1920s Feel Literary Autumn City Wedding | Whimsical Wonderland Weddings
1920s Feel Literary Autumn City Wedding | Whimsical Wonderland Weddings
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Lil and Matt had a gorgeous wedding day with a 1920s feel and Autumnal colours. They held their ceremony at Leeds Civic Hall before moving onto their reception at The Tiled Hall at Leeds Art Gallery. The Tiled Hall was the most elegant back drop to their literary details, which included library cards and Author table names.
Lil wore a beautiful embellished dress by Pronovias with a striking headdress by Kat Swank while Matt went all out in tweed, braces and brogues. Such a stylish pair.
Thanks so much to the wonderful James & Lianne Photography for sharing their photographs with us today.
The Proposal... A surprise weekend away in Edinburgh for my 25th birthday (Lil). 2 nights in Michelin starred restaurant with rooms "21212". Amazing food, a trip to the zoo to see the pandas. We'd just returned to the room after a huge and delicious lunch. I was about to get in the bath. It was around 4pm and Matt had given me a polaroid camera as one of my birthday presents. He asked if I wanted to see the test shots he'd taken and passed me a stack of photos. They were of all my favourite things, our home, my childhood teddy bear etc. Among them were 2 of Matt holding up some paper. The first sheet said "Will You", the second "Marry me". I replied with "Are you joking?" (Then I said yes).
The Venue... Ceremony: Leeds Civic Hall. A great wood panelled room with sunlight beaming through the windows Reception: The Tiled Hall at Leeds Art Gallery. A fantastic, high ceilinged reading room restored to its former Victorian glory. Busts of classical philosophers, modern art and, surprisingly, great tiles. It reflected our bookish nature and made for a spectacular evening.
Finding the Dress... A nightmare. I hated the entire process. I found it difficult to find samples of styles I liked in my size (UK 14) so ended up in a lot of meringues (not what I was going for) in the fitting rooms. The Urbina was an easy decision after visiting 9 shops in 3 cities, trying on around 30 dresses. It felt like a perfect fit (even though it didn't zip up). I was always looking for cap sleeves, with beading or appliqué, and this had just the right amount of detail and was bang on budget.
The Cake... A cake of cheese was the showstopper with largely Yorkshire based cheeses piled up high and decorated to match the tables. In addition to that there were 4 cakes: a chocolate fudge, a chocolate fruit cake, carrot and Lil's favourite Gin & Tonic. All piped beautifully and coated in an iridescent sheen. We were keen that no one went hungry, so on top of canapés and a three course meal we wanted cheese, cakes and pick n mix!
Our wedding favours were cute wooden toy animals we stumbled across online. Place settings were simple tags attached to the favours. Our tables were named for philosophers, historians, and writers whose busts surrounded the room. Matt is a historian and managed to find big old leather books by each author to mark the tables. Each guest had their name and author written on a library card and used them to find their table. Rather than have a traditional guestbook, we asked everyone to give us some advice or write a note on their library card. We also framed the silhouette of a tree and got everyone to add their fingerprint as a leaf using coloured inks. We were so pleased with the result, and everyone seemed to enjoy making their little contribution.
The reception started with the fantastic Goldiggers Brass Band. We were planning to use iTunes playlists rather than a DJ but bottled out at the last minute. Luckily, a DJ friend saved the day and we were really glad we had someone who knew how to get the dance floor going after a three course meal.
Photography | James & Lianne
Invitations | Charlie Scribble
Flowers | Leafy Couture
Band | Golddiggers Brass Band
Cheese | Millies
Cakes | Becky @ The Pin-up's Pantry
Hotel | Doubletree by Hilton
Dress |Pronovias / Go Bridal
Headdress | Kat Swank
Shoes | Kurt Geiger
Hair & Nails | Russell Eaton
Lingerie | Kiss Me Deadly @ Joanna's Wardrobe
Makeup | Joanna Worthington
Bridesmaid's Dress | Whistles
Suit | James Michelsberg
Groom's Shoes | Church's
Braces | Albert Thurston
Utterly beautiful.
Thanks so much to Lil and Matt for sharing their super lovely wedding with us XOXO Lou