Elegant country wedding

It’s been all about farm receptions in recent real weddings, and today’s beautiful wedding is another stunning example of a simple but elegant way to hold a party in a barn. Tamara and Ed’s wedding was sent to me by their photographers Louise and Teo, who run Taylor & Porter Photographs, one of our recommended suppliers on the directory, who only use film cameras and do so capturing exquisite images.

Over to Tamara to share their wedding day with you…

Tamara and Ed got married on the last day of August, one what looks like an incredibly bright sunny day in the Dorset countryside. “We got married at Powerstock Church in Dorset. I wanted it here because my mother and father were married there.”

Their wedding invitation was designed by Ed: “He mainly wanted something which was different but had the classic features of wax stamp and scrolled paper. Royal Mail investigated a few of the tubes referring to them as ‘bomb like’. Ed explained that he didn’t want to kill any of the guests!”

Tamara wore a Jenny Packham wedding dress: “I liked the vintage appearance and the detailed work. It’s understated and just beautiful. I was really lucky and found it in a Jenny Packham sample sale for £650 – I had to have a few alterations as it was a little big. My Mum gave me some old pearls to wear too.”

“My mother Victoria created the amazing flower arrangements. She knows what I like and combined many wild flowers to again produce something naturalistic and understated.”

I love the dainty and romantic feel of Tamara’s bouquet, especially with the addition of the grasses…

Tamara had three bridesmaids – Coco, Isla and Molly – with the younger two wearing dresses from Monsoon and the older bridesmaid wearing a dress from a vintage shop in Lyme Regis.

“Ed wore a Topman French blue suit with waistcoat. Ed is not a suit person but wanted something which he could wear again practically rather than buying for one special occasion.”

Ed’s dark blue suit and crisp white shirt were finished off with a simple buttonhole of blushed pink heather…

Ed and Tamara got married in the village church where Tamara’s parents had got married. They kept the decorations simple with just a few arrangements of garden and wild flowers.

When she first saw Ed as she walked down the aisle, Tamara told me, “I didn’t want my Dad to let me go! I was really excited, nervous.”

For their wedding ceremony, they chose hymns they remembered from their childhood including Kum Ba Yah and Give Me Oil In My Lamp.

After their church wedding ceremony, Tamara and Ed had a reception at a friend’s farm in Dorset. “We wanted the reception to be as genuine as possible so we opted for a working farm with beautiful features.”

“We decided to use a friend’s farm in Dorset which combined beautiful gardens with rustic milking sheds. We felt this relaxed our guests and enabled them to have a great time without being inhibited with over stuffiness often created by more formal venues.”

“We managed to gather a large amount of vintage plates and cutlery from auctions and charity shops. My mother was largely responsible for this.”

“We managed to get Quiddles restaurant from Portland to do a seafood paella which was a real success. Dessert was a classic lemon tart served with cream. We wanted everyone to help themselves rather than be constrained with set courses.”

For their wedding cake they had a tiered Victoria sponge covered in fresh strawberries…

Tamara and Ed chose Taylor & Porter Photographs (one of our wonderful recommended suppliers on the directory) to capture their wedding: “We both have an art background and wanted film specifically because we still use film cameras ourselves and love the different tonal ranges you can achieve.”

“It was really enjoyable working with Taylor & Porter and we even did a engagement shoot in London which was great.”

“We had a chicken theme running through the whole day which peaked with a band called ‘Gothic Chicken’ who performed a load of floor stomping 60’s hits!”

I hope you have enjoyed seeing and reading about Tamara and Ed’s wedding as much as I did – it’s a beautiful example of how to create a wedding that is elegant and chic but in a simple and natural way.

A big thank you to Louise from Taylor & Porter Photographs who got in touch with me to share this wedding – if you’ve loved the photography from Tamara and Ed’s wedding then do check out their website if you’re on the hunt for a photographer. You can also view this Scottish wedding by Taylor & Porter Photographs that we featured recently.

{ Details }

Photography: Taylor & Porter Photographs
Venue: Friends farm in Dorset
Wedding Dress: Jenny Packham
Flowers: Arranged by the brides mother
Stationery: Designed by the groom
Groom’s Suit: Topman
Catering: Quiddles