Bright & Colourful Quirky Home Made Wedding

You’re going to adore this colour packed, fun DIY celebration this morning.

WWW readers Abby and Louise chose to marry on the 24th March 2016 at Cardiff City Hall, followed by a reception at The Gate Arts Centre. It represented them perfectly as they met 16 years ago whilst studying theatre at university and have frequented the centre together previously. The space was perfect for their super colourful and quirky wedding party, which they filled with 200 pom poms, lanterns and honeycomb balls for real wow factor. Every little detail was thought of and one touch I especially found fun was the people bingo game for the children, it must have kept them really entertained.

Their day was a real home made effort with the reception blooms arranged by the couple themselves and the marvellous fruit cake being baked by Louise. I so love Abby and Louise’s dresses. One short sweet and flirty with a pop of colour, the other elegant, romantic and reminiscent of a by gone era. They looked utterly stunning.

Thanks so much to Jon Turtle for sharing these stunning images with us today.

THE PROPOSAL | Abby took Louise on a surprise picnic to Dunraven Bay in South Wales after a day in work on a sunny but chilly evening in April 2015. We sat on the beach eating our picnic but the tide was quickly coming in so I suggested we moved to the top of the cliffs. I could see this annoyed Abby and I couldn’t work out why at the time! We ended up sitting in our car eating the food (which included my favourite home made rice pudding!) and watching the sunset. Abby then turned to me and said ‘So I may have a slight ulterior motive for bringing you here……… I wondered if you’d like to marry me?’. I asked if she was serious and then cried!

We chose not to have engagement rings, mostly because our boiler had just broken down so we spent the money on that instead. My cousin in Australia said she couldn’t wait to see the ring, so I sent her a picture of the new boiler.

THE VISION | We didn’t want to go for a full on themed wedding, there were just things that we knew we definitely wanted to include and we knew a lot would be home made as we both enjoy being creative and wanted to add lots of personal touches to the day. The main thing we wanted was for it to be a really relaxed and fun occasion that we could share with our family and friends. With this in mind, we wanted bright, hot colours for the decorations and the flowers to enhance the vibrant effect.

THE PLANNING PROCESS | Louise – I do a lot of project management as part of my job so I was in my element drawing up spreadsheets with budgets and timelines! We picked our date because it was the Thursday before Easter weekend so we thought it would work well with people traveling from further afield. We have family and friends from all over the UK (and Australia!) so we wanted to try and make it easy for our guests.

We took a lot of inspiration from Pinterest and blogs and also thought about the things we liked (and disliked) from other weddings we’ve been to. We went to one wedding fayre but it’s not something I would recommend if you are looking to have a more of a more non-traditional wedding.

BUDGET | £14,000 but £4,000 of that came from a winning appearance on the ITV1 game show Tipping Point!

THE VENUE | We are very lucky in Cardiff that the registry office is in the very elegant City Hall so we knew that was where the ceremony would take place.

We were looking for a slightly unusual venue and we didn’t want a formal hotel wedding so our options were quite limited in the city centre.

We looked at three venues around Cardiff and ended up deciding on The Gate Arts Centre in Roath.

It’s a converted chapel and has lots of lovely original features included the pews and pulpit! It’s also a working arts centre and as I work in the arts and we met whilst studying theatre at university it seemed very appropriate.

The Gate is also right in the middle of the city so easy for everyone to get to and we could save money by not having to bus people to the venue. March in Wales is not likely to be sunny so it seemed to make sense to not prioritise outdoor space.

They were brilliant to work with and couldn’t do enough for us. We had use of the whole venue so could use areas like a dance studio for a children’s room as we knew there would be lots of children attending.

THE DRESSES & ACCESSORIES | The dresses were from Rachel Burgess Bridal Boutique in Penarth.

Louise’s was designed by E&W Couture and Abby’s was designed by Helen Rhiannon Designs.

We both bought each other bracelets, (without knowing!) that our best women presented us with on the morning of the wedding. Abby wore a locket necklace that was the same one her Mum wore on her wedding day and I wore earrings that belonged to my Nanna who passed away last November. Having elements like that during the day were very important to us.

Abby wore a peacock feather hair band made and designed by Claire Hill Designs.

FINDING THE DRESS | Choosing a wedding dress is probably one of the most significant and emotional experiences for any future bride. Choosing a retailer who can help you visualise that perfect dress even more so. Fortunately for us, we chose Rachel’s very beautiful, elegant and charming boutique in the heart of the seaside town of Penarth.

From the moment we entered the boutique we knew we had met our perfect match.

Rachel made us feel so welcome and created the perfect atmosphere, relaxed and cosy with a side of fun and frolics and the selection of gowns were simply stunning! With a strong vintage inspired style, we were truly spoilt for choice by the incredible designs and fabrics. What we absolutely loved was the bespoke aspect of buying our dresses with the ability to choose accessories created by a number of designers and Rachel’s enthusiasm and expertise made this process of wedding planning an absolute delight.

As two brides, we wanted to maintain an element of mystery surrounding the big day so chose not to reveal to the other which dress we had chosen but still wanted to complement each other if possible. With a little guidance from Rachel, we definitely achieved that and received so many compliments from our friends and family.

Wales is our adoptive home so it was incredibly special for us to have our beautiful gowns and accessories handmade by some awesomely talented Welsh designers, Sophie at E&W Couture, Helen Rhiannon and Claire Hill. We were both absolutely thrilled with our beautiful gowns and unique accessories and we cannot thank Rachel enough for helping us with so many of those important decisions and for making us feel so wonderful.

THE READINGS & MUSIC | We walked into the ceremony to ‘I do I do I do’ by Abba, Louise is a massive Abba fan so there was no option really! We had ‘The Shining’ by Badly Drawn Boy whilst we signed the register (a song that reminds us of the time we got together) and ‘A Whole Lotta Love’ by Led Zeppelin as we left the room as a nod to both our Dads.

One of our best women Sara Burgess did the reading during the ceremony. We chose Invitation to Love by Paul Laurence Dunbar. The words are lovely and very appropriate for the occasion, suitably moving without being too gushy.

BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS | We have three young nieces who we chose as our bridesmaids, Bethan 8, Rosie 6 and Edie 4. Our nephew Rhys (10) was our ring bearer. We chose not to have adult bridesmaids and instead have two best women so we asked our best friends Sara Burgess and Kim Brown. We met Kim at university; she actually introduced us so she also gave a speech during the reception. Louise met Sara at work 10 years ago and we have always been close to her and her husband Dicky.

THE FLOWERS | We have a lovely local florist called Betty’s who we use regularly. Their flowers are always absolutely beautiful so it was no competition really, so we asked them to do our bouquets, the bridesmaid’s bouquets and the buttonholes.

Our only request for our bouquets was that were hand-tied and had to be lovely bright coloured flowers. We chose simple white rose and gypsophila buttonholes and small white gypsophila bouquets for the girls.

We decided to do our own flowers for the tables so bought simple jars from IKEA and added a hessian ribbon. We then went to our local flower market two days before the wedding and bought lots of beautifully colourful flowers like tulips, gerberas, gypsophila and september flower.

THE CAKE | Louise – I love baking and each year I bake fruit Christmas/Birthday cakes for our families so I knew I would make my own wedding cake. I also knew our guests would expect it so I didn’t want to let them down! I was nervous about making an extravagant tiered cake so decided on a single tier fruit cake. The rest of the cake display was made up of coloured meringue nests made by myself, my sister Lisa, my Mum Patricia and my mother in law Jackie. We then used these for our dessert on the day (120 in total).

Abby was in charge of the cake topper so she made an amazing Fimo clay version of us and our cat Molly, complete with cake and guitar accessories. The miniature tissue paper bunting matched our room decoration.

To display the cake and the meringues we asked Abby’s Dad John to create a cake stand using fruit trees he had recently cut down from their garden for us. We couldn’t believe it when we saw it; it was beautifully hand crafted wooden masterpiece, complete with an engraved heart with our names and wedding date on it.

YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER | We knew we were looking for a more relaxed look with the photography so I started researching that style of photographers. Our good friend Dicky then suggested Jon Turtle as he was a friend of his. We only met with him and one other photographer and it was no contest! The other photographer was very matter of fact and just went through what I can imagine was a standard sales pitch. Jon wanted to get to know us and work out the best thing for us on the day.

Our package included a pre-wedding / engagement shoot which we choose to do in Roath Park in Cardiff. We were both nervous about being photographed in public but I’m so glad we did the shoot. It got us used to Jon’s style and having our photo taken (a lot!).

Jon worked like a demon arriving early in the morning and moving between both houses where we were staying and stayed with us until late until the evening.

As The Gate didn’t have much outdoor space we wanted to have some outdoor photos so choose to go to the local park very near our house after the ceremony with just the two of us. Even with the rain we got some lovely shots around the park and under the bandstand.

THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | As the Gate is a converted chapel the ceilings in the main room are very high so we wanted to add some colourful décor using paper pom poms to lower the ceiling and add detail. We used pom poms, paper lanterns and paper honeycomb balls in a variety of shapes, colours and sizes (200 in total!). The night before the wedding there were about 10 family members and friends making up the pom poms ready to display.

Dicky made an amazing photo booth and we just collected items from our large collection of fancy dress for people to use.

We created games for the children to play during the main reception with people bingo (for example, find someone who can speak Welsh) and disposable cameras with suggestions for which photos to take.

Whilst the venue turned the room around from the daytime to the evening reception we thought it would be fun to have a game of bingo in the bar – it went down very well with all the guests.

Our guest book was a colour in poster that we bought from Not on the High Street with characters for our guests to colour in and signs for their messages.

For the wedding favours we had personalised sunflower seeds created and also, as it was Easter – Kinder Eggs.

For the food and drink we didn’t want a traditional three-course meat and two veg option so instead we chose to have a picnic style lunch with lots of lovely locally sourced things like sausage rolls, cheese, salad and pate. We served them in wooden trugs with a gingham insert sewed by Abby’s mum Jackie. It worked perfectly and created a relaxed feel to the meal with our guests interacting with each other asking if they had tried certain things. Along with Abby’s brother and sister in law, we made a home made chutney to go in the trugs and called it ‘Down on one Chutknee’!

For pudding we used the home made meringues from the cake and summer fruits with cream.

Abby is from Somerset and Louise is from Wiltshire so we added little nods to our home counties by providing a barrel of Somerset scrumpy cider and real ale from Wilshire for our guests.

For the evening we had a hog roast served with a variety of Krispie Kreme donuts for something sweet.

The tables were decorated with the flowers and the name place cards were created from Polaroid style photos of that particular guest, more often than not, an embarrassing or childhood photo, the criteria was one that made us laugh or smile. These were placed in tree branch cardholders, once again created by Abby’s Dad John.

Our first dance was to ‘Lifelight’ by Welsh band Paper Aeroplanes who we have seen live a few times together, including at the Gate in the past.

We had two amazing cars to take us to the ceremony. Louise came with her parents in The Pink Lady, a fantastic 1958 Vauxhall Cresta, finished in ‘Royal Glow over White’, a gorgeous shade of pink. We then travelled together in this car for photos and over to the Gate. Abby arrived with her parents for the ceremony in a navy MKII Jaguar, which was then used to take our parents to the reception.

THE HONEYMOON | We spent Easter weekend at a lovely cottage as part of the Ty Mawr Collection, which is about 2 miles outside Brecon.

We are planning our main honeymoon for the end of the year to hopefully see the Northern Lights in Finland and Norway.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS | Louise – So many! We decided early on that we would stay in separate places the night before the wedding and I’m so glad we did. Our cars arrived around the same time and seeing each other for the first time was magical. It was nice to know that after 16 years together seeing her still gave me butterflies.

The actual ceremony was memorable but went by in a blur. I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I’d be until I walked into the room

Some of my family live in Australia and although I invited them I didn’t think they would come. Two weeks before the wedding I found out my Uncle Julian had decided he couldn’t miss it and was flying over for the wedding. He is my Dad’s brother and as my Dad passed away when I was very young, it meant so much to us both to have him there.

We spent a long time the night before decorating the reception room with a lot of help from family and friends but seeing it completed for the first time on the day was wonderful, it was everything we envisioned.

Abby – Seeing Dad’s face when I walked down the stairs with my Mum after she had helped me get dressed. He looked so proud.

Seeing City Hall in the distance and seeing Lou’s car pulling in an thinking this is it, she’s here and we’re getting married. A true mixture of excitement and overwhelming emotion.

Lou stood at the entrance of City Hall waiting for me totally took my breath away.

Walking into the reception room at The Gate and being totally wowed by how beautiful it looked.

Walking hand in hand with my wife through Victoria Park, I felt so proud.

The main thing we both loved about the day was how much love and laughter surrounded us. We are both incredibly lucky to have truly wonderful friends and family. To have them all there to share our day and support us was truly the most incredible feeling in the world. We were literally beaming all day!

ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES | Decide early on about what elements of the day are most important to you and then work the budget around that. If you want to spend more on your dress than catering then do that! Don’t feel pressurised into doing or having things just because its traditional or expected, that’s how you end up overspending. Make the day your own. After all, you are the ones getting married.

As much as you’d love to, realise you won’t be able to spend lots of time with all your guests individually on the day. It will absolutely fly by, just be sure so speak to everyone.

You can never give your guests too much information – people will always want to know more such as parking, what time they are eating etc. It may feel like spoon-feeding but it’s better than answering simple questions the day before the wedding when you have lots of other things to think about.

Make sure you do what makes you happy on your actual day, if you want to dance, dance! If a guest has a query about the day try and get someone else to answer (best woman / man / parents / the venue). There will always be someone else who could direct someone to the car park for you.

Have the day you want, so when you reflect on it there will be nothing to regret.

Remember, you and your guests will have a great time, even if those small details don’t quite work as you had expected. We promise, no one will even notice!

Relax, breathe, smile, laugh, kiss, cuddle, eat, drink, dance and be happy.

Have a conga line at some point!

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |

Photographer | Jon Turtle

Venue | The Gate Arts Centre

Dresses and accessories | Rachel Burgess Bridal Boutique, E&W Couture, Helen Rhiannon Designs, Claire Hill Designs

Flowers | Betty’s Florist

Cars | Perfect Day Cars (our cars our no longer available with them due to retirement)

DJ | Epic Stereo DJ

Make up | Rachel at Bluebells Complementary Therapy

Hair | Tammy from Ken Picton Salon

How fabulous.

Thanks so much to Abby and Louise for sharing their super lovely wedding day with us xo Lou