WORTH THE WAIT

TOGETHERagainPremium wedding venue Notley Tythe Barn in Aylesbury provided the rustic backdrop for Laura and Sean’s special day that was rearranged four times

Images courtesy of Yellow Door Wedding Photography

Laura and Sean met at the age of 16 through mutual friends and hit it off immediately. “We became boyfriend and girlfriend and after 13 years together, we got engaged on holiday,” Laura tells us. “We had booked a cruise around the Mediterranean and Sean had planned to pop the question on our first stop in Santorini. Unfortunately, it was too windy to dock but we ventured out on the deck to take a photograph of the sunset and that’s when he proposed - of course, I said ‘yes’ and it came as a wonderful surprise!”

SETTING THE SCENE

The couple chose Notley Tythe Barn in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire to hold their ceremony and reception. “Sean found it while researching venues before he proposed and fell in love with the place,” Laura tells us. “He suggested that it should be one of the first venues that we visited after getting engaged and I instantly fell in love with it too. Our original wedding date would have marked 14 years together but unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we had to change the date four times!”

Laura arrived in style in a 1936 Rolls-Royce 25/30 limousine called Elsie that became a stylish backdrop for their couple portraits. “We loved the car,” Laura tells us. “It looked fantastic in our big-day photographs.”

The couple added some personal touches to their wedding with the help of their family and friends. “Our best man arranged a personal video message from Ronan Keating for us which was very special and I ended up walking down the aisle to Ronan’s song called This I Promise You,” Laura tells us. “After our ceremony, it was wonderful to see all of our loved ones gathered together outside enjoying drinks and canapés, especially after such an uncertain year due to the pandemic.”

Laura and Sean named their tables after places that they had visited together over the years. “Our favours were charity

pins from Cancer Research UK, Kidney Research UK, Dementia UK and the British Heart Foundation, chosen in memory of some of our loved ones,” Laura explains. “Our wonderful friend, Catherine, made our delicious three-tier Victoria sponge wedding cake, which was her first-ever wedding design. The flavours were lemon, raspberry and blackberry and it was finished with a Mr & Mrs Kelly cake topper and decorated with fresh flowers matching those in my bouquet.” The couple styled their ceremony and reception with stunning pink and cream blooms mixed with plenty of greenery. “We had foliage draped from the beams in the barn where we said our vows,” Laura tells us. “My bridal bouquet and the bridesmaids’ posies contained pale pink and cream roses while our buttonholes featured a single pale pink rose. We filled jam jar vases wrapped in hessian with similar varieties and presented them on log slices as our centrepieces.”

LOOKING THE PART

Laura wore the dress called Faye by Essense of Australia. “I loved the embroidered lace detail and the statement open back,” Laura tells us. “I teamed it with a short veil and a pearl hair vine and my friend, Georgia, created my elegant up do. I finished my bridal look with a silver pendant cross necklace, silver bracelet and a pair of stud earrings.”

Sean and his groomsmen chose navy suits styled with soft pink ties and pocket squares to match their buttonholes. “Our bridesmaids’ dresses tied everything together because they were decorated with pink, blue and green sequin flowers,” Laura says.

TIME TO ENTERTAIN

“We felt so blessed to be allowed to have everyone attend our wedding,” Laura tells us. “We enjoyed our first dance to This Is It by Scotty McCreery outside on the courtyard which all of our guests loved watching.”

“Neither of us felt nervous, we were just so excited and happy that our day had finally arrived!” − Laura and Sean

THE DREAM TEAM

Photographer, Yellow Door Wedding Photography, 01296 641 641, www.yellowdoorphotography.co.uk | Venue, Notley Tythe Barn, 01844 201 226, www.notleyfarm.co.uk | Bride’s dress, Confetti Bridal Boutique, 0118 978 9839, https://confettibridalcentre.co.uk | Make-up, Jade Victoria, 07946 595 154, https://jadevictoria.net | Hair, Georgia Hutchinson, www.instagram.com/idohairbridal | Suits, Hawes & Curtis, www.hawesandcurtis.co.uk | Bridesmaids’ dresses, Little Mistress, www.little-mistress.com | Flowers, The Daisy Chain Flowers & Gifts, 01844 346 445, www.daisy-chainflorist.co.uk | Transport, Allerston Taylor & Regency Carriages, 01296 655 021, www.regencycarriages.co.uk