Relaxed Carefree & Personal Small Seaside Wedding

Welcome to the delightful Kent seaside wedding of Nicola and Tom at The Beacon House. Their day was really individual with a small number of guests and a carefree vibe. One of the highlights for the couple was the amazing weather, and just wait until you see the bright blue skies. Wow.

I adore the easy-breezy atmosphere, from the divine outfits to the paper bouquets, beach portraits and outdoor celebrations. What a special day indeed.

Thanks ever so much to Hannah Larkin Photography for sharing with us these super beautiful images. Enjoy them all below.

Kent Seaside Wedding

The Proposal

Something you should know about us before reading this is we are huge sports fans. We met at a cricket match in a 98,000-seater stadium in Australia, and we watch sports together all the time. It was only appropriate that our proposal was sports-related.

In the end, it was determined by the result of the Ryder Cup in 2018. Tom decided, if Europe won, he’d go ahead and ask. So, as Europe were celebrating their victory, Tom surprised me by coming downstairs with the ring, and asking me to marry him after over 7 years together. We then had double reason to celebrate.

The Vision

A small wedding that reflected and was inspired by our favourite things as a couple.

Budget

Initially around £20k, ended up being around £12k.

The main cost was the venue because we stayed there for the week.

The Ceremony & Music

I made my way down through the garden of the beach house to an acoustic version of Can’t Help Falling in Love by Elvis Presley (version by Kina Grannis).

The ceremony was short and functional, we both wanted to get this out of the way so we could enjoy the rest of the day

The Venue

We originally booked our wedding for July 2020. However, it wasn’t to be and after 2 postponements due to COVID-19 and a massive increase in costs, we were forced to cancel that venue, and decided to change our plans entirely. In the 3 years that had passed since we got engaged and started planning, life was different and we had different priorities for the day we wanted.

Not least, we wanted a venue that allowed our dog, Monty, to be able to attend. Also, having planned all of the details of one wedding, I didn’t want to spend too much time starting again and planning another one.

We found The Beacon House one day as we walked past whilst walking our dog in Whitstable. It was perfect for what we now wanted. In a place we regularly loved to visit, a place that was dog friendly, close enough for Tom’s family and friends to travel to and somewhere my family could stay for several days (as they were travelling down from the Midlands). The beach house could be completely tailored to our own needs for the day.

The entire day was planned to be held outside, which is risky in an English summer. Thankfully, after 2 postponed dates which had seen rain fall on both of them, the weather gods were smiling down on us and we didn’t need to revert to plans B or C, the sun shone down on us all day.

Your Outfits

We had both purchased our outfits for the original 2020 wedding, and thankfully they still worked for our 2022 beach wedding.

I wanted something simple, but different. I didn’t really want to wear a dress. I found House of Ollichon on Google, the only bridal collection in the world not to include a dress. I visited their studio in North London, and fell in love with their bridal separates. I was able to ‘mix & match’ a top and skirt from their collection, and also have it altered and designed to my preference.

The groom, best man, usher and father-of-the-bride all wore blue suits by Ted Baker.

Your Photographer

Hannah was recommended to us by my friend and a former wedding planner, who had also asked Hannah to photograph her wedding.

The photographs of the day were so important to us, and Hannah has done a fantastic job, from the engagement shoot to the day itself, the photos are a perfect representation of the day.

The Styling & Decor

We kept everything simple, and leaned into the natural beauty of the venue. We chose colours and accessories that accompanied the seaside vibes of the beach house.

I was also adamant I didn’t want any flowers, so I ordered the bride’s and bridesmaid’s bouquets from Etsy and had them made from paper.

The Honeymoon

We ended up waiting over a year from our wedding date to go on our honeymoon, but it was certainly worth the wait.

We went to Tanzania and Zanzibar; we experienced a safari on the Serengeti, which was the highlight, as well as exploring the island of Zanzibar and its beautiful beaches, rich history and culture.