What a treat it is for me to bring you this beautiful, relaxed weekend-long wedding celebration.
Caz and Joe tied the knot on 8th June 2019 beneath a rustic oak arbour at Trevenna Farm in Cornwall, followed by a seaside church blessing a few days later. With sustainability being important to both bride and groom they got creative by repurposing original 1920s Kilner jars as table decorations, upcycling a wooden ladder to display the seating plan and making their own sloe gin wedding favours; these details fit in perfectly with their rustic/vintage theme.
Caz and Joe chose Holly Collings Photography to capture the festivities. Her fun, bright and airy style lent itself to their vision and having already proven her capabilities by photographing three of Joe’s siblings weddings, they knew they were in safe hands.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us!
THE PROPOSAL
We were on the island of Havar in Croatia. We had just finished a gorgeous meal at a local family-run restaurant in the wilderness and were on our way back to the car. It was a beautiful starry night and I had stopped to marvel at the sky. I turned around to find Joe on one knee!
According to Joe it was third time lucky as he’d been carrying the ring around with him for two days prior trying to find the right spot.
Of course, I said YES!
THE VENUE
Joe and I really wanted a relaxed, down-to-earth wedding that was just about celebrating with the people we love and having fun! We looked at lots of venues but most seemed either too formal or overly basic (think cow shed and compost loos!). We eventually stumbled on Trevenna in Cornwall and knew at once it was perfect. Originally a farmhouse set in the rolling Cornish countryside, Trevenna had been extended to include a gorgeous reception barn, bar and ‘pub’, gardens with stunning views, a walled vegetable garden to supply the kitchen and converted barns to accommodate up to 40 guests for the weekend on-site. It allowed us to celebrate our love of the natural outdoors whilst providing comfort for our guests!
Despite a day and night of torrential rain (picture gigantic muddy puddles!) beforehand, the weather cleared up and we were able to have our much-desired outdoor ceremony on the lawn. This was however briefly interrupted by a downpour but the photos of guests wiping down their seats with paper towels are priceless, and it certainly made our experience unique!
THE BRIDE (AND BRIDESMAIDS)
My dress was an ex-sample dress from Browns in Totnes, Devon. They stock only gorgeous vintage sample dresses, meaning great prices! I tried several, including the Issey dress by Cymbeline Paris, which I knew at once was ‘the one’! I had a veil made to match and second-hand shoes from Rainbow Club dyed dusky pink to match my groom’s tie. After the first dance I changed into a tea-length white dress with a tulle skirt from Chi Chi London so I could cut all the shapes on the dance floor and save my wedding dress for the blessing ceremony a couple of days later.
My hair and make-up were done beautifully by local lady Laura-Jane of LJP Bridal. I went ‘big’ on the hair with a bohemian style with twists and plaits and a half-crown of real flowers – and kept the make-up very natural.
My three lovely bridesmaids each wore the “Haven” floor length dress in blush pink from Wed2Be and chose their own hairstyles with simple flower decorations.
THE GROOM
Joe wanted his wedding band to incorporate wood, which was hard to find on the high street! We came across Eco Wood Rings in Bath and they designed him a perfect metal band with an inset made of whiskey barrel oak.
He wore a forest green wool suit and waistcoat from Moss Bros, coupled with a dusky pink tie matched by his three groomsmen.
FLOWERS
Our gorgeous flowers were put together by Debbie Morris at Dartmoor Flowers. We went for a natural, unstructured, “just-picked” feel with pops of ivory and dusky pink seasonal flowers and green foliage for added texture.
The arbour was adorned with a bough of foliage and flowers which was later transported up the garden path to our wedding breakfast table inside.
My bouquet and flower crown included garden style and spray roses, peonies, stocks, sweet peas and small daisies, with eucalyptus, jasmine, mint and rosemary.
We planted wildflower seeds which we hoped to use for our table flowers, but unfortunately they didn’t grow in time! Luckily we were able to source similar wildflowers from our lovely florist, which my mum and bridesmaids spent the morning of the wedding arranging into the Kilner jars!
We were lucky enough to be able to reuse all these flowers for our blessing ceremony two days later.
DECORATIONS
Our wedding had a rustic theme based around nature, with lots of soft greens, dusky pink, lace and wood.
We enjoyed making or upcycling as many of the decorations as we could, including original vintage 1920 Kilner jars for table flowers, real flower petal confetti, an upcycled ladder for the table plan, hand-cut log rings (from a tree removed by a relative who is a tree surgeon!) for table settings, and simple flower place settings.
Joe’s sister in law provided a “wishing Tree” complete with origami cranes as an alternative guest book. Guests were able to write their well wishes and advice on labels and then hang them on the tree’s branches.
FOOD & DRINK
In keeping with the relaxed feel of our wedding, we had sharing platters to start followed by a table-served hog roast with all the trimmings as well as vegetarian options for our veggie guests. All the food was sourced locally and prepared freshly on the day. The knickerbockerglory bar for dessert was a huge hit and people enjoyed designing their own ice-cream! Later in the evening we served mini Cornish pasties (what else!?) and local cheese.
We also made a LOT of sloe gin from hand-picked sloes for favours, which went down a treat!
THE CAKE
Joe’s mum made an amazing four tier wedding cake which stood proudly on one of our log rings. Each cake layer was a different flavour – fruit cake, chocolate, Victoria sandwich and a gluten free lemon and elderflower. She even went out the morning of the wedding to forage the flowers she used to decorate it!
ENTERTAINMENT
Joe’s friends prepared and played a wonderful mini live music ‘set’ for us during the lawn drinks, accompanied by acoustic guitar and saxophone. We encouraged our guests to relax and mingle with a range of outdoor lawn games, including giant Jenga, frisbee, football and croquet. It worked a treat and was great to see families who didn’t know one another playing together!
My mum prepared an optional quiz about the bride and groom, which was left on tables to encourage conversation. Such was the competition in the end that she was obliged to announce the answers and reveal the winners!
Our first dance was held outside on the lawn, which was really lovely. Afterwards we handed out sparklers and guests created a tunnel for us to run through, which was great fun and made for some fab photos! Later in the evening we were joined by The Shuffles Band, who performed two fantastic sets of dance-floor favourites followed by an on-request disco. This meant there was something for everyone and kept the dance floor occupied!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
VENUE
Trevenna Farm, Cornwall
PHOTOGRAPHER
Holly Collings Photography
FLORISTRY
Dartmoor Flowers
BRIDE AND BRIDESMAID DRESSES
Browns, Totnes
“Issey” Bridal Gown by Cymbeline Paris
Tea-length bridal dress by Chi Chi London
“Haven” Bridesmaid dresses by Wed2Be
GROOMS ATTIRE
Forest Green Wool Suit and Waistcoat by Moss Bros
GROOMS RING
Eco Wood Rings
CAKE
Joe’s Mum
BEAUTY
LJP Bridal
ENTERTAINMENT
Shuffles Band
PRETTY IN PASTEL
