Lizzie & Andy’s Botley Hill Barn Wedding

So it’s lovely to be bringing their story full circle with their reception bash at The Barn at Botley Hill! L&A finally celebrated with their family and friends in this glorious venue, and these images by Jessica Grace Photography perfectly capture the sheer joy of it all.

Over to Lizzie for all the details…

Lizzie says…

It took me much longer to pick the dress than I thought it would, and the one I chose was so different from what I thought I would go for. However, I loved the lace details with the dress and could picture myself wearing it in the wonderful Botley Hill Barn. The Farnham Boutique were amazing, and I adjusted the design to make it just how I wanted it.

The veil was borrowed from my best friend, Maid of Honour and MC, Caz, who had generously lent it to me. I had borrowed her wedding dress for my actual wedding (this event was our big post-Covid celebration!), and it felt so special that she generously lent me her veil for this big celebration as well. I wore a Victoria Harper hair comb to add a bit of sparkle. I wanted natural, fresh make-up as I still wanted to look like me but wore my hair up to feel elegant.

The bridesmaids were in a sage green dress from TFNC London, as I thought it was a colour that suited lots of them, and the dresses were so flattering and elegant.

We went for a less is more approach as Botley Hill Barn is such a beautiful venue that you don’t need to do anything to make it look amazing. We decorated with pictures from our micro wedding and had to edit our welcome sign to reflect the new date, 18 months later than planned! In terms of the colour scheme, our florist, Caroline, was helpful with recommending what would fit the venue and go well with the bridesmaid dresses as I didn’t have a set vision and ended up loving her idea of burgundy, blush pink and sage green.

Nordic Twigs was our florist. I knew I wanted a rustic and wild-styled bouquet but was still deciding on particular flowers or a colour scheme, so Caroline’s expertise led me. I loved the beautiful final bouquet, which was exactly what I wanted without even knowing it!

A family friend has a cake company called The Looby Lou Cake Company, which has made delicious, beautiful cakes for so many family occasions and friends’ weddings, so it was a no-brainer that Rosie would make our cake. We had a naked wedding cake with three tiers with different flavours (carrot, chocolate and vanilla) and decorated with flowers provided by Nordic Twigs.

Jesse, our photographer, has been amazing from start to finish. She was one of the first suppliers we met, and her friendly approach and focus on ensuring she captured all the natural moments instantly sealed the deal. Jesse helped us so much with planning the wedding celebration – it was unchartered territory for us, like so many other couples, so we needed to figure out whether certain elements would work. Jesse really helped us think through what we wanted the day to look like and encouraged us to do the first look, which I’m so glad we did. I got so many comments throughout the day and after about how amazing Jesse was, even before we saw the photos. This is definitely down to her kind manner and ability to fit in so well amongst the guests. When we saw the photos from the day, we were absolutely thrilled. Jesse managed to capture so many moments we would have forgotten had it not been for her, and looking through them brings me so much joy and fills me with love.

Best part of the day

We loved the whole day, but the most fun was the party and dancing. Some friends from our university town have a function band, AB-Y, and it’s always a great party when they’re playing. It was so fun to be in a room dancing with all our friends and family after such a difficult few years with all the restrictions.

From one couple to another…

Try to keep sight of why you are getting married. The party, the dress etc are all lovely but at the end of the day it should be about celebrating love with your loved ones.