An English Country Wedding at Bridwell

From meeting on a beach in Egypt to a long distance relationship between Belgium, Spain, Brussels and the Cayman Islands, this couple designed their wedding to provide guests with a taste of home. Their friends travelled from all around the globe to spend the weekend at Bridwell in Devon, home to Lord Ivar Mountbatten, for a very English Country summer wedding.

The wedding dress was designed by Suzanne Neville, courtesy of The White Room. The bride, Sarah, chose it primarily because it moved so naturally and felt so light and floaty. However, she explained that it’s very production also meant something special to her:

‘The crystals on the dress are genuine Swarovski crystals from Austria, the fabric in the skirt is sourced from France and Italy, the dress is cut and made in the UK (I wanted to support a British designer so this was important to me!) Then the bodice is sent to India where every single one of the beads is hand stitched – a true labor of love. Aside the cut and feel of the dress, I loved the idea of it being fundamentally British but being made in Asia and Europe – places that have been a big part of my life.’

Sarah hadn’t planned on wearing a bracelet but when this gorgeous Daniella Draper bangle arrived on the wedding morning from her husband-to-be, it couldn’t have been a better match.

Sarah chose to pair her Suzanne Neville dress with a delicate lace shoe by designer Ruth Shawby at Harriet Wilde.

Bridwell has it’s own non-consecrated chapel on site, which provided the backdrop for the wedding ceremony. Originally designed to house all of Captain Cook’s treasures, it added the perfect mix of history, adventure and romance to the day.

Sarah and Serle chose to include a ‘First Look’ in their wedding day; where the Bride and Groom meet secretly before the wedding ceremony. You can read more about a ‘First Look’ here. Sarah explains how she felt about their decision below:

‘Natalie convinced us to do a first look which I am really pleased we did and I would recommend it to other couples. It meant Serle and I got to see each other on our own ahead of the ceremony, which was special as from the ceremony on, the day just flies by and its hard to find a moment alone. It also meant we got a lot of the couple shots done before the wedding when hair, make up, flowers etc were fresh and we didn’t have to disappear from the drinks reception and leave our friends and family.’

The Bride and Groom chose to also include a confetti tunnel after the ceremony, with their beautiful son taking a central role!

The couple provided everything their guests would need, including a small marquee to house drinks and a seating area for their guests, decorated by their floral designer Amber Persia. The fabulous Blue Fizz Events provided planning, coordination and styling of the day.

‘We sourced lots of outdoor lighting, vintage wooden trestle tables from Virginia’s Vintage which were gorgeous and outdoor tents, sofas etc from funky tents. Amber styled these with flowers and some beautiful cabbage and roses cushions.’

The Orangery at Bridwell provided a light and airy backdrop for the Wedding Breakfast.

The focal point of the breakfast room was a stunning 16 foot hanging centrepiece that stretched the length of the central table. Created by floral designer, Amber Persia, it was the result of months of preparation, as Sarah explains:

‘We spent quite a bit of time and several meetings going over all the various elements. I wanted one big wow statement in the reception and Amber designed this amazing structure over the top table which was covered in greenery and flowers and beautiful hanging candles. She and her team worked really hard and we had so many compliments on the flowers both from guests and the venue who said they had never seen their venues as well dressed!’

The Bride and Groom chose Edible Essence to create a semi-naked cake, with the top tier covered in gold leaf to complement the colour scheme. It was then then decorated with lots of fresh natural flowers.

They complimented this 4-tiered wonder with a savoury cheese and pork pie cake from the West Country cheese company.

All the details were beautifully simple and in keeping with the natural theme. The Bride and Groom provided fudge favours, which were individually wrapped in natural linen tied with brown string. The place-settings included linen napkins with hand dyed ribbons and herbs, adding a rustic element to the room.

The wedding breakfast food was provided by Wildfork West and was central to their countryside theme, as the Bride explains:

‘We went for a British picnic which included roast beef, poached salmon, sausage rolls and some lovely colourful salads – radish, mint and feta, green cous cous and pomegranate and barley.’