“Jonny was simply the perfect choice of wedding photographer. His documentary style is just magical, capturing every detail in the most beautiful way.”
Country Garden Marquee Wedding | Warwickshire | UK
Hollie & Jago owe their relationship to parties and the pub. That’s where their relationship grew from. Friends at first before Jago eventually managed to charm her. Both admired from afar and then the rest is history! Picture a dog walk over Jago’s Dad’s farm where they lived for a couple of years before moving to London. Hollie perhaps a little jaded from the night before shall we say. For someone who loves dog walks, she rather fancied curling up in front of a film that morning! Jago insisted they walk right to the top of a steep hill. Once at the top Hollie sat down immediately only to look up and see Jago down on one knee! He had even managed to smuggle some champagne and a couple of flutes in his jacket! What a guy!
Hollie & Jago’s homegrown wedding day adventure
Our lovely friend Katie Baker her sister Lucy helped us organise and plan the day. A truly special touch for me as Lucy used to be my baby sitter! It was so great knowing that timings and suppliers were all sorted and we could just concentrate on enjoying the day! It’s one thing to get married, but the event itself is also quite a lot to handle. Having them by our sides made this all possible and they were able to smooth out any bumps. Having their experience was also wonderful, as we hadn’t done this before.
Planning a traditional church wedding to begin with was a must. My parents were married in the same church 29 years previously, and the church is at the heart of the village that I grew up in. Followed by a great big picnic essentially! We wanted a relaxed feel to the day, pretty and a little bit rough around the edges. An important element to us was using local suppliers and friends. What we learnt that was as the day began to take shape, the choices just became more and more obvious and it ended up reflecting us rather perfectly. Wild flowers, picnic style food, documentary style photographer and a great big party.
Favourite countryside wedding wonderland details
Riding my pony to the church was really lovely. She made me feel very calm. It was such a treat to have her involved in the day. Also taking some time out to have our photos taken. It gave us a moment to soak it all in and have a stunning collection of photos that will last a lifetime. The bridesmaids used a sweet little fiat 500 with no roof and wicker seats to get to the church. It’s second job was to be a photo booth! Our guests were a very important aspect of the day for us. Having a photo of each of them was a target for us!
We chose a marquee as it gives you so much freedom. They are beautiful and spacious. There was something quite magical about having it up the week before, seeing it, being in it and knowing what was going to happen in it! It made for some great photos and it withstood some immense rain, wind and lightning! In the evening it was bursting with fairy lights. A wedding wonderland.
The wedding fashion
I can’t thank the team at Fairytale Weddings in Towcester enough. Daisy who is very lovely also has such a brilliant eye and lots of experience, so she helped me hugely with my decision. In the end I went for something that I didn’t even pick to try on. It didn’t seem to look right on the rail but Daisy said she would like to see it on anyway. I instantly fell in love! It was exactly what I had envisioned. It goes to show if you’re open minded and try something that you wouldn’t usually pick, you may just be surprised! There were a whole handful of dresses at Fairytale weddings that I would have been delighted to wear. There is so much choice. But this one stole my heart.
The dress was actually a skirt and a top designed by Belle and Bunty. It was perfect in every way (I’m not biased at all!) and it made me feel like a bride, but very much myself too. The veil was so sweet and I was able to wear my Mum’s tiara. I took the veil off at 7pm and took my hair down, but I was able to keep the tiara!
Groom’s attire was tails but no tops! The traditional look for the boys. The groomsmen and groom were all matching. They looked dashing! Bridesmaid’s dresses & shoes were Coast. Thank goodness for Coast! Simple, sweet, beautiful and didn’t cost the earth. I had six girls to please! My big girls wore their own choice of shoes and the little flower girls had ballet pumps that got a little bit soggy.
Advice for those planning a wedding now
Have a massage the day before! Nothing fancy, just half an hour of taking everything in and having some well deserved you time. It was a bit cheeky to sneak off during the last minuet prep but it was really precious time. A moment to slow down and think about the whole thing before it happened. Time to eat on the day – I made sure I ate lots and lots. You are not going to stop!!! So it gives you a chance to relax and look around, and also gives you energy to keep going! Also, you have planned all this yummy stuff, you deserve to enjoy it all! Get an amazing photographer. This is one day. Make sure that you are confident that it’s being recorded. I was able to completely relax as I knew that Jonny was quietly snapping away.
Don’t think too much on decisions, go with your heart. Sounds silly, but the more you organise and get ticked off the list, the wedding will just begin to take shape naturally. Your day will be a true reflection of you if you just go with it. Have the fiddly bits ready well in advance. Our signs, name places etc where all waiting in the wings and ready to go. So in the final countdown is as relaxed as possible. I felt that there were two elements. Getting married, and an event. Make sure you don’t dwell too much on one or the other, they are both just brilliant!
The biggest surprise on my own wedding was how the day went on forever! Everyone said it would go by in a blur! But there were so many sections, getting ready, service, lunch, speeches etc… that they all felt like mini chapters in the day. It was so wonderful. I overheard someone say, ‘It’s 6 O’Clock’. I was so so happy that it was so early!
Feeding Rosie the pony was a moment I will remember forever. We got to have a moment just us two and I got to say a proper thank you to her for taking me to the church. It’s the most dressed up I’ve ever been in the stables.
What did you want from your documentary wedding photography?
We wanted relaxed shots of our wonderful guests. We had quite a lot of guests and wanted a record of them being there. Jonny’s documentary style is just magical. He captures every detail in the most beautiful way. We wanted photos that we would be proud to show our children, grand-children and so on. Also ones we could pop on Instagram and have on display in the house. Jonny was simply the perfect choice. We are over the moon and more! It was like having a friend with us. Jonny is so very talented, and just the most wonderful person to be around. He made us feel so excited and so relaxed all at the same time.
WEDDING SUPPLIER SHOUT OUTS
Wedding planners: Katie & Lucy www.isobelweddings.com
Second photographer: Eve Dunlop – thanks pal
Make up artists: Fabienne Bennett – www.fabiennebennettmua.com Fabienne’s amazing talent and persona made me feel totally relaxed and comfortable. I felt comfortable asking for certain aspects as well as leaving things up to her as she is so experienced. On the day I just felt wonderful. I felt like a bride, but I very much felt like myself too. She is a wonderful person to be around. You will very much be in safe, kind and professional hands!
Florists: Chloe Plester – Bare Blooms – www.bareblooms.co.uk I fell in love with Chloe’s work after about one second on her website! I then knew that Chloe was going to be a friend from the first time we went for a cup of tea to chat about the wedding. Absolutely stunning flowers and a simply lovely person who is passionate about her job. The flowers really were the icing on the cake! (Icing on the wedding cake was also delicious but we will get to that later!)
Rings: We got the rings from the jeweller that Jago got my engagement ring. We found him at Grey’s Antiques, London. (Worth a visit!) We are both fond of history so both our wedding rings and my engagement ring have a little history to them. www.dbgems.com
Cake: Sofia Antona – Sofia Bakes – www.sofiabakes.com Too sweet for words. She is as sweet as her simply delectable cakes. Our cake was just perfect in every way and getting to know Sofia was a true treat.
Catering Company: Taste – www.taste-eventscatering.co.uk Just brilliant! Delicious, pretty and the most fun staff ever. We were so relaxed about the catering as we have tried and tested them at other events. So very yummy. We had evening food too, just what you need when you are getting a bit tired!
Entertainment: Dermot Crehan – Irish fiddle band for the reception. A sweet and fun touch to get things going after the ceremony! Scott Grainger – (The Legend!) www.facebook.com/djscottgrainger/ Scott was there first thing in the morning until last thing at night. The show simply would not have gone on without him. From mics for the speeches, even when the marquee was struck by lighting! To the most brilliant tunes on the dance floor. A total legend. We also had the best band ever. The dance floor was packed, and these guys know how to party.
Cars/Transport: My beloved pony safely carried me to the church and my Dad’s lovely DB4 took us away! Jago was a little nervous about driving it, but became rather attached quite quickly!
Hair: Ben Jones. The loveliest, most talented boy in the land. Who continued to pin up bridesmaids hair throughout the night. I had a change of hair style at about 7pm. Simply wonderful.
Marquee: Be Upstanding Marquees – www.beupstanding.co.uk Traditional and beautiful marquees. Such a lovely company too, we were able to get a feel for the marquee in advance of the day through drawings and plans. The marquee was up well in advance of the day so that we could make changes, decorate and see what we needed.
Like the look of these country garden marquee wedding photos?
Planning a DIY wedding at home or having a marquee reception in the countryside? If the style of my pics doth butter your parsnips you can quickly check out my availability via my contact page.
