I always love to show you a real wedding here on the Knots & Kisses blog whenever I can and this one is a real corker! Roz and Jamie got married at the gorgeous Maunsel House, a manor house near Taunton in Somerset.
http://www.maunselhouse.co.uk/ . I just love the splash of colour from the groom’s jacket and the fabulous cheese tower! Congratulations to Roz & Jamie on their wedding!
I asked Roz a few questions about her big day ….
Roz and Jamie
Maunsel House, 18th April
What made you choose your venue?
Maunsel House was the first venue we looked at and nothing else we saw could hold a candle to it! My family was keen on the Marquee in the garden style wedding but having cowered in a rain drenched, windswept marquee grimacing against the elements at many a wedding of a friend I wanted to plan for the worst weather with a solid venue with a stunning period interior and then have the possibility of being pleasantly surprised if we managed to spend time in the gardens.
We wanted an intimate 'country house party' feel to our wedding akin to something out of Geeves & Wooster and it needed to have rooms for most of our guests. Maunsel fitted the bill on three counts: 1. There is also a candle lit chapel on the edge of the grounds so we could have a religious ceremony and then walk through the gardens to the reception; 2. Have you seen the Bridal Suite! The Queen would be jealous! 3. The people were totally fabulous... Friendly, organised and no customisation was too much trouble.
Did you have a theme?
Our theme was Decadent Country House Party with an intimate white tie dinner for 50 people for our reception. Our colours were gold, cream and sage green and I'm totally obsessed with butterflies (which symbolise hope) so we had hundreds of gilded feather ones amongst all the flowers and my bouquet.
Who made your wedding dress?
My dress was a sample made by Constantina by Benjamin Roberts which I got from Romantica on Margaret Street (near Oxford Circus) in London. If you want a dress with some colour she is the lady to go to. I picked the dress because I wanted a gold dress with lots of sparkles a) so it twinkled lots during our ceremony which was lit only by candles and b) so I could cut off the train and wear it as a ball dress afterwards. One tip if you want to do this though is not to diet for your wedding as it may never fit again if you put the weight back on. It also makes you feel wonderfully righteous eating all the food you'd usually give up as you have a good reason:-)!
My shoes came from Ivory on Bond Street (London) as they always have stunning pale, sparkly shoes in leather rather than fabric. For walking through the garden to the reception I wanted a material that wasn't going to get ruined and stained by damp grass. For my hair accessories I wanted something a bit different from the traditional tiara and veil so I went to www.rubyandfrost.com who have the most delicious collection of sparkles and feathers for brides who want something a bit different.
Where did your husband’s and bridesmaid's outfit come from?
Jamie wore vintage white tie as did my father. Men look so totally handsome in evening dress! All our guests then came in either black or white tie and the ladies all wore long dresses.
My sister was pregnant when we got married and with no idea what size she was going to be or how she was going to be feeling by the ceremony, ordering dresses in advance wasn't going to be good for her. So, I decided to make them all myself and then fit and finish them the week before the wedding. I chose the fabric and matched it to their eye colours and let them choose which ever sewing pattern they wanted as long as it was long.
What type of cake did you go for, and how did you come to that decision?
We went for a cake made from a stack of cheese which was then cut into wedges and big cheese boards were placed on each table for desert. We sourced the cheese from small organic dairies around the UK and they couldn't have been more helpful or delighted to have their cheese used for a wedding cake. They even asked us if we wanted then to match the covering waxes to our colour scheme.
Tell us about your flowers...
My florist was also my mother - who does wedding flowers for a living. She does the most amazing wedding flowers that have a really organic vintage feel and always has some brilliant ideas for creating something a little bit different. My bouquet was an ancient style of Celtic 'kissing ring' were the couple getting married kissed through the ring (symbolising the circle of life) to seal the bond. My Mother-in-law and I worked the willow to weave into the base and then my mother and I decorated it with symbolic wedding flowers and leaves. I still have the wreath in a box frame on the wall as we used silk flowers instead of real ones.
Who did you choose as your photographer and why?
Richard Griffiths of
PhotoMagic did our wedding photography. I instantly fell in love with his artistic style and his ability to capture movement in a spellbinding and most importantly 'flattering' way! We got exactly what we wanted from Richard as I prepared a collection of example photos that we wanted to recreate the style of as well as a collection of photos Jamie and I hated. After that Richard had free rein and the result was fantastic.
Did you enjoy planning your wedding?
I'm afraid I planned the wedding with military precision before the day so suppliers and everyone in the bridal party had a list of items and itineraries. It was worth the effort as Jamie and I didn't have to think of a thing except enjoying ourselves on the day.
Did you create any of the aspects of your day yourself?
Our stationery and table plan was DIY as well as decorating the chapel and the house. We had a lovely little group and family and close friends the day before to help us decorate. It was a really special moment building it up together and really got us in the wedding mood.
Who designed your wedding stationery?
I'm a graphic designer so I created our own stationery printing antique gold metallic ink on cream paper and tying it all together with gold ribbon.
What advice would you give to brides for planning their big day?
One bit of advice I can certainly impart was to have a member of the waiting staff dedicated entirely to you and your husband throughout the reception. You are so much in demand that you will starve and wilt for lack of food and bubbles unless there is constantly a little tray of champagne and nibbles following you around:-)
Create a mood board for your photographer so he knows what you want.
Don't diet before your wedding if you want to wear your dress again.
Pick shoes you can wear all day comfortably and wear them in first.
A small intimate wedding gives you the time and opportunity to interact with everyone. 50 is a great number and you can then afford to do things in more style.
Plan for rain and then be pleasantly surprised!
