With some of our favourite Surrey suppliers, and taking place at one of our most loved local venues, Gate Street Barn, Jenni and Tom's wedding is a wonderful example of a gorgeous, relaxed and pretty barn wedding in the countryside.
Jenni wore the beautiful, classic Antoinetta wedding dress from Suzanne Neville's 2019 Classics bridal collection, which she made her own with the addition of some delicate capped lace sleeves.
Read on to find all about Jenni and Tom's joyful July wedding, with images by VLA Photography.
Suzanne Neville Antoinetta wedding dress
I chose Suzanne Neville Antoinette with added lace cap sleeves. I fell in love with the clean, simple skirt line and the way the train moved so elegantly as I walked. The lace detailing sat beautifully across my top half, giving me just enough of the low back I had always lusted after. When I visited the shop for a second try, Corinne could tell straight away that something was stopping me from purchasing. My mum wondered out loud about whether sleeves might change the look slightly. Corinne reappeared with an example of how this could work and instantly I knew we had created my dream dress.
My mum came with me to each dress appointment. I had my heart set on a Suzanne Neville dress from very early on and liked so many of them. But when I came out in the Antoinette I knew from my mum’s reaction that this one was extra special. Having tried on nearly 50 dresses up to this point there were no tears just a lot of excitement at finding a dress that really stood out!
Dress Shopping
When I first started dress shopping I was quite overwhelmed. I was very sure of what I didn’t like, so much so that I wasn’t sure how I was going to ever find something I loved! Miss Bush was the fourth shop I visited and I instantly felt like I had found the place I would buy my dress. Straight away I knew Corinne wouldn’t try to sway me towards one dress in particular, instead offering practical advice and letting me take the time I needed to really take each dress in. I also really enjoyed the fitting process thanks to the wonderful Jo. Having a seamstress in house seemed like such a luxury and meant even more time spent at the chapel!
Styling
As we were getting married in a barn I knew I wanted my style to be quite relaxed but not without a little bit of glam! I was lucky enough to attend one of Miss Bush’s accessory evenings where I got to meet the lovely and equally talented Miss Clemmie who helped me choose a beautiful floral hair grip and floral pins for my loose up-do. My shoes were a white satin to match my dress with a beautiful encrusted feather across each front bar. I knew I wanted a veil and chose a waterfall full length which I kept plain to show off the lace detailing on the back of my dress.
A relaxed, pretty barn wedding
I really loved all of the planning involved in making the day ‘ours’. We knew from the beginning we wanted a wedding that reflected us, our love of the outdoors and a day that felt relaxed and informal. Little touches really made this come to life. No ties; Tom hates wearing one, so we decided neither he nor the groomsman would have them. We wanted to be outside as much as possible if the weather would allow, so Kalm Kitchen served dessert on the lawn on their amazing Patisserie Bar so people weren’t sat for too long inside and could enjoy the scenery and fresh air.
Our day was also very much all about the flowers! The extremely talented Gill Pike brought our vision to life creating huge floral displays around the venue. We even had our tables named after flowers, with a living table plan to show guests where to sit. Our floral stationery was designed to compliment our wedding colours, and we chose rustic touches like old crates and jam jars to decorate the venue.
My super talented mum made our gorgeous wedding cake. We chose three different flavours, one for each tier and had it covered in, of course, even more flowers! It was delicious and so special to have a cake made with so much love.
The best bits
I was extremely nervous on the morning of the wedding, but as soon as the gospel singers started singing the song I had chosen to surprise Tom with, I suddenly felt extremely calm. Walking through the doors to see all the people we loved in one room and towards a very emotional Tom was definitely a massive highlight of the day. I also loved the time we had together, just us, the photographer and videographer, to have a bit of breathing space and time to reflect after the ceremony.
Jenni's Advice
Don’t put pressure on yourself to cry when you find ‘the one’. I was so worried that tears determined whether I loved a dress or not. I’m not an overly emotional person so looking back it was silly to put that pressure on myself. It’s ok to need to go away and think about it for a little while (There are enough lovely coffee shops in Ripley to help with this!) or even experiment with different ideas for the dress you like! I never thought I would get to customise my wedding dress. It felt lovely to have a real one off!
Enjoy it! Sometimes the planning felt overwhelming and like it would never all come together but it really, really will. A big part of this is choosing suppliers that you LOVE and get your vision of the day. This takes a lot of pressure off of you so you can enjoy planning the personal touches.
Suppliers
Venue: Gate Street Barn
Photographer: VLA photography
Videographer: Ash Videography
Hair and Makeup: Natalie Danielle
Florist: Gill Pike
Hair accessories: Miss Clemmie
Groom’s suit: Tom Fox
Groomsmen: Marks and Spencer
Bridesmaid dresses: Monsoon
Caterer: Kalm Kitchen
Singers: Get Gospel
Band: Rollercoaster
Cake: Mother of the Bride