Relaxed & Rustic Handmade Village Hall Pom Pom & Letter Lights Wedding

Relaxed & Rustic Handmade Village Hall Pom Pom & Letter Lights Wedding

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Today's real wedding has an epic list of DIY projects undertaken by the couple and the end result is ruddy well marvellous.

Sophie and David were married by Sophie's Grandfather on the 17 May 2014 in a special Church ceremony, followed by a village hall reception in Northamptonshire. It was super important to them that their wedding was personal, with their loved ones being involved throughout.

I so love the fun home-made décor, with swathes of pom poms, statement letter lights, vinyl record place settings and flowers in bottles to name a few.

Sophie had a romantic bridal look, donning a lace dress by White One by Pronovias while David wore a dashing grey three piece suit. Gorgeous.

Thanks so very much to the amazing Lola Rose Photography for providing the photographs today.

THE PROPOSAL | Our parents went to university together, and we've been friends our whole lives, and so we both knew very early on that we couldn't take the decision to get together lightly ­ we would have to be all in before we even started. And it wasn't more than a year before it became a case of 'not if, but when'.

One weekend when I had travelled to visit David in Oxford we decided it would be fun to go window shopping for a ring, but we found one we both liked within an hour of looking and the more we talked about it 'it might be fun to look at rings this afternoon' very quickly became 'we should do this right now'... so we did!

I never expected to find out that this crush I'd had since I was about 6 was actually reciprocated, and it's still a little mind boggling to me that the first ever "Mrs Sophie _____" I secretly scribbled in old notebooks so many years ago is actually my name now!

THE VISION | Neither of us are big party people, and neither of us is even slightly comfortable with being the centre of attention ­ we wanted a fun, laid back day, and that was what we got: a beautiful, personal church service and a barbeque at the village hall, followed by time for us to talk and laugh with our guests, with live entertainment provided by friends and family.

Aesthetically the vision would be best described as 'relaxed, rustic, handmade, and a little bit pretty' ­ design wise I would have been happy with one of about ten different weddings / colour schemes Pinterest and I planned in my head, but I'm glad this one was the vision I chose to pursue as I think it definitely suited us and the mood we wanted to encourage.
The comment we've heard most about the wedding is how personal it was, and really we couldn't have had a bigger compliment. From the very personal and emotional decisions like the band my Dad has led for the last 25 years playing all the music in the church, and my grandfather marrying us, to all the personal and DIY touches in the decor ­ I decided that even if I had regrets about a dress I could have worn or a colour scheme that would have looked amazing, as long as the day was as true to US as possible, I'd be completely happy with our decisions. And I was!

THE PLANNING PROCESS | We allowed ourselves a fairly long engagement ­ when we got engaged we were living in separate cities, and David had just finished university and hadn't yet found work. We wanted to allow plenty of time to ensure David had settled in a job and we had a home to move in to. As far as the wedding planning went I probably could have done with a little LESS time ­ we had lots to do, and lots to DIY, but I work better with deadlines, and what took me the most time was making decisions. I think if I had less time I'd have taken less!

Planning of most elements was very much a joint effort, but David left me largely responsible for the design decisions (whilst maintaining veto powers of both practicality and taste!) and for the execution of most of our DIY projects.

Although my Mum and I ended up at each others throats a few times, she was invaluable throughout the whole planning process ­ in helping us manage the logistics, and by contributing a lot of hours to our more time consuming DIY tasks ­ thank you Mum!

THE VENUE | We spent a long time looking for a venue in our area that we liked and that would give us the space and flexibility we needed, but came up empty. However, once we decided to put the church first, everything else came together. We both go to church (I have been at the same one for all my 22 years!), but it is not one that we could get legally married in, so we started looking at Anglican churches in the area.

My absolute ideal had always been to have my Grandad (a baptist minister) marry us, and our own church band lead the worship. St Andrews in Barnwell, is where my other grandfather (also a rev!) used to be the rector and is now buried, and it turned out the current rector, Catherine, was happy to accommodate our slightly unusual requests and let our team take over their building for the day. So I was basically lucky enough to be 'married' by both my grandfathers!

Finding St Andrew's and being welcomed by the congregation their led us to discover the Village Hall, which was big enough to accommodate all our guests, a 3 minute walk from the church, a great blank canvas and a very reasonable price ­ sold!

THE DRESS & ACCESSORIES | My dress was by White One for Pronovias. Other than it I just wore some pretty green earrings from the Jinney Ring, and the same two rings I wear everyday ­ my engagement ring, and one that used to belong to my Mum.

I opted not to have a veil or hair piece, and instead had flowers in a plaited and curled updo. I went to our trusted family hairdressers, who managed to give me exactly what I wanted (even if it did take an hour longer than we'd originally bargained for!!).

FINDING THE DRESS | I tried on a LOT of dresses ­ it partly comes back to me being sensationally bad at making decisions, but also had more than a little bit to do with the fact that dress shopping was FUN, and I wasn't in any hurry to stop! I didn't have a 'wow, this is the one' moment with the dress I chose ­ thanks to an initially unflattering fit at my first fitting and the fact that the chemicals used on it brought me out in an instant rash as soon as I put it on, I was actually pretty convinced I'd made a mistake right up until my very last fitting. But I realised that aside from the allergic reaction(!), I probably would have felt the same way about any dress, having found it so hard to make a decision in the first place. And by the time I put it on on the day I was very happy with my choice (as was David!).

GROOM'S ATTIRE | David is much better at this decision making thing than I am! His sister and I took him shopping for his suit and were on our way back home with it within a few hours! We knew we wanted a suit that he could wear again, but also something a little bit special and different, and his three piece suit from Red Herring at Debenhams was perfect. We let the other gents choose their own suits (or, for the most part, wear ones they already owned) and added matching navy ties for David, his best man Ryan and our two dads to tie everyone together (not literally...).

THE READINGS & MUSIC | Three readings and eight songs... we did wonder if it would be too much, but each of them was important and I'm so glad we didn't leave any out. The music in the church was all performed by good friends of ours ­ acoustic duo Matt Mowle (proverbial brother from another mother) and Adrienn Zsoldos, and the worship band from my family church.

Readings: Colossians 3:12­15, A Lovely Love Story ­ Edward Monkton Union ­ Robert Fulgham. Down the aisle: 'Forever Like That' by Ben Rector, performed live by Matt Mowle & Adrienn Zsoldos (My Dad now tears up whenever he hears it!)

Signing the register: 'When The Right One Comes Along' by Striking Matches, also performed live by Matt & Adri. Worship Songs / Hymns:. You Are My Vision, How Marvellous, Hosanna, Blessed Be Your Name, Hallelujah (Your Love Is Amazing), This Is Amazing Grace.

BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS | My priority was to get the girls something that was comfy, suited them, and that they would wear again. After a bit of shopping around we settled on two strapless navy dresses from True Decadence at John Lewis.

THE FLOWERS | The flowers on the tables we DIY'd the day before the wedding, with an armful of blooms from the market (and some garden trimmings and arranging assistance generously donated by our Grannies!), and we were very happy with them. But the bouquets were really my only major disappointment; we went to collect them on the morning of the wedding, only to discover that one bridesmaid's bouquet and 3 button holes were MISSING, and almost everything was the wrong colour, despite several visits to the florist to confirm what we wanted and even point out specific flowers. Cue minor panic... after a couple of hours they'd managed to create the missing items and add in some more of the colours we'd wanted, but it's still a sore spot for me ­ they didn't look BAD; they just didn't feel like MY flowers, and didn't really fit the vision I'd had.

THE CAKE | We requested a spread of our mums' and grandmums' signature cakes, which went out with the evening buffet and were quickly demolished, but didn't have a 'wedding cake'.

There isn't a heading for 'Caterers' though, and they definitely need a shout out: Our catering was done by Ian and team from The Chequered Skipper in Ashton. We had gone to visit the Skipper as a possible venue and were really disappointed when it turned out to just not be big enough, because in every other way it was perfect. Fortunately though Ian had worked at the village hall before and was happy to provide food and staff for us there, which ended up being a great solution. Ian and his team did so much more than just providing food; from helped coordinate proceedings at the reception for us, to advising us on drinks quantities so that we could stock a bar ourselves for his staff to run ­ meaning we could have a professionally staffed
bar, but make sure our guests weren't paying the earth for drinks. They definitely went above and beyond and were worth their weight in gold but without costing it ­ the perfect combination!

YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER | Our photographer Kelly was amazing ­ we decided very early on that our photos were something we were willing to spend a little more on, and I'm so glad we did. Kelly was a pleasure to have with us on the day, and we are so pleased with the results!

We were also really pleased with our decision to have an engagement shoot with Kelly prior to the wedding, which gave us a chance to get to know her and get used to posing for photos, as well as giving us a great resource for all our printed materials and even some other décor.

THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | Are you ready? Our DIY projects included, but were not limited to: All stationery design and assembly (4 piece, twine­wrapped invitations, printed envelopes, 'thank you' cards for tables, orders of service). 150 pom poms. 3 giant light up letters. Flowers on the tables. Hessian table runners. Photobooth (including our own web app and a mountain of props!). Light up 'bar sign'. Table plan. 3 separate playlists (church, dinner, evening). 110 individually stamped vinyl record place names / favours.

If it sounds like a lot, it felt like a lot more, and my advice to anyone undertaking a similar amount would be to allow yourselves much more time than we did!! Everything except the stationery was done within our last 2 months(!) and the only reason we pulled it off is that we had lots of man hours generously donated by family and friends and ­ for the most part ­ a clear handle on the scope, materials and process for each project.

I hope that doesn't sound like a moan, because I wouldn't have had it any other way ­ I am a designer by trade and a crafter on the side and loved the chance to exercise both passions on something so exciting and personal ­ I just wish I'd given myself a bit more time!

THE HONEYMOON |An all ­inclusive week in the sun where we were not required to go anywhere or do anything was our only requirement ­ we ended up in Crete and had a wonderful, relaxing time. Any other time I think we both would have gone stir crazy stuck at one hotel for a week with nothing much to do, but we were both so exhausted that in this case it was paradise!!

MEMORABLE MOMENTS | S: I am not a crier, but the moment I got to the church doors with Dad and the band started playing we both nearly lost it; we'd been in a frantic hurry all morning and I hadn't had two seconds to stop and think (I didn't even get to look in the mirror and see myself in my dress until after we arrived at the reception!!), so that was the moment that all the emotions hit me at once!

Dad and David's speeches were both perfect ­ they both made everyone laugh, and Dad made more than a few people cry (including me!). And my brother with whom I have had a slightly rocky relationship (and who up until that point had refused to have any part in the wedding at all), surprised me late in the evening by getting up on stage and performing my favourite song he even permitted me a hug afterwards!

D: Its hard to pick out a particular memorable moment of the day. The whole thing went so fast (apart from the 30 minute wait for Sophie to arrive at the church) and I was quite swept up in the momentum of things. I did have permanent smile fixed to my face from the moment I saw Sophie walking down the aisle though. I hadn't seen the dress, hair or make-up trials at all so had no idea what she was going to look like, but she was stunning.

ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES | I'm not sure we're qualified!! Everybody says it but the day will fly by; savour every second!

We left a lot to the last minute for various reasons ­ I couldn't make a decision / I didn't have time / it wasn't a task I could delegate / etc ­ and it's not something I would recommend if you can help it!

If you get the chance, absolutely do some Marriage Prep (as we had two ministers, we did it twice!)

Surround yourself with suppliers that you have complete confidence in ­ it definitely helped me to relax and enjoy the day.

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |

Photography | Lola Rose Photography

Venue | St Andrew's, Barnwell / Barnwell Village Hall

Catering | The Chequered Skipper

Music | Matt Mowle & Adrienn Zsoldos (along with other friends + fam)

Dress | White One by Pronovias from Matchmakers of Stamford

Hair | Headmasters, Peterborough

Wow how amazing did the village hall look?!

Thanks so so much to Sophie and David for sharing their brilliant wedding story with us XOXO Lou

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