Three little words: “more Indian weddings”. Please!
This is a BEAUTY – Emily & Sahil were married at Brympton House, choosing Somerset wedding photographer Martin Dabek to capture their day. The colours are fabulous, the joy is real – this is exactly the kind of wedding we LOVE to feature on English Wedding. The more submissions for real weddings land in my inbox, the happier I will be!
If you’re new to English Wedding, here’s how our real wedding features work. We ask every couple to complete a little interview to be featured on our blog. Superstars like Emily and Sahil leave amazing reviews for their favourite suppliers: their recommendation for their wedding photographer a) just makes me grin. It’s the best thing, to be able to share words of kindness for wedding suppliers I admire. And b) real reviews, real experience from real couples is the fuel that fires English Wedding.
This website exists to connect amazing wedding suppliers with couples who are looking for photographers, venues and wedding services in their area.
So from the bottom of my heart, thank you Emily and Sahil for sharing with us, and thank you Martin Dabek for allowing us to publish your beautiful images.
Our wedding photography (real review)
We booked Brympton House wedding photographer Martin Dabek – Martin is not only an incredible photographer, he is also thoughtful, accommodating and organised. He has such a gentle and calming presence which is so welcome on the big day as having everything you have planned for so long coming together can feel overwhelming!
On the lead up to the day he went above and beyond to make sure we were all on board about what we wanted, and when we were unsure about anything he was happy to provide thoughtful suggestions and ideas that were really appreciated.
Martin is very invested in helping you tell your story and capturing the day authentically in a way that was not intrusive or time consuming and above all a lot of fun!
After the wedding he was timely and communicative about editing and publishing the photos and also provided advice and support regarding services such as personalised thank you cards and ordering prints etc.
Martin provides an excellent service from start to finish and we couldn’t have asked for better! Thank you Martin!
Our wedding venue
Brympton House – the venue is fantastic and absolutely gorgeous. The staff who keep the grounds and who helped us on the day were very kind and lovely.
Our wedding outfits
Wedding dress was made by La Novia, a wedding dress maker in Edinburgh – I had a great experience there, I highly recommend! Sahil’s suit was from Bogarts in Belfast and his waistcoat is from Ede & Ravenscroft.
Both our outfits for the Hindu ceremony were from Laljees wedding store in New Delhi.
Our amazing suppliers
Photographer – Martin Dabek Photography
Flowers and styling – Style by Design (Brympton Styling)
Dress – La Novia Edinburgh
Suit – Bogarts Belfast
Waistcoat – Ede & Ravenscroft
Indian wedding outfits – Laljees wedding store New Delhi
Hair and makeup – Beaute Shed
Food – French Kitchen
Celebrant – Eleanor @the_full_stop_celebrant on IG.
DJ and lights – Andy Martin Entertainments
Henna – Taslima Designs
A gorgeous wedding for a lovely family, with creative details and SO much love. Tristan and Nicola’s venue, Canonteign Falls, is a beautiful venue with nature all around – sadly, no longer hosting full weddings but absolutely worth a visit! Images are by lovely Ewelina at OTEM Photography. As ever, I’ll share a handful of favourite images on instagram @englishweddingblog – don’t miss them, they’re stunning!
Our wedding photography
We hired Ewelina aka OTEM Photography, who’s based in Plymouth. Beautiful photos, immaculate vibes, supportive and creative, exactly what we wanted when we chose her to capture our special day. Superb.
Our wedding venue
Canonteign Falls. A beautiful Dartmoor treasure, hidden away in the Teign Valley of Devon. Prehistoric caverns and wet woodland, along with a rustic barn and beautiful lakeside gazebo hosted our twilight wedding and vows.
Our wedding outfits
Tristan: I chose a forest green wool 3 piece suit from Next with a custom pink liberty print tie from Van Buck and pocket square made by my Mother in law.
Nicola chose a stunning, bohemian 2 piece skirt and blouse by Catherine Deane from Browns of Totnes.
Nicola’s head piece was from Hats2go Millinery by Marie-Anne, her shoes from Harriet Wilde.
Our amazing suppliers
While we decorated ourselves and provides lighting etc, we were blown away by our artist who captured the day Devon Dumpling, our evening DJ Exeter Entertainment and our stunning Paella caterers Buen Apetito
More from Nicola & Tristan’s Devon wedding
Weddings can be beautiful and timeless: today I want to prove that to you forever and without a shadow of doubt! Janki and Andy’s day celebrated the joining of their families, in a lush, green woodland clearing. Scrolling through Tom Keenan’s gorgeous images from their Cambridge wedding, it’s the love, joy and relaxed vibes which sing from my screen, and every moment looks perfect.
Speaking of perfection, this gorgeous pair celebrated with a vegan feast at their wedding. Because they held their wedding at home they weren’t constrained by a venue’s in-house or recommended caterers, and could choose their own. As a result, their menu was fully vegan – even including the doughnuts. (Told you it was perfect, didn’t I?!)
I will never tire of sharing Indian and fusion weddings. The vibrant colours are exciting, and embrace tradition in the most joyful way. Food is a huge part of the celebration, and a meaningful aspect of ceremonies. But that doesn’t mean all traditions have to be formally adhered to. At English Wedding we always recommend you pick and choose the traditions which are meaningful to you – and fun! Janki and Andy broke tradition by being super chill about seeing each other before the ceremony. For Janki, she wanted to see her favourite person while she was getting ready – which makes all the sense in the world to me.
Last week I wrote an article inspired by a trending wedding sign which reads “[bride’s] wedding, featuring [groom]” talking about how the wedding media has alienated men to the point that many grooms feel excluded from wedding planning and even on the day itself. This wasn’t the case with Andy and Janki’s day – they celebrated together and their wedding was all the more beautiful for every moment of shared joy and delight. I LOVE how Andy made a spectacular entrance, arriving for their ceremony in a vintage Lotus car. As their wedding photographer Tom Keenan puts it: “Music blaring, ray-bans on, friends and family at your side” – what could possibly kick start the day better?
I will leave you to enjoy the images of this gorgeous pair having the time of their lives. Pure happiness, guaranteed to make you smile – and as always, there’ll be more on @englishweddingblog so head to our insta to see!
Wedding photographer’s website
Kent wedding photographer Tom Keenan https://tomkeenanphotography.co.uk
Janki and Andy were married in early summer of 2022 – yes, more than three years ago. The styling of their day, the setting, the traditional Indian dress and their focus on a meaningful ceremony and a joy-filled celebration, all mean this wedding hasn’t dated one bit. It never will. Heartfelt ceremonies and a focus on what the day means to you both as a couple are the secret to timeless, beautiful and memorable weddings.
I loved Anna and Ali’s wedding as soon as I laid eyes on their images. This is everything a wedding needs to be, nothing more or less: a lovely couple surrounded by their best people, and a heartfelt celebration filled with love. Images by Newcastle wedding photographer Joss Denham are relaxed, natural and utterly perfect. Styling was kept understated, yet beautiful, with white and pink blush for the flowers. And the advice Anna and Ali share for other couples resonates with many of our recent posts here on the blog and on our instagram:
“Don’t stress over the small stuff and the things Instagram and Pinterest tell us we need to make a wedding special. In the end they really don’t matter and you won’t notice or care!”
Wedding photographer’s website
Jesmond Dene wedding photographer Joss Denham
Joss was amazing! He was really friendly and relaxed with all of the guests. We got a lot complements the day after saying how lovely he was with everyone. We’d definitely recommend Joss. He drove us both to dinner after the ceremony and even stayed a bit longer than planned to capture some extra shots! Legend.
Wedding photographer review
We both loved the photography so much! Joss managed to capture a relaxed, unposed aesthetic with beautiful natural lighting and composition. There are so many lovely images of all of our guests interacting and it really captured the joy of the day. There is nothing more we could have wanted, he captured it all perfectly and didn’t mind us trying different things on the day!
Photographer: Joss Denham Photography
(North East and Yorkshire)
Ceremony Venue: Jesmond Dene House
Reception Venue: Peace and Loaf
Florist: Wild Flower And Rose
Dress Boutique: Marrime
Dress Designer: Sarah Seven
Suit Designer: Moss Bros
Cake Maker: Peace and Loaf
Venue name + review
We got married at Jesmond Dene House and then had our reception at Peace and Loaf restaurant in Jesmond.
Our May wedding was always going to be a small intimate ceremony with only close family, with a larger ‘party’ happening in the Summer. We looked at a few different registry offices to get married at in Newcastle as that’s where Anna is from and it was close proximity for her grandmother (who’s 95) to attend. On the off-chance we reached out to Jesmond Dene House to see if they offered smaller ceremony options.
Anna has always loved Jesmond Dene House, having been there for many a lunch with her family, as well as for Christmas dinner. It’s such a gorgeous venue and it’s right next to Jesmond Dene, which is so peaceful. Ali also went to university in Newcastle and lived in Jesmond at the time, so it felt very fitting. Jesmond Dene House confirmed that they did in fact offer smaller (and more affordable options), so the choice was made!
We then thought it would be lovely to have everyone join us for a meal afterwards. News of this travelled and Anna’s Auntie Sheila stepped in and said she’d like to get us this as a wedding gift. She suggested Peace and Loaf, and we were sold. They let us create our own bespoke menu, choose our own cocktails, and even had a cake made for us. They were sensational from start to finish and we couldn’t have asked for a better evening.
Tell us a little about your outfits
I chose Maude by Sarah Seven. It’s not fussy but elegant and has a wonderful silhouette. I wanted to feel beautiful without extravagance, I also wanted to feel super relaxed when I put it on. I came across Sarah Seven on Instagram, it’s an American designer and I fell in love with all of their dresses. Fate stepped in and the designer that previously I’d only seen sold abroad announced that they were now stocked in my home town of Newcastle at Marrime. This was perfect because it meant that although I live in London, I could come and try on the dresses alongside my mam, my cousin and maid of honour. I honestly love the dress, but I did have some issues with how it was fitting. But a few miles of boob tape later and a mini-meltdown behind me, I was set to go and felt great.
Florist name + review
I gave a really open brief to my florist Wildflower and Rose because I loved her style which is slightly wild and relaxed. I only specified that I’d liked Peonies because they’re my favourite flowers and they’re in season in May. The rest I let her run with! When they arrived I was over the moon, and they look unbelievable in the photos too. The bouquet was just the right size.
Cake maker name + review
Again, very open brief to Peace and Loaf! We aren’t cake enthusiasts and don’t like going overboard just because it looks good in photos. We simply told Peace and Loaf that we loved red velvet cake and thought it would be fun to have ‘A&A’ written on the top. Lo and behold they made the most delicious and thoughtful cake… unreal.
Wedding readings?
My dad read a lovely poem in the ceremony that he had written himself.
Weddings are real. Weddings are real days, in your real lives, where you’re the same people as you are today. Weddings are everyday life, amplified a million times over: excitement, laughter, love and the people you invite to be around you, bring that amplifying effect. If I were to follow that sentence with something about a dress, and floral styling, it wouldn’t quite fit… and yet that’s how we’re generally shown weddings in the media. (Wedding blogs included – we publish weddings with beautiful styling and details, and they’re a joy to share.) But gorgeous styling isn’t what will stand the test of time in your images. We have to turn our attention back to people for that.
All images are by York Place Studios
The heart and soul of any wedding is the couple at the centre of the celebrations, and their relationships with the people they choose to celebrate beside them. This is what will matter when you and your families look back at your wedding photos in years to come.
Documentary wedding photography (explained beautifully here) gives you images bursting with personality, captured with thoughtfulness and humour which resonates with you… they’re something truly special.
If you are looking for excellent wedding photography which breaks the mould, steps outside of the norms of “kiss the bride, confetti shot, floral styling + classic list of key moments” – I urge you to take 3 minutes to read The Fairytale Trap. It’s how York Place Studios introduce their blog of Annie & Jonny’s wedding – and it might just turn everything you thought you knew about wedding photography upside down. In a really, really GOOD way.
Annie and Jonny loved York Place Studios’ approach to wedding photography. They weren’t looking for posed pictures or clichés, but something really different that would capture the soul of their day, the personalities of everyone there (in images to last a lifetime), the squeezy hugs and the love of everyone around them. (That’s not to say that there were no portraits of the couple – documentary wedding portraits are something far more interesting and different – more here.) Annie & Jonny’s outdoor wedding had a relaxed vibe, and their day has an undercurrent of joyful chaos because a) the children bring so much fun and b) that’s what weddings are!
—humour
Here’s what their award winning wedding photographers at York Place Studios said about their wedding.
“On a wedding day we will take romantic photographs, we will take comedic photographs, loving moments, oddities in reality, big beats, small beats and everything in between. But the work we share is the imagery that we hope you will connect with most strongly. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, indeed many will undoubtedly say we should just have cropped in on that beautiful moment of children running, baskets in hand, toward the wedding ceremony. But that is precisely the point – we don’t strive for universal appeal, we seek like-minded souls. Because when, as with the wonderful Annie & Jonny, we really connect and understand one another, we can truly be your eyes on a day bursting with hidden visual treats.”
