Charlotte & John’s Retreat East Wedding

It must have made a big impression because after spending a tranquil weekend there as guests, Charlotte and John whisked their loved ones back to Retreat East for their wedding day!

This beautiful, luxurious, eco-retreat set in the heart of Suffolk was the perfect setting for their late summer celebration; think rustic but with a touch of elegance, wrapped in 35 acres of organic countryside and wildflower meadows. They even took their puppy, Ralph, along for the ride too!

Charlotte says…

We chose Retreat East after visiting during the tail-end of the pandemic. We wanted a relaxing weekend away in the beautiful countryside with our puppy Ralph and Retreat East seemed like the perfect place. Whilst there, we got chatting to the manager and learned that they had just secured their wedding licence. After being engaged for a few years but not being able to decide where to get married we knew we had found the perfect place.

My dress was from Pronovias and, as it was part of their second life collection, it meant I could have it remade into a second dress after my wedding. I fell in love with the simplicity and elegance of the dress as soon as I saw it. In fact, I only went to one dress shop and tried on one dress, it was instantly the one.

Retreat East is such a beautiful venue that I didn’t want much else in the way of decor. The wedding was simple and stylish with white and neutral florals and table decor.

We kept everything else quite natural and my mother-in-law did all of the floristry for us. We had little cactus favours in the shape of love hearts which were from Beards & Daisies.

One of the beauties of Retreat East is their incredible team of chefs. The food was one of the main draws for us. As a family of serious foodies this was so important to us. Good quality food, that tastes divine but isn’t overly fussy. The chefs put their individual twist on everything making the food unique to our day.

Anna Lipska, professionally known as Images by Anna, is a talented photographer available in Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex and the surrounding areas providing relaxed, natural and dreamy images with a touch of romance. She was the perfect fit for our day.

Best part of the day

The best part of the day for me was being surrounded by all the people we love, watching them having fun and enjoying all that Retreat East has to offer including the spa facilities and hot tub. Having our loved ones stay with us over two nights allowed us to spend time with everyone, it felt so relaxing and special.