I feel as though it’s time for a little winter sparkle, don’t you? Today’s wedding is glam and gorgeous with rich winter foliage and emerald green accents throughout the day. Ellen and Joshua are just stunning, and we’re smitten with the bride’s pearl-studded cape and elegant hair ornament. This is a wedding with effortless style, sent in by the lovely team at The Ferry House in Kent. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Ellen & Joshua brought a touch of Hollywood glam to their classy winter wonderland wedding at The Ferry House earlier this year. After a get together with all the family the night before (Ellen already set in her rollers), the couple awoke to a crisp February morning complete with the perfect winter light. While Joshua relaxed at our cottages with a few rounds of table tennis, Ellen and her girls got ready in the Powder Room with help from her make-up artist and hairdresser. Soft Hollywood waves complete with a statement hairpiece, black winged eyeliner and a classic red lip suited the winter vibes and Ellen’s elegant crisp white dress perfectly.
Touches of emerald green were dotted around throughout the day in the men’s ties and buttonholes, the ladies’ bouquets and even in the epic cake display courtesy of Jey’s Heavenly Events; cookies, cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries and a two-tier wedding cake, there were plenty of treats for the sweet toothed guests to enjoy.
After a bubble exit, the newlyweds were greeted by their guests on their way through to the pub to collect their reception drinks before being whisked off by Tim from TJG Photography for some amazing couple shots in the winter sun. Tim captured such romantic images of the two, even making the roseless rose arch look magnificent in the light. Many a loving glance and look was captured between the couple throughout the day, one of our favourites being in front of their neon ‘The Brittons’ sign.
The emerald detailing carried through to the Event Suite where the couple and their guests enjoyed a three-course meal overlooking the estuary. The ceiling hoop, garlands and high centrepieces really brought a touch of drama to the décor with many a beautiful focal point.
To add a little bit of vintage, and a fun game for the guests, Ellen & Joshua decided to display their seating plan on a ‘find your key, find our seat’ wicker folding screen – once seats were found, the couple made their entrance and took their seats at the sweetheart table with a view of all their loved ones.
After even more romantic couple shots (the sky looks amazing in the image Tim captured under the gazebo at dusk), the speeches, cake cut and first dance, Ellen & Joshua had a little surprise planned for their guests. A sparkler arch later and fireworks were set off from the waterfront, creating a beautiful setting to watch a surprise display; a magical end to a magical day.
Venue: https://www.theferryhouse.co.uk/weddings/
Photographer: TJG Photography
Cake and sweet treats: Jey’s Heavenly Events
Don’t miss the amazing golden hour photos from today’s stunning Hertfordshire wedding – they are everything. Huge thanks to lovely couple Ayron and Scott for sharing their day with us, along with their top tips for a Coltsfoot Country Retreat wedding! And we’re sending a big “wow!” to lovely Hertfordshire wedding photographer Becky Harley Photography. We’re proud to have Becky as an English Wedding member and LOVE sharing her weddings with you!
Wedding photographer’s website
https://www.beckyharleyphotography.co.uk
How did you choose your photographer?
We met Becky at a wedding fair and instantly fell in love with her photography style – natural, relaxed, and timeless. Becky is also a lovely person so we knew we’d love her to be with us on our wedding day.
Were you pleased with your wedding photographer? Do tell… we love a brilliant review!
YES!!! We were blown away by the photos from our wedding. Becky captured the day so perfectly with lots of candid shots which encapsulated the love and laughter from the day. You can really see the emotion in the photos and going through them feels like we are reliving the day all over.
Tell us about your Herts wedding venue – what made this place special for you?
We got married at Coltsfoot Country Retreat which is a beautiful barn wedding venue in the Hertfordshire countryside. We didn’t know much about the venue when we booked to view it, but were immediately stunned by the barn, gorgeous courtyard and endless views!
Did you love wearing your outfits? How was the dress / suit shopping experience?
We LOVED wearing our outfits, but initially struggled finding something that made us feel like ourselves, yet really special. Lisa Lyons Bridal and Tux Lux saved the day!
I had a bespoke dress made by the super talented Lisa Lyons. I loved the whole experience and felt so beautiful in my dress. It was so special designing it with Lisa, choosing the fabrics and lace, then watching it come to life. I wish I could wear it every day!
Scott wore a gorgeous tux from TuxLux in Mill Hill along with his groomsmen. Scott tried on several tweed suits, but didn’t feel they were right so opted for a timeless tux and looked so handsome.
Did you hire a florist? Tell us about any floral amazingness
We had Jane Maples Flowers do our flowers and they exceeded all our pinterest dreams! As we got married in winter, we wanted lots of foliage with big blousy white flowers. The bouquets were stunning and the centrepieces were one of our favourite details on the day.
As cake lovers here at English Wedding we’d LOVE to know who made your cake, and how delicious it was?
Our cake was made by Ayron’s sister, Lauryn who runs ‘Lauryn’s Sweet Creations’.
Lauryn made us a beautiful white fondant 3 tiered cake which she decorated with gold leaf and white flowers. It was stunning and tasted delicious – so much so, that one of our friends had five slices!
Lauryn was also a bridesmaid so it was a particularly busy wedding for her, but she did an amazing job.
Tell us about any special personal touches, or creative projects you made yourselves
We tried to add lots of personal touches to the day as we could, from signage to name places to personal gin favours.
Lauryn’s Sweet Creations also made ‘hot chocolate sticks’ for our guests to enjoy a wintery treat!
Did you personalise your vows or have any wedding readings? What were they?
What was your first dance song? Why did you choose it?
Our first dance song was ‘Take Another Piece of my Heart’ by Dusty Springfield. We didn’t want a song that was too slow and we also wanted our guests to join in halfway through which was so much fun. Our fab DJ, Dan played 24k Magic by Bruno Mars straight after which kept our family and friends on the dancefloor!
How did the pandemic affect your wedding plans? Do you have any advice to share with couples planning their weddings right now?
We had to postpone our wedding from November 2020 which was heartbreaking at the time. We made the decision to postpone in May 2020 and weren’t sure if we were making the right decision, but it ended up being the best thing we did as it meant we could have all our friends and family celebrate with us on our big day.
Our advice would be to communicate to all your suppliers, but do what’s right for you as a couple.
Favourite Hertfordshire wedding suppliers
Becky Harley Photography – https://www.beckyharleyphotography.co.uk
Coltsfoot Country Retreat – https://www.coltsfoot.com
Lisa Lyons Bridal – https://www.lisalyons.co.uk
Lauryn’s Sweet Creations – https://www.instagram.com/lauryns.sweet.creations/
JN Sounds – https://www.jnsounds.com
Pro Pose Entertainment – https://pro-pose.co.uk
Jane Maples Flowers – https://www.janemaplesflowers.co.uk
Emma Kim Hairdressing – https://emmakimhairdressing.com
Michelle Nash Make Up – https://www.michellenashmakeup.com
Anything Goes String Quartet – http://agoes.co.uk
Hertfordshire wedding photographer Becky Harley is an English Wedding member
Web: www.beckyharleyphotography.co.uk
I do love a winter wedding. Seeing how couples incorporate lights and candles, and the bare branches and evergreen foliage we celebrate through the darker months – it makes weddings a little more special with all those wonderful styling touches. And then, of course, there’s the opportunity for incredible lighting in your photos.
Connie and Lewis knew they had to choose the right photographers for their day, and they loved our friends and Devon wedding photographers Younger Photography from day one. Keep reading to see the review they gave us in their English Wedding interview below!
Connie’s dress was important to her, having worked in the bridal industry for five years. She chose a stunning Pronovias wedding dress from The Wedding Company in Plympton, which looks incredible – she’s such a beautiful bride. Lewis is ever so handsome in a three piece tweed suit, perfect for a winter wedding.
The venue is Trevenna Barns in Cornwall – a wonderful space which looks magical, filled with strings of fairy lights! We’re thrilled to be able to share their day on English Wedding, and we hope you love it too!
Wedding photographer’s website
https://www.youngerphotography.com/
How did you choose your photographer?
Younger Photography have an incredibly respected reputation, and we knew as soon as we were engaged that we had to have them! There was no question that we would choose anyone but them, their style of photography was everything we wanted.
Were you pleased with your wedding photographer? Do tell… we love a brilliant review!
Andrew and Agnieszka simply blew us away on our wedding day – they put us at ease and made us feel so comfortable. They felt like friends and guests rather than suppliers, making sure that we were getting the photos we asked for and kept the day flowing smoothly. Neither of us are particularly natural when having our photo taken, but Andrew and Agnieszka are both so endearing and approachable, making us laugh and smile the entire day.
Tell us about your venue – what made this place special for you?
We were married at Trevenna, in St Neot, Cornwall. Not only is the venue beautiful, but it was an experience for the entire weekend as 40 of our closest family and friends stayed with us in the stunning accommodation available on site. The views from the venue are gorgeous, with brilliant photo opportunities. Also, the food at Trevenna is incredible, locally sourced and delicious which was so important to us, as we knew our guests would want great food as a lasting memory of the weekend.
Did you love wearing your outfits? How was the dress / suit shopping experience?
Connie spent 5 years working in the bridal industry, so she had an exact idea of the dress she would wear for the day. Her vision came to life with a dress by Pronovias from The Wedding Company in Plympton, however the process was made slightly more complicated when Covid delayed the wedding and our daughter was born in March 2021! After a few alterations, the dress was perfect again. Lewis also knew exactly what he wanted to wear – a gorgeous three piece tweed suit from The Grooms Room in Plympton with silver accessories to match the theme of the wedding.
Did you hire a florist? Tell us about any floral amazingness
Hannah Burnett Floristry created the flowers for our wedding. We wanted to embrace the time of year, with a nod to Christmas and she captured that perfectly. The bridal bouquet contained gorgeous foliage, and included orchids, succulents and pine cones, matching the button holes. Our centre pieces were tall glass vases with eucalyptus, pampas, foliage and pussy willow and were stunning.
As cake lovers here at English Wedding we’d LOVE to know who made your cake, and how delicious it was?
We chose not to have a wedding cake, and instead created our own mince pie tower – seven tiers of mince pies with a big bowl of fresh local clotted cream for our guests to enjoy! It went down a storm, everyone loved it and tucked in to mince pies all evening.
Tell us about any special personal touches, or creative projects you made yourselves
We really wanted to embrace small Christmassy touches to create an experience for our guests. Each guest had a personalised Christmas bauble with their name on, which doubled up as their place card but also a memento of the day that they could take home and put on their Christmas tree, so every year they would remember our wedding. Connie hand made each of the baubles for our guests. We also had Christmas crackers designed to fit our silver theme, and the guests loved playing with the traditional Christmas cracker gifts found inside! Each of our guests chairs were dressed with ivory hoods with a candy cane popped inside.
We also created our own confetti with flowers that had grown in Lewis’ parents’ garden which we had dried and put into personalised bags for each of our guests.
Did you personalise your vows or have any wedding readings? What were they?
Connie’s 12 year old brother read a beautiful poem during our ceremony – People Need People by Benjamin Zephaniah. It’s a lovely reading emphasising why we need our friends, family and loved ones, and was the perfect fit for our ceremony.
What was your first dance song? Why did you choose it?
Our first dance song was A Sky Full of Stars by Coldplay. The lyrics mean a lot to us, but also the song is perfect for dancing so all of our friends joined us on the dance floor after a minute or so of us dancing just the two of us – not something we’re particularly good at!!
How did the pandemic affect your wedding plans? Do you have any advice to share with couples planning their weddings right now?
Like many couples, this was our third wedding date and third time lucky getting down that aisle! Covid delayed our plans for a year, and actually we replanned our wedding completely differently to how we had initially intended – the pandemic and having our daughter changed our perspective on many things and we realised what was important to us. We had lost loved ones in the last year who should have been at our wedding, so we didn’t want to delay any longer – we wanted to finally be husband and wife and celebrate that with our close family and friends. It’s very difficult planning a wedding at the moment, especially with the ever changing rules and guidelines. Our advice would be to remember what it is important and why you’re getting married in the first place – things might not turn out exactly as planned, but you will always have your memories of your wedding day.
Favourite wedding suppliers
Florist – https://hannahburnettflorist.co.uk/
Photographer – https://www.youngerphotography.com/
Venue – https://www.trevenna.co.uk/
Dress – Pronovias – from The Wedding Company https://the-wedding-company.co.uk/
Photobooth & 360 Camera – https://www.westcountryphotobooths.co.uk/
Suits – The Grooms Room
Makeup – Emmie Green Make Up Artist
Hair – Lisa Sheldon Wedding Hair
Younger Photography is a member of the English Wedding Blog
Web: https://www.youngerphotography.com
Winter’s classic colours are timeless and beautiful. Reds teamed with soft whites and green accents can be brought right up to date with softer, complementary colours. Adding a splash of gold is genius; playing with shades from pale reds to deep burgundies gives scope for stunning displays and gorgeous design. This colour palette works wonderfully for weddings throughout the winter season all the way through to Valentine’s Day. We’ve taken inspiration from our lovely friends Amanda Karen Photography to share some of our favourite ideas with you today.
Setting the scene with warming winter stationery
Stationery in soft whites and ivories, simply printed, minimally designed and with a touch of sparkle is PERFECT for a winter wedding. Choose letterpress designs with foiling, or luxury papers with gold leaf edging like these stunning invites by Gray Starling.
Continue the theme onto wedding tables, with elegant place names edged with gold leaf. Everyone loves a place name to take home and use on the Christmas dinner table!
Styling your space with soft lighting and textured botanicals
Candle light creates a wonderful vibe for romantic winter weddings! Styled in lanterns, they bring luxury styling in a beautifully understated way, and will work for intimate weddings through to larger weddings.
Vibrant florals in reds provide drama and impact. Choose a few glorious seasonal blooms – carnations, anemones, ranunculus and dahlias are some of our late year favourites – but don’t forget tulips and use faux blooms if you have a favourite you can’t live without!
Foliage adds texture to any bouquet, and the addition of seedheads and trailing stems and blooms are wonderful for winter. Don’t be afraid to ask your florist for ideas – they’ll know a hundred things about flowers and bouquets you’d never have dreamed were possible!
The light in this wedding ceremony room at That Amazing Place gives a fresh and modern look. Choose a light and airy venue if you can – there isn’t much daylight for winter weddings, and photographers do love natural light for good reason!
Evergreens and lots of foliage teamed with white candles are perfect for a luxury winter wedding look.
A beautiful taste of winter – sweet treats for a beautiful wintry wedding
These wintry iced biscuits are so cute! Think about a dessert table if you can afford one, and style it with elegant plates and prettily decorated treats. The mercury glass tea light holder gives a gentle glow which really adds to the wintry vibe.
We love this classic tiered white wedding cake – it’s perfect for a luxury winter wedding look. The gold detailing is a tiny, thoughtful touch which really makes it look special. Instead of cupcakes, these smaller bakes are super cute and could be a creative way to cater for guests with special dietary requirements.
Extra little touches to add shine and sparkle
Simple displays in keeping with your style will look wonderful. We love these glass card boxes – and the styling is super simple with a sprig of cuscus or eucalyptus and a little silk ribbon. Beautiful!
Decorate tables with simply written or printed numbers in gorgeous glass frames – we love Nkuku – and add gold leaf to continue the theme!
Candles are a simple touch which don’t cost the earth, and they’re a beautiful, natural way to lift your winter wedding and add sparkle. Choose pure whites or pale creams, or red, burgundy or sage green candles. Elegant gold candlesticks in a modern style really add a chic look!
What to wear for a winter wedding – ideas for an understated luxury look
Tailoring comes into its own for a winter wedding, with long sleeved shirts, waistcoats and jackets all helping you keep warm! We love these leather shoes, teamed with a red buttonhole and softly shining cufflinks.
Navy and red are a gorgeous combination – a luxury wool suit and waistcoat are perfect for winter. (And don’t you just love these floral arrangements?)
Choose a dress with sleeves to keep a little warmer… but be creative with styles! This boho style dress has all the pretty details and is perfect for a winter wedding. Its silhouette is elegant and graceful, just right for a modern winter wedding.
We couldn’t resist including these lovely pink velvet ring boxes – a little reminder that accent colours can lift and soften a theme. Pink adds a little extra femininity to the stark contrast of red, white and green.
A crown adds drama to a winter wedding look and we LOVE this look!
A beautiful wrap or faux fur stole can keep you warm whilst also enabling you to explore the grounds of your venue for those beautiful wintry images.
Statement accessories work beautifully in winter. Think icy sparkles and twinkling beadwork – this tiara has real wow factor.
Cosy winter evenings are what winter weddings are all about. Find a venue with real fires, plenty of candlelight or twinkling fairy light canopies, and bring in cosy blankets or even a hot chocolate or mulled wine bar for your guests to enjoy in the evening. Ask your photographer to capture some relaxed images through the evening – we absolutely love these by Amanda Karen Photography.
Photography credits
Venue: That Amazing Place
Photography: Amanda Karen Photography
Concept, planning, styling and décor: Party Squared Weddings
Styling assistant: The Wildflower Wedding Planner
Hair stylist: Bridal Hair by Jennie
Makeup for couple look: Leanne Perilly
Makeup for individual bride look (curly haired bride): Victoria Taylor
Flowers: The Botanical Shed
Cake: RT Cakes
Bridalwear: Suzanne Harrington Bride and Enchanted Bridal Boutique
Jewellery: Chez Bec Bridal Studio
Tiara: Mr Mortimer’s Wife
Groomswear: Dapper Chaps Formal Wear
Groom’s ring and cufflinks: TLK Jewellery
Stationery: Gray Starling
Table linen: Simply Linens
Cutlery: Premier Crew Events
