Our Black & White Wedding

I feel strangely nervous putting together this blog post. I guess a wedding is a very personal thing to share, but on Instagram you voted to see more, so here it is! We got married on the 29th October 2012 and so this post is in celebration of our 5th wedding anniversary.

Life events leading up to our wedding did not go as we’d hoped, and so you could say our wedding planning process was a little unconventional. It definitely didn’t follow the step by step guides you see in magazines and never did I think I’d have to pull all the details together in less than 6 months! But among that beautiful but chaotic time I was always reminded that a marriage goes beyond the pressures of the ‘perfect wedding’ and the price tag that goes with it.

I’d always had a clear vision of an understated but elegant monochrome wedding. I chose a silk Martina Liana mermaid cut wedding dress. Fuss free with simple fold detailing and a strong silhouette. I wore statement earrings and a bracelet my husband-to-be had bought as a wedding gift. I did my own makeup and kept my hair down in loose waves as I wanted to just feel like a glammed up version of myself.

My bridesmaids were also in white. Some might gasp at the thought but I loved the aesthetic of an all white bridal party! I think the key is to keep some sort of contrast in the cut, detail or length. They also wore white hair flowers which I made myself and carried a small bouquet of white Gerberas.

We were so lucky to have all our flowers arranged by my husbands auntie, she did an amazing job of our all white bouquets. We wrapped ivy and shimmering organza around the pillars and my mother created the lit garland at the front of the church. We were also fortunate to have my uncle print our wedding invitations and order of services (the paper flowers were diy). Getting family involved with their various talents saved so much money!

I carried a bouquet of white oriental lilies hand-tied with white organza ribbon.

Our reception was held in a marquee right next to the sea and so we had our photoshoot on the beach. The rain came down as we were chauffeured and I spent the journey praying it would stop for our photos. It did. But not only that, a huge rainbow appeared just in time for the camera; something we’ll never forget.

The white interior of the marquee and the black detailing of the chairs fitted perfectly with our theme. Our centrepieces were underwater lilies lit from the bottom with LED lights and a floating candle on top which looked so pretty as the night drew in.

We used a large white ornate frame to display our table plan, and smaller ones for the table names. Each table was named after a place in Monte Carlo as thats where we got engaged.

I found an inspiration picture for our wedding cake and had an extortionate quote for the design, so we decided to make it ourselves! My mother in law made the fruit cake and together, with a lot of practice (and determination) we iced it and learnt so much in the process.

I was so surprised when Your South Wales Wedding magazine got in touch asking to feature our monochrome wedding, and we ended up with a four page spread. A beautiful keepsake of our big day!