Laid Back & Rustic Back Garden Marquee Wedding

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The proposal took place in these beautiful countryside woods, where Ben and I often hung out when we were dating. There are some hammocks there which Ben brought back from Thailand a few years back so we used to go swing on them and casually hang out back when we were just friends. I was told by Ben’s friends that they were planning a surprise party for him at ‘hammock spot’ so I was led to believe that we were all involved in this huge event 

The Proposal

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and all I had to do was take Ben there and keep his surprise party a secret. When I got there, there was loads of bunting, fairy lights, and after a short while Ben got down on one knee and proposed! Turns out that there was never a surprise party; it was all a big set up. Then a jazz band who were hiding in the woods started playing, and our families showed up with pizza and sushi.

The Proposal

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No specific vision, though we wanted it to be laid back and rustic.

The Vision

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We had 14 months of planning. Originally we were supposed to get married in a converted barn with 150+ people, but Covid changed all of that. We considered moving it to next year but we really just wanted to be together as soon as possible! So there were quite a few months of uncertainty and non-wedding planning because we didn’t know what was going to happen.

The Planning Process

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Around 2 months before, we decided to take a risk and plan for a wedding of around 30 people with a small marquee in the back garden. This massively eased the pressure and meant we could be more creative and spend a bit more of our budget on flowers and lighting. It ended up working out perfectly as we were able to have around 30 people, which made it a very unique and intimate wedding that was totally different from what we had originally envisaged.

The Planning Process

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St James The Less, Pangbourne Marquee in the garden – White Bison Tipi Hire

The Venue

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Wedding dress – San Patrick Codamine, from Sophie Grace Bridal I wanted a dress that was simple and flowy, with lace instead of beads. I felt that this one was the perfect fit!

Your Outfits & Accessories

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Haridresser – Adam & Eve Hair – flower crown with it half up and down with curls.

Beauty

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One groomsman, suit from Moss Bros.

Groomsmen

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One bridesmaid, my cousin, and we got her dress from Next.

Bridesmaids

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No readings due to Covid. Music was played by Benedict Cork. Walking down the aisle we had Cannon in D and walking out we had ‘You Make my Dreams Come true’. We didn’t really have a first dance planned, but after the speeches, everyone got up and started dancing to Chuck Berry’s You Never Can Tell.

The Readings & Music

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Queen Bee Bridal I had a mixture of wild grasses, roses, and loose greenery.

The Flowers

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My Cousin made the cake, which was a naked Victoria sponge cake.

The Cake

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Joanna Cunningham – Only Lovers Photography

Your Photographer

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Flowers by Queen Bee Bridal. Most of the décor was done by myself – I bought a ton of fairy lights and did the calligraphy for the signage, table names and seating plan. We had runners along the wooden tables and wooden boxes that I had bought which had candles, photographs, and flowers in them. I wanted to make a cosy rustic type look throughout the marquee.

The Details & Décor

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Dartmoor, Devon

The Honeymoon

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A great memory was when my neighbour decided to go and get their guitar after the speeches and started playing The Beetles with his wife for us all. It was like an impromptu open mic night and the kind of thing that could only happen at a small, intimate wedding. My other favourite memory was when I was driving down to the Church and my cousins who couldn’t come to the service due 

Memorable Moments

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to Covid restrictions were at the bottom of our drive to see me off, cheering me on before I walked down the aisle.

Memorable Moments

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Enjoy the day and don’t overthink things. But be sure to do whatever you want to do.

Advice For Other Couples

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