Photography: Lucy Davenport

Marquee in the garden

Georgie had dreamed of holding her wedding at home since she was a little girl. ‘I’m super lucky that my parents have a big garden and live opposite the village church,’ she says. ‘It was a short walk for our guests, although you do have to cross a road, so my dad made a wedding crossing sign which one of our ushers held up for fun.

‘While guests enjoyed Prosecco and Pimm’s in the garden, Rob and I had photos taken in a nearby field that was beautifully overgrown. There’s an old dovecote there, too, which made a great backdrop.’

The main focal point for the reception was a marquee with a clear roof and sides. ‘Our supplier really understood our vision, and even sourced and bought a new frame for us to use,’ says Georgie. ‘It was square rather than the traditional rectangle, so it meant we could have the garden wall and flowerbed as a backdrop to the top table, which was better than I’d ever imagined. It also meant we could have a mix of long and round tables to make the seating layout a little different.’

Another highlight was the 10-metre bar running along one side of the marquee, which was panelled with mirrors to reflect the tables. The tables themselves were decorated with roses, eucalyptus, Sweet William, Veronica, asparagus fern, olive foliage and peonies, and dotted with candles and mini succulents.

Georgie also sourced some grey velvet ribbon to tie in a bow around each napkin. ‘We placed a sprig of rosemary along with the name place card behind each bow and I loved how simple but sophisticated the finished tables looked. Simplicity, elegance and luxury were our key words, a style we carried through to the stationery, which my father and I started designing after Rob and I got engaged.’ 

The entertainment

For their entertainment, the couple booked a dance band called Distractions. ‘Three of them performed acoustically during the ceremony, which meant we could personalise the music, and during the reception drinks they played ‘live lounge’ songs. After our first dance, Elbow’s One Day Like This, they moved onto tracks from all genres and eras which soon got guests on the dance floor. We added a saxophonist later on, too, which worked very well.’

During the band breaks, they kept up everyone’s energy levels with triple-cheese toasties and the wedding cake which was a semi-naked, three-tiered lemon cake.

Top tip

Georgie’s top tip for any couple is to try to find time together during the day to enjoy the experience. ‘It’s so easy to be swept up by everyone and everything,’ she says. ‘When our guests were called to the marquee, we hung back on the garden bench where our events team had placed a glass of fizz for each of us. It was less than 10 minutes, but while guests found their seats it meant Rob and I could reflect on the amazing day. I’ll never forget that moment!’

‘While guests enjoyed Prosecco and Pimms in the garden, Rob and I had photos taken in a nearby field which was beautifully overgrown’

‘Our signature cocktail was an espresso martini served with sharing desserts such as milk chocolate honeycomb lollipops’

THE LITTLE WHITE BOOK

Photography lucydavenport.co.uk
Bride’s dress Badgley Mischka from jscouture.com
Groom’s outfit reiss.com
Bridesmaids’ dresses asos.com
Marquee covertecstructures.co.uk
Flowers clairevickersflorist@gmail.com
Cake @TheLadywhoBakes
Catering stonesevents.co.uk