Dark Autumnal & Magical Northamptonshire Barn Wedding

A sprinkling of magic today with WWW readers Luke and Kirsty’s Northamptonshire barn wedding at Dodmoor House.

I adore their autumn day, all atmospheric and beautiful. With natural decor, oodles of greenery and beautiful dark tones. Think luxe velvet bridesmaid dresses, sparklers and a decadent cake.

Kirsty wore a glorious two-piece gown, while Luke was suited and booted in a check suit, didn’t they look amazing!?

Big thanks to WWW wedding supplier fave, Thyme Lane Photography, for sharing these absolutely beautiful captures with us.

Northamptonshire Barn Wedding

The Proposal

We were away in Paris and Disneyland for my 30th birthday and our 13yr anniversary. We’d spent all day walking around and I was exhausted, so when Luke kept trying to convince me to go back to a really pretty Disney castle that was really far away I just got grumpy.

Eventually luke struck up courage outside the perfect spot and began to go down on one knee… I started asking him what he was doing… Luke felt a bit awkward and ended up hovering in a sort of lunge position whilst he asked me to marry him!

Luke was hoping for me to cry I think, but instead, I said “yeah, okay”. Luke is definitely the romantic, thoughtful one out of us both.

The Vision

We wanted lots of candles in wine bottles from the guests (we left the labels on and ended up being a good talking point for people that didn’t know each other well), nature but relaxed and nothing too over the top.

Dark flowers with green foliage, bringing the outside in. Really wanted to embrace the soggy dark nights of autumn/winter.

The Budget

£12k… We did okay I think, as we saved on parts we thought we’d spend, and a few covid related issues meant we had a few supplier issues that changed the budget slightly.

The Venue

Dodmoor House, Northampton.

Your Outfits

Luke had bought his suit a few years ago from Reiss. Dark navy with very subtle checks.

As someone that doesn’t often wear dresses, I wanted one to show hints of my tattoos and feel special enough without me feeling like I was wearing something that wasn’t me. I chose an amazing two-piece by Willowby, the top was the last one left and has since been discontinued so I was very grateful to have it. We opened the back of the top and added pearls, as well as adding some pearls to the rear of the skirt.

With the groomsmen and bridesmaids, we were conscious of buying things just for the sake of it being for a wedding.. we wanted them to have something they could wear again if they wanted, and that they felt comfortable in.

Despite one bridesmaid being heavily pregnant with the due date 1 week after the wedding, we managed to find the perfect simple black velvet dresses from Asos.

The groomsmen had classic black suits from Reiss.

The Ceremony & Music

Neither of us are religious, and we are both fairly shy, so we wanted a short and sweet ceremony.

Music has always been a big part of our lives and Luke is a musician so we were very thorough with our choices… We did have a giggle as our “just married walking up the aisle” music was an instrumental version of the Baywatch theme tune. (The reruns of the original show became a regular part of my day during the 1st lockdown!!)

Our DJs for the evening were also friends of Luke’s, so it was great to have our input with their knowledge of what we like and what works for mixed crowds. We had lots of comments about how good the music was.

Your Photographers

Thyme Lane Photography. One of our friends was going to be our photographer for the day, but as he lived overseas, we were worried about covid restrictions so decided to look for someone else.

The rich, dark tones of the photos and the ‘natural’ feel of the images were so perfect and everything we’d wanted. Noemi and Pal were so calm and patient, which made us really relaxed, we had so much fun.

The Styling & Decor

Other than the minimal flowers, the venue was able to provide us with a few little extras, like fairy lights and a few hearts. We used some old Polaroid photos and hung them up in the bar of the venue and used lots of wine bottles for table decorations. We didn’t feel the need or have the budget for many additional extras.

The cake was the most delicious vegan cake, it was a beautiful 3 tier, beautifully iced, carrot cake as the base, coffee and chocolate hazelnut. We added some fun little cow cake toppers just because we like cows!

We also had 10kg worth of vegan sweets on a sweet wall provided by our venue, the sweets didn’t last long!!

The Honeymoon

Covid restrictions were uncertain when we started looking so we decided on a minimoon.

We stayed in Bramblewood Yurt, a treehouse-style yurt just outside of Bath, in the middle of some woods. It was very peaceful and romantic with a lovely log burner. We went for a day spa and lovely village wanders and evenings playing scrabble. The perfect little getaway.

Memorable Moments

Sparklers – although the drunk people waving was slightly terrifying to walk under, the photos came out amazingly and it added that magical feeling, especially with the drizzly rain. It was like a film!!

Dancing – Luke loved a few knee slides, and so many of our friends became friends, all jumping in the biggest group huddles when some old classics came on, the smiles on everyone’s faces was so lovely. Music choices made these moments!

Advice For Other Couples

Find 2 mins on your own as a married couple.

Do what YOU want to, make sure your wedding is yours, not what you think people want.

I didn’t think it was fair Luke had to give a speech, so although petrified, I gave one and I’m so glad I did. I also walked down the aisle solo out of choice. Speed walked but again it felt right.

Relax, don’t overthink the small things. Guests will move seating plans and your perfect table decorations, but it doesn’t matter at all. Embrace everything the day brings and enjoy it together.