What a wedding! Louise and Andy pulled off something absolutely wonderful: intimate, heartfelt, and full of sweetness (and v conveniently located 5 mins from my home!) .
The ceremony was held in the chapel at Royal Holloway University. This was the perfect location – Louise was christened there, her father once worked there. The chapel is simply stunning: part of the Founder’s Building, designed by William Henry Crossland in the late 19th century, modelled on grand French châteaux. The light on the aisle is gorgeous and I love how guests face inwards. The staff at the uni were fantastic, very warm, and helpful so it’s very much on my list of places I want to work at more often!
After the vows, there was an absolute show-stopper. Louise’s mum and her friend had arranged for Louise’s horse Nova to be waiting for her. This made Louise cry. Her new husband did note that the sight of him as she walked down the aisle an hour earlier had not made her shed a tear!
After confetti (and horse photos!) everyone spilled into the Picture Gallery for confetti and drinks while we did a few more photos. Despite the forecast that threatened rain, the weather played along: perfect windows of dry and light for outdoor photos. And when the skies opened a bit, Royal Holloway had plenty of beautiful covered nooks for photos.
We then made our way a couple of minutes up the road to The Beehive pub in Englefield Green (my local!), for more drinks, gorgeous canapés, then the wedding breakfast. The pub looked stunning and the food was delicious and plentiful.
There were so many wonderful personal details: Louise had hand-stitched names on napkins for each place name; she and Andy had written personalised cards for every guest (apparently with differing levels of enthusiasm!); and the speeches were touching, making us laugh and cry.
The evening finished for me with a couple of great photo ops – the bride and groom pulling a pint (a first for me!), and the cake being sliced with a sword (very dramatic!). After I left I hear that the lovely band Groove Habit had people dancing all night.
Louise & Andy, thank you for letting me share your day.
Here are some of the wonderful people who helped make the day run so beautifully:
Flowers ‒ Studio Clarissa (the couple’s very talented friend)
Ceremony ‒ Royal Holloway Chapel
Reception ‒ The Beehive, Englefield Green (@beehiveegham)
Make-up ‒ Zoe Sharman MUA
Planning / Coordination ‒ Perfect Planning Parties
Band ‒ Groove Habit
