Happy Monday friends! When we chatted with Holly about her + Gareth’s day, she described it in two words first: fancy, but genuine. Fancy because hello, it’s a wedding! Kinda a big deal, right? But genuine, because of course it had to rep the two of them to a T for their 80 guests. So even though you’ll totally be blown away by the grandeur of Aynhoe Park House or that amaze cake above, what’s even more impressive is how much thought they put into the day, DIYs ‘n all. Don’t miss all of Holly’s details along with the images by We Heart Pictures below!
Love this shot! H + G discovered We Heart Pictures at a friend’s wedding—they loved the photos and their energy.
Holly tells it, We incorporated elements that were very “us” and then we had luxe elements peppered through too. We created the entire menu ourselves, and even submitted my roast chicken recipe to the chef. And we served everything family/sharing style just like we do at home for BBQs or dinner parties. And then we made it a little more fancy by filling the tables with Diptyque candles, hand-drawn origami menus, handmade marble initial place names and lush greenery and white florals.
Their ‘order of service’ booklets for each ceremony seat had funny stories about their relationship, some heartfelt words about their family, just like a little magazine guests could read while waiting. They also had those ‘No Ugly Crying’ handkerchiefs made in Dubai where they live.
I had two dresses. One for the ceremony and day time, which I had a very clear vision of and was brought to life by the Emirati designer Huda Al Nuaimi. And one for the evening celebrations by the Qatari designer Wadha Al Hajri. The Huda Al Nuaimi dress was white tulle with incredibly intricate, handmade embellishments. The floral lace elements were all hand-sewn onto the tulle—and we used the shape of the desert rose as the inspiration. Huda also added some 3D embellishments using a few beads and the like, which were incredible close-up and in person. The Wadha Al Hajri gown was created from this really special Italian Mikado silk. It was very rigid and luxurious. I shared a Pinterest board with Wadha of my ideas and she came up with this very classic, refined style.
Here’s another DIY idea for you guys: initial place settings! These were made from hexagon marble tiles, sanded down and backing removed, and gold lettered stickers.
I also wrote out a letter from the heart for each and every guest. Gareth did his side and submitted them to me (we had a Google Drive doc going for months!). I hand wrote them all and we secretly placed them under the chair of each guest at the wedding breakfast. When my bridesmaid Mariko read my speech, at the end she said that there was a secret under everyone’s chair and that we hoped it showed them how appreciative we were to have them in the room and how much we loved them… We just looked around the room and saw the love and the emotion and it just felt amazing to be honest. There was a lot of love in that room.
Cheers to the happy couple!
Photographer: We Heart Pictures / Videographer: Reel Weddings / Reception Venue: Aynhoe Park House in Oxfordshire, UK / Designer & Wedding Planner: Bride, Holly Hollywould / Florist: Westwood Design / Hair: Louise Alway / Makeup: Nikki Makeup / Artwork: Donald Robertson / Invitations & Calligraphy: Peggy & Kate / Food Trucks: Lick Me I’m Delicious, The Piggy Squire, LucaBuca Pizza / Dronographer: Matthew Thompson / Bride’s Dress (Day): Bespoke, Huda Al Nuaimi / Bride’s Dress (Night): Bespoke, WADHA / Veil: Liberty in Love / Shoes: Gucci / Engagement Ring & Wedding Bands: Cara’s in Dubai / Ear Piece: Ryan Storer / Groom’s Shoes: Churches / Cufflinks: Mr Porter
