What better cure to the the post-festive season January doldrums than the wedding of two fabulous people? Sophie and Ben got married at Coombe Lodge in Blagdon near Bristol, surrounded by all the people that they love; who were all ready to keep the festive party spirit going strong! I love that Sophie and Ben had declared that since English weather is so unpredictable, why not get married when they knew they could count on the weather to be wet and dark. However, despite their expectation of bad weather, it was actually dry for all the key moments so we could get out and about into the grounds – you can see it’s a stunning venue that used to be the Wills family home.
Sophie loves fashion and not only was she super elegant in her vintage gown, stole and black and gold Jimmy Choo shoes, but her bridesmaids looked gorgeous and sassy in the chic black dresses and gold shoes she had chosen for them, a suitable match for Ben and his dashing ushers! The gold theme carried on through the styling with plenty of gold glitter everywhere. Even the registrar had gold glitter on his face during the ceremony, though that might not have been intentional. I’d like to think that Sophie and Ben had help drinking the contents of all the vodka bottles that made up the the table centre pieces, which were a nod to their student days when they met working at a vodka bar. Each guest had a bottle of sloe gin with a beautiful leather label crafted by Sophie’s brother. There was a lot of love in the room and the speeches moved many people to tears – I’ve only included two pictures of people wiping their eyes dry in this blogpost, but there were in fact plenty more including the groom himself.
Despite being super camera shy (you might remember Sophie & Ben from our rooftop engagement shoot http://marieman.com/blog/2013/12/sophie-ben-an-urban-rooftop-engagement-shoot-under-stormy-skies/, which I’ve since learnt that they’d chosen because no one would be there to watch!) we had some fun doing some light painting shots – as Sophie is passionate about photography, she’s specifically requested that we play around with long exposure sparkler shots. We had so much fun doing those, that she asked to do more with her head bridesmaid…you can see one where they spell the word CUDE out – I understand there is a story behind it, but you’d have to ask them to tell you 🙂 I loved everything about this wedding, but I particularly love the picture of Sophie coming down to the banquet room and seeing her delight to see all the styling and favours in place for the first time. I also like the fun pictures of them eating the macaroons which their friend Niki had also made for them.
The day was rounded off with a silent disco, where everyone had headphones and a choice of playlists – cue some funky dance moves and limbo. I was sad to go, but it does get to that point of the night when it’s kinder for me to go 😉 I had been really looking forward to this wedding as Sophie & Ben are much loved by their friends. Everyone had a really great time, so much so that eight of their best friends joined them on their skiing honeymoon to celebrate! That pretty much sums up the spirit of how awesome and much-loved a couple they are. Sophie & Ben, you rock!
Hair: Hobbs, Bristol
Makeup: The girls’ own work!
Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Macaroon Tower: Niki Downs at The Primrose Pantry http://theprimrosepantry.
With thanks to Matt for second shooting with me. Check out this bumper crop…
