Hey lovely! Happy FRIDAY!!! I’m totally feeling Friday vibes today – last night we were partying until the early hours in Manchester; this morning we’ve had a little shop in the big city, ready for my sister in law’s WEDDING at the end of the month. SOOOO exciting!!! So every wedding I see on my screen right now is totally capturing my heart. Tomorrow afternoon I’m teaching a modern calligraphy class in the Lakes – tickets are still available here if you can join us! – but first, I have an absolute gem of a wedding for you – you’re going to adore this.

Beautiful bride Katie & James got married on the 7th July in an outdoor ceremony in the stunning grounds of Askham Hall. These two met through a mutual friend, however not long after Katie moved to Australia, and in James’ words, it was the ULTIMATE hard to get move he’s ever seen! After being in touch for the year she was over there, she moved back to the UK, and the rest is history! Katie & James’ wedding was definitely a family affair, with Katie’s mum doing the flowers, and Katie’s sister, (who lives in TEXAS and came over for the wedding!), organised the decorations and style of the day – she definitely wins an ‘amazing sister’ award!

The style of the wedding was a very natural/rustic wedding vibe, and considering, like most of the UK, the grass was parched dry and more yellow than green, lovely Camilla Lucinda managed to keep a very fresh feel to the photographs.

“The venue is so beautiful that it didn’t need a huge amount of styling. We were lucky enough to have beautiful weather (not usual for Cumbria!) and got married outside, so the gardens did a lot of the styling for us. We decorated the barn with fairylights (http://www.svlhire.co.uk/), flowers and candles.

A lot of the elements of the wedding were homemade which was one of the things that made the day so special. My sister Emily took most of the creative genes and she, along with my mum, turned my idea of a wedding, dinner and dancing in to a Pinterest-level dream! They knew exactly the sort of styling I would want and worked so hard to achieve it. Emily made the cake, all of the signage, personalised robes, made the table plan, created the table names and stands and so much more. I don’t know how she fitted it all in and we can’t thank her enough! My other bridesmaids Vicki and Caroline also worked tirelessly on place names, flowers and helping set everything up. My friend Lara (https://laratheescapeartist.com/) did a wonderful picture of the story of our relationship. People’s effort and generosity was overwhelming.

Wedding photographer’s website:

https://www.camillalucindaphotography.com/

We used good old Google to find some local wedding photographers and had a look through their websites and Instagram feeds. Camilla’s Instagram is beautiful and the photos were the natural style that we wanted, so when we contacted her and she turned out to be lovely and obviously passionate about her work we knew we had sound the right person.

Camilla was brilliant! Her enthusiasm is infectious and she is just the right balance of friendly and assertive to be a fantastic wedding photographer. It’s a big responsibility being the person capturing moments on your wedding day and Camilla did a fantastic job, we love our photographs.

A few of the photos went up as a preview on Facebook and I have to admit I got a bit emotional when I first saw them. They caught so many lovely moments which brought memories flooding back from the day. The wedding was such a wonderful whirlwind and the photos documented it brilliantly.

www.camillalucindaphotography.com
@camillalucindaphotography
@camillalucindaphotography

Wedding venue:

Askham Hall, Penrith

Wedding month:

July

Can you describe your wedding in fewer than 10 words?

A Cumbrian countryside wedding styled by family and friends.

Your wedding style or theme:

We wanted the wedding to be ‘rustic and relaxed’, and luckily the venue fitted with that perfectly.

Where did you find your suppliers? (Blogs, magazines, recommendations?)

A lot of our suppliers ended up being family and friends. We also used the very useful suppliers list provided by the venue, social media and recommendations from friends.

What’s your top tip for saving money?

Utilise your portfolio of useful friends and family! People’s skills, creativity and willingness to help were beyond anything we could have hoped for and not only did it save a huge amount of money, but it also made the wedding even more special.

… and which elements of your wedding are you glad you spent more on?

We splashed out on the venue and we were so happy we did, it was everything we had hoped for and more and the wedding team there went above and beyond to make the day exactly what we wanted.

Where did you buy or source your wedding stationery – or was making it a labour of love?

We bought our stationary from Papier (www.papier.com) – neither of us are very ‘crafty’ and our handwriting isn’t exactly beautiful, so buying it rather than making it was a no-brainer.

Did you fall in love with your wedding dress?

I did. I had tried on quite a few and all of them were beautiful in their own way. When I tried on my dress though it just felt right and my sisters’ and mum’s reactions confirmed that I was on the right track.

Wedding dress designer and bridal boutique:

Maggie Sottero ‘Ettia’
Mia Bridal – https://www.miabridal.co.uk/

Tell us about your accessories: jewellery, shoes and anything else!

My earrings were my ‘something borrowed’ as they were my sister’s before I borrowed them several years ago and have never quite got round to giving them back. My bracelet was a beautiful wedding gift from my sister which I absolutely love (I think it was from Not On The High Street) and it has the date of the wedding engraved on the heart. My hair accessory was from Debenhams and my shoes were by Rainbow at John Lewis (and were much more comfortable than they looked).

And what did the groom wear?

James’s suit was from Marks and Spencer and his waistcoat was from ASOS.

Beautiful bridesmaids: what did your best girls wear?

The bridesmaids’ dresses were from ASOS; we did quite a bit of de-sequining and a few alterations so that they were all a bit different in the end.

Hair and make-up – did you DIY or hire a professional?

My hair was done by the brilliant Claire of www.peachesandcreamweddinghair.com – I’m very much a hair down or messy bun person, so it was great to have someone so skilled make it look like something off Pinterest.
I had planned to do my own make-up, but a couple of weeks before the wedding I realised that was probably an extra stress that I wouldn’t want on the day so my friend Laura very kindly offered to do it. She’s a very talented make-up artist and we’ve known each other for 24 years so she knew exactly the sort of look I’d want and did such a great job.

Describe your wedding flowers. Who arranged them for you? (florist details would be lovely please)

We wanted to keep the flowers quite simple and rustic, so stuck to white flowers and green foliage and quite an unstructured style. Luckily my mum and sister-in-law have both worked as florists so they, along with my mother-in-law, took a van load of flowers ordered wholesale online and turned them in to stunning bouquets, button holes, table centres and decorations.

The wedding cake: what kind of cake did you choose and why?

My sister Emily (http://lovebirdscakery.com) designed, made and decorated the cake. We wanted something that fitted in with the relaxed feel of the wedding so went for a naked cake and it turned out beautifully and tasted amazing!

Entertainment: any musical recommendations, surprises or treats?

Our friends Caroline and Simon very kindly offered to play cello and violin during the ceremony which sounded beautiful. We used Warble Entertainment to find our band (The Playlist) and we’d definitely recommend them. Their website (https://www.warble-entertainment.com/) allows you to search for the type of band you want who will travel to your venue, and the quoted prices include travel which helps a lot with budgeting.

Words of wisdom: share your best piece of advice for other couples:

When the wedding arrives you’ve already done all the hard work, so relax and enjoy every moment as the day will pass like a whirlwind.

What’s the best thing about being married?

Everything.

Favourite supplier web links for other brides and grooms:

Photographer: Camilla Lucinda – https://www.camillalucindaphotography.com/
Videographer: Luke Benjamin – https://lukebenjaminweddings.co.uk/
Venue: Askham Hall – https://www.askhamhall.co.uk/weddings/
Hair: Claire Hall – https://www.peachesandcreamweddinghair.com/
Make-up: Laura Hood – http://lhoodie.wixsite.com/laurahoodmakeup
Cake & calligraphy: Emily Freeman, Lovebirds Cakery – http://lovebirdscakery.com/
Dress: Mia Bridal – https://www.miabridal.co.uk/
Bridesmaids Dresses: ASOS – http://www.asos.com/women/
Groom’s and Ushers’ Suits: Marks and Spencer – https://www.marksandspencer.com/
Band: The Playlist – https://www.warble-entertainment.com/
Barn Lighting: SVL Hire – http://www.svlhire.co.uk/