A marquee full of colourful details, a Mamma Mia inspired first dance, a Mews Clifton dress and a real family affair makes this beautiful Wiltshire-based wedding one of our favourites to date. Read on to hear how Georgie and Tim created a wedding that was true to them, and hear how a personal referral led them to building their beautiful wedding list with WPC.
I know everyone says this but it really was a surprise to me, Tim had an elaborate plan and even my bosses were in on it! We live in Bath, and I was meant to be working late on Friday night, and Tim was supposedly off to Bath Rugby. In reality, my boss packed me onto the train at Bath Spa, handed me an envelope and told me to follow the instructions and not to worry – incredibly hard when you’re a control freak like me! Two hours later I was in Covent Garden (where we had our first date) waiting for Tim, he came round the corner and took me into the tiny moomin shop and got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! It was all a bit of a blur, I think I said yes! It was so special and he really pulled it out of the bag. We then had an amazing evening in London, joined by my sister and her husband, for a night of celebrations!
We both absolutely loved the showroom experience, having a private appointment in the incredible showroom was so much fun. I think for both of us it’s when it truly began to feel real, and for Tim it really was the first thing he could really be a part of - he had the best time! He particularly loved that he could drink beer and look at presents at the same time!! My sister had had her wedding list with The Wedding Present Company and couldn't have enjoyed (or raved about) the experience any more, so it was a no-brainer that Tim and I would do our wedding list here.
We both loved The Vintage List - we got our gorgeous champagne coupes and port glasses from there. I also fell in love with Canvas Home - we got a couple of platters, dinner plates, side plates and bowels from there they are really timeless and classic. I had never heard of either of these brands before so it was a real treat to come across something so different for our wedding list.
We also love the Addison Ross collection of photo frames, which were very popular on our list with our guests. We have a lot around the house filled with photos of the day!
We have had our presents delivered and I have to say it was about my 3rd favourite thing about getting married (obviously the wedding and honeymoon come 1st and 2nd!!). I was so excited when everything arrived, it’s so nice to go through everything and remember who bought you what! It also gave us an excuse to get rid of all the old bits we’ve been holding onto, and start married life with everything new!
We got married in the local church near to my parents’ house in Bishopstrow, Wiltshire. We were so lucky to be able to use the cricket ground right next door to the church for the reception; it was perfect, as no one had to travel between service and reception.
Our marquee was provided by DP Marquees they were recommended to me as my sister used them for her wedding. They were fantastic especially as on the day of the wedding it was very high winds - at one point we had to call them out to help to keep the marquee from flying away!
I have always loved the idea of a bright and colourful wedding and that is exactly what we went for, our flowers and marquee were full of colours and ribbons and bright table runners. We had two huge 8ft hoops hanging in our marquee with ribbon and lights hanging down, made for us by DP Marquees. They gave such a huge impact and looked amazing. We also had loads of fairy lights for optimal impact when the sun went down.
Our table names are where named after Tim’s family farm fields, it was really special to us and Tim managed to find the original map of the farm which we used for our seating plan. We also had been collecting gin bottles as Tim and I are G & T, which we put the table names in. We finished the tables with colourful candles and poseys of colourful flowers from my mother's garden.
I worked with Stephanie Jevons to create our stunning flowers for the day. Stephanie is based in Blandford and she managed to take my vision and turn it into something better than I could have ever imagined, I said to her on the day it was as if she saw inside my head and created exactly what I wanted, she is a star! My mother also help to create some wonderful flowers in the marquee using gorgeous wild flowers that we picked from her garden.
I wore 'Cecelia' by Marie La Porte, from The Mews Clifton. I am sure every bride says this but it truly was the dress of my dreams. I felt so natural in it and I wanted something that I could be comfortable in all day and of course be able to dance in! I wore a headband made by my mother from a cut off from the dress, and a lace cathedral family veil, which was stunning. My shoes where espadrilles from LK Bennett, they were so comfortable and I wore them all day and night even when dancing the night away.
I borrowed my Sister’s antique pear drop earrings, which she wore on her wedding day. I also wore my engagement ring which is from Bath Antiques Centre. Tim and I chose it together and I just adore it! My wedding band is an 18ct gold band made by a local designer, Virginia de Chenecey.
A family friend did my hair, my bridesmaid’s hair and my mother’s hair. It was very calming having someone you know doing it for you - it really calmed my nerves. My make up was done by a local girl called Beth Cox. Beth really understood my vision of a very relaxed look and made it a reality.
Tim wore his brand new Charles Tyrwhitt Morning Suit, and a light blue waistcoat that I bought him from Sir Plus.
I had five bridesmaids: my sister, Tim’s sister and three nannying friends from Norland. They all wore the same pearl coloured dresses from Asos and looked stunning. They also all wore a beautiful fresh flower crown, made by our florist. My gift to them was a Gin and Tonic oak chopping board from Oak and Rope, and a bottle of gin to go with it.
We really wanted the food to be the sort of food we like to eat, and the sort of thing you actually want to eat at a wedding. For starters we had an antipasti board of delicious local charcuterie and cheese. For the main course we had locally sourced sausages and mash with ale onion gravy and seasonal vegetables. Delicious! For pudding we had a Gin and Tonic cake, obviously! We used the incredible Caroline Gent for all our catering - they really were amazing. They were extremely attentive and we could not recommend them more!
We had a little bit too much fun doing all the wine tasting for the wedding wine! We finally decided on a Veuve Monsigny Champagne, an Olivier Dubois Cuvee Prestige Pinor Noir for the red and a Villemarin Picpoul de Pinet 2018 Côteaux du Languedoc for the white. Behind the bar we served a choice of Corona beer or Peroni. We bought all the alcohol from Majestic.
Our photographer was the extremely talented Matt Gutteridge. He was genuinely the most discreet and hardest working photographer I have ever seen. He managed to capture the day exactly how I remember it; full of love, laughter, and some incredible dance moves!
I walked into the church to a piece of music called ‘Highland Cathedral’ by The Scots Guards Band. This meant an awful lot to family, both past and present.
Tim and I walked out of the church to ‘When I Kissed The Teacher’ from the Mamma Mia 2 Soundtrack. It really got everyone in the party spirit and was very apt as I had literally just kissed the teacher!
Our band for the evening was The Co-Stars. Our first dance was to ‘Does Your Mother Know’ by ABBA. Tim and I both LOVE dancing so it was a must that our first dance was full of fun, love and energy! The band had everyone dancing till the very end of the night, they were fantastic.
Firstly, have a wedding list and go with The Wedding Present Company! We felt so lucky to have so much help and support throughout the whole process, and we are still in awe at their amazing selection of brands!
Secondly, make the planning as fun as it can be. We always tried to plan in the pub or open a bottle of wine and sit down together to try and make it fun. It is hard, and at times I found it incredibly overwhelming, but all I can say is it is totally worth it on the day! We had the best day and wish we could do it all over again!
Wedding Gift List: The Wedding Present Company
Marquee: DP Marquees
Flowers: Stephanie Jevons
Wedding Dress: 'Cecelia' by Marie La Porte, from The Mews Clifton
Wedding Shoes: LK Bennett
Jewellery: Virginia de Chenecey
Make Up: Beth Cox
Groom's Fashion: Charles Tyrwhitt & Sir Plus
Bridesmaids Dresses: Asos
Bridesmaids Gifts: Oak and Rope
Catering: Caroline Gent
Wine: Majestic
Photography: Matt Gutteridge
Wedding Band: The Co-Stars