Vicky & Ali’s stunning black tie NYE wedding on the Thames, with Simon Biffen Photography

Published by Claire Gould on September 18, 2020September 18, 2020

Vicky and Ali tied the knot on New Year’s Eve – and what a celebration it was! Black tie styling, glorious details, everything so wonderfully elegant and with a splash of wow factor to mark the occasion. [I’ve been saving this winter wedding to share with you as I thought we’d be into cooler times by now… but hey, heatwave!] Anyways, I hope this stunning NYE wedding gets you all excited for 2021… let’s face it, I think we’re all done with 2020, right?! Images are by Berkshire wedding photographer Simon Biffen Photography. Simon’s an English Wedding member, and it’s great to share Vicky & Ali’s glowing review with you! Scroll all the way through to read about all of Vicky and Ali’s favourite wedding suppliers, and to see Simon’s epic midnight confetti shot as the New Year came in!

Wedding photographer’s website

https://simonbiffenphotography.co.uk

How did you choose your photographer?

Simon Biffen was recommended by a friend 🙂

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

It was great to have Simon do the photography for our wedding.

We were so pleased how relaxed he made everyone feel around the nervous points of the day, the guests also commented how discreet he was in his manner, and we have some amazing photos as result.

He stayed right through to midnight to capture a great midnight confetti shot!

Tell us about your venue – what made this place special for you?

After squeezing 100 people into our tiny local candlelit church on New Years Eve, we partied the night away at The Swan at Streatley for our Wedding reception, a lovely glass fronted river side venue by the Thames. The long rustic dark wood tables created a lovely warm atmosphere, and made a change from the standard white table cloths we tend to see at every other wedding.

Did you love wearing your outfits? How was the dress / suit shopping experience?

Take one OCD perfectionist bride who is looking for “something quirky” but has no idea about fashion, style, or glamour… but with the patience and perseverance of Willoughby & Wolf (a small but amazing Bridal Boutique in Marlborough), they helped me find a dreamy Watters gown and I loved it!
Ali wore his MacKay tartan kilt, but the hardest task by far was finding a bridesmaid dress in the right shade of blue to match and complement it!?!

Did you hire a florist? Tell us about any floral amazingness

Flowers by Helen Elizabeth www.flowersbyhelenelizabeth.co.uk helped create the perfect bouquets of blues and greens to match the kilts. Her patience and inspiration, created a masterpiece of rustic loveliness across the tables, with a few fairly lights to add a bit of sparkle.

As cake lovers here at English Wedding we’d LOVE to know who made your cake, and how delicious it was?

We wanted something a bit quirky for a NYE wedding, so Catherine’s Cakes www.catherines-cakes.co.uk created and constructed a champagne bottle tower display, complete with cup cakes in the champagne glasses for full effect.

Tell us about any special personal touches, or creative projects you made yourselves

Homemade wedding invites and order of service (including personal crossword to keep the guests amused).

Managed to get the vicar to agree to the bride walking down the aisle to an instrumental Angry Anderson song… the one Scott and Charlene got married to in Neighbours in 1987. For a couple both born in the 80’s, what could be more fitting!

Despite the Mother-in-law protesting throughout the planning phase, the bride managed to get her own way and drive her own car away from the church, successfully bundling her pristine Watters wedding dress into the Mustang footwell!

Did you personalise your vows or have any wedding readings? What were they?

Maybe

Maybe…We are supposed to meet the wrong people before meeting the right one so that, when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift

Maybe…it is true that we don’t know what we have got until we lose it, but it is also true that we don’t know what we have been missing until it arrives

Maybe…the happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way

Maybe…the best kind of love is the kind you can sit on a sofa together and never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you’ve ever had

Maybe…you shouldn’t go for looks; they can deceive. Don’t go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile, because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

Maybe…you should hope for enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy

Maybe… Love is not about finding the perfect person, it’s about learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.