it was made for our gorgeous Bride Sarah and compliments this rustic vintage affair at Lainston House barn perfectly. I also absolutely adore Sarah's relaxed tousled up do and sweet Rachel Simpson bridal shoes, and how can I forget the heavenly blooms by The List member Arcade Flowers. The girls oversized bouquets and centrepieces will make your heart flutter. A truly beautiful wedding filled with family, friends, lots of personal touches and lots of pretty. And if you're a big fan of Sarah's Halfpenny London gown too, be sure to check out more of Kate's fabulous collection in our Look Book.

Dress

Sarah The Bride: I had no preconceptions when I went to try dresses on, but knew I wanted something comfortable that I could eat and dance in! The Iris from Halfpenny was the first dress I tried and I loved it as soon as I put it on. The lace details and its relaxed, vintage style was perfect. Just to be sure, I went and tried on about 6 other dresses (why not!) but ended up buying the very first one.

The Grooms Fashion

Nathan definitely knew he didn’t want to wear tails. He too, wanted to wear something that would reflect the style of the day. He chose a navy Ted Baker suit and hired a cream waistcoat and tie with brown brogues.

The Venue

As soon as we became engaged, we started planning our big day. My Dad died 11 years ago, so the day was always going to be different. With that in mind, I wanted it to be a relaxed, beautiful occasion filled with friends and family, somewhere everyone could have a good time. I knew I wanted a lovely vintage, rustic feel, filled with gorgeous, personal touches. I made the decision not to get married in my village church, so we decided to marry at Lainston House; 5 minutes from our home.

Colour Scheme/Decor

I had a number of ideas which I wanted to incorporate to help perfect the day; Nathan sourced an old vintage ladder and piece of drift wood for our home-made ‘wedding sign’ which was decorated by him and his Mum and Sister on the morning of the wedding. I wanted to include my Dad in the day, so we had old family photos arranged on vintage crates; photo-frames sourced from charity shops far and wide. We had an arrangement of herbs and Nathan’s Grandad’s old suitcase for our cards and gifts. My Mum made our wedding seating plan and decorated a metal bike which was propped outside the Dawley Barn. Our personal touches and the amazing flowers and candles arranged by our florist made the venue totally perfect. We weren’t sure at first whether we wanted wedding favours, so it was a bit last minute. I knew I wanted something edible, so we went with vintage sweets in miniature jars; ‘thank you’ labels were personally made and tied on with twine.

Florist

All the floral arrangments were made and designed by Arcade Flowers. As soon as I met the team in March I knew I wanted them to create our day. Emma and the team instantly knew the ‘look’ I wanted to achieve, so with budget arranged we decided on the table pieces and bouquet. Every table piece was designed differently, to give a sense of individuality. I didn’t know until the day what the bouquet would look like, but when they were delivered to the room on the day of the wedding, I think all the Bridesmaids shed a little tear! I can’t thank them enough.

Entertainment

Choosing a band was probably one of the hardest things and not without its disagreements! I wanted a jazz band for the afternoon and stumbled across the Jazz Spivs by absolute chance and they went down a storm! Eskimo, again we found by chance and certainly weren’t disappointed. They got everyone up on the dance floor and I think, even had a few requests!

Food

We love food, so wanted a menu which was yummy, seasonal and of good portion size (Nathan’s request!). After a tasting session at Lainston house, we went for mackerel to start, lamb rump with cheddar mash and greens for main and crème brulee to finish. We had a selection of canapes in the afternoon and evening, accompanied by a cheese tower. All went down very well!

Photographer

I contacted Natalie when I saw one of my old school friends’ wedding pictures on Facebook. Laura really recommended her and I loved how she was able to capture all those little intricate details which makes a wedding day so special. Nathan and I arranged to meet Natalie for a pre wedding chat and photo shoot in Devon; from the moment we met I knew that we wouldn’t be disappointed. Natalie is a lovely, warm person who completely made us feel relaxed and comfortable in her company. The story that she created is wonderful and we of course love the photos.

Special Moments

There were so many amazing parts to the day. I will never forget the morning, getting ready with my favourite girls and reading a card which Nathan had hidden for me – more tears! Waiting to walk into the barn, my 91 year old Granny arriving and started to cry as soon as she saw me; that set us all off! The speech my Brother and Nathan gave were amazing; funny and sad. I think the best part was standing with Nathan, looking at everyone laughing and having fun and knowing in that moment you’ve brought all these people together. It was so incredibly special and poignant, I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Advice

If I had any words of wisdom – I’d say enjoy the planning; every moment, every discussion, every decision you make, because it will be those moments that will make your day so incredibly personal. You may not remember them or even notice them on the day, but believe me everyone else will. The most important thing I can impart is to enjoy the few days leading up the wedding, they will go really quick and feel very hectic, but take a few moments for the pair of you. Everyone says the day goes by so quickly and it really does. Take some time for the two of you to be by yourselves, look back at the day you’ve created and everyone is there for you. It would be rare for all those people to be in the same room at the same time again, so saviour that moment, it’s worth every second.