Nadine & Kieron’s Cotswolds Wedding at Lapstone Barn

In the idyllic setting of Lapstone Barn in the Cotswolds, Nadine and Kieron sealed their love with a June 2023 wedding. Originally dreaming of a destination celebration, the pandemic gently nudged them closer to home, where they discovered the rustic charm and contemporary allure of the Gloucestershire countryside.

Their special day was the epitome of classic and timeless elegance, beautifully captured by the talented lens of Sarah Taylor Photo & Film. With its understated rustic beauty, Lapstone Barn provided the perfect canvas for their love story, a heartfelt reminder that sometimes, the most exquisite moments are found closer than one might expect.

Nadine says…

We originally always wanted a destination wedding. However, we got engaged in 2021 towards the end of COVID-19, and many countries still had travel restrictions; at this time, we were unsure whether this would be able to happen and what the future would hold, given we had just experienced the country’s first-ever lockdown. This led us to have our wedding in the UK, opting for a location further afield from London. In our search, we were looking for something slightly different from previous weddings we had attended and wanted our families to have a different experience.

Lapstone Barn in the Cotswolds was immaculate, spacious and a beautiful blank canvas in its natural state before adding any decor, which we felt was very important. We could envision a summer wedding at this venue with all the open green space, the outdoor huts used for the Gin Bar to serve evening snacks, and the firepit for S’mores. The staff were very professional, lovely and very accommodating with all of our requests.

The venue knew that catering was one of our top priorities and was willing to work with us to ensure that this was right for us and did not disappoint. The catering team on the day were exceptional and ran a brilliant service from start to finish. In our venue search, we visited other barns and manor houses and ventured as far as Cornwall. However, Lapstone Barn ranked the highest and exceeded our expectations for what we needed.

The brief for my dress was timeless beauty. I wanted to pick something I could reflect on in five years and still like the design. I had always envisaged my dress to have lace elements and a mermaid-style skirt. However, once I started trying on the dresses, I was able to quickly whittle down which dress styles were more suited to me. In my case, the A-Line dress is what I kept returning to and was the most flattering for me. In my search, I visited ten boutiques and returned to the first boutique. My sister chose the dress I finally settled on. My dress designer was Justin Alexander and the gown’s name was ‘Hampton’. This was purchased from Bromley Brides in West Wickham. The customer service at this boutique was the best I had experienced in my wedding dress search.

The shoes were by Sophia Webster and Dune; I had two pairs for my big day. My hair was by Deborah Lola Bridal. She is an exceptional hair stylist and all-around person who knows how to deal with her brides; she is truly special, and I’m forever grateful that our paths have crossed. My makeup artist was Yeye from Yeyes Brides, another fantastic supplier who quickly understood the assignment. Both women were pivotal in my day and made me feel at ease throughout my bridal journey from start to finish; I cannot praise them enough for their help and guidance.

The bridesmaids wore sage green dresses from Jarlo. It was important to select a style that worked for all of my bridesmaids; I wanted them to all feel unique and comfortable on the day. My three sisters were my Maids of Honour, and their dresses were customised, changing the top part and adding a sage green lace insert at the back of their dresses. Our daughter was a junior bridesmaid, and we contacted the custom team to send us the same material as the other bridesmaid dresses. Her dress was styled by me and made by a dressmaker.

The groom wore a custom ensemble from Mochee London; my husband is very particular regarding his styling, and I felt confident he would nail his look. The groom’s shoes were from Boss. The groomsmen and three best men wore Ivory suits from ASOS with the addition of waistcoats for the best men. All ties and cravats were from Swagger and Swoon. Our son was the page boy and wore a rich beige suit from Boss Kids.

I wanted my decor to be a simplistic, gorgeous statement that showcased Lapstone Barn in all its glory. The detail was always at the top of my list for decor and styling; I wanted little things like the font styles and logo design to be a consistent theme throughout the wedding, from the projection in the stone barn to the dinner menus and signage around the venue. I worked closely with Retro Press and Love Storey Weddings to ensure these details were captured and executed precisely.

The blossom tree centrepiece styling, tealights, candles, petals and the dressing of our mirror signage were all by Izzy from The Blossom Co., who is excellent at what she does and executes to the highest level. Draping of the Stone and Northwick barns was by Styletopia.

I created a styling guide which detailed all decor and styling for the day and how this should all be set up and executed; this was used by the suppliers and worked well.

We chose a local florist supplier in the Cotswolds called The Broadway Florist. It made sense to source the flowers locally as they would be at their optimum freshness and beauty for the day, and they indeed were. The flowers were beautiful, and I loved my wedding bouquet. It was a large, luxurious bouquet of ivory avalanche Roses, Spray Roses, and Peonies with a collar of Gypsophila arranged around the outside—the stems tied with an ivory ribbon.

Emma Buston designed the wedding cake from Bake My Cake. We tried many cake samples. However, Emma’s samples were the most moist in sponge texture, and she offered some of the most exciting flavours. Her cake design finish was also beautiful. The cake was five tiers with three flavours (White chocolate Mud cake with raspberry jam and roasted white chocolate ganache, Banana sponge with caramel and vanilla bean buttercream and Peach, Prosecco and Elderflower). Emma also made my heart cake favour lolly biscuits presented on the tables, with each personalised menu acting as name place settings.

We also had other external suppliers for cakes and treats; Fiona Weston from The Cotswold Platter Co. supplied a lovely cake treat table with various homemade cakes. She also provided a breakfast platter for the bridal party on the wedding morning. Another company called The Horsebox Ice Cream Company served ice cream in front of the barn. They were all great, very responsive and easy to work with.

When looking for a photographer, we searched for a more candid shooting style with a few portrait shots. This style worked well with capturing special moments and taking the viewer on a journey. We chose Sarah Taylor Photo & Film and were happy with our final gallery. Sarah was very responsive and helpful with any queries we had. Her photos tell a story and speak for themselves.

Our videographer Jeremiah and his team from JCorp Films were who we chose for our videography; on the day, I couldn’t fault their professionalism and proactiveness in making sure they captured some of those special moments.

Best part of the day

There are two best parts that instantly come to mind. The first was the morning of the wedding when I was supposed to be in hair and make-up in the hayloft and wandered downstairs in my bridal robe as the suppliers were setting up in the Stone and Northwick barn to see how everything was coming together. I had a conversation with a few of the suppliers and started to feel excited as I could feel the day would be a special one to remember.

The second was the first dance; we loved every moment and felt like we were in a bubble of enjoyment.

From one couple to another…

Treasure every moment; it’s over in a heartbeat, and then it’s back to reality.