To us, Tropics in the City meant industrial vibes, flashes of pink, luscious botanicals and hot love…
Katrina and I adore working with Rebecca Goddard Fine Art Photography and this is now the fourth shoot we’ve worked on together as a team; Beccy never disappoints and we love how she’s captured the grit of the surroundings whilst still being soft, feminine and totally gorgeous.
Our florist, Sarah from Hiding in the City, is a dream to work with. She’s creative, inspirational and her signature style was the perfect match for our shoot. Her ceremonial botanical arch, set against the backdrop of Shoreditch, was so much more than we had originally pictured and was perfectly placed amongst the simple white café chairs from Hire It. The mix of tropical leaves, heritage roses and Pampas Grass created the prettiest of bouquets for our Bride. However, the real WOW factor had to be the final installation, with our Bride emerging from the jungle, sat on her Peacock throne.
I’m so lucky to work closely with the ladies at Perfect Day Bride in Bradford-on-Avon, they’re beautifully stylish and of course they carry covetable bridal brands. Charlie Brear was our chosen designer and we were over the moon to have four of her dresses to play with… Yes FOUR.
The first was the Paita, which is a simple silk t-shirt dress. Paired with silver brogues and loose hair inspired by the ‘Hun’, all this bridal look needed was a pop of pink from the abundance of roses in our first bridal bouquet.
This dress is rather clever as teamed with a tumbling silk & tulle layered skirt it can create a completely different look. The Merletti Skirt is the stuff of dreams and if you want that full on bridal experience whilst still coveting a chic and simple style then this t-shirt top/skirt combo is perfection. We teamed ours with some 70’s platforms, a glossy metallic eye and a flash of leg… we are in the tropics after all!
The next dress was a statement palm lace swing top and skirt with fitted hip and scalloped hem. The Livonia top & skirt was teamed with nude Chloe platforms (mine!) and layered, gold geometric jewellery by London Rocks.
Jo Adams, our talented Hair & Make-up Artist, opted for a bolder eye and defined eyebrows. Perfect if you want your boy to be looking into your eyes as you walk down the aisle!
It’s here our Groom makes his appearance… Looking rather dashing in a dark green 3-piece suit from ASOS and a vintage suede tie in a soft buttery caramel. Burgundy brogues, an air-plant bout and a smoldering look finish him off nicely, don’t you think…?
For the final look we wanted to add some colour – step in orange lips, hot pink booties and a tasseled accessory by Bubblegum Balloons! We also dialed up the jewels with this dramatic Maud Traon ring! Our Bride wore the Demi Voulaire dress and the pale duck-egg-blue Corio leather jacket. Her hair was plaited into a messy Mohawk and this updo worked perfectly with the strapless cut of the gown.
Cutture carried through our hot pink hues in the stationery. A bespoke, laser-cut envelope with our tropical leaf motif and a simple suite was enough to tell guests they were in for a tropical treat! This Cutture creation continued through to our tablescape with tent card place names and a delicious menu. Oh and you see those neon Perspex signs…? Yep, made by the folks at Cutture. NB: You can also buy this very suite for your own botanical wedding! And our River Cottage inspired suite too (*ahem*).
Our tablescape was created using a mixture of West Elm and our own home décor! But the real details came from the gorgeous Laura of Hey Style fame. We used her awesome props throughout this shoot – from the cinema bench, to the tableplan, to the light boxes through to the gold dipped parrot that sat at the head of the table! Laura has so many amazing props for you to play with and they absolutely made our shoot. The cinema sign looked incredible styled with flowers by Friend of Faux.
I simply must mention the cakes made by Reshmi from Anges de Sucre. They were EPIC. Not only did they look amazing but they also tasted incredible! Reshmi creates show-stopping wedding cakes and she created a number of naughty treats, which included the main event and seven smaller versions! Think buttery vanilla nakedness, chocolate ganache drips, delicate macarons and salty golden popcorn.
To finish, we had the absolutely delightful Sarah from Insta-Wedding capturing the full shoot – A fab reminder of an epic team and a pretty awesome day.
Creative Director Emma Hla, Coco Wedding Venues
Shoot Manager Katrina Otter, Katrina Otter Weddings
Creative Consultancy Coco & Kat
Venue SNAP at Wimbourne House
Photography Rebecca Goddard Photography
Florist Hiding in the City
Floral Garlands Friend of Faux
Hair & Makeup Jo Adams at The Hair & Makeup Atelier
Bridal Designer Charlie Brear
Bridal Boutique Perfect Day Bride
Jewellery London Rocks
Stationery Cutture
Tablescape West Elm
Cakes Anges de Sucre
Props Hey Style
Balloons Bubblegum Balloons
Furniture & Props Hire It