
Today’s gorgeous wedding has us beaming from ear to ear, it is a incredible explosion of colour, brimming with love, laughter and personal handmade touches. This wedding truly optimises the idea of doing ‘your wedding, your way’ throwing the ‘wedding rule book’ out the window and we just love it.
You will find no big white dress or matching suits here, think floral prints, an outdoor buddhist tea ceremony, a ‘bring a dish’ buffet, and an evening full of family entertainment and you will begin to get the picture.
Alex and Amy, July 2015
Alex and Amy, who met at university, were married on a gloriously sunny day back in July last year. They wanted to create ‘a relaxed day of fun for everyone’ and they most certainly did that.
Our day was about celebrating us as a couple, our two children, our family and friends. We are very fortunate to live in a beautiful valley which was the perfect venue for our wedding.
A relaxed morning
Rather than rushing around trying to get last minute things sorted Amy took some time to relax and be pampered, an approach I think every bride should take so they can fully enjoy every moment:
I don’t really wear make-up so didn’t think to have someone else do it, but as a generous gift from a friend was very fortunate to have Elle Hitchens (a professional make-up artist) to do my make up for me. It wasn’t just about being ‘made up’, it also made me stop and sit down and enjoy myself rather than feeling I had to manage everything. Her approach was so relaxing which was really important to me on the day.
A handmade floral wedding dress
Amy’s gorgeous wedding dress proves that you don’t need to wear a white gown to look incredible and feel special on your big day:
My dress was made by my Mum who is a clothing designer. She also made a dress for our daughter and designed the outfits for my brothers using West African fabric. I hadn’t expected my daughters dress to be made from the same cloth as my dress but we had different underskirts so I think it worked. Not that my daughter wore her dress for long, a soon as she saw her best friend they swapped clothes. She was also very definite that the sash wasn’t not to go around her waist but on her wrist.
Alex, the groom also rocked the perfect laid-back style, opting for a colourful print shirt rather than suit and tie.
An outdoor Buddhist tea ceremony
They chose a very personal, approach to the ceremony, with their friends and family sat around on the grass to watch them:
The ceremony was taken by interfaith minister, Claire Breeze and my Aunt Louise who is Buddhist led a Buddhist tea ceremony and chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Our son read out a poem that he had written for us and Louise also did a reading.
Captured moments
Capturing all the memories from the whole day was Larissa Joice Photography:
We weren’t going to have a photographer as we were on a tight budget. However, as a gift from a friend we were very fortunate to have Larissa Joice Photography as our wedding photographer. Not only did Larissa take the most amazing pictures to document out day but she added a sense of calm at the start of the day, kept a check on timings and even drove me from the place I was getting ready to my wedding.
Colourful, handmade touches
As their gorgeous home provided the perfect setting they just needed to add some colourful, handmade touches to bring it all to life:
My lovely friend Gemma made some large paper pom-poms which we hung from the trees. We had a girly night (with maybe a little too much wine) and decorated glass jars for tea lights. I borrowed bunting from 2 friends who had made them for their weddings. My dad built a sand pit for the kids to play in which was a great hit. The marquee was decorated with greenery from the hedgerows by my brother and friends and the table fabric was both from Ghana and bought from a market in London.
A ‘bring a dish’ buffet
A relaxed approach was also taken for the catering for their big day with friends and family playing their part by bringing along a dish to be included in the buffet and it looked truly delicious:
All of our wonderful guests made something and brought it along and we hired a refrigeration unit for the day to keep it all cold. Our dear friend Camila made an amazing HUMUNGUS chocolate brownie cake and Alex’s friend Anna (owner of the Creamery in Minehead) made a bakewell tart and scones.
Family fun and games
Their big day hands down wins the award for the best family entertainment I have ever seen at a wedding. So many great ideas and happy faces.
Put on your dancing shoes
For the evening entertainment family and friends joined in to provide a night full of fun:
Alex’s band Babyhead played, Ellee Jelly, Long, Sean, Euge & Dean ‘Lovers Lounge’ DJ set (my sister and her fella and their 3 boys 8, 5 & 1!), my brother Charlie, all kept us dancing well into the night.
Enjoy every minute
Amy provides some valuable parting words of advice:
The day goes by in a flash so enjoy all the preparation and as you get closer to your wedding day delegate as much as possible. We are surrounded by wonderful friends and family who turned up at various points during the week leading up to the day and did so much for us. I loved planning and organising our celebration and really enjoy planning for other people too, so I am currently available for all party planning needs!
Thank you so much to Amy and Alex for sharing their beautiful, colourful day with us. They really created their perfect day for all their family and friends to share, and I think it really represents them as a couple, exactly as your wedding day should do.
{ Details }
Photographer: Larissa Joice Photography
Venue: Bride and grooms home
Brides Dress: Bride’s mum
Brides Accessories: Earrings, necklace and ankle chain from Ghana
Brides Make-up: Elle Hitchins
Grooms Outfit: Groom’s own clothes
Bridesmaids Dresses: Made by bride’s mum
Flowers: Picked and arranged by friends
Categories: Real Weddings
Tags: alternative wedding > alternative wedding dress > festival wedding > kids at weddings > Larissa Joice Photography > outdoor ceremony > outdoor wedding > summer wedding
Owen Mathias on 19. April, 2016
Wow! What an amazing and colourful wedding. Amy and Alex look like a super fun and connected in love couple. I wish I’d been a guest at this wedding. Photos are amazing too!
Jonathan on 19. April, 2016
What a amazing and colourful wedding filled with smiles and laughter! Truly wonder images which capture the day perfectly 🙂
Marie on 19. April, 2016
Oh my goodness the joy bursting from every frame! Wishing the jubilant bride and groom a future together as bright, beautiful and special as this day clearly was. Gorgeous!
Vikki T on 19. April, 2016
What an absolutely fantastic wedding!! I wish I could have been there! Everyone looked like they had THE best day, and the way that the day was not only about them, but about everyone having so much fun, especially the children, just warms my heart. Beautiful!
Elle Hitchens on 19. April, 2016
This was one of the most joyous weddings I have ever attended. It represented beautifully Alex & Amy and the love that surrounds them as a family and couple. I’m beaming looking at these pictures and remember the day with such fondness. It was my absolute pleasure to do Amy’s makeup. I love that she stayed true to every single detail, everything about this celebration came from the heart rather than adhering to tradition and we all felt the love as result. xx
Cary on 19. April, 2016
Such a happy, happy couple, and what a fun, relaxed wedding! Love it!
jennie hill on 20. April, 2016
dream wedding! What a wonderful looking wedding day.
Jamie on 21. May, 2021
This looks an amazing event. Can anyone link me to where i could speak about arranging something similar?