Enchanting & Magical Tipi Wedding in the Woodland

This wedding will be sure to stop you in your tracks today. The sublime photography by Flawless Photography has really taken my breath away and the woodland setting is magical. Our couple Sarah and Chris wanted a super personal, relaxed and fun celebration, plus their daughter was fully involved in their day which is just lovely.

Sarah and Chris held their wedding celebrations at Applewood in Leeds on the 15th July 2017, they had the most gorgeous outdoor ceremony in the woodland, with ribbons and florals hanging from the trees. It really was a sight to behold. They then moved onto a tipi to party the night away, which was totally decked out in wildflowers and stunning lighting. Festoon lights and fairy lights lit up come evening all around the location, which looked so enchanting. It really did make for some beautiful portraits of the couple.

Do look out for stylish outfits, rustic signage and some fun transport! Enjoy it all.

The Proposal

In 2011, Chris surprised Sarah with a trip to Paris, he proposed to her in a park in the Montmartre district.

The Vision

Above all, we wanted a wedding that would be about us. After watching Robin Hood Prince of Thieves as a child, I had always hoped to get married in a woodland! We wanted a space that we could make our own and luckily our venue enabled us to do this. We knew we wanted it to be full of colour and wildflowers. We really hoped the day would be a memorable one for all involved, which it was.

The Planning Process

After visiting the woodland in 2016, my mind was buzzing with ideas! We knew which florist and photographer we wanted to use and luckily they were both available and willing to travel to Leeds. From then it was sourcing suppliers closer to the venue and researching styles and ideas online to make the day turn out as we hoped. Nicola from Applewood put us in touch with Jan our celebrant, who was brilliant, and gave us a ceremony that was completely personal to us.

Budget

£14,000

The Venue

Applewood, Bog Lane, Scholes, Leeds.

Your Outfits & Accessories

Sarah: I knew I wanted bridal separates as I didn’t want to wear a traditional bridal dress. My skirt was by Catherine Deane and the top was from Monsoon. I wore Kurt Geiger sandals.

My accessories were simple – earrings bought by my parents and two bangles bought for me by Chris, all were from Daniella Draper.

Chris: I knew I wanted a tweed suit of some description. It was bought from a tailor in Edinburgh.

Beauty

My makeup was done by Amy George and my hair was done by Rachel of Yorkshire Bridal Hair.

Bridesmaids

The bridesmaids were Sarah and Chris’s daughter, Charlotte and Maid of Honour was Sarah’s sister, Rachel.

Both of their dresses were from Monsoon.

The Readings & Music

Sarah walked down the aisle to Heartbeats by Jose Gonzales, the music played when they signed the register was Everlong by Foo Fighters and their exit music was 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. The first dance was to Once Around the Block by Badly Drawn Boy. The songs were chosen as they’re meaningful to us, they hold fond memories and we wanted those memories to be part of our day.

We had two readings during the ceremony. The first was Your Time is Now by Natalie Roocroft and the second was Union by Robert Fulghum. They were suggested to us by our celebrant, Jan, and fitted in perfectly.

Groomsmen

The best man was Chris’s brother Paul, who wore a suit of his own choice.

The Flowers

We wanted a variety of wildflowers in as much of the venue as possible, they were expertly put together by Stem & Co.

The Cake

We went for a natural cake made by The Wildflower Bakery, based in Leeds. We had 3 tiers consisting of Earl Grey, Lemon and Victoria Sponge. It was then decorated with flowers.

We also had a cheese wedding cake which we decorated with fruits. Along with crackers and homemade chutney, this acted as an evening supper for our guests!

The Details & Décor

Sam from Stem & Co travelled from Cleethorpes to Leeds to set up the flowers and decorations. We met a few times to discuss what we were going to do and luckily we shared the same vision. We wanted to create something that was colourful and natural, we chose wildflowers for the flowers. A combination of these were used in the bouquets, button holes, table decorations and hanging jam jars that were suspended with coloured ribbons around the woodland. We used natural table runners with trailing ivy and wood cuts with glass bottles and white teapots filled with flowers.

Your Photographer

Flawless Photography. We first met James when he did our engagement shoot and we knew we wanted him to photograph our wedding as we admired his style of photography.

The Honeymoon

We went to Cornwall for a few days and stayed in Watergate Bay and St Ives.

Memorable Moments

Seeing each other for the first time.

Our daughter ‘marrying us’.

Having shots of Glayva as the celebration toast.

The masks of Chris’s face his friends wore during his speech!

Our daughter pinching the wedding cake whilst we were having our first dance!

Travelling in a VW splitscreen campervan with my immediate family (Sarah) for the last time was pretty special.

Advice For Other Couples

Follow your hearts and do exactly as you want to do for your day. Just relax and try to enjoy it as much as you can!

Credit Where Credit Is Due

Wow! Sarah and Chris, thank you both so so much for sharing your beautiful wedding day with us xo Lou