Happy Wednesday everyone! Have you sorted Valentine’s Day yet? Eek… I’m feeling a little behind with my own V Day plans, so do share if you have tips!! I’m all ears! And I’m totally distracted by the loveliness of beautiful Debbie & Boyan’s wedding from Emily Black Photography. These guys were married in September at De Vere Devonport House, Greenwich. It’s a beautiful old hotel and one of London’s favourite licensed venues for weddings, with an expansive garden and lawn for guests to explore and enjoy – and on this gorgeous autumn day it was perfect for our happy couple!

I didn’t allocate much budget on decoration, and I looked at pretty wedding decor photos and was worried that ours would look dull and empty. Luckily it wasn’t the case on the day – the flowers were super-gorgeous and they were enough to beautify the room. We were also too busy enjoying the day to notice the (lack of) decoration.

I bought an aisle runner (Ebay), lanterns (Ikea) & candles (Ikea) because buying them was cheaper than renting! The aisle runner was particularly a good deal because when you rented a white runner, you couldn’t use it outdoors, and you couldn’t spread flower petals on it. Obviously you could do anything you wanted when you bought your own – and we had fun practicing the walk at home with my parents & flower girls the night before the wedding!

 

Wedding photographer’s website:

http://emilyblackphotography.co.uk

As most couples will agree, photographer is one of the most important vendors to choose right, because it’s the one that will create a lasting memory. After we got engaged, I researched day and night to understand different wedding photography styles and pricings. One criteria I looked for was their ability to capture authentic moments, which was why I fell in love with Emily’s photos.

The funny story was before finding Emily, I almost booked another photographer whose price was 50% more expensive. I then sent both photographers’ portfolios to my sisters without revealing the price, asking them to choose the one they liked more. They unanimously chose Emily’s, so I got the best photographer with the best price!

Emily transformed ordinary moments such as chit-chats during make-ups or playing with my flower girls into beautiful pictures. She also captured all the critical moments on the ceremony and dinner – all the tears & laughter – it’s as if she magically knew who was gonna cry and who was gonna make jokes next!

Contact & Bookings – Emily Black Photography, Hampshire

http://emilyblackphotography.co.uk
Instagram – @emilyblack.photography
Facebook – @emilyblackphotography.co.uk
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3. What’s your top tip for saving money?

Together with your partner, decide on the budget upfront and stick to it. Agree on where to save and where to splurge. On deciding those, think less of how your wedding will look on Instagram and think more of your guests’ experience. For example, I was tempted to hire chiavari chairs just because they looked better. My husband put some senses that nobody would care how the chairs looked like, especially once the room was full. We used the same amount of money to do open-tap in the bar instead!

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

I’m glad we splurged more on anything related to the guests’ experience, like the food, drinks, and entertainment.

5. Did you fall in love with your wedding dress?

Yes! I bought it on Ebay without trying it on so it was a bit risky – thank God it actually fit me. The dress was the first thing I bought – two weeks after we got engaged and at that time we hadn’t even decided where/when/what style the wedding was gonna be. I remembered happily thinking that my dress would go with whatever type of wedding we chose. It’s simple but with beautiful back detailing, it’s modern but looked classic at the same time.

6. Tell us about the suits for the guys – what did the groom and ushers wear??

It’s from T.M. Lewin – he bought it just few weeks before the wedding

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

We chose a Croquembouche tower because after testing several cakes, they all tasted just okay. Croquembouche was something different, tasted good and looked unique too, so we thought why not!

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

Looking back on the day, what we remembered were the moments we shared with our family and friends, and that’s the whole point of a wedding. It felt silly now that I used to worry so much about chairs or other negligible details.
Oh, we also decided last-minute to do the couple photos before the ceremony, so we got to spend the reception time with the guests, which was one of our best decisions!

Favourite supplier web links for other brides and grooms:

Photographer: Emily Black (http://emilyblackphotography.co.uk)
Venue: De Vere Devonport House (https://www.devere.co.uk/devonport-house/)

Dress designer & boutique: Justin Alexander (https://www.justinalexander.com/)
Suit designer & boutique: T.M. Lewin (https://www.tmlewin.co.uk/)
Florist: Augusta Florals (https://www.instagram.com/augustaflorals/)
Cake designer: Boulangerie Jade (http://www.boulangeriejade.com/)
Stationery: Marble place cards that also served as wedding favours from https://www.instagram.com/ladybug.shop/
Hair & makeup: Sam Sham (http://www.samanthasham.co.uk/)
Jewellery / accessories / shoes: Custom-made hairpiece based on my dress from https://www.instagram.com/oppsiedaisy.id/, shoes from Paradox https://www.paradoxlondon.com/
Videographer: I Will Video (https://www.iwillvideo.com/)
Other suppliers: Celebrant Maggy Whitehouse (https://www.thecelebrantdirectory.com/find-a-celebrant/naming/show/rev-maggy-whitehouse),
Trifonics (https://www.trifonics.com/)
Freeloaders band (https://www.poptop.uk.com/supplier/freeloaders/)