LOVE AL FRESCO

Venues that embrace the great outdoors

FIREFLOWER TIPIS, STOW-ON-THE-WOLD, GLOUCESTERSHIRE (BUT COVERING NATIONWIDE)

These magical tipis are available for hire for weddings and events. During the summer months, the sides can be tied up revealing the surroundings, allowing guests to admire the views, relax on hay bales and compete in garden games.

Menu choices to complement a tipi wedding can be anything from fine dining or a grazing table set up inside to outdoor options including a barbecue, wood-fired pizza van, fish and chip van and a mobile horsebox bar. At night, guests can gather around firepits toasting marshmallows and watching a firework grand finale.

During the colder months, the tipis can be dressed with sheepskin rugs and blankets offering a cosy feel. Doors can be added and so can indoor firepits.

A selection of tipis and sizes are available to hire from Fireflower Tipis to create the right space for each couple’s requirements. There’s the option of adding a snug, catering tent and a separate smaller tipi as a children’s play area – the options are endless. The team also has a large range of furniture for hire including bars, atmospheric lighting and other fun ideas.

Ceremony licence? No Contact: 07814 684 424, http://fireflowertipis.com, www.facebook.com/fireflowertipis www.instagram.com/fireflowertipis

SPACEINTENSE, STROUD (HIRING THROUGHOUT GLOUCESTERSHIRE AND NEIGHBOURING COUNTIES)

This marquee hire company offers various-sized structures plus furniture, flooring, drapes and accessories. The larger wedding tents available are traditional marquees ranging from a 30ft canvas style in a Victorian design to a 70ft circular Big Top tent. The team has introduced two 50ft marquees to complement these. One of these is round-ended and the other square and these structures are popular for weddings with more than 100 guests. (They all require the ground to be soft to be installed.) The interior can be lined with an ivory pleated fabric or a black or midnight-blue starcloth and separate spaces can be created for a wedding, for example, a bar, chill-out area with comfortable sofas and space for a dancefloor. The large range of furniture for hire includes classic boarded trestle tables and wooden chairs with ivory seat pads. The marquees look magical when lit up with fairylights and bespoke lighting that can extend outside with Olympic torches marking walkways or steps.

❤ We love… that coloured Moroccan pouffes and coffee tables are also available to hire that look great scattered in a chill-out tent.

*Turn to page nine to read about the new overhead frames designed to support floral arrangements. Ceremony licence? No Contact: 01452 813 658, https://spaceintense.co.uk www.facebook.com/Spaceintense www.instagram.com/spaceintense

DE VERE COTSWOLD WATER PARK, SOUTH CERNEY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE

This contemporary hotel is built on a nature reserve surrounded by 152 lakes that make up the Cotswold Water Park. It’s home to 328 stylish bedrooms and elegant suites that are equipped with a lounge area, kingsize beds and lakeside terraces boasting picturesque views, turn to our exclusive offer on page 13 to read more.

Ceremonies take place in a choice of seven contemporary lakeside spaces. The property is ideal for an elopement wedding with just two guests up to a grand affair with 500 loved ones. The wedding breakfast and reception takes places in a choice of elegant function suites and the outdoor terrace offering uninterrupted views is ideal for summer soirées.

The hotel operates 24 hours, perfect for a nightcap in the bar or a midnight feast from The Pantry, an area in reception loaded with snacks and ice cream served from a pink and white-striped trike (that can be hired for weddings.)

Ceremony licence? Yes Contact: 01285 864 000, www.devere.co.uk/cotswold-water-park-hotel www.facebook.com/DeVereHotels

MATARA CENTRE, KINGSCOTE, GLOUCESTERSHIRE

Matara is an exclusive-use venue set on 28 acres in the beautiful Cotswolds. There are parklands filled with wildflowers, woodlands bursting with bluebells and six formal gardens.

The highlight of this stunning venue is the cloistered courtyard. This Asian-inspired outdoor area surrounds a Koi carp pond. Couples can make their entrance through the keyhole arch and say their vows outside on the platform that reaches out over the Koi, surrounded by guests. Another outdoor option is under the Rose Arbour on the front lawn. This runs the length of the house framing the raised stone terrace with up to 200 guests seated on the front lawn.

The main reception room, the Hilarium, features a unique dome in the centre, a wall of fairylights and six pairs of French doors that fill the room with natural light. Indoor ceremonies take place here as well as the wedding breakfast for up to 150 guests, and the bar is located just off this room.

The atrium that’s filled with plants and trees creates the ideal spot for a micro wedding ceremony. Also situated inside the house is the Sun Room where up to 30 loved ones can gather. https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=vUL1yVungk0

❤ We love… The fusion of Asian and English cultures make this venue truly unique. Every couple that books a wedding here enjoy a complimentary tasting with the in-house chef. The team also plants a tree on the property for every couple that ties the knot here.

Ceremony licence? Yes Contact: 01453 861 050, https://matara.co.uk/weddings www.facebook.com/TheMataraCentre www.instagram.com/mataracentre