Bev told me the DIY was hard work but it meant they had the most personalised wedding. She said there was nothing they would have changed. Nath spent many a weekend stamping quotes from films and songs on cards that were placed around the venue, and this loveliest of couples took the time to write a small personal message on the back of each person’s place setting tag — it’s one of the lovely touches that prove to me that details on a wedding day can mean so much to people. The trick is to find a balance — and Bev and Nath did it perfectly!
All the wedding photography is by Lancashire wedding photographer Emma B. She comes highly recommended! Don’t forget to check out the supplier list at the end of today’s blog post too. And have a fab day everyone!
Love, Claire xxx
Bev and Nath’s DIY Walcot Hall wedding — part two!
‘Just gathered’ wedding flowers
Our venue recommended the florist. Sarah (www.flowersbysarahjanemidwood.com) was so lovely and immediately understood our ‘just gathered from the garden’ look! Family and friends were charged with the job of collecting old vases and jam jars for the months before the wedding and these were filled with blooms on the tables. I love hydrangeas and these were the key flowers in the bouquets. The best men (all three!) had deep pink roses with rosemary that smelt lovely. Nath had a lovely ‘mini-bouquet’ button hole mirroring some of the flowers I had in mine.
Wedding decor — DIY done beautifully by Nath and Bev!
Decorating the room was so much fun. Nath spent many a weekend stamping quotes from films and songs on cards that we put around the venue. We had some photos of all our grandparents of their wedding day and a vintage suitcase for all the cards.
The venue dressers (chilliebreeze.com) did a great job with the chair covers and the blossom tree. One of the things we did which went down really well with everyone was to write a small personal message on the back of each person’s place setting tag. Getting to see the delight and humor on everyone’s face when they spotted this was great and well worth the time spent.
In terms of food, we wanted to try and get away from the wedding norm, and given our love of all things Italian, especially the food, we did not waste any time in agreeing on huge sharing bowls of lasagne with a sharing platter of antipasti to start.
The pre-wedding breakfast canapés were mini flatbreads topped with a variety of delicious meats, veg and fish. The food was provided by a company called A2Zest (www.a2zest.co.uk/) and they also did hot pork rolls in the evening and put on a breakfast for the friends and family who had stayed at the venue the following morning.
When we first met with the staff at A2Zest we were so impressed by their enthusiasm and the way they bought in to our ideas, we knew that we would not go wrong with them, and they did not let us down, the food was absolutely incredible.
The wedding music — a real highlight!
Music plays such a big part in our lives and we spent ages fine tuning our playlist for the wedding breakfast and evening entertainment. We have so many friends and family who love to get on a stage and sing so we had always thought karaoke would be a good option.
However, we did a bit of research and stumbled upon something called bandeoke, done by a group called The One Hit Wonders (www.thebandeokeband.com). We could not turn this down, everyone dreams of being a rock star and getting the opportunity to sing with a professional band was just perfect!
This part of the evening’s entertainment went down so well with everyone, we were amazed at some of the people who jumped at the chance to get on the mic (once they had managed to wrestle it off the two of us!). I would highly recommend these guys because they are also a great band in their own right, and it broke up the evening so well before our playlist kicked in later on.
Wedding day advice with a smile!
All in all it was the most perfect day. The DIY was hard work but it meant we had the most personalised wedding and there was nothing we would have changed.
My main advice would be to take a moment on the day to look around and take everything in, relax and have an amazing time!
The groom recommends to delegate jobs on the big day (it really isn’t necessary for you personally to hang all the lanterns.….) oh & try hard not to be sick in the courtyard at 2am (something he didn’t quite manage to avoid!).
Bev (& Nath) xx
Recommended wedding suppliers: Walcot Hall wedding
- Walcot Hall (www.walcothall.com) wedding venue in a stunning location and for its quirky nature
- Emma B Photography (www.emmabphotography.com) was so easy to get on with and incredibly helpful. We cannot thank her enough for the beautiful engagement and wedding photos we have as a perfect memory. (Even more from Nath and Bev’s wedding here: beautiful Walcot Hall wedding in Shropshire)
- Cheshire Bridal in Altrincham were very helpful.
- A lovely local lady at ‘Dream Veils’ (www.dream-veils.co.uk) made me a beautiful cathedral length veil
- Ivory Tuesday (www.ivorytuesday.com).
- The venue dressers (chilliebreeze.com)
- Groom in Manchester (www.groomhire.co.uk) do a great selection of suits and have a bespoke fitting service.
- Sarah (www.flowersbysarahjanemidwood.com) was so lovely and immediately understood our ‘just gathered from the garden’ look!
- The food was provided by a company called A2Zest (www.a2zest.co.uk/)
- bandeoke, done by a group called The One Hit Wonders (www.thebandeokeband.com).