SOUTH FARM WEDDING

The dress and the look

I discovered Indie Bride London through Love My Dress blog. I loved the bohemian style of the dresses I saw on the website and had a list of 8 that I wanted to try on!

The initial appointment went by so fast as there were so many dresses I wanted to try on, but with the sound of the gospel choir coming from the church below, it was a really beautiful experience. I ended up loving 2 dresses, but there was one, the Maeve dress that I really wanted to try on again. As soon as I put the dress on it just felt really comfortable, the lightweight fabric meant I could move around freely, there was no long train to worry about, the lace was just beautiful, and it had that vintage touch I was after. Plus, my Mum absolutely loved it! 

I made a second appointment and returned with a couple of bridesmaids, and I decided it was definitely the dress for me! I had the back of the dress customised to button at the top and open down to the waist, which gave it more of a unique feel. I also ordered the Esther belt which was made using scraps of leftover material and it complimented the dress so perfectly. The dress was made by Miina in only a few months and it was amazing to come back and try my dress on for the first time. The slip needed a little adjustment which Miina did on the day, and then I returned once more after the dress had been taken up for my height, and took it home for the big day!

Makeup and hair

My lovely cousin Keeley did our make up on the day.  I was very aware that I still wanted to look like ‘me’ and she did an amazing job of making me a more polished version of myself. Our hair was done by my regular hairdresser Becki, who had a very difficult job fighting against the rain to keep my hair wavy!

Accessories

My flower crown was a custom made design by Innocent Chaos on Etsy and was based on the colours and flowers I’d be having in my bouquet. My ‘something borrowed’ were a pair of beautiful opal earrings that my Grandad gave to my Nan, they matched my engagement ring perfectly. I’d also bought an opal pendant on holiday in Croatia, which I wore with a thin gold chain. Matt surprised me on the morning of the wedding with a stunning bespoke gold bracelet with a single opal (that he chose himself) by Rachel Jeffrey Jewellery - I really do love opals!

Groom’s outfit

Matt, all of his groomsmen, and both Dads got their made to measure 3-piece suits from The Vintage Suit Hire Company. We found them at a local wedding fair and the suits were great quality and such a good price. Matt and the boys went for the blue tweed ‘Southwold’ suits, and the Dads wore the grey ‘Harrogate’ suit.

Venue

South Farm, Royston. South Farm was the only venue we viewed; I just knew it was where we’d get married, long before we were engaged! It was everything we wanted in a venue, beautiful grounds, quirky features, exclusive hire with onsite rooms, and only an hour drive from most of our family and friends (it even has piglets!). The main selling point though was the incredible food. We’re both massive foodies so choosing somewhere with good food was a must. Being a working farm, they grow a lot of their own produce, and their onsite catering team does such an amazing job! The weather was pretty atrocious on the day and it was a shame that our guests didn’t get to explore the gardens but thankfully the inside of the venue is just as lovely as the outside!

Decor

We didn’t have a wedding ‘theme’ as such; we just chose to go with what felt like us. Our home has a lot of mid-century touches and we do tend to gravitate towards vintage rather than modern, and I think our wedding reflected that. Gold was key in the décor and table settings, and peaches and greens featured in the stationery and flowers.
 
My sister (and bridesmaid) Hayley did all of our beautiful flowers. Having a florist as a sister is pretty great, but especially amazing during wedding planning! A year before the wedding we did a trial to see what was in season which was so helpful in guiding the colour palette for the rest of the day. My wedding flowers were the most stunning flowers I’ve ever seen, and everyone was in awe of our incredible top table arrangement! We also chose to scatter mini succulents in gold tealight holders on each table, which we gave away to our guests. 

Food and cake

We decided on a more relaxed option for our wedding breakfast, a hot buffet consisting of paella, steak & ale pie, and veggie lasagne, along with salads and seasonal veg. We also had 3 desserts, and our guests loved being able to choose what they fancied on the day, and even having a bit of everything! Our cake was made by my talented friend Helena at Crumbs the Word. She created a delicious 3-tier semi-naked sponge cake decorated with flowers and edible gold leaf. We went for classic victoria sponge, vanilla sponge with mango & passionfruit curd, and coconut sponge with coconut icing. They went down a treat!

Entertainment

During dinner, we booked guitarist Ed Peczek who played lots of classic songs and created a really relaxed atmosphere. During after-dinner coffee my cousins The Valaitis Brothers performed some songs for us, which was one of my favourite parts of the whole day. Having listened to their songs for many years now, we wanted to show them off to Matt’s family and all of our friends, and everyone was absolutely blown away by them. In the evening we had South Farm’s resident DJ Gary who kept the dance floor full all night.

Photography and videography

Choosing a photographer was the easiest decision we made in the whole of our planning, in fact, it was decided long before we were engaged. I’ve been a massive fan of Emma & Pete’s for many years, and after Matt and I attended one of their workshops back in 2013, we knew from then on that they’d photograph our wedding one day. Emma & Pete were there with us when we got engaged, they’ve become so special to us, and having them there at the wedding was just a dream. They are the loveliest people ever, and we are so so in love with our photos, we honestly couldn’t wish for anything more.
 
We wanted to document our wedding with a short, ‘highlight’ style film that we could watch over and over again. Molly’s style fit perfectly with what we had in mind; high energy, subtle vintage effects, and all cut to a song rather than having to hear our own voices. Molly was such a joy to be around, and we’re so pleased with the final film, it captured so many little moments that we missed on the day and it makes us so happy every time we watch it.

- Abby -