2012-07-26



Jeni from Vanilla Rose Weddings sent me this lovely English wedding inspiration shoot for me to share with you all — and how could I resist?! English country garden is one wedding theme that never seems to date, and while so many couples are looking for a timeless look for their weddings I think it’s a wedding style which works every single time.

All the lovely photos are by Judi Checketts Photography. The venue for the shoot was the beautiful Merriscourt Galleries. The shoot was created by Jeni from Vanilla Rose Weddings, an Oxfordshire wedding planner. There are some fabulous wedding suppliers (based around Oxfordshire) involved in this shoot, and all of their details are below for you. Do click on their links to find out more! Over to Jeni…

English country garden — a wedding ideas shoot



I wanted to create an English Country Garden wedding in the heart of the Cotswolds for this photo shoot. The Merriscourt Gallery (located between the quintessentially English villages of Burford and Chipping Norton) has the perfect setting for an English wedding with simply stunning views, wonderfully friendly staff, and an array of spacious barns in which to create a dream wedding!

Couples can take inspiration from this shoot in seeing that they don’t have to search far and wide for those lovely details — everything we used in this photo shoot has been sourced from within Oxfordshire from wonderful and reasonably priced suppliers!

The gorgeous bouquets from Foxgloves & Roses bring the colour scheme together and incorporate a variety of beautiful English Garden flowers from the summer season, such as sweet peas, peonies and roses. Floral bouquets can be personalised with the lace or ribbon tied around the base, and can completely transform the look to suit each bride.

The theme can be built upon dependent on the inspirations of the couple, perhaps with handmade wedding signage, pillar candle arrangements, and a neutral coloured table plan, with escort cards using the floral fabrics used within the stationery. This accents the colours within the china, as well as highlighting the colours used in the centrepieces.



Judi Checketts Photography:

Judi Checketts Photography provides wedding & lifestyle photography predominantly in Oxfordshire and the surrounding area although will consider travel through the UK & abroad. With an artist’s eye on the details of your wedding day, Judi looks to provide relaxed images with narrative and emotional impact. To contact Judi for a wedding or other assignment please visit http://www.judicheckettsphotography.com or email judi.checketts@gmail.com.

Daisy Cakes Cupcakes:

‘Daisy’ was a whispy-white-haired, little old lady from a bygone era, with whom I was lucky enough to share my birthdays when I was younger. Her daughter-in-law, Kate, had previously run a traditional tea shop in the 1940s, and I was lucky enough to have both a mother and grandmother with a talent for baking.

Inspired by Daisy’s stories of a life in service as a nanny and ‘afternoon tea in the nursery’ Kate, Mum and Grandma always ensured that our birthday teas were a traditional homebaking heaven of cream-laden meringues, buttery melt-in-the-mouth shortbread, dainty little cakes, and an amazing centrepiece birthday cake. In June 2011, armed with this baking legacy, a growing obsession with all things cupcake, and a plethora of appreciative comments from my ‘guinea pigs’ (friends and family!) I decided to take the commercial plunge, and Daisy Cakes was born.

Whatever your theme and colour scheme, lose yourself in Vanilla, Butterscotch, Boozey Bakewell and Traditional Fruit Cake, adorned with delicate Daisies, Roses, Chrysanthemums and Sparkles. Homebaked using simple ingredients, dressed in the prettiest cases and icing, and sparkling with fairy dust, Daisy Cakes make a beautiful tiered centrepiece, or delightful table favours all personalised to you and your wedding day… the icing on the cake for the most special of days.

Paper Fudge Stationery:

Paper Fudge creates beautiful, handmade wedding stationery in a unique, rustic, vintage, country style. Specialising in bespoke designs, Paper Fudge offers a very personal service working closely with you to create an invitation design that will suit your style of wedding and reflect you as a couple. In addition to invitations Paper Fudge can also supply matching place names, table plans, menus, favours, hand painted signage and so much more — all lovingly handmade and tailored to suit you and your wedding. Please see the Paper Fudge website for more information. http://paperfudge.co.uk/

Umbrella Boutique/Brollies Galore:

Umbrella Boutique specialises in unique umbrellas for red letter days and weddings. When it comes to your big day, you want everything looking perfect– including your choice of wedding umbrella. With many beautiful designs to choose from and whether you’re looking for a parasol to shade you from the sun or keep you and your guests dry in the rain in between venues, you will find a style which really complements your wedding.

Chrissy Taylor Jewellery:

All Boho Designs are one off pieces, handmade in Oxfordshire by Chrissy Taylor, using genuine gemstones and precious metals. Incorporating keepsakes and family heirlooms into jewellery for that special day is a speciality. Choose from the Boho range or have a bespoke piece made just for you. Boho Designs –beautiful gemstone jewellery as individual as you…

Foxgloves and Roses Florist:

For brides that love the seasonal, fresh and natural look of country flowers, Oxfordshire based Foxgloves & Roses creates truly beautiful wedding flowers that look bring colour, life and charm to their happy day. http://www.foxglovesandroses.co.uk/foxgloves_and_roses/Welcome.html

The Favour House Cake Pops:

The Favour House is a family run business, we started TFH from the inspiration of my own wedding last year. All our chocolates, wedding table decor and finishing touches were home made with love and attention. We knew from the feedback that our guests were impressed with the small details and the fun and fresh ideas for favours that matched the theme and feel of the wedding. All the personal touches were so important and guests are still talking about them today.

Our Wedding decor and chocolate favours went down a treat and so we started making chocolates for family events and purchasing unique wedding favours for friends parties and christenings. We thought if people are loving these favours for their taste and design then why not make them available for busy brides and wedding planners.

We hope that you enjoy our favours as much as we love making them. Our wedding favours are also locally sourced and we spend quality time locating new items and goods to sell to our growing audience. http://www.thefavourhouse.co.uk/

Stylish Centrepieces:

Stylish Centrepieces can offer you a professional wedding and events table decoration and centrepiece hire service to help your wedding or event be even more special. We are located in south Oxfordshire and can cover most venues in Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Wiltshire. http://www.stylishcentrepieces.co.uk/

Sophie Kevlin Make Up Artist:

Sophie is an experienced Make Up Artist based in South Oxfordshire. She studied Media Make Up, and works throughout Oxfordshire transforming brides, bridesmaids and flower girls. Sophie enjoys creating a range of looks for her clients, and can suggest products, styles and colours which will look just fabulous! http://sophie-kay.wix.com/makeup

Cariad Bride:

Cariad Bride has been established in the pretty market town of Faringdon since 2003.We have one ethos and that is to provide friendly advice and service in private surroundings. No mad hussle and bustle, we see one bride at a time. Each one-to-one appointment lasts two hours to give you plenty of time to choose the dress of your dreams, totally pressure-free.

Owner Sue is bursting with ideas which she shares gladly and is great at putting minds at rest, finding solutions to the tiniest concerns that brides-to-be have about looking their best. In addition, we take care of the clothing requirements of the rest of your wedding party making the run-up to your special day easy and relaxed. http://www.cariad-bride.co.uk/

Jolly Vintage Tea Party:

The Jolly Vintage Tea Party hires vintage china tea sets for your special occassion. We are based in Wheatley, Oxfordshire but we can deliver to London and beyond. I have had the most glorious time collecting our vintage china tea sets from around the UK and have sourced a great selection of beautiful designs which date from the 1920’s onwards.

Our collection of pretty vintage china for hire really makes me smile! Most of the china tea sets I collected were in an almost pristine condition, and it struck me that those who had owned them before had probably kept them in cabinets and used them only on high days and holidays.

How lovely then that this vintage china will now be used for your special occasion bringing a real sense of style to any event. The vintage china is a real talking point and your guests will just love the fact that the items are mismatched rather than all one design, making for an interesting and colourful display. Reusing items which others no longer have any use for is also recycling at its best. http://www.jollyvintageteaparty.co.uk/

Wedding bunting in the top image is by the lovely Oxford Bunting Company http://oxfordbuntingco.blogspot.co.uk/

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With thanks to Jeni from Vanilla Rose Weddings & Events for sharing this lovely ideas shoot today. Find out more about Jeni and her wedding planning services at http://vanillaroseweddings.co.uk/

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