Today I couldn’t be any more excited to be sharing Lucy & Andrew’s sparkly and festive Winter wedding with you! Full of candlelight, beautiful florals, and twinkling lights, in a color palette of wine red, navy and touches of gold, it manages to be festive whilst avoiding being Christmassy. It is a truly magical wedding and a wonderful example of how great lighting can transform a space!

Beautiful bride Lucy explains…. “We both like Navy and Gold. The wedding was around Christmas time but we really didn’t want this to be the theme or overshadow the wedding. With the help of our planner Liz Linkleter we came up with a colour scheme that focused on these colours and various types of floor, ceiling and wall lighting to create the atmosphere/effect that we wanted.”

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When it came to what to wear, understated elegance was the key for the whole wedding party. Lucy wore a stunning long sleeve wedding dress by UK designer Charlotte Simpson and her bridesmaids channelled their inner screen sirens in liquid silk satin gowns from Ghost. The guys didn’t let them down on the style side though, donning military attire for this super stylish affair.

“Andrew wore his Royal Air Force No.1 uniform for the church service but wanted to change for the reception. After spending a bit of time researching Andrew found a couple of recommended tailors as he wanted to have a tailored dinner jacket. Andrew finally went for Gresham Blake as they understood exactly what he wanted and offered a friendly and bespoke service.

The groomsmen suits came from Marks and Spencer and their waistcoats from Debenhams. Despite being a simple look we thought they looked incredibly smart and they all did a great job ushering the 232 guests.”

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“We are both very lucky to have large families and a lot of friends who we really wanted to have at the wedding. However this meant that we’d likely have over 230 people at the wedding. We also wanted to put our own stamp on the wedding. This therefore resulted in us only having a few venues large enough to host the wedding. After visiting a couple of venues we didn’t find anywhere suitable in London, until I managed to find a different kind of venue in the form of St Mary’s Church Hall. It’s an active church but they do venue hire to bring in some extra income for their charity. After viewing it we knew it would be perfect.”

Wedding Planner Liz Linkleter  shares how she transformed Lucy & Andrew’s reception space….. “We were tasked by the couple with creating something festive but never Christmassy, transforming a huge and empty church hall and it’s dark basement in beautiful Marylebone into a warm and welcoming location for their drinks, dinner and dancing. Brilliant Emma at Palais Flowers transformed the entrance with a stunning floral archway and decorations in the alcoves. Guests headed straight downstairs to the basement, where we draped the walls and lined them with hundreds of pillar candles.

Inside, the ceiling was covered in festoon lights, with a lightbulb installation above the bar. Following the drinks, guests headed up to the main hall with its dramatic high ceilings. Working in a palette of wine red, navy, champagne and gold, we dressed long rows of tables with hundreds of taper candles and beautiful florals, and hung a twinkling fairy light curtain behind the band. “

Pearls of wedding wisdom from the bride…

“It’s your day so make sure the things you’re doing reflect you. Also, if you can stretch to having a wedding planner, we can’t recommend the decision enough. It helped make the process so much less stressful as you always have someone providing useful recommendations and more importantly you have someone there on the day to help ensure you get to fully enjoy your special day.”

“The canape reception music was a guitar and sax combo by the white keys. The evening music was done by The Whitekeys and their DJ Mikey. Andrew spent a whole day researching wedding bands and got down to three that he liked. He then showed them to me and I instantly said that I wanted the Whitekeys. We then discovered that I’d actually seen them at a wedding previously and had really enjoyed them so we were delighted with the decision. Amy and the band were incredible throughout and our planner Liz said she’d never seen a dance floor so full at a wedding.”

Tell us a little bit about your photographer…

“Jonny of M&J Photography is a school friend of mine. They both did an incredible job throughout! Captured so many moments in particular ones when you didn’t even know they were there. The picture they captured of our first dance is really really special.”

VIEW THE GALLERY

Wasn’t their day just fabulous?? Perfectly elegant with just the right amount of festive sprinkled on top! I love everything about it – especially those gorgeous bridesmaid dresses! Huge congratulations to the happy couple, Lucy & Andrew, and a heartfelt thankyou to their photographers Morgane & Jonny of M and J Photography for capturing their day so beautifully and for letting me share it with you here! If, like me, you are completely in love with their stunning style of photography be sure to pop over to their website www.mandjphotos.com and follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

If you love this romantic Winter wedding and are looking for more inspiration for your own big day, then you might want to see Sidney & Dane’s charming church celebration, and Bess & Austin’s snowy Winter wedding. Or for more inspiration this Winter love story is a must see (especially the barn reception) and if like Lucy & Andrew you want to avoid the traditional red, gold & green color palette, then take a peek at these 10 beautiful alternatives! Oh and don’t forget to give some extra thought to what your man (and his men) might wear, here’s some advice on suits perfect for Winter from the Gentlemanual.

Amy

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Contributors & Credits

Photography – M and J Photography || Venue – Farm Street Church, Mayfair || Reception Venue – St Mary’s Church Hall || Wedding Dress – Charlotte Simpson || Hair – Emma Thomas || Makeup Artist – Claire Elizabeth || Groom’s Suit – Gresham Blake || Bridesmaid Dresses – Ghost || Planning & Styling – Liz Linkleter Events || Floral Design – Palais Flowers || Catering – Spook Cooking || Band – The Whitekeys || Stationery – Megan Riera // Transport – Retro and Classic Car Hire || Videographer – Boutique Wedding Films