When you go down to the woods today you’re going to discover this enchanted woodland wedding set at Wellington Wood, in Norfolk. It’s full of beautifully rustic ethical elements, a coloured wedding dress, and boho-chic florals. It has laid-back vibes and the perfect recycled tipi for a romantic outdoor ceremony. We catch up with coordinators Jodie Barden of Ella Bella Weddings and Events, Romy of English Rose Photography and the rest of the team to find out all about it…
Inspiration
“We were inspired by the natural woodland theme at this beautiful outdoor venue with sustainability a key focus in the design for the decor. The triple triangle bespoke ceremony backdrop was handmade for us using reclaimed wood by a talented local Norfolk business. We had the backdrop specially made to reflect the triple hat tipis at this woodland tipi venue. This backdrop was created with the intention of making a versatile piece that couples can move around their venue throughout their day to maximise its use, saving money and resources.”
How Can A Couple Turn This Theme and Ideas Into Reality?
“For the tablescape, props and decor by Samphire Vintage Props they mainly chose a combination of vintage, preloved, and handmade items. These items can be found from charity shops, auctions, reclaim yards and local suppliers, including handmade backdrops, vintage rugs, china and glassware together with natural fabrics and macrame contributing to creating eco-friendly celebrations for couples to consider.”
The Venue
“Wellington Wood is a beautiful outdoor wedding venue with different ceremony areas to choose from and tipi reception. Set on 70 acres in stunning Norfolk. Perfect for the eco-friendly couple to feel closer to nature on their wedding day. This unique venue can work for romantic, natural, boho and festival vibe weddings. They are pet friendly too!”
Styling
“A vintage preloved sage green and ivory rug to pave the ceremony aisle together, with natural jute rugs, to compliment the colour theme and woodland setting perfectly. Finished off with a line of our brass dome lanterns and ivory pillar candles. We then moved the backdrop for the outdoor sweetheart table. We chose a pair of our wicker peacock chairs to sit behind the rustic trestle table to create an intimate experience for the couple. We draped the table with a soft light green cheesecloth table runner paired with a deeper evergreen shade to tone with the natural woodland and meadow setting. Our glass dome jars were filled with natural moss, fairy lights, ivory anemones and foraged ivy. The soft palette and simplicity of our vintage Royal Doulton ‘morning star’ plates, neutral linen napkins, preloved brass cutlery and vintage glassware complimented the soft natural earthy and green tones of the stationery.”
Photography
“I wanted to create an ethereal woodland/forest-themed shoot with lots of greens and natural fibres to enhance the outdoor venue of Wellington Wood. The setting is beautiful and I really wanted to capture the natural feel of the venue. The team worked well to bring to life my vision and put their own spin on the theme resulting in a wonderful shoot. When choosing a photographer for your special day, always look for the style of photography you like, then make sure you meet and get a feel for the person, you need to feel comfortable and if they do engagement shoots I would thoroughly recommend it, so you can get to know the photographer better, how they work and give you a peek into how the day will be.”
The Couple
“Cathy and Will Models and real engaged couple planning their wedding. We have modelled together for over three years and have been lucky to work with some incredible and talented suppliers and this is all feeding into our own planning. This shoot reflects the suppliers and aspects we are looking for in our own wedding. It’s essential to us that we and our suppliers, get to know each other and are like-minded people, are open and communicative and promote inclusion, diversity and sustainability in the industry. Our advice for starting to plan your wedding would be to not only be drawn to venues, products and suppliers but also to be drawn to who they are as people and what they and their business stand for. This shoot was so special for us as it was held at our future venue and all suppliers were a group of like-minded collaborative and supportive people. Aligning your values with those of your suppliers was the first stage for us – once you’ve found those, everything falls into place.”
The Dress
“Finding the perfect wedding dress can be a challenge, especially if looking for something a little different. Whether that is a full-coloured dress, trouser suit or something with a little pop of colour, like the dress created for this shoot, going bespoke allows you to have your dream dress. If you start by putting a mood board together of your ideas and focus on what shapes you like, then focus a little more on details and colour, then your professional dressmaker can bring all your ideas together and design a completely one-off gown just for you. You get to see it come to life through each fitting and can make adjustments as you go! Finishing your amazing bespoke journey with a one-off piece that fits like a glove, was made just for you and no one else on earth will ever have a dress like yours.”
Hair and Makeup
“The hairstyle I wanted to achieve from this shoot wasn’t the usual bridal hairstyle you see. It has braids, twists, fishtails, and all the textures possible in this hairstyle. These styles fit with boho, casual and relaxed weddings. I was really inspired by the beautiful colours and the whimsical feel of the venue and the gorgeous dress. The slight hints of pink on the beautiful embroidery on the dress provided the perfect accent colour. A really soft pink shimmer on the lids and individual lashes to enhance the model’s beautiful green eyes matched with glowing skin and flushed highlighted cheeks along with the gorgeous hair and added foliage we created a really romantic look. Always have a trial with your hair and makeup artist, so you can see the style on you before the day. Try and wear a top the style and colour of your outfit to get the overall feel.”
The Details
Flowers
“At Wellington Wood, I love that you are surrounded by nature and nature is what inspires all of my work. I love bouquets that look like you’ve gathered all your materials from the surrounding woodland. The florals for this shoot were inspired by just that. Twigs with blossom, spring flowers, soft muted tones and a mass of foliage and texture. The oversized bouquet complimented the venue, dress and styling with boho forest vibes. When choosing your style for the floral work at your wedding it’s so important to consider your surroundings, the venue styling and colour themes to bring everything together. Working with seasonal flowers and trusting your florist with your vision you will be sure to get the most out of your budget. It can be maximised by creating movable pieces such as table florals and installation work. These can be moved around the venue without costing any extra.”
Cake
“With my love for the outside world, florals and foliage, I could not wait to bring the enchanted forest theme to this cake. I wanted the design to be elegant but hold the deep and earthy colours of the forest. The fillable tier allowed real foliage to be present and added that extra height. When the day gets darker, the clear tier lights up adding a mysterious light. I love to add some subtle texture to my cake designs which I have done by stencilling small leaves and adding edible moss. The edible moss creates a feel of the depths of the forest with the added delicate white flowers that would be hiding amongst the forest floor. Your cake is the centrepiece and a show stopper of your decor, so you can get really creative and bring all of the themes together or do something completely different and bring in both your hobbies.”
Stationery
I wanted to create something romantic and elegant to reflect the beautiful, wild woodland at Wellington Woods. To do this, I used vellum paper and hand-painted botanical and woodland scenes to achieve that fairy-tale feel. Together, it tied into the beautiful work of the other suppliers, perfectly complementing the sustainable wedding day and style of the shoot! From when your guests open their save-the-date cards, to the moment they raise their glasses and toast, your special wedding should feel beautifully linked from the very beginning.”
Photographer English Rose Photography @english.rose.photography
Venue Wellington Wood @wellingtonwood / Dress, shoes and accessories Tatty’s Original @tattysoriginal / Groom suit and accessories Dancers Suit Hire @dancerssuithire_halesowen / Styling Samphire Vintage Hire @samphirevintageprops / Florist Foxglove Florals @foxglove.florals / Hair Yuki Black @yukiblackbridal Make up by Joely she/her www.makeupbyjoely.co.uk @makeupby_joely / Cake Primrose Cakes @primrosecakesipswich / Grazing Board Ladunne Grazing & Cheese @ladunnegrazingandcheese / Stationery Somethings Brewin Stationery @somethingsbrewinstationery / Models Cathy and Will @ceemeandtea / Planner Ella Bella Weddings and Events @ellabellaweddingsandevents
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