lndevents

Emily and I first met a good 12 years ago when I lived with a mutual friend of ours and I now have that said friend to thank for suggesting my services to Emily and Alex once they’d set their date.

Both Emily and Alex live in London but were getting married back in Emily’s hometown of York so distance planning can be difficult and that’s where I like to step in and help.

The couple had chosen the gorgeous venue The Normans which I was really excited to work at as I’d heard so many good things about the place. On the day, it really didn’t disappoint, with stunning cascading lights hanging from the ceremony barn, converted cow barns to relax in and a huge reception barn for entertaining in.

Emily and Alex also both work in the fashion industry so I always knew it was going to be a stylish event to be part of; from the table accessories, to the cake, the food choices to the lighting choices and of course the outfits! The guests all looked amazing but the showstoppers (quite rightly so) were Emily and Alex.

Emily wore Catherine Dean with a feather wrap by Jenny Packham and Alex had a made-to-measure tux by Richard James.

The couple tied the knot intimately in front of family in Emily’s village church before arriving at The Normans for a ceremony officiated by their friend; I love ceremonies like this as they’re so personal and can inject humour that all the guests can relate to.

Guests then bravely filed out into the rather chilly, foggy air but were very quickly warmed up by mulled wine refreshments and nearby heaters in between the professional photographs before being welcomed into the reception barn for a feast by Taste Cuisine.

The couple beat the record in my experience of speech length HOWEVER, they were some of the funniest ones I have ever heard and captivated everyone from start to finish so there were definitely no complaints.

It was then time to cut the cake and straight onto the first dance before guests filled the dance floor to party the night away.

My last task of the night was to make sure the evening food was in place, which was yummy pizza by The Pizza Peddlers who I’ve had the pleasure of working with before. They are such a treat when you want a nighttime feast to keep you going, or if like me, you want one for the drive home after clocking off!

Thank you Emily and Alex for letting me be a part of your big day and thank you to the talented Dylan Nolte for these pictures!

Having increased my wedding event quota this year, one thing I’ve definitely learnt is that you cannot plan your day around what you think the weather be like in that month.

May became a popular time due to the last few years being unseasonably warm but this year was a bit of a wash out…. summer actually was summer for once and if you expected September and October to cool off, you’d be wrong so when I turned up to work Jenna and Andrew’s day on the 8th October, I was so relieved for them and their guests that it turned out to be a beautifully sunny day.

I love working at the barns and on a warm day as the guests can really enjoy the outside space on offer and I really love watching photographers leading happy couples into the surrounding fields for a perfect sunset shot.

I first met Jenna and Andrew almost a year before their big day. They kindly took a risk in using me as I was planning to go on my own honeymoon just before their big day and I warned them I may be AWOL in contact up until the week of their wedding.

Whilst this may scare off some, we all made sure with the right organisation, everything I needed to know was in place before I went away and of course there was the fact that Jenna and Andrew both came across as super relaxed; I knew it would be ok!

This relaxed and happy attitude continued to shine through from when I met Jenna the night before the wedding to catch up (she was so excited but definitely showed no signs of stress) to their sunny colour scheme for the venue, their styling ideas and again with both of them on their day which I’m sure you’ll see in the images that the very talented Victoria Baker took.

Jenna and Andrew chose to style the venue using the yellows in the spectrum of Autumnal colours which worked really well at such a transitional time in seasons. These colours and same theme were used in the menus, seating plan and name cards and a friend very cleverly replicated the detail on these, to decorate the barns big blackboards.

The couple used Pink Ginger flowers to supply the bouquets, button holes and table flowers which became of my personal favourites; lots of succulents!

The flowers were also used to help decorate the cake which was very cleverly made by Andrew’s mum. Jenna herself makes cakes so no pressure to live up to her standard then! : )

As the day unfolded, there were so many added touches that made it great fun for all; the food was supplied by the Hog and Apple who I love working with, there was a photo booth which guests (especially the little ones) took full advantage of, pizza in the evening supplied by Pizza fella and music supplied by Clubclass entertainment.

One of my last tasks for the night was to take the guests outside to see Jenna and Andrew’s surprise – this had been kept a secret from guests all day. With the help of the ushers, we dished out sparklers to guests and then as they started making fun shapes in the dark, they were treated to a brilliant 5-minute firework display from the Fireworkers.

The whole day was an absolute pleasure to work and every time I think of it, I feel it could be summed up by a quote I once read by author Marianne Williamson; ‘Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves recognise how good things’.

I first met Tori a good eight or so years ago when we both worked together in the public sector. Tori and I were having a night out when she first met Neil and funnily we were doing the same when I met my now husband so it’s safe to say we have a lot of history!

Work demands and living in different cities meant we’d not been able to catch up as much as we would have liked so I was beyond thrilled when, shortly after she and Neil got engaged, they asked if I would take on their wedding through my full planning services.

Not only did I get to talk all things weddings but I got to do it with my good friend and be a part of her very special day.

Tori and Neil had already chosen Chris Seddon as their wedding photographer when they instructed me and whilst I’d not previously worked with him, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to any future clients.

Chris and I helped Tori and Neil get their wedding blogged by So You’re Getting Married so if you click this link, you can read their story in more detail and see more of their day captured so well.

I know it’s easy to say, but genuinely this was one of the most fun weddings I’ve ever worked – not that I felt like I could call it work at all!

Back in July, I had the pleasure of co-ordinating Liz and David’s wedding at Barmbyfield Barns just outside Pocklington.

The venue is a complex of large blank barns, which allow couples to decorate to their own particular choice so it tends to attract people who are happy to roll up their sleeves and get very involved in the wedding planning process.

Whilst I have on occasion assisted some couples with the full planning process there, because of the set up, by far my most popular package is to run the day because, let’s face it, who wants to work their own wedding?!

I originally met Liz and David back in August 2015 when they were still in the earlier parts of their planning process and as part of my services, I helped them plot a timeline for the day based on their preferences and suppliers but it wasn’t until the day before their wedding, I got the first glimpse of seeing their ideas come to reality.

I popped up to the barns to go through the finishing touches and directions for the day and was thrilled with the efforts they’d put into bringing the barns into life. (You can see some details of this on my FB page) with beautiful flowers, big illuminated letters and well put together dining tables to name but a few things.

The couple got married at 2pm on a lovely sunny day. After the ceremony, guests filled out to be greeted with cocktails and popcorn – a great change to the usual and the popcorn cart was so cute!

After a few hours of mingling, it was time for the speeches followed by one of the best BBQ’s I’ve ever eaten (perks of the job). The guests took it in turns per table to go up and be served which can sometimes be challenging in execution but the caterers were speedy and the guests were so relaxed, it worked really well with nothing but compliments.

After dinner, the fabulous Four Shadows theatre kicked off the evening. I’ve had the pleasure of working with these guys on many occasion and they never disappoint but for some reason, the atmosphere on the day just made them sound better than I’ve ever heard before and I’m pretty sure all the guests would agree seeing as not one of them left the dance floor for the entire set.

Whilst the band took a break, Liz and David cut their amazing wedding cake which was made by Blush cakes. You can see a picture of this on my gallery images – it was too pretty not to share with you.

After a few hours it was back for some more yummy food, this time supplied by Liz and David themselves. There was a lovely buffet variety of cheeses, breads, scones, jams and chutneys which went down a treat.

Then it was time for the evening DJ and where I said my goodbyes to the newlyweds as they kicked off their heels and partied into the night.

The whole day was an absolute pleasure to work; from the lovely polite guests, to the fantastic suppliers and definitely because of the fact that Liz radiated happiness and beauty wherever she walked!

Images used for this blog credited to https://www.83weddings.co.uk

I was very excited when I received the call from Sarah to ask if I could co-ordinate her wedding day, as she was getting married at home and her family home was a beautiful farm – I am always very envious of people who can get married on their own land, and on the day, Sarah had styled the marquee to perfection with bang on trend Flamingo accessories and lots of golds and greens.

I was also extremely envious of the baking hot weather Sarah and George managed to receive on their day, having got married myself only the fortnight before in torrential rain. It was in fact so hot, that at one point I opened all the marquee pannels and guests were still in need of more air……only one thing for it, move the party outside!!

With a beautiful backdrop of the Wolds to selfie with and lots of games to play with, Sarah and George had everything needed to keep the guests entertained until the sunset began to bring the cooler breeze back.

As I clocked off for the evening, I left the wedding party busting their moves to lots of orignal Greek music as part of George’s heritage – definitely one of the most fun dancefloors I’ve seen.

All photos by https://www.beechtreephotographs.com

I first met Kate and Rich back in August 2016 after they’d booked Barmbyfield Barns for their wedding on the 17th December 2016 and wanted me to co-ordinate their day.

We talked through their plans for the day which already included a fantastic Routemaster bus to bring all the guests, illuminated lettering, lots of festoon lighting and balloon installations courtesy of Kate’s sister who owns Bonbon balloons – I was hooked instantly.

We talked through ideas for the day and then I went away and wrote a suggested timeline to work with for the day.

Often when I’m booked to co-ordinate people’s wedding, it isn’t until the big day that I get to see their ideas come to life too so when I arrived on the morning of the 17th, I was just as excited as their guests were going to be, about the amazing styling touches the couple had put together.

Kate’s aunt had done all the florals exactly to specification and amazingly at that! Whilst Christmas was approaching, Kate was keen for this not to be the theme so there was sympathetic focus on dark greenery but without any need for pine trees! There were beautiful leafed, suspended wheels, which initially hung from the ceremony room beams but were later moved to the reception room to hang above the guest’s tables. Tables, beams and other significant areas of the barn were also adorned with leafy greens…. it’s like Kate and Rich set the trend for the 2017 Pantone colour!

Brighter accents were then brought into the room via personalised, hand made napkins, stylish illuminated letters and of course the amazing huge balloons dotted around the venue.

I am always an emotional one for ceremonies and I am a big fan of humanist and celebrant led ones but what was even more exciting is that Kate and Rich had decided to surprise all their guests by adding on a naming ceremony for their little boy Seth, after their blessing. As amazing as their ceremony was, I have to say that Seth totally stole the show at his part through his singing, laughing and clapping entirely voluntarily but totally on cue!

After the ceremony, guests were treated to canapés and fizz whilst Kate’s cousin wowed with his acoustic act. Speeches were split pre and post meal which was an amazing wedding breakfast by Baba Ganoush and then it was onto cake cutting, which was made by a very talented friend, and straight into the first dance.

This and the rest of the music was provided by Four Shadows who I’ve had the pleasure of working many an event with and they never fail to get the dance floor filled.

Baba Ganoush were onto feeding the guests a delicious evening meal when it was time for me to bid goodbye but not before I managed to observe We Heart Pictures in action, taking some last couples shots of Kate and Rich. You can see examples of their work below – with thank you to them to allowing me to use these images.