I am absolutely in love with today’s pretty, country chic real wedding! Our gorgeous bride Ellie is wearing an ultra glam, princess worthy, wedding gown with swathes of gorgeous tulle.
Ellie’s wedding inspiration was pink, purple and a laid back country style infused with elements of glam. Think hot pink bridesmaid dresses, crystal embellished bridal bodices and rustic country styling… what’s not to love?
Massive congrats to the gorgeous gorgeous Ellie and her new husband Andy, and thank you so much Murray Clarke for submitting these pretty wedding images!
Words by Ellie. Images by Murray Clarke Wedding Photography
I chose Esme by Maggie Sottero as my wedding dress. Andy and I love a bit of bling, but I wanted my dress to look elegant too. I’ve always loved the idea of really soft tulle so when I found this dress I fell in love with it because it was the perfect balance of elegance and bling.
The flowers were a very tricky thing to decide because Andrew is a gardener and thus very particular about his flowers! So it was a matter of compromise- I wanted a natural look and Andy wanted certain seasonal flowers, so we had a bit of both- rosemary, asters and veronica for me and your classic combination of lisanthus and roses for Andy- with a bit of natural cord tied at the bottom.
We chose St Mary the Virgin Church Great Leighs Essex as our place to get married because Andy’s family have been married there for 2 generations. For this reason it is so special to him. We wanted to have our wedding as special and personal to us as possible so we had a friend I have known since was little perform the ceremony.
As a past time me and my many cousins always loved to sing when we were together. Many of them play guitar and I have always had such fond memories of this. So for the wedding three of my cousins were so lovely and decided to play one of Andy and I’s favourite tunes as I came down the aisle- country roads by John Denver. They slowed it up and sung it beautifully. It was so special to me.
Our wedding was inspired by the colour pink, purple, our love for country and our want to make our day personal to us, our family history and culture.
We chose maidens barn as our reception venue because I have a big family and the size and beauty of maidens made it possible to have everything I wanted in venue (country chic, space, homeliness) whilst having the room for everyone we both loved.
My Mother in law made lots of bunting. We had enamel country jugs as centre pieces, lots of twine and hay stacks. Also, we had a ladder which we decorated with jam jars filled with lavender and photos. We also had pink bon bons dotted around to fit the colour scheme and games and cards for the kids to play.
My friend made our wedding cake as a present to us. I wanted something simple that tasted amazing and she made it exactly what I wanted. We had two layers of lovely sponge cake and the bottom was the booziest fruit cake ever! Yum!
Our wedding photographer Murray Clarke was utterly amazing. So professional yet fun. By the end of our wedding I felt like he was a friend not just our photographer! The photos were everything we wanted, beautiful, natural ones and some lovely family and couple shots. We would recommend him to anyone, he went above and beyond.
Andy’s speech was so memorable because he isn’t usually a big one for emotional talk or public speaking yet he did amazing and said the most beautiful things and things that he felt for me that I didn’t even know!
You see, Andy and I got together in a rather weird way. We met at a party and exchanged Facebook details, but it wasn’t until months later when I noticed an obituary from him to his nan in the local newspaper so I wrote to give him my condolences and that is how we got together.
In the speech he said the most touching thing in the world about this. “I think that my nan wanted us to be together because the saddest thing to ever happen to me led to this, one of the most happiest moments and I have to thank her that.”
Take time to have a moment with your husband alone. Everyone wants to see and talk to the bride and groom and it’s surprising how fast the day goes. That’s why it’s so important to make sure you have that moment, in all the excitement, to sneak away and have a special moment- remember the day is about your love and commitment lovely to have that second t really appreciate that.
Such a gorgeous day and pretty wedding. I’m loving the country chic vibe! Don’t forget to leave some love for the happy couple. Congrats Ellie & Andy.
wedding credits / photographer: murray clarke wedding photography / venue: maidens barn / brides dress: maggie sottero / grooms suit: next / brides shoes: / grooms shoes: next / bridesmaid dresses: matalan / bridesmaid shoes: next / hair & makeup: dawn taylor beauty / florist: poppies designer flowers / wedding cake: friend
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