Relaxed outdoor Cornish wedding with a barefoot bride

We are absolutely loving Matt and Jo’s laid-back homespun wedding that we are sharing with you today. We know warm summer days currently feel like a distant memory whilst it is so dull and grey outside and Christmas is but days away, but this beautiful outdoor celebration is most definitely going to bring a little sunshine to your day.

Married this summer in the forever charming Cornwall this wedding is the ultimate in rustic, relaxed style. For starters the bride went barefoot wearing a vintage dress, the groom sported shorts and the bridemaid’s showed us how to perfectly pull off white.  And that is without even touching on all the incredible festival inspired decor and the amazing locally-sourced feast that was served to the guests.

The day was beautifully captured and shared with us by TNWC directory business, Sarah Brittain Edwards Photography.

Retorrick Mill outdoor wedding venue

Matt and Jo chose the beautiful Retorrick Mill in Cornwall as their wedding venue, a place close to their hearts.

”We used to live in Cornwall but moved back to Leicestershire when we had our children so we felt we had to get married in Cornwall as it was where it all began! We had stayed at Retorrick Mill the previous summer. We were camping and loved how laid back the venue was. The owner, Wilf, is equally as laid back and friendly.”

Festival inspired decor

They wanted to help dress the venue themselves to add personal touches, and with the ceremony being held in a field next to the mill, the morning of the wedding was an all hands on deck affair with family and friends to transform it all:

”We woke up in our tent and sorted the kids out – Most people were already camping / staying on site so we had a massive effort from everyone to turn the Mill into our wedding venue! It was decorated with the hay bales and blankets as seats and arranged to make the aisle. Down the aisle were some vintage ‘crooks’ which hung the confetti.”

Rustic wooden ceremony arch

The biggest hand- made project they took on was creating the incredible rustic wooden arch that the ceremony was conducted in front of. The branches were found in the woods on the farm, which they then decorated with ribbons, hanging hearts and flowers on the day. Such a gorgeous idea and a perfect back-drop for when they were exchanging their vows.

White mismatched bridesmaids dresses

The wedding party perfected laid-back fashion, I adore the bridesmaid’s mix and match white dresses that they chose themselves to express their individuality but were still in keeping with the overall aesthetic.

One-of-a-kind vintage wedding dress

Jo wore a beautiful one-of-a-kind vintage wedding dress:

”I looked everywhere for a dress that could be trawled through Cornish fields and was in keeping with the feel of the wedding. Finally found one in a local shop, Kibworth Emporium . It was the owner’s wedding dress previously. Loved the vintage look – classy but not over the top.”

Gypsophila flower crown

Jo complimented her look with a simple gypsophila flower crown and two handcrafted rings made by a friend, Made Gallery, who also makes beautiful handcrafted jewellery and ceramics.

Casual groomsmen attire

The groomsmen were equally on par with their relaxed vibe in mix and match suits and shirts and I love seeing a groom who also chooses to mix up his fashion choices and Matt did exactly that. He looked amazing in a Next linen suit jacket, floral shirt, shorts and flip flops, finished off with a straw trilby hat.

Outdoor humanist wedding ceremony

Matt and Jo had a humanist ceremony which is a great idea for when you wish to celebrate your marriage wherever you want:

”We used the Cornish Celebrants for our ceremony. This allowed us a completely bespoke ceremony where we had control over everything.”

”The afternoon band, ”The Great Little Band” played acoustically in the field and played ‘All you need is love’ for walking down the aisle.”

The ceremony included additional little personal touches including a hand-written poem read by Matt’s brother-in-law.

Festival inspired wedding reception

Following the ceremony the guests relaxed and enjoyed the festival inspired reception in the field where they enjoyed Pimms and photos were taken. Matt and Jo chose TNWC Recommended Supplier, Sarah Brittain Edwards Photography for capturing their big day, “not just because Sarah is Matt’s big sister – but because we love her style of photography – not posed – in situ. Her style fitted perfectly with the style of our wedding.”

After photos were taken, guests were gathered around the bar to be entertained by a Cornish band who played for them outside.

Venue decor and flowers

The rest of the venue was decorated with brightly coloured bunting, a Big LOVE sign, vintage props and accessories from Box & Cox and beautiful blooms by local florist, Floral Fancies.

”We looked online for rustic, wild style flowers. We didn’t want anything too fancy. In the end we ordered a rustic / wild style bouquet, sunflowers, some hand tied gyp button holes, head garlands. The rest of the flowers were cut the day before from Cornish hedgerows.”

Wedding planning advice from the bride

With regards to planning the wedding Jo offers great advice,

”Make the wedding a reflection of you as a couple not others. Also don’t get sucked into the ‘wedding website’ trap – most things can be hand made with more meaning and thought and good for the budget!”

Buffet style wedding food

The buffet style food was supplied by Scott and Babs at the Mill:

”Absolutely amazing food – pork from Wilf’s pigs off the farm, seasonal vegetables, barrel smoked chicken, salads, home-made breads and home-made scones and jam / clotted cream for after.”

After the delicious food it was time for the speeches which provided one of the most memorable and amusing moments from the day:

“When it was the my father speaking our 2 year old climbed up onto the stage and started ‘pole dancing’ stole the show.”

A band and a bonfire

As the sun began to set the evening entertainment kicked in with the band playing and music around the bonfire. Matt and Jo also hired a company to entertain 30+ child guests, called Karla’s Parties, who she said were ‘‘amazing  and worth every penny.”

Reflecting back on the day Matt and Jo share some of their most treasured memories:

”The camaraderie of some of the camping guests in the morning helping to set the field and venue up. The festival atmosphere in the afternoon. The speeches – all done on a mini ‘stage’ next to a pole. Finally, the fact that all the late night wedding guests (including ourselves) woke up with Henna tattoo’s all over our legs and arms – random.”

Matt and Jo’s wedding really looked like it was an absolute blast from start to finish, shared with their nearest and dearest. We;d like to thank them for sharing their beautiful big day with us.

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Photography – Sarah Brittain Edwards Photography (TNWC Recommended Supplier)
Venue – Retorrick Mill
Cermonial Celebrants – Cornish Celebrants
Vintage Dress – Kibworth Emporium
Rings – Made Gallery – Julia Groundsell
Food – Scott and Babs
Flowers – Floral Fancies
Music – The Great Little Band
Vintage prop hire  – Box & Cox Vintage hire
Children’s entertainer – Karla”s Parties