Home Made Eco Yellow Country Garden Wedding

Countryside Autumnal dreaming today and I definitely have that Friday feeling thanks to this gorgeous couple.

WWW readers Sarah and Abeed were married on the 5^th September 2015 at the village church followed by a marquee reception in the back garden at Sarah’s parent’s home. They envisioned an eco friendly, home made celebration in which all of their nearest and dearest came together to help them out. An ethos which is ever so lovely and ensures everyone gets a chance to be involved in the day.

There were reams of bunting, yellow blooms, a fun confetti moment and sweet jam favours. Sarah chose a divine lace gown by Sylvia Rose, which she teamed with a short veil and Abeed looked very dapper in his navy suit and pattern tie.

Many thanks to Kathryn Edwards Photography, for sharing these really wonderful photographs.

THE PROPOSAL | On top of Roseberry Topping in the North York Moors. I was working away from home in Teeside and Abeed came to visit one weekend. The walk was my idea and I was completely unsuspecting. I was totally stunned when Abeed went down on one knee at the top of the hill. I had difficulty climbing down because my legs were shaking so much!

THE VISION | Relaxed, home made, personal, Lincolnshire food (plus some Indian snacks from our favourite restaurant near our flat in London), eco-friendly.

THE PLANNING PROCESS |  We had a 10 month engagement and it took us three months to set a date so most of the planning happened in the 6 months before the wedding. We knew straight away we wanted to get married at home so we didn’t look at any other venues – my parents were delighted! Both of us are engineers so of course we made a massive spreadsheet to organise all of the tasks – by the end it was so big it crashed my computer when I opened it!

We couldn’t have done it without the (almost full time) assistance from my wonderful mum, Abeed’s mum, and several other very dedicated members of our families.

BUDGET | £15,000

THE VENUE | We got married at the village church, All Saint’s in Harmston, Lincolnshire.   The reception was in a marquee in my parent’s garden. We spent the week before the wedding preparing the house and garden – starting by putting up the marquee, which had been kindly lent to us by a neighbour, ourselves in the rain. It was a very busy week!

THE DRESS & ACCESSORIES | My dress was by Sylvia Rose and was from the wonderful ladies at JDezire in Lincoln. My hair band was also from JDezire and was handmade in Lincolnshire. I wanted some height but still to be comfortable walking on grass and gravel so decided to go for a rather functional pair of wedge sandals from Ugg – not the prettiest but they were so comfy!

FINDING THE DRESS | Not being a particularly girly girl, I had no idea where to begin! I started looking for dresses in London but found the experience quite stressful as appointments booked up early and were strictly time limited. Lincolnshire provided a much more relaxed experience and I spent a couple of days going round boutiques (many of them on farms bizarrely) with my mum. After trying on what felt like hundreds, I ended up choosing one of the first ones I tried on!

GROOM’S ATTIRE | Abeed’s sister took him and the best men – three of them – shopping in London one Saturday. Very brave of her! After sending me several photos of increasingly outlandish ensembles throughout the day, they settled on a smart three-piece slim fit number. But the suits were kept under wraps until the day arrived. Seeing Abeed at the top of the aisle was all the more amazing for it!

THE READINGS & MUSIC | I walked down the aisle to The Prince of Denmark’s March by Jeremiah Clarke, which I played for a trumpet exam when I was at school. Abeed’s sister read Vow by Roger McGough which we both loved for it’s realistic take on marriage. One of the highlights of the day for me was hearing my sister play her trombone while we signed the register. The church acoustics were amazing. It sent shivers down my spine. We had Felix Mendelssohn’s traditional Wedding March for our recessional – it felt rude not to!

BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS | My three grown up bridesmaids, my sister and two best friends, were in green floor-length chiffon dresses and my 9-year-old cousin was in white with a matching green sash and headband. My one (honest!) bridezilla moment was demanding that they wore flat shoes so I could be taller, just for one day, as my two friends are both 5’10. They chose some sparkly sandals which fitted in perfectly with the relaxed theme.

THE FLOWERS | Our bouquets and button holes were by Rachel Petheram of Catkin Flowers at Doddington Hall. I wanted locally grown flowers and Rachel understood my vision perfectly; relaxed, fresh, and herby. They smelled amazing! Mandy Taylor, a family friend, did the beautiful flowers in the church and an incredible archway over the front gate of the house. Arriving at the reception and walking under it to be greeted by a shower of confetti was magical.

The flowers in the marquee were a team effort from Abeed’s sisters, mum and aunt. We had collected interesting bottles and jam jars and decorated them with hession and ribbon. They spent the day before the wedding filling them with flowers and foliage cut from the garden. The effect was more stunning than even I had hoped for!

THE CAKE | Our wedding cake was a labour of love by Abeed’s mum, Margaret. It had 5 tiers and was covered in sugar flowers which she had handmade herself. No one could believe they weren’t real!

My sister and her boyfriend also made a huge chocolate cake with an inscribed ‘collar’. Fortunately Kathryn got a few shots of it because it was hoovered up before we could get near it!

YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER | I found Kathryn after many hours whiled away on quiet night shifts searching photographers’ websites. She was utterly brilliant. She made us feel completely at ease straight away even though neither of us are used to having our photos taken. The engagement shoot was a great way of getting used to the camera so we would be relaxed on the day. It was likely having an old friend around. Kathryn (and her sidekick, Helen) charmed everyone and her photos really speak for themselves. We couldn’t be happier with them.

THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | We were keen for the wedding to be as ‘eco-friendly’ as possible and that meant minimising disposable decorations. Instead we looked at what we could make ourselves and ‘upcycle’, and we had so much fun in the process!

At the beginning of the planning, we bought a vintage Adana letterpress and hand printed and embossed the invitations. It took several weekends but the results were lovely. Our beautiful place cards were made by a good friend of mine who had recently been on a calligraphy course.

While my dad set off on various DIY projects around the house and garden, Abeed’s dad got to work overhauling his vintage sports car – a Morgan – to make roadworthy so he could chauffeur us from the church.

Between them, our mums handmade over a kilometre of bunting, which we hung in the marquee and all round the house and garden. Our wedding day was really windy and the bunting looked lovely blowing in the breeze.

THE HONEYMOON | We spent a very relaxed week in the South of France enjoying the sun and the wonderful food and drink.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS | There are too many to list!

ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES | Don’t sweat the small stuff! If part of your vision turns out to be impractical, just let it go. On the day you will wonder why you were so worried.

Accept help. People love being involved in the preparations, and you’ll be amazed at the hidden talents that come to light if you let people help out. I loved being surrounded by things that our friends and family had made – it felt very personal.

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |

Photographer | Kathryn Edwards Photography

Dress | Sylvia Rose

Dress shop | JDezire

Flowers | Catkin Flowers

Catering |Wisby & Co, Horncastle

Hair | Jade from The Style Lounge

Make-up | Emily Johnson Hair and Make Up

Band | Funk Education

Oh so fabulous. I do love a country wedding.

Thanks so much to Sarah and Abeed for sharing their lovely nuptials with us xo Lou