Alex & Peter’s English country meets south pacific wedding with a tropical twist, with Pudding and Plum Photography

Published by Claire Gould on May 15, 2020May 15, 2020

Isn’t it cold this week?! I’ve gotten so used to all the glorious sunshine I’m having to layer up in jumpers again until we get a second wave of SUMMER! But in the meantime I’ve this glorious August wedding for you, full of sunny tropical florals and vibrant colours, with images by lovely English Wedding member Tara at Pudding & Plum Photography. Alex and Pete’s day is wonderful with some fabulous styling touches, and still brilliantly real and down to earth. The gorgeous happy couple celebrated their day at their family home, with a marquee reception and lots of lovely personal touches.

I love these two because their wedding is just so personal and full of the things they love – all the food was locally sourced, the gin was home made and they had a beer keg wall (which is just awesome. Keg walls are the future!) There’s a photo of villagers outside the church with a home made drinks station which is so charmingly English – and then a London bus to take guests to the reception. They had a Fijian choir – Alex spent some time in Fiji – and the tiki print on the cake and table cloths are Fijian inspired. The tropical florals add so much colour to the day – even Flick the dog wears a little floral collar.

I hope you love this as much as I do. Bring back weddings – we MISS them!

With love,

Wedding photographer’s website:

https://www.puddingandplumphotography.co.uk
Tara would also like to credit Tianna J Williams Photography as her second shooter

How did you choose your photographer?

We chose Tara after meeting her at the Derby wedding fair with a friend who was getting married earlier in the year. Tara had an infectious energy that we knew would be perfect for our wedding. After seeing the success at our friends’ wedding as well – we were desperate to have Tara! She was so much fun!

Were you pleased with your wedding photographer? Do tell… we love a brilliant review!

We were over the moon with our photographer, Tara worked to exactly what we wanted – no soppiness and lots of fun!

Tell us about the moment you saw your wedding photos for the first time?

My dad popped over for a drink as he was in the area just as the photos arrived and I was adamant that nothing was stopping us looking through the album for the first time, I was so excited to see them after Tara’s fantastic teasers! Therefore, Dad was ordered to sit on the sofa and look through them with us!
This wasn’t the romantic viewing with a glass of fizz that most couples enjoy but instead, Dad was sat there asking, “Who’s that again?” “What’s their name again?” “I don’t remember seeing that person!”
This didn’t stop us absolutely loving every single photo as Tara was able to capture the day perfectly! We were able to get another view of the wedding from our guests’ eyes!

Describe your wedding flowers. Who arranged them for you?

https://www.pickleberryflowers.com/
Bel was absolutely amazing and met our very “unique” requests with open arms.
Everyone has been speaking about the flowers since.
With a close family connection with Herefordshire, we wanted to incorporate hops into a tropical style (due to living in Fiji previously) and it worked so, so well.
The bridesmaids all made their own bouquets the night before as well which was lots of fun even for a very uncreative group! Lots of bubbles and dancing to the Spice Girls, what more could we want?

General styling – did your venue need much decoration?

Yes – it was an empty marquee that became full of Fijian and Sporting twists!

Crafts and makes – tell us about any homemade elements of your wedding… did you enjoy them?

The majority of our wedding was homemade! Some highlights include:
We made our own Strawberry and Peppercorn Gin and created personalised Hendricks labels to pour!
Our tables were named after Sports Stadiums.
As Peter is an avid shooting fan, we created signs made out of cartridges.
We asked guests to sign golf balls instead of a guest book.
We ensured that we had our parents’ and grandparents’ wedding photos on display.
We created confetti cones out of our favourite magazines.
There was so much more!

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

Our incredibly talented friend Rosie at the Stamford Kitchen made our traditional wedding cake with the Batiki island print of my Fijian island on.

What’s your top tip for saving money?

From engagement through to the wedding, I was buying lots of little things on regular basis. I therefore didn’t have a scare close to the wedding and have to buy lots at once.
We bought our alcohol from France which was great!

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

Our videographer!

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

Inkwell Stationery (with our personal design artwork by Pete’s very talented parents)

Did you fall in love with your wedding dress?

YES!

Wedding dress designer and bridal boutique:

Martin Charles Bridal Gallery, Oundle

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

I had jewellery from my family and Pete’s family.
I was in trainers to dance and an epic flower crown by the one and only Pickleberry Flowers!

Entertainment: any musical recommendations, surprises or treats?

A Fijian Choir in Church
A very talented friend, Marilyn Okoro sang as we signed the registers
A saxophonist through the Wedding Breakfast
Madhen Band are the most incredible band that you will ever, ever see!
Bill Burton djing did my mum’s 21st and was still amazing as ever!