James and I got married on 15th April 2022 and it really was just a perfectly magical day!
The Venue
We chose to get married at The Barnyard, Upchurch. This is a perfect wedding venue and was absolutely ideal for what we wanted.
We chose to have a twilight wedding in the Apple Barn which is a perfectly petite venue. The venue staff were absolutely amazing from start to finish and everything in between! They provided us with our own wedding coordinator, Kirstie and she was absolutely fantastic. She helped us understand the timings of the evening and made sure everything went smoothly.
The Dress
I only ended up going to one bridal shop and that was Brides Dress Revisited, Otford. Brides Dress Revisited is an amazing preloved wedding dress store that gives all their dresses a second chance of gliding down the aisle This was meant to be my trial run of dress shopping, just to get some ideas of what I wanted. Never did I think I would actually find my dream dress. As I was eight weeks post giving birth, I didn't feel particularly confident in my body and with all the dresses only coming in the size provided, I went in with a slightly negative mindset!
But that quickly changed when I met the wonderful consultant and saw the huge range of dresses!
I did have to have the dress altered slightly. The hem was too long, the bust was gaping and from having in my wardrobe for 18 months, some of the detailing on the shoulder was beginning to pull away. Luckily is was recommended a fairy seamstress in the form of Andrea. She was incredible and was able to make this dress fit like an absolute glove!
The Look
Now all the extra touches are really what make that princess feeling! I was lucky enough that my best friend, and maid of honour, is and absolute makeup genius. She done an absolutely amazing job making me look like the best version of me! She knew everything about my skin type, eye shape and make up preferences which all made it so much easier to get the look I really wanted.
I contacted Lucie to do my hair as I had taken a look through her portfolio and in my opinion, she is the best in the business when it comes to ponytails and extentions. She did an absolutely incredible job and my hair didn't move all night. I also got my hair colour matched to my beautyworks extentions by the wonderful Ashleigh at Rochester Hair. I had been going to see her for about 15 months to try and get my hair back to a healthy and natural condition after a terrible bleach job which left my hair breaking and straw like. She has worked wonders and will never trust anyone else to do my hair.
I was also using Olaplex at home to repair the damage and it honestly is the best range I have ever used! Would highly recommend!
I decided, like many brides, to buy a new scent for my wedding day! After a lot of back and forth, drowning in tester sticks and samples, I decided on Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel. It is the most perfect scent and will forever bring back the olfactory memory.
The jewellery had extremely sentimental meaning to me. My grandmother was unable to attend our wedding, but she gifted me a beautiful pair of vintage Tiffany earrings that belonged to her. The design of them went perfectly with my dress and I couldn't have picked a better pair myself. My necklace was from Dinny Hall. It was a larait style chain which was delicate and beautiful. It didn't overshadow the dress, but added the extra something that was needed with the plunge cut of the dress.
The Suits
James bought his suit for our original wedding date back in April 2020. He purchased it online from Marc Darcy. At this time, it was a bit of a rush wedding in a registry office as I was five months pregnant. Then, the Big C happened and therefore we didn't get married in 2020, or 2021. But by the time our wedding did roll around we had another little man to buy a suit for. We initially went to M&S a found a royal blue kids suit in the sale, and thought nothing more of it. As time went on, we both realised that Harry's suit just wasn't matching. So, after checking the Marc Darcy website, low and behold they did a miniature version of James' exact suit. The quality of these suits were just incredible and it was so amazing to see father and son both looking incredibly smart on the day.
We ordered Harry and the best man, plus the dads ties from Swagger & Swoon and the colour swatches and materials are amazing. We were able to get the perfect shade of silver that went perfectly with the suits. James ordered his tie from Hawes and Curtis as he wanted a paisley pattern to set himself apart from the best man.
All the guys looked incredible and I would definitely recommend buying the suits rather than hiring as you can then get them tailored to fit well.
The Kids
Now, weddings and children are not the best mix. Especially when your ceremony begins at 5pm. But this was half the reason we decided to go for a twilight wedding. We didn't want to put the kids through a whole day of having to 'behave'. They were both incredible throughout the day, and by 9pm they were pretty much done.
Having them both being part of our day added such a unique and special element that I will treasure forever. Our wedding was not just about James and I confirming our love, it was unifying our family in law and being able to present ourselves as 'The Cooling's'.
We were also so lucky that our kids are generally very well behaved, and our wedding day was no different. This meant that our close friends and family were more than willing to keep them entertained. With having our own kids there, we decided to invite all our guest's children. And it was lovely seeing all their little faces and watching them dance. It was a day for families, ours and theirs.
The Music
We were lucky enough that the venue provided an amazing DJ in the form of Apollo Funk. We gave them a list of music that we wanted to hear and a list that we really didn't! (James has a strong dislike for Bruno Mars and Will.I.Am ..! ) The DJ was scheduled to start at 7pm so rather than having a generic playlist, we chose to hire the wonderful Paula to play saxophone for us! She arrived early at the wedding to set up two PA systems, one outside in the courtyard and another in the barn, where our ceremony would take place. She had a huge range of genres and was faultless. She played slower, more relaxed music as our guests were arriving to really set the mood. She then moved into the barn to play 'At Last' - Etta James as the processional song and she learnt '(This Will Be) Everlasting Love' - Natalie Cole as our recessional song. Having such a talented saxophonist playing live at our wedding was just incredible. Paula played for another hour after the ceremony. This time the music was a lot more upbeat and fun. So many guests couldn't praise her enough and I genuinely think she made our day!
The Flowers
We chose to go with an all white floral theme as the venue had a very golden hue to it and we felt that keeping everything simple and classic was the best way to keep the wedding timeless. I'm not really into that latest fads and trends and I really didn't want a colour scheme.
I contacted Ellouise who was an absolute gem. I told her that I wanted all the florals white and no gypsophila. With regards to the style, I wanted it to look wild and foraged rather that perfect. I like the effortless style, although I know how that takes a lot of effort. Ellouise created the most beautiful floral arrangements for us and I couldn't have been happier.
Unfortunately, I didn't really get many photos of the flowers, but here is a staged photo with my incredible Manolo Blahnik Hangisi shoes!
The Decor
I first saw Light of my Life at the Kent Wedding Experience in Detling. Their statement canopy trees were what really drew my attention. Sarah was extremely busy, so I took note and googled the company when I got home. Sarah had a huge selection that catered for every aspect of wedding decor, from the large canopy trees, to chair covers and table settings; large light up letters to little candle votives. I knew that Light of my Life had to be the company we used to enhance to beauty of the barn.
My absolute favourite thing that she let us hire from her was definitely the neon sign. It was a a lovely way to frame our ceremony area and once the venue was changed into an evening reception, our guests loved having their photos taken in front of it. We did want the large canopy trees, but unfortunately the venue was just a bit too small, but we managed to get smaller versions as centrepieces on our trestle tables.
Sarah has been doing this for 15 years and really knows her stuff, but she has decided to close up shop as of October 2023 and take back her weekends. I feel extremely lucky to have been able to use her services and wish her all the best in the future.
The Food & Drink
Now, I can't really comment on the food if I'm honest, as I didn't actually eat the whole of the day. I think the adrenaline got to me, but I can tell you that it got rave reviews from our guests. We decided to go for a buffet style dinner with a menu that we created with the venue. As I am vegetarian, and so were a lot of our guests we chose a menu that was about 70% meat-free. We knew from past experience that many of the carnivores like to try the herbivore options leaving little left for those who have no other option. The venue and catering staff were so accommodating and did a sterling job.
We decided that we wanted our guests to be provided for when it came to the drinks, so we decided to give each guest two drinks tokens. We also provided a single reception drink for straight after the ceremony. I think that these three drinks that we gifted to our guests made a huge difference to their experience and was well worth it!
The Cake
What can I say about the cake! I absolutely loved it! We contacted Petula as she had some amazing decorating skills and her flavour options were to die for! I sent her an image from pintrest that was basically a three tier white fondant cake with edible gold detailing. We wanted a really simple and classic cake that really focused on flavour and would look timeless in our photos! Petula smashed the brief and delivered the most perfect and faultless cake I have ever seen!
The three tiers consisted of a lemon and elderflower, salted caramel and chocolate and a classic Victoria sandwich. The venue managed to save us a fair amount to take home from each layer and I can confidently say that I have never had a better cake in my life!
I ordered a personalised cake topper from Etsy which made reference to the fact that this was not just a day for us a couple, but a day for us as a family.
The Experience
I got to marry the father of my children in front of all our family and friends. I was so elated throughout the whole evening and wanted it to last forever! Everything went so smoothly and it all looked so beautiful. I am so lucky that every single person that I employed for our day was sensational. I did not have a single complaint about the day! I just want to relive it all over again!
What Would I Change?
Absolutely nothing! James and I had a wonderful day and that is all that matters!
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