This week’s real wedding is a magical woodland wedding full of natural decorations, mismatched pots, handpicked wildflowers and little green woodland creatures.

Cheryl and Andrew, whose two children played important roles on the day, got married at Sconner Down in Polbathic – a beautiful woodland venue with stunning views of Cornwall and their hometown, Plymouth.

Their informal, family-centred day radiates happiness and joy.  Ultimately, they wanted a relaxed, fun day for everyone they love and they undoubtedly achieved this wish: they even had a bouncy castle (for the children, of course).

Over to Cheryl to tell us all about this fairytale wedding…

This story starts and ends with family

The couple’s priorities are where the story of this wedding begins: “The most important thing for us was family. Our day was about us becoming husband and wife, but of us all coming together as a family, a united front.”  And Cheryl’s day began with just that, her family; as the finishing touches were put to her hair and dress, her children looked on.

A bespoke bridal gown and short veil

Cheryl chose to have her wedding dress designed and handmade by a lady she simply refers to as Christine in Callington, Cornwall. It is elegant and princess-like, perfectly at home in this fairytale woodland dream and her short veil allows full view of its delicate lace back.

Walked down a tree-lined aisle by her little boy

“My son walked me down the aisle and made everyone laugh with his funny faces, he wouldn’t let me go so he stayed with us whilst we did our vows.”

And what an aisle it was: the woods certainly provided a magical setting for the couple’s intimate outdoor ceremony and the young bridesmaids’ pixie-like peach dresses contributed to the whimsical nature of the decor.

The couple’s good friend, Paul, became their celebrant and friends Isabelle and Terry sang acoustic as the bride and her son walked down the aisle towards their guests who were gathered in a clearing in the dense woodland.

United as one

“Our ceremony was my favourite part of the day,” Cheryl told us. “I knew we wanted our children to be involved, not just a part of the wedding party, but having them up there with us.”

Surrounded by their friends and family, some sitting and many standing, the couple and their children took part in a sand ceremony: the blending of different coloured sand in a single vessel.

“I loved the idea that once the grains of sand were blended they couldn’t be separated, just like family – our family, always and forever.”

Cheryl and Andrew’s son and daughter participated in the sand ceremony too. “The moment felt so precious and will stay with me forever, even though we were surrounded by our family and friends, in that moment it was us, united as one.”

The perfect alternative 

“Before we got engaged I knew what I didn’t want, I didn’t want a church, a hotel or registry office, so it led us looking down alternative routes. We knew we wanted it to be relaxed, kid friendly and just plain fun, not your traditional everyday wedding and something everyone would remember.”

Laughter filled day

“After the ceremony, we headed back to the field and games and fun. Of course the adult sized bouncy castle was in use by all the children, but as expected even the adults joined in!

It was great fun. Laughter could be heard all over, family and friends were relaxing, music was drifting up from the marquee and everything was perfect.”

An Enchanted Bride

We have featured inspirational work by wedding photographer Enchanted Brides previously and photographer Jo certainly doesn’t fail to impress at this wedding; the stunning photographs capture both the adoration and happiness of Cheryl and Andrew against the naturally lit dark green backdrop of wild woodland.

Everything fell into place

“Knowing what I didn’t want in a wedding was a huge step forward in searching for what we did want. We wanted to be able to invite all our friends and family and not be limited which led us towards an outdoor marquee wedding and when we found Sconner Down in Polbathic, we fell in love.

Once the venue was found, everything else fell into place: the woodland theme began to emerge.”

Handcrafted woodland decor

“I wanted our wedding to be unique, so nearly all the traditional touches were at our wedding, in a non traditional way.”

Once Cheryl had decided on a woodland theme, she knew she needed to complement the surroundings, but in a fun way, “I hid woodland animals everywhere and in different forms. Used wildflowers for centrepieces and bouquets – which I subsequently left at home (ouch!) and a family of field mice even became our cake topper! It was a lot of planning but was so worth it.”

In addition to the carefully crafted magical woodland wedding decor, Cheryl thought of her guests too – providing flip flops for tired feet and blankets for the chilly evening, both presented in rustic woven boxes.

Getting everyone involved

“Nearly everything was handmade, I spent 2 years putting everything together; including the children’s games; decorations; signs and even my dress was handmade and my maid of honour made our cakes.”

In addition to the homemade cakes, Cheryl and Andrew decided to adopt an alternative wedding cake currently favoured by many couples – the cheese cake. Provided by Hanson Fine Cheeses, their three-tiered cake was made up of local Cornish cheeses and topped by a family of little field mice – an adorable finishing touch.

A relaxed celebration amongst friends

Inside their marquee, supplied by Really Good Marquees, guests sat on long tables and tucked in to an informal wedding breakfast.  After eating, guests basked in the sun and children played.

Get help with the planning

Cheryl and Andrew’s wedding has an effortless, relaxed vibe but it took a lot of work to look that way.  When asked what advice she would give to those planning weddings she replied, “get people to help with the planning, don’t take it all on yourself and if you’re going DIY don’t do too much or you will end up being one stressed little bunny. Try to make sure everything is done and dusted at least 3 weeks before your wedding so you can sit back and relax.”

A big thank you to Cheryl and Andrew for sharing their beautiful wedding with us, and to Jo from Enchanted Brides for sending it to us.

{ Details }

Photographer: Enchanted Brides
Venue: Sconner Down
Marquee: Really Good Marquees
Bride’s Dress: Bespoke and handmade by Christine in Callington
Flowers: Handpicked wild flowers
Wedding Food: Black Lion Catering
Wedding Cake: Hanson Fine Cheeses
Decorations: Handmade by bride

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