What a lovely day I had yesterday, despite the most miserable drizzly weather in Cornwall.  I spent the whole day at The Garden Gate Flower Company (who are based just outside Fowey) with Becca and Maz, generally having a lot of fun with their beautiful flowers.

Our plan was to spend the day creating beautiful wedding hair flowers with the aim to inspire brides-to-be who want to wear flowers in their hair, but don’t feel the big, bold, statement flower crowns are ‘them’.

In the afternoon we were joined by Louise and Teo from Taylor & Porter Photographs, the loveliest couple who’ve recently relocated to Cornwall, and take all their pictures on vintage film cameras – you should definitely check out their work if you want something a bit different for your wedding photography.

Today you get my photos, but soon I’ll be featuring all Louise and Teo’s photos.  Can’t wait!

Shortly after I arrived at the The Garden Gate Flower Company, Becca and Maz showed me around their growing areas – a paddock in front of the farmhouse, a separate field they have just planted up with annuals, and a small polytunnel full of nigella, ammi, sweetpeas, Icelandic poppies, and larkspur about to burst into flower.

This was all done in our raincoats with the wind blowing gusts of rain at us – it’s truly incredible the determination of small flower businesses like The Garden Gate Flower Company to grow British flowers in these conditions.  It was so miserable that I decided against taking photos to share with you of the fields.

Throughout the day, Becca and Maz created a selection of different kinds of hair flowers – some on clips, some on combs, and some simply wired to be pinned directly into your hair.  I was shown how to have a go at making one myself…although I don’t think I have the skills needed!

Becca and Maz had invited a couple of their friends along to ‘model’ the flowers, and both Becca, myself and even Louise the photographer ended up modelling some of the flowers during the afternoon.

Speaking to Becca and Maz in the week’s leading up to the TNWC Roadtrip, I had explained how I really wanted to showcase more subtle wedding hair flowers.  Whilst I absolutely love the big statement flower crowns, I also appreciate that they are not for everyone – I certainly don’t feel I could pull off wearing one, nor do I think I would have felt comfortable or confident on my wedding day wearing one, as much as I might have liked to.

But I was convinced that there is still scope for brides to wear flowers in their hair in more subtle and subdued ways, and Becca and Maz completely got this idea.  In fact, they’ve even got a number of brides this year who’ve asked for alternative hair flowers to the flower crown, so it was a great opportunity for them to practice some of their ideas.

I really loved the simple woodland fern creation above that Maz made right at the last minute before we finished photographing.  I like that it’s tiny but really pretty, and perfect for a woodland wedding.  Plus it looked great in Louise’s beautiful plait.

These are just some sneaky peek shots of a few of the creations they made, but I can’t wait to see how the pictures taken by Louise and Teo from Taylor & Porter Photographs come out.

I want to say a huge thank you to Becca, Maz and Penny for welcoming me to The Garden Gate Flower Company – they have been utterly wonderful hosts, providing a delicious lunch and taking me out for dinner.  This roadtrip has reaffirmed that I get to work with some truly lovely people and that as brides- and grooms-to-be you can also build great relationships with these businesses.

Where I’m Going Today…

I’m pretty excited because I’ve added in a few extra visits to my previously scheduled day for today’s leg of the TNWC South West Roadtrip.  I am going to the furthest point on my travels – Portscatho in Cornwall.

I’ll be visiting Susanne at The Blue Carrot and also meeting up with Sarah from Sarah Wants… for lunch.  In the morning I’ll also be popping into the studio of Lancaster & Cornish to meet up with Sian and see some of her beautiful organic fabrics, laces, and the new kits she has in the pipeline.

Remember you can follow along during the day via Twitter and Instagram, I’m using the hashtag #TNWCRoadtrip, and I hope to post a few pictures on Facebook at the end of the day.

Images: The Natural Wedding Company