{"id":373345,"date":"2024-11-20T07:00:42","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T07:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whimsicalwonderlandweddings.com\/?p=373345"},"modified":"2024-11-06T15:42:31","modified_gmt":"2024-11-06T15:42:31","slug":"chidham-barn-wedding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wedissimo.com\/blog\/chidham-barn-wedding\/","title":{"rendered":"Outdoor DIY Autumnal Boho & Sustainable Barn Wedding"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have all the autumn feels thanks to the beautiful Chidham Barn<\/strong><\/a> wedding<\/strong> of Sarah and Charlie. There is so so much to adore about their day, from the homegrown flowers and DIY decor to the rustic barn setting, you are in for such a treat<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The bouquets were out-of-this-world beautiful and I love Sarah and Charlie’s stylish outfits. High on their list of priorities was that their day was sustainable and they wanted to book local suppliers, which is an ethos I wholeheartedly agree with. What with 10 cakes, homemade confetti<\/a> and fun mug favours<\/a>, you are spoilt for choice with inspiration today.<\/p>\n

Lucy Davis Photography<\/a> thank you ever so much for sharing with us these sublime images.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

Chidham Barn Wedding<\/h2>\n

The Proposal<\/h3>\n

One spring weekend morning back in April 2023, Charlie convinced me to go on a mountain bike ride<\/strong> up our favourite nearby hill in the South Downs, Kingley Vale. I took a bit of persuading that day, but he promised we\u2019d have a picnic at a great view spot, so I agreed.<\/p>\n

We got to the viewpoint and I flopped onto a bench underneath a beautiful old oak tree, overlooking Chichester Harbour. Charlie was taking ages with the picnic, but he eventually came over and got down on one knee!<\/p>\n

He asked me to marry him and had the most gorgeous ring \u2013 I just remember saying \u2018yes, of course!\u2019 and jumping into his arms! It was such a special moment in an incredible place, and the picnic wasn\u2019t bad either.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

The Vision<\/h3>\n

We wanted to create a relaxed, fun day<\/strong> with friends and family, with as much of the day outdoors as possible. It was very important to us that we got married locally and worked with small, local, sustainably-minded businesses.<\/p>\n

We soon decided on a September wedding, as we love that time of year just as summer gives way into autumn \u2013 still a chance of warm days, but with a crispness in the air and warm floral colours.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

The Venue<\/h3>\n

We had been to Chidham Barn<\/strong> a couple of times for previous events, so knew that it was a beautiful space with big open views. It\u2019s also less than a mile down a farm track from our local church, a gorgeous 13th-century building which we had chosen as the location for our wedding ceremony.<\/p>\n

The barn is surrounded by fields and is in the middle of Chichester Harbour, just a few hundred metres from the water. This gives it such a peaceful feeling, and looking inland you have stunning views of the South Downs, including of Kingley Vale where we got engaged.<\/p>\n

The barn itself is perfect \u2013 not overly renovated, so it retains a truly authentic feel with stone walls, beautiful wooden beams and a metal roof. It is hired as a \u2018blank canvas\u2019 venue which really appealed as we both love being creative and were able to choose our own suppliers.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

Your Outfits<\/h3>\n

Charlie chose a navy blue suit with chestnut accessories, to tie in with the autumnal colours. His suit was from Stephen Lawrence Menswear<\/strong>, Chichester. The groomsmen\u2019s suit were hired from Moss Bros<\/strong>. in a similar colour palette. The ties and pocket squares were bought online from Swagger & Swoon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I knew that I wanted a relaxed dress that was not too structured or voluminous. After looking around a bit, I found the fantastic Sophie of Sophie Rose Bridal<\/strong>, based in South Warnborough, Hampshire.<\/p>\n

Sophie creates stunning bridal gowns that completely reflect the feel and look that I was after and together we created a bespoke design which was very special. Every visit to Sophie\u2019s studio in the Hampshire countryside was such a treat, and it was so exciting to see my dress evolve each time. Sophie is so skilled with such incredible attention to detail, and made me feel so comfortable throughout the process. I was and still am so so pleased with my dress \u2013 it was a joy to wear and I was able to walk, bend down, be picked up and dance to my heart\u2019s content!<\/p>\n

Sophie recommended Esska<\/strong> shoes and I chose a style that matched with Charlie\u2019s tie and pocket square. Although I also bought flats for the evening, I didn\u2019t change out of my beautiful velvet Esskas and I can\u2019t wait to wear them again and again!<\/p>\n

Originally I didn\u2019t want a veil as I was concerned it might be a bit fussy, but right at the last minute, I changed my mind. I chose a very sheer, ungathered, church-length veil from Britten<\/strong> and I am so pleased I changed my mind. It made me feel so special and took our photos along the coast to another level!<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

The Ceremony & Music<\/h3>\n

We had a beautiful, traditional service at our local church. For our entrance music we chose \u201cJupiter, the Bringer of Jollity\u201d from The Planets by Holst<\/strong> \u2013 it\u2019s one of our favourite pieces of music but very grand when performed with an orchestra, however, our fantastic organist played a beautiful arrangement on the small church organ.<\/p>\n

We sang traditional hymns and exited the church to another of our favourites, \u201cBittersweet Symphony\u201d by The Verve<\/strong> \u2013 a gorgeous song that again, sounded fantastic as an instrumental organ arrangement.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

Your Photographer<\/h3>\n

We chose Lucy Davis Photography for our big day. We loved her relaxed, natural style of photos and had a fantastic engagement shoot with her. Neither of us particularly like having our photos taken so it was important that our photographer made us feel comfortable and was able to guide us a little to help ensure we had the best possible photos. We are completely thrilled<\/strong> with our wedding photos \u2013 they genuinely capture the relaxed, fun atmosphere of the day and also perfectly reflect the beautiful natural surroundings. The whole process of working with Lucy was brilliant, and we\u2019d really recommend her to others.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

The Styling & Decor<\/h3>\n

Like many others, I have had a wedding Pinterest board for years and knew that I wanted to be really involved in the design and creation of the wedding d\u00e9cor. It was also important for us to not spend too much or buy lots of unnecessary things for the sake of it, so we spent a long time collecting pallets and trawling online second-hand marketplaces and charity shops for items.<\/p>\n

It took a lot of time and energy to make the signs<\/a>, outdoor games<\/a>, wedding stationery and finishing touches, but it was totally worth it! We had lots of help from friends and family along the way and I\u2019m so proud of what we achieved together.<\/p>\n

I grew the flowers<\/strong> for the tables at home and on my little allotment but knew that I didn\u2019t have the time or skills to create the larger floral arrangements. Luckily we live near to the incredibly talented Tasha of Dolphin Creek Flowers, whose dreamy floral arrangements I had admired for a while before we asked her to create our wedding flowers. Tasha uses locally grown flowers which was very important to us, and hand-dyes her own silk ribbons. The flowers that she created for us were just stunning. She had included some of my favourite varieties that we had previously discussed and had added the most incredible details, even using foraged blackberries (though not in the flower girls\u2019 bouquets, just in case they got peckish!).<\/p>\n

A huge shout out to my mum who collected and dried the petal confetti<\/a> from flowers in her and her friends\u2019 gardens over the past two summers. We had a huge basketful and it looked incredible!<\/p>\n

I created the wedding stationery using flowers I had grown and pressed myself. I also made the seating plan<\/a> and name places<\/a> using flowers I had grown and dried. I completely loved the process, and it led me to start my own fledgling stationery and artwork business, where I sell pressed and dried floral and botanical cards, event stationery and artwork.<\/p>\n

Our wedding food<\/strong> was all created by the amazing Annie from Annie\u2019s Food Inspiration. Another local supplier who has so much talent and we\u2019re so pleased we had her and her amazing team keeping us fed and watered! They were also great fun and so wonderful on the day.<\/p>\n

Instead of a traditional wedding cake<\/strong>, we invited our friends and family to bring a cake and we picked our favourite to cut. It worked amazingly well and we had ten glorious cakes instead of one!<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham<\/p>\n

The Honeymoon<\/h3>\n

We spent our honeymoon in the Azores<\/strong>. It was the perfect escape and chance to wind down after a very busy few months. It\u2019s such an incredible group of islands \u2013 we climbed a volcano, spotted dolphins and whales, tried the local wines, went surfing, swam in hot springs and more!<\/p>\n

\"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham \"Chidham <\/p>\n

Memorable Moments<\/h3>\n

Our wedding day flew by far too quickly, but it was so special for us to have a few moments of calm after our service for photos along one of our favourite local footpaths in the harbour. We had a fantastic ride in a vintage campervan and breathed in sea air as we had our couple portraits and had greetings from local walkers enjoying the sun along the shore!<\/p>\n

And later in the evening the band, The Courts, were awesome! The dance floor was full and everyone had a blast. We were also kept topped up with delicious pizzas from the amazing Mark the Pizza Nomad!<\/p>\n

\"Chidham<\/p>\n

Advice For Other Couples<\/h3>\n

Stick to your vision and work together to bring it to life! We knew what we were aiming for and kept reminding ourselves of that along the way. There are so many options and things definitely got overwhelming, but we just kept bringing it back to the relaxed, nature-inspired style and feel that reflected us.<\/p>\n

\"Chidham<\/p>\n

Oh my, so gorgeous!<\/p>\n

Sarah and Charlie, I can’t thank you enough for sharing with us your dreamy Chidham Barn wedding story.<\/p>\n

Further Reading<\/h4>\n