Colourful Non-traditional Boho Wedding at The Village Hall in Colton, Near Rugeley - Jenny and James
Relaxed and Natural Staffordshire Wedding Photography
As blog post's go, this might be a lengthy one, because I have so much to tell you about this incredible Staffordshire wedding, that I photographed last year.
“Helen was just the perfect choice. She was there at every moment of the day, even when you didn’t realise she was, she managed to capture the perfect shot. Every single photo is beautiful and she captured perfectly the happiness, laughter and general emotion of the day, her photographs are stunning and she captures them in such a way that you don’t even notice she is there. We had such a fabulous time with Helen, she made everyone feel relaxed and the photos reflect that. We couldn’t have asked for anything more, and I can recommend her enough.”
Jenny and James captured my heart right from their very first, very excited and rather enthusiastic email. I could tell they were lovely people!
I loved EVERYTHING about working with them and photographing their beautiful and epic wedding day!
Jenny and Slater (aka James) got married last June at the lovely Colton Village Hall, which is a fabulous location with plenty of outdoor space.
It was a blank canvas which they totally made their own. They had their ceremony at the local church, which was also the perfect setting. They chose to have their reception at the Village Hall, because it has so many options and they could totally personalise it. Their day was a colourful boho wedding, which was so different and very, chilled and relaxed.
The Excitement Before the Wedding
Jenny got ready at her parents family home with her bridesmaids, and the atmosphere was absolutely electric, so much laughter and giggling. Jen was mostly looking forward to her McDonald's breakfast in the morning, (I have no doubt she was also looking forward to the part where she and Slater actually got married too) but the breakfast was certainly a highlight!
Jen, being a very talented seamstress, made the bridesmaids each a bespoke skirt. Each one a vibrant block of colour matched with an elegant blouse from H&M.
Once ready, the girls were driven the short distance from the house to the church. I made my way to the church shortly before them to be sure to capture the Groomsmen and guests arriving at the church.
Slater got ready at his parents house. The boys then walked a short walk around Stowe Pool to get to the ceremony.
The Ceremony
The wedding itself was a church service in their family church not far from where they both grew up. The Vicar was so accommodating and personable. He held such a lovely, heartfelt ceremony and allowed me to get the best positions in the church to document this part of the day.
During the ceremony one of the bridesmaid's (also one of Slater's sisters) played the saxophone beautifully. It was so meaningful. and reminded me of how much I would like to learn to play the sax, it's been on my bucket list for about 20 years!
The Afternoon
The reception was in a nearby village hall and they had welcome drinks and canape's in the afternoon, and a popular cigar bar in the evening. They decorated the venue with so much colour and bowls of fresh succulents, because they had a very clear idea of how they wanted their day to look.
For dinner they had a choice of two food vans serving pie and mash and fresh kebabs, which was a great way of serving food. The bride and groom specifically mentioned that food is very important to them and they wanted the wedding to have a 'food market/festival' feel.
Pudding was ice cream served from a vintage ice cream van! BIG Thumbs up!
The first dance involved the wedding party getting on the dance floor to get the dancing going, and they finished off the evening with a right old knees up.
The best part of the day was all of it, because they had so fun things to keep everyone entertained and involved. At one point we had a drone flying over during the the family photos – it was hilarious and I am not going to lie, I was a little bit scared by this thing flying over my head!
The Couple
Jenny wore such a pretty and colourful Charlotte Balbier dress and Slater wore a very dapper blue suit from http://www.brigdens.com/ - they looked so gorgeous.
Jenny's’s shoes were light blue and very elegant and her bespoke flowers were created out of beading by http://www.boafricandesign.co.uk/. They were so very unique and beautiful and something they will be able to keep forever.
Jenny and Slater met when they were at school and have been together for 11 years. They got in touch with me because Jenny's youngest sister went to school with my step son. From the beginning their enquiry really intrigued me. They said they just wanted to party with their family and friends, and I thought it was awesome and knew they would be so much fun.
Jenny and Slater's wedding was everything I love about weddings and was such a laugh. I would love you to take a look at their wonderful wedding!
Top Wedding Advice From The Bride and Groom
“If you’re planning your wedding, the biggest piece of advice ... is don’t spend too much time obsessing over details. Make gut decisions and make sure they are your decisions... stop worrying if its going to be a perfect day.
No one will notice if you didn’t quite get around to making or doing everything you wanted. If it happens then great, if you don’t get around to it or it’s all getting a bit much just cut some things out of it, no one else will know...
It is so much more important to enjoy your day than ... to worry about something you may have forgotten.
Also, get people involved - it’s great to be surrounded by people willing to help and wanting to be involved. We had the whole family, and lots of friends pitching in for our wedding and it made it so much more special to look around at everything that everyone had done to make our day the success that it was - share the load and the love!”
Suppliers
Bridal Makeup: The bride did her own make up
Bridesmaids Dresses: Top from H&M and Skirt - Made by Jenny The Bride
Cake - Made by the Bride's Aunty / Godmother
Flowers: http://www.boafricandesign.co.uk/
DJ: http://www.soundkicks.com/
Bridal Hair: Sharron Gold
Catering: http://www.63islands.co.uk/
Catering: http://www.pietanic.co.uk/
Vintage Ice Cream Van: http://www.pollys-parlour.co.uk/
Dress: http://www.thebridalrooms.co.uk/
Dress Designer: http://www.charlottebalbier.com/
Suit: http://www.brigdens.com/
Stationery Printers: http://www.prestigeprintanddesign.com/
In 2017 I celebrated my tenth year photographing weddings, and it was such an epic year.
I am hosting client consultations in my beautiful little farm office in Lichfield, if you are planning your wedding for 2019 or 2020 and looking for your wedding photographer in Staffordshire or beyond, I would love to hear more about your wedding plans.