A Glamorous Vintage Wedding at Hengrave Hall, Suffolk

We have a vintage-inspired, blossom-filled, über gorgeous wedding day to share with you… Oh and the best bit…? Louisa & Joe have just celebrated their 1st Wedding Anniversary! So read their story, raise your glass (or cuppa) and toast their ‘happily ever after’. Plus, you get an invite into the rather stunning Hengrave Hall thanks to Luis Holden and these fab photos, so what’s not to love on this fine Wednesday!

Enjoy folks…

Louisa:

I’ve always loved Spring and Joe is a teacher so it made sense for us to get married at Easter, during his school holiday. Being able to arrange our wedding over a bank holiday was ideal.

I (slowly) started to plan the wedding about two years before we got married.  We looked at venues of all shapes and sizes and were starting to get a little disheartened as we just couldn’t find the perfect one. Lots of venues had some of what we wanted, but often lacked that little extra when it came to a civil ceremony. Then we found Hengrave Hall and fell in love with it instantly. There was no need to keep looking after that!

I love history so it was never in question that there would be a vintage feel to the wedding. My engagement ring is a beautiful antique Edwardian diamond and I hoped that I could follow the theme with a vintage or antique wedding ring. However, this could have proved difficult as I had my fingers crossed for an eternity ring and that meant it had to be the perfect size!  Luckily I found my ring on a beautiful sunny afternoon when I was shopping with my mother in Bury St Edmunds, not far from Hengrave Hall itself.

Searching for my dress was fun.  The boutique I used came highly recommended by several friends. I wanted to stay with recommended, local suppliers wherever possible and Camilla Brides proved to be a good move. Everyone there was so helpful and I even ended up borrowing a beautiful bracelet for the big day (my something borrowed!). I had so many visits for fittings they all felt like good friends by the end.

Joe wanted to get married in a blue suit as a nod to his father who married in that colour.  He wanted a stylish, modern, fitted suit and Next offered a good range. They even made a regular fit suit in the same range, which my father and father-in-law wore.

We researched quite a few photographers but, following the recommendations, arranged to meet with Luis Holden. As soon as we saw his photos we knew Luis was the photographer for us – plus he is the nicest guy! His is such talent and a lucky find!

Although I was originally thinking of a bohemian, Art Nouveau feel to the wedding Hengrave Hall itself set the theme. It is so glamorous and spectacular that it really spoke for itself and I therefore only needed a few personal touches to finish the look.

My hairdresser and make-up artist were both so lovely and even brought me cards and bubbles on the day. They took the stress out of getting ready which meant that I could enjoy the morning with the bridal party (plus they made me feel great!).

The florist did a brilliant job with the vintage romantic look I wanted and Luis Holden and Mike Brown {film} captured our day beautifully. In fact I hardly knew that Mike was there which was amazing considering the size of his camera!

My wonderful friend, Laura, offered to make our cake for us as a present and was very patient with me considering the initial scale of the cake I was considering… I ended up conceding that 9 tiers was probably too many!

On the day, the staff at Hengrave Hall were so helpful. They were brilliant. In fact everyone was amazing! And the food! The food was important to us and it was to die for! If I could I’d get Milsom Catering to make every meal for me for the rest of my life!

For us the best part of the day was the vows. Being in a room with those that you love, exchanging vows and binding yourself to your soulmate couldn’t be beaten.

Words of wisdom…

You can easily get obsessed with minutiae of the day when planning your wedding. We definitely found the process had highs and lows. However, the day itself is the most intense, amazing and overwhelmingly beautiful day of your lives so enjoy it! And, if you can, film it, because it will all feel like a dream afterwards!

Venue Hengrave Hall, Suffolk | Photographer Luis Holden |Brides Dress Camilla Brides | Brides Accessories Veil & Vintage Armani bracelet borrowed from Camilla Brides, Headdress Aurora Designs | Grooms Attire Next | Bridesmaids Debenhams | Florist Pick-a Lily Flowers | Catering Milsom Catering | Stationery Pocketfold Invites | Tableplan Two Wedding Favours & Accessories | Makeup Artist Paula Daynes | Entertainment Eugene Portman | DJ Dream Wave Events

I’m having a major moment with ferns and they look so glamorous in Louisa’s bouquet! Plus their love for Hengrave Hall is so clear to see and this is the journey that every Bride & Groom should be on with their wedding venue… In my humble opinion.

Thank you so much to Louisa & Joe for sharing their words and thank you to Luis Holden for all of the full-of-love images… Don’t forget to take a spin through the gallery!