Lily & Matt: A Romantic Spring Wedding at Thicket Priory

We wanted our wedding to be romantic and in a grand setting that would also feel cosy, with traditional touches but a modern twist. Thicket gave us all of that and more.

Thicket Priory is no ordinary wedding venue – we felt that as soon as we entered the grounds on our first visit! Yes, the building is stunning, the grounds are immaculate, and every design choice is top-notch; however, what truly makes this place exceptional is the staff. All of the staff at Thicket are attentive and friendly, but our coordinator, Becks, and the general manager, Anna, really made our wedding run smoothly.

The bedrooms are beautiful, and the crisp/neutral design of all the event spaces allowed us to put our mark on the space. We also wanted a space where we could both stay the night before and get ready separately on the morning of the wedding with our families and wedding party, and somewhere that would accommodate many of our guests who could stay over after the wedding, making it feel like our own for the time we were there.

We wanted our outfits to feel classic and traditional with a modern twist. The groom and groomsmen’s dark navy suits were from Marks & Spencer’s Sartorial collection, and Matt paired his with a grey waistcoat, whilst his groomsmen wore navy waistcoats to match their suits. The ties were navy with grey dots to bring the look together.

The blush pink chiffon bridesmaids’ dresses, with short flutter sleeves, were from Miabelle and featured buttons down the back of the dress, which mirrored the design of my own. My Lily Mikado ivory ball gown wedding dress, designed by Justin Alexander, was altered to add short puff sleeves. The veil had flowers embroidered around the bottom, which sat atop the train of the dress. I changed into a Charlotte Mills sequin wrap dress for the evening, teamed with an ivory pearl headband.

The florals and colours for the wedding were muted pinks, creams and neutrals with hints of gold. The venue stylists were Ambience Venue Styling North Yorkshire, who supplied gold-rimmed charger plates, white tablecloths, and oat-coloured napkins for the tables, along with a selection of gold tealight and floating candle holders. They also decorated the base of the fireplace in the ceremony room with candles. They created a mirrored seating plan for the wedding breakfast with a line from Taylor Swift’s ‘Lover’; ‘At every table, I’ll save you a seat…’, as I’m a die-hard Swiftie!

We added some personal touches to the décor too – personalised blush pink cocktail stirrers were put into our signature cocktails, a handmade wooden box by the groom’s friend Mike served as a card box, and framed photos of us as children and their parents and grandparents on their wedding days were placed around the bar. Matt’s mum, Debbie, made her signature homemade raspberry jam, which was placed in gold lidded, personalised mini jam jars on each guest’s plate to serve as favours.

There was a very popular photo booth, an arcade game, and a football and ice hockey table to entertain guests between the Rolling Keys‘ amazing band sets!

Willow & Bear Floral Design was our florist – we’d seen her work online at previous Thicket Priory weddings, and she was always our number one choice. Her use of classic, seasonal wedding flowers with a modern twist was exactly the kind of arrangement we wanted for our wedding.

The florals featured ivory, blush, and caramel tones, paired with silvery green foliage. They incorporated seasonal ingredients such as ranunculus, blossoms, snaps, lisianthus, and larkspur, alongside a generous selection of classic roses. The bridal party bouquets were mid-sized, classical, loose, round and unstructured.

We chose statement arrangements for the fireplace in the morning room during our ceremony and on the grand staircase. Two large Bridgerton-style arrangements sat on columns in the entrance to the ceremony, and small arrangements sat in bowls in the centre of each table at the wedding breakfast. The top table had an additional arrangement which stretched across the front of the table, with bud vases nestled between the candles.

The cake maker was Tracey The Cake Lady, who works locally to us. It was a three-tier buttercream cake, which was surrounded by flowers on the cake table on the day. Willow and Bear called this their ‘cake meadow’! Each tier was a different flavour – raspberry and white chocolate, lemon and Victoria sponge.

The caterers were Hog & Apple, and everyone commented on how amazing the food was throughout the day. They had also served a small handful of our family, plus the bridal party, the night before the wedding – a casual feast of pulled pork sliders, salad & mac ‘n’ cheese!

The canapés included Yakitori chicken skewers, buffalo cauliflower wings, curried arancini, and everyone’s favourite: mini steak pies & peas, served with a mini stein of beer! The starter and main for the wedding breakfast were served on sharing boards. The starter was an Italian antipasti selection, including focaccia, cured meats, mozzarella, hummus, and chutney. The main course featured three types of beef – sirloin, glazed short rib and beef croquette. The vegetarian guests enjoyed a trio of cauliflower steaks, halloumi and veg skewers and sweetcorn fritters. Both mains were accompanied by chimichurri, roasted vegetables, parmentier potatoes and creamy cabbage with pancetta, as well as harissa sweet potatoes with tenderstem broccoli. It was a feast!

Dessert was a classic sticky toffee pudding accompanied by vanilla ice cream, finished with a chilled serving of limoncello, supplied by Thicket. The evening food, also supplied by Hog & Apple, was a delicious Chicken Shawarma or Falafel wrap.

We hired Carla Whittingham as our photographer because she had photographed our friends’ wedding day, and we were in love with the candid, beautiful moments she managed to capture. It just so happened that she also regularly shot beautiful weddings at Thicket Priory, so she was familiar with the place. She was also the one who recommended our videographer, Barney, who worked exceptionally well with Carla; they were the dream team.

Both Carla and Barney completely immersed themselves in the day, and we, along with our wedding party, all felt incredibly comfortable around them. Their documentary style allowed them to blend in with the guests and capture some amazing shots as a result. We can’t get over how stunning the photos and videos are, and we are forever grateful to them.

We both loved our ceremony and the actual act of tying the knot! After all, that was the whole reason for the celebration, and it was so special to have everyone we loved in one room there to witness our love. Our friend Adam played the keyboard as I walked down the aisle to the song ‘All I Ask of You’ by Andrew Lloyd-Webber, and my brother Will played during the signing of the register, while his fiancée Aimee sang ‘From this Moment on’ by Shania Twain. There were two beautiful readings, read by our close friends Anna and Eliot. Our mums, Lesley and Debbie, signed the register, with Matt’s brother, Peter, serving as best man and presenting the rings. The whole ceremony felt very special and personal. Our registrar from the Selby registry office was also very warm and friendly.

We also loved watching all of our loved ones have such a great time throughout the day – listening to our dad’s Robert and Paul’s speeches, watching everyone laughing and crying at them, and singing along in a circle to Take That’s ‘Never Forget Where You’re Coming From’ as our last song of the night were moments we’ll never forget.

Be as organised as possible before the big day so that you can switch off and be fully present when the day finally arrives. Hire suppliers you trust, so on the day, you can relax knowing they will take care of everything for you. And most importantly, savour every moment and be present – the day does fly by, but if you take a breath every so often to take it all in, you’ll remember and cherish it forever.