Even before Micro Weddings became the ‘new normal,’ very small weddings were already growing in popularity. They offer everything that may be included in a full wedding day, just on a smaller scale.
At Treseren in Cornwall, where they offer Micro Weddings for up to 22 people, they have found a surge in demand for smaller weddings in line with the current government guidelines (a maximum of 30 people). Couples who were organising larger weddings, or have had their wedding postponed, are now thinking about what a small wedding could look like for them.
Rather than adapting their current plans for scaled down numbers, many couples wanting to marry soon rather than wait post-Covid, are re-thinking completely and looking for venues that specialise in Micro Weddings.
Emma, owner of Treseren, talks us through the beauty of a small yet considered wedding in this new era and shares the beautiful images by Salt & Sea Photography Co. from Charlotte & Huw’s intimate post-lockdown wedding.
Emma says…
At Treseren, we already knew the secret about small, beautiful weddings – those couples choosing to be selective with their guest list can create a really special and magical experience. Choosing a small wedding is a positive choice and doesn’t have to feel like a compromise.
We launched our venue in 2019 and since then, have witnessed the joy and the incredible atmosphere that a small wedding creates, with our couples joined by family and friends that mean the most in the World to them. We have witnessed first-hand the real love and sincerity, as well as the fun and laughter that these special, intimate celebrations bring.
There’s a reason the Micro wedding trend was already taking hold way before anybody had even heard about Coronavirus. It’s because it is a brilliant way to tailor make your wedding day and create a unique experience which doesn’t have to cost the earth, but is all about you and the most important people in your lives.
Styling a Small Wedding
We have always specialised in small weddings, but crucially, small weddings with style. Our setting is very magical, with two acres of secluded gardens and winding pathways leading to our historic Mine Captain’s House. We offer beauty, romance and a sense of occasion, albeit on a smaller scale.
With its soaring Georgian windows and internal arches, the house has great architectural bones, subtly finished in a palette of whites and greys – Treseren is all about a blank canvas to create something small, but beautiful. We are also a fashion shoot location and we have hosted major brands including Boden and Celtic and Co, as well as co-ordinating shoots for Harpers Bazaar. We (Emma and Paul) have a background in film and television, and Izzy our Wedding Co-ordinator, has a background in fashion and interiors, so we understand and love styling.
We work with our couples to create the look and feel they would like from simple and understated, to a riot of colour and abundance. We have built up different sets of crockery and cutlery to create bespoke styling, ranging from a clean palette of whites to a beautiful, rustic salt-glazed crockery set which works so well with our gold cutlery. There’s beautiful artisan tealight holders to choose from, or the mis-matched vintage brass candlesticks we have collected, which look stunning with hand-dipped Danish candles in a colour of our couple’s choice. Just add some stunning florals to our vintage long table, and any other personal touches and the setting feels really special.
One Couple’s beautiful Small Wedding at Treseren
Our lovely couple, Charlotte and Huw (pictured throughout this feature) got married at Treseren just after the lockdown ban on weddings was lifted. They had originally planned a wedding for over 100 guests, at a very beautiful stately home, but kept the same date and scaled back numbers for a Micro Wedding celebrating with closest family. They chose Treseren because they wanted the feel of a country house, surrounded by beautiful gardens with lots of privacy to mirror their original choice of venue, but on a micro scale.
The Ceremony
For their al fresco ceremony, Huw and Charlotte opted for a stunning floral arch created by Tide Flowers, placed in front of the side elevation of the house and surrounded by mature trees. It was a really beautiful setting and as the ceremony time approached, we were blessed with blue skies. Accompanied by The Cornwall Quartet, Charlotte entered the ceremony space through our ivy-clad gateway for the most romantic and beautiful ceremony. They flowed inside the Wedding Room for their legal words and signing of the Register, before walking back out to the gardens through a cascade of rose and peony petal confetti.
Post-Ceremony Photographs
We loved the photographs in the Orchard afterwards, alongside our majestic 200 year-old walnut tree. The walled garden is such a beautiful spot and worked really well for the bridesmaid shoot.
After a glass of champagne and delicious canapés, Charlotte and Huw snuck away together to our local beach, Holywell Bay with its iconic twin rocks and beautiful dunes, for some really romantic photographs of just the two of them.
For Charlotte and Huw, this was a really special time because not only was it their wedding day, but it was an opportunity to introduce their eleven week-old baby girl to the family who had not yet had a chance to meet her because of lockdown. As a busy Doctor, Huw had been working hard throughout the Covid crisis and this was their time just to be, spend time with their family and celebrate their wedding before emigrating to New Zealand where Huw has been offered a Fellowship. It was wonderful to help them create the atmosphere and bring together the most important elements to create their special day.
The Celebration
Seriously good food was really important to Charlotte and Huw, and the celebration focused around a private dining experience with Chef Fiona NZ creating a stunning eight course tasting menu bespoke for them. The couple and their guests were treated to incredible flavours, beautifully presented and cooked to perfection. Everybody said the meal got better and better with each plate!
Charlotte opted for our salt glaze crockery with gold cutlery, vintage candlesticks with nude hand dipped Danish candles. She chose the most beautiful, delicate white florals which were set down the table and grouped in vases on the windowsill and set off the gold to create a relaxed, but elegant style. With the French doors open, revealing the green of the garden beyond, this was the perfect setting for a beautiful summer meal.
At the end of their day, we lit the fire on our fire pit terrace and everybody gathered with memories of a wonderful day.
Truly a wedding weekend to remember. Charlotte and Huw expressed how much their small, intimate celebration had meant to them. It means so much to us as a venue, that they felt that even though getting married at Treseren was not their original plan, they feel now that this would have been their first choice if they had their choice again…
Charlotte & Huw say…
Our wedding was the second post-lockdown wedding hosted by Emma and Paul at Treseren. It was a magical stress free day made possible by the wonderful team. It allowed us to see family again, allow them to meet our first child, celebrate our wedding as well as our impending emigration.
Emma made our dream possible and put us at ease straight away with her friendliness and was wonderful throughout. She has a very keen eye for detail, identified many small things and details we hadn’t thought about as well as organising and managing the bigger picture – she essentially planned our wedding for us! The location is fantastic, remote and isolated and perfect in the lead up to our wedding. The house is grade II listed and absolutely amazing (we did ask if we could move in permanently!). The grounds include an orchard, barn with outdoor patio and fire pit, which provided excellent backdrops for our photos. The rooms were large, well decorated and stylish. They were able to accommodate almost the whole of our party which again reduced the stress involved with timings on the day as almost everyone was already on site – avoiding traffic delays, car breakdowns etc.
All in all, if we had our choice again this would have been our first choice.
A wonderful wedding at a wonderful venue hosted by the most wonderful people. The experience of meeting Paul, Emma, Max and Georgia and the memories form out time there will never be forgotten! Thank you for all your hard work you put in over the duration of our stay, without you our dream would never have happened!
Venue Treseren
Photography Salt & Sea Photography Co.
Private Dining Chef Fiona NZ
Flowers Tide Flowers
Hair and Make-Up Make Up By Ione
String Quartet The Cornwall Quartet
Planning & Styling Emma, Treseren
Based on a weekday wedding in February. Includes 2-night venue hire and accommodation.