Hannah & Richard’s Pinterest-Inspired Wedding at Ever After

Hannah’s summer ’19 wedding started off with some serious pin-spiration and came together thanks to her handy groom-to-be Richard – keep scrolling for some gorgeous DIY big day décor, bridesmaids in black, groomsmen in tuxedos, and a beautiful marble cookies ‘n’ cream cake.

Hannah says…

Before discovering Ever After we viewed so many venues local to us in Hertfordshire – none of them really grabbed us. We wanted a venue where we could create our own day, where corkage didn’t cost more than a monthly mortgage payment and the chair options didn’t always include a colourful sash.

We became a bit disillusioned and nearly gave up, but then we found Ever After. We booked a viewing and travelled down to Devon for the weekend to really get a feel for the area. Once we arrived we were both genuinely blown away, the place just has a magical feel to it. We sat down with Nicola, the owner, and she explained that the venue was ours to style how we wish, there was not a chair sash in sight and to top it off NO CORKAGE. We were sold and secured the late August Bank Holiday weekend.

My wedding dress was couture and made by Australian designer Marquise Bridal. I wanted something simple, elegant and timeless, with an edge – the edge came from my rose gold Sergio Rossi shoes and sparkly two metre long handmade veil. Obviously being couture it fitted me like a glove and I felt fabulous in it. Accessories were kept to a minimum as I didn’t want to over complicate it.

As my something “new” my Mum and Dad bought me a beautiful pair of diamond Dinny Hall earrings, my something borrowed was my Mum’s diamond tennis bracelet and my something blue came in the form of my bouquet wrap, which my Mum had had embroidered in blue with our names and wedding date, and on the back was a picture of my late Nanny Jolly dressed in blue and a gold locket that my late Grandad Bud had given my Nanny Higgins when they were younger that acted as my something old. I loved knowing I was walking down the aisle with my Nanny Jolly and Grandad Bud close to me. The only other accessory I wore was a pearl hair pin by Louisa Grace Jewellery.

My bridesmaids wore black – not a traditional wedding colour I know, but I love the contrast between black and white and thought it would make the pictures look really classic. The flower girls and junior bridesmaids wore dresses by Angel and Rocket in style “Lucy lace.” Richard and his wingmen all wore tux’s – again probably not a traditional choice for an August wedding but i just knew they’d all look so handsome – everyone calls Richard, Dickie, so I love that he got to wear a Dickie bow on our big day.

Classic, laid back elegance was the look we were going for and details were key for me – every “guest touch point” was considered (can you tell I’m a marketeer?). Pinterest can become addictive when planning an event – you pin largescale installations without ever really considering the logistics of implementing something like that within a rural wedding venue in Devon. Thankfully, Richard is a builder by trade and honestly brought my Pinterest board to life! Everything I showed him he set about recreating, from the copper stands and centrepieces, to the personalised remembrance plaques to the amazing neon sign that formed part of our fabulous foliage backdrop. He even made our cake stand and fabulous copper candelabras that now sit pride of place on our dining table at home. Everything felt so bespoke and it all came together exactly as we’d hoped.

Our florist was Dartmoor Flowers. Deborah was fantastic. When a bride says “I don’t want flowers, I just want foliage” I’m sure a lot of florists would have run a mile, but Deborah really went with it. Richard and Deborah worked together to make sure the things he was making would work for her foliage displays, she suggested the wire he’d need to use for the backdrop and the depth of the centrepiece trays – we would then go about sourcing her requirements. The foliage displays that Deborah created complemented the lush natural greenery of Ever After so perfectly, and next to the black of the suits and white of my dress achieved that laid back elegance we were aiming for.

The cake was made by Cut Me Off a Slice – it was 3 tiers and each tier was a different flavour, Cookies and Cream, Victoria Sponge, and Lemon. It was delicious. The design was very simple, just a marble effect with a rose gold trim – it went perfectly with the copper cake stand.

The catering was by Taylors of Tavistock. I can’t tell you how many people said that it was the best food they had ever had at a wedding. We had tomato and basil salad with mozzarella for starter, then a slow roasted beef brisket, goose fat roasted potatoes in a red wine sauce with Yorkshire puddings and for dessert we had warm chocolate fudge cake with salted caramel ice cream.

Emma from Freckles Photography is honestly just a dream to work with. Her style is very candid and caught in a moment. I’m not one for loads of posed photos, of course you have to have a few, but I much prefer pictures that capture the essence of the day and the fun people are having. Emma does that perfectly. Within the package you get an engagement shoot included, so one chilly September afternoon we travelled down to Devon and had some really special pictures – as soon as we got those through we knew we’d made the best decision with Emma.

Best part of the day

The evening entertainment was a massive success – our wedding guests were our DJs. Everyone was given the opportunity before the wedding to submit a playlist of 3 tracks – when they were called upon in the evening they had to get up on the decks and play their songs. We had a prize waiting for the guest that filled the dance floor the most – “the dance floor filler” – it was pretty fiercely contested and it was great to see so many people getting involved. We asked people to travel a long way for our Wedding in Devon so we both felt a bit of pressure to make it feel worth it for everyone, seeing everyone having so much fun definitely was the highlight.

From one couple to another…

Details are important – try and walk yourself through your day before it happens and make lists of all the small details you think will make your wedding memorable and enjoyable for your guests.