Proper Weddings: Nicola & Lloyd

Way back in the early noughties, in a pool hall in Witney, 16 year old Nicola and Lloyd's eyes met over a pint of Snakebite (probably).

Many years later in June 2015, having been together since that very day, Nicola and Lloyd FINALLY got wed at St Bart's church in Ducklington, with their reception at Great Barrington village hall.

Having planned most of the wedding from their home in Frankfurt, the pair might have been forgiven for being a bit harangued during the run up and on the day.  But in true Nicola and Lloyd style, they were completely relaxed and took everything in their (very laid back) stride!

The bridal flowers were to be romantic and unstructured with a 'garden' feel, to echo the incredible Cotswolds' summer setting.  The bouquets were made up of whites, greens, pinks, peachy blushes, with some light yellow, with a touch of blue to match the bridesmaids' dresses, which they got to choose themselves.

The cornucopia of summer blooms included dahlia, roses, freesia, lisianthus, hypericum berries, astrantia, nigella and peonies.  Nicola's bouquet was tied off with navy blue ribbon, and her bridesmaids' posies with a blush pink ribbon.

Lloyd wore a navy suit with a blush tie and pocket square, so buttonholes of spray rose, freesia and foliage were tied with a champagne ribbon to compliment.

AND we got to make some spray, buds and berry headdresses for the sweetest little flower girls...

For dinner there was a good, old fashioned BBQ! Table centres were jars filled with pops of brighter blues, yellows and bolder foliage, in amongst the bridal ingredients as well.  These sat in wooden crates made my Lloyd's father for the occasion. 

The reception decor was a lovely family and friend DIY affair, with homemade strings of hearts cut from magazines, tables named for the couple's travels, many many photos of said family and friends adorning the walls, all topped with an excellent playlist prepared by Lloyd, which kept the guests dancing all night.

Photos by the totally lovely Frankee Victoria Photography

One Flew Over Recently...

The last month has seen the end of a manic summer wedding and event schedule and the beginning of Autumn - our absolute favourite season.  

Venues get cosier, colours and textures get richer and deeper, and we finally get a chance to slow down, take a breath and make some plans for the future.

So while we have a brew and pop on our strategy hats, here's a few snapshots of what we've been up to over the last month...

We made some fairly enormous autumnal headdresses;

And some softer, sweeter, pinker ones;

We provided the floral arrangements for The New Craftsman lounge at Decorex 2015 (and got to use their dreamy vases AND realised how fun working in hi-vis is);

We were thankful for a non-rainy day while creating cascading foliage backdrops for a wedding;

We built a rustic flower shop display outside a faux department store at a retail industry event;

We added some wired origami paper cranes to a colourful bouquet for a bride;

And then got a bit psychedelic with it;

We did a photoshoot (more on this to come);

We accidentally garlanded ourselves into the workshop;

We built a textured foliage arch with pops of pinks, oranges, reds and purples;

And, we took the dog to the beach, where he wore himself out chasing seagulls.

It's been ACE.

T H E S E R I E S : T H E D E C O R

So, we found quite a lot of love for Pinterest recently, which has resulted in...

 T H E  S E R I E S 

...a pinterest collection of all super cool things, wedding related. 

We have pulled together oh-so-dreamy, jaw-dropping dresses, the most beautifully designed and delicious cakes, the hippest, hottest suits for the fellas and a whole host of other aesthetic wonders to get you on your way to creating, well, basically the world's greatest party.

Each month on the blog, we will share a new board with you and from that, pick our top five faves.

Next up...

T H E  D E C O R 

Finally, we've arrived at the frivolous, the fun and the down right fabulous...  

The decor encompasses all the things you absolutely do not need for a wedding, but totally want for a cracking celebration!

1. Signs

The neon letters, the cinema signs and the light boxes evoking early dates and nervous kisses on street corners.  
Or maybe that's just us...

Best to hire these fellas unless you want to invest and keep forever in your living room. (Ohmygosh do this!) 

But those with their sensible hats on, check out our friends at Hey Style who do an excellent line.

image via festivalbrides.co.uk

image via heystyle.co.uk

2. Ceiling cascades

Canopies of trestle lights, pom poms, or even paper cranes make an amazing visual display.

Great for industrial venues or taller marques to bring the space in and create a more intimate atmosphere without compromising the character of the place.

images via london-bride.com

3. Backdrops

A back drop is a super way of designating an area in a space that doesn't naturally lend itself to nooks and crannies or stages.

We've made floral backdrops for ceremonies and foliage arches for the speeches, and seen amazing make-shift 'photo booths' using hanging streamers.

image via etsy.com

image via greylikesweddings.com

4. Balloons and Pinatas 

Let's just all accept it.  The best parties are those most similar to your 8th birthday party.  Enormous, colourful balloons, glitter face paint and sweet-filled pinatas.  

I wish I could say there was less booze at my childhood celebrations, but I've seen the old photos of my parents and I'm fairly sure that was not the case...

Our pals at Pea Green Boat do the most inspiring array of balloons, pinatas and basically, everything fun.

image via wantthatwedding.co.uk

image via hmhippie.com

5. ANYTHING GOLD

Because it looks the BIZNIZ.

image via buzzfeed.com

image via hercampus.com


More like this on our pinterest...

Houseplant of the Month: October

Houseplants: like the perfect man... long lasting, great looking and low maintenance.  

What is not to love?  

Which is why the Flower Council of Holland have launched their Houseplant of the Month Campaign throughout 2015.  Each month they have chosen their favourite Houseplant and given a ton of information on the history and uses of the plant, how to choose a nice healthy one, and how to take proper good care of it.

We thought we'd do you all a favour and follow their lead, condensing the info in our own monthly feature.  

In the tenth part of our series...

October: Begonia

'She wore scarlet begonias tucked into her curls,
I knew right away she was not like other girls, other girls'

Robert Hunter and Grateful Dead got it...  Begonias are cool. 



Flowering begonia comes in a whole host of shades - all the pinks, oranges, whites, yellows, and of course, reds. 

 

Their heads can be single flowering, semi-double flowering and double flowering.

The Begonia Rex is known for it's excellent foliage - leaves with intricate decoration of shades of greens, silvers, purples and pinks.

Begonias are native to tropical and sub tropical climates, so like a bit of filtered light indoors and away of draughts.  

They need regular watering so the root ball does not try out.  But, keep an eye on the leaves and flowers as these will tell you if your watering levels are making it a little sad:

Too little watering and the flower buds can drop and the leaves yellow.  Too much watering and the leaves can rot or drop.

'Well, there ain't nothing wrong with the way she moves,
Scarlet begonias or a touch of the blues.'