Walled Garden Wedding Case Study

Will and Henrietta’s Walled Garden Wedding

When we first met, the walled garden was little more than an overgrown jungle that had been neglected for over 50 years. However, over the past 10 years the garden has been lovingly restored to create the amazing garden that we all spend so much time enjoying now. The garden is such a tranquil place and the restoration actually started about the same time that we started going out so we decided given how beautiful it was to base our wedding around it. Just seemed appropriate.

My parents live down in the Scottish borders and it was important for me to get ready at home so I decided to stay my last night down there with my family. We actually ended up having a bit of raucous dinner the night before and we had the amazing Adelaide from Adelaide’s Secret Garden come and give the house a bit of ‘jujj’.

Now onto the wedding day. So the first to arrive to begin ‘the process’ was Ditte from First Light Photography. She is just beyond amazing! Earlier in the year she had taken our engagement photos as well, so we’d already built up a good relationship, which I think is really important. We are big fans of hers and have worked with her a few times since. Ditte started worked straight away and we have some amazing photos of all of us getting ready and just capturing the atmosphere at home. Next up was Claire from Emma Motion Makeup who came to do my makeup and she was brilliant. We had done a practice run a few months before, so we were very set on what we were after. My sister is also very talented at make up so kindly did the make up from my mum and she also helped with the bridesmaids. They looked so beautiful and just what I had enviasged. Their pretty dressed were from Maids to Measure.

For my wedding dress I was incredibly lucky and had the most beautiful dress made by Charlotte Simpson. I just loved it and it could not have been more prefect for my style and what I was after. I’d actually seen some of her dresses long before we got engaged so when Will asked me to marry him, I jumped at the chance to go and try hers on. Her dresses are so beautifully designed and made in India, which was really special for me as I spent part of my childhood in India. My wedding shoes were from Jimmy Choo - fricking loved them and very comfy. Their bridal styles come in different heights so you can pick what suits you. I had some very simple earrings borrowed from my mum from Cassandra Goad and obviously my engagement ring, which was designed by my husband with Annie Boursot (Boursot London) who custom makes engagement rings and is beyond talented. She has become a very close friend so please get in contact if you would like her details.

The journey to the church was a bit stressful as there was a car accident so the wedding actually got delayed by an hour and half. When we eventually got to the ceremony, we were very relieved and keen to get the show on the road. We opted for a church wedding at Crichton Church, which is only 7 mins drive away from Preston Hall. We had the fabulous Reverend Neil Gardener as our Minister and after an emotional ceremony we shipped our guests back to Preston Hall on a couple of red London buses from The Res Bus.. The very talented Mr Maxell of Flowers By Maxwell did our flowers for the church and our reception. He did the most stunning arrangements and the church looked magical.

After the ceremony, we had a few photos and then headed back to Preston Hall. Back at PH the guests entered through the Flower Garden gates and walked through the stunning Cherry Blossom Tree avenue that Will’s grandfather gave us as a wedding present to the Walled Garden. The drinks reception was held in the centre of the garden and canapés were served while our friends and family chatted and explored. The wonderful Tania from Gingersnap provided our drinks and catering and we cannot sing their praises more – phenomenal!

While the reception was going on we had our family photos taken up at the house and throughout the parkland amongst the amazing trees. Ditte and her assistant Chris were very quick and efficient and made the whole process very fun and easy. It always amazes us how often friends comment on the trees when they come to Preston Hall, yet it was only when we saw them in our wedding photos that you realise quite how majestic they really are. Having grown up with them all around us, I had never stepped back to look at them properly.

Due to the late start of the ceremony the drinks reception was slightly condensed, so everyone got a bit merry, but had a great time. My Dad said a few words under the towers before we all headed into dinner.

For dinner and dancing we carefully positioned the marquee behind one of the entrance doors to the walled garden which meant that it was hidden during the reception. The marquee from Arc Marquees provided us with a blank canvas to fill with flowers that were immaculately arranged by Flowers by Maxwell.

Speeches were before dinner so that all those giving them could relax and start to enjoy the day and things just got better from there. We had the most delicious main course of guinea fowl and then Will and I could not decide what pudding to have at our tasting to we ended up picking two (panacotta with raspberry coulis and then a chocolate pudding) and then handing them out alternately down the tables. Yum!

On the tables we also provided wedding favours for our guests. We have a lovely man called Mr Hood who keeps some of his bees hives at Preston Hall so we gave our guests a gorgeous jar of Hoods Honey and my Dad is also a great lover is whisky so when we were all little he bought a few barrels, which have slowly been maturing. We bottled some of it for the wedding and created ‘The Wedding Reserve’ with beautiful labels. I know both of these went down very well with our friends and family.

Our first dance was obviously very nerve racking, but we managed and then from then onwards the dancefloor was never empty. We had a fab DJ Chris from We Are Full Circle who pumped out some amazing tunes and we just had the best night.

Can we do it all again soon….

Now all of this would not have been possible without the careful planning and dedication of a wedding planner. At the time Will and I were working in London so it was a lot easier to have support with arranging this. We had the amazing Added Dimension and the whole team were magnificent. The whole process was made smoother and less stressful so while it is a luxury to have a wedding planner, it was certainly worth it for us. Having them around for the few days before the wedding during set up, helping us deal with the delayed ceremony, and coordinating the actually day was priceless. All family members including ourselves were able to fully enjoy the wedding and not have to worry in anyway. A HUGE thank you to Ant, Jo and the team for the dedication.