CLASSIC BOHO ELEGANCE IN CAMBRIDGESHIRE
December 13, 2017
Caitlin and Tom had their stunning wedding across two locations on the first Saturday in September this year, such a hot and sunny day. Their ceremony was in the centre of gorgeous vibrant Cambridge followed by their wedding reception at the idyllic Childerley Long Barn in Cambridgeshire.
WEDDING PLANNING JOURNEY
Caitlin and Tom secured me to assist with their wedding planning in January of this year. With their wedding being in the September, there was lots to organise and pull together. It was lovely to recommend and work with some truly talented suppliers on their wedding, it’s great to put together people that haven’t necessarily worked together as well.
The street food style of catering they opted for meant that lots of other elements had to be organised separately, this included the table linen, crockery, cutlery, glassware and additional staffing.
Due to their busy professional careers in London, Caitlin and Tom required full wedding planning support. Tom originally from Cambridge had some great musician contacts as well as some other good connections with regards to the coffee and bar.
Caitlin had a stunning vision of how she wanted the barn to look and myself along with their florist made this happen for her. It was an absolute pleasure to finally get to work with Anna from Julie-anna Flowers – she was actually my wedding florist 7 years ago. We were totally on the same wavelength with what we wanted to create and how the barn should look for Caitlin and Tom.
Caitlin had Chinese heritage as well as her father being Scottish so a touch of tartan and nod to her heritage was incorporated within the day.
Music, food and drink were so important to Caitlin and Tom. Provenance Kitchen were absolutely perfect for what they wanted and Kate was absolutely brilliant throughout. Her team on the day were just outstanding and I so hope I get to work with them again in the near future. Diane from A Place Setting was also super helpful with ordering all of the crockery, cutlery etc as well as some last minute requirements the day before.
Caitlin, Tom and myself had lots of catch-up meetings over the eight-nine month period to their wedding. Whether this be in Cambridge, London or over the phone.
Jocelyn and Emma at Childerley were so helpful in the run-up to the wedding day and Jocelyn and Nick were then on the day with them living onsite.
WEDDING EVE
The great thing with Childerley is that it is a blank canvas and you get full access the day before. This was perfect as the whole barn needed to be setup with 23 tables / 190 chairs and laid with table linen, cutlery, glassware and place cards. Anna delivered the vases ready for the following day as well. During the afternoon, a decision was made to roll and tie the napkins with raffia which looked just lovely in the barn. I also made sure everything was in the right positions for the caterers in terms of the crockery and cutlery.
Sean from La Raza along with Nick’s help made a gorgeous bar for Caitlin and Tom and other items were put into positons to aid the setup on Saturday morning.
I stayed within five minutes of the venue the night before at The Cambridge Belfry so it was lovely to get to the hotel, enjoy a glass of wine and have a good meal before long day ahead.
THE WEDDING DAY
I arrived bright and early on the wedding day. The lovely Huiseung arrived from Koala Cakes and setup the gorgeous cupcakes (with a mix of chocolate, vanilla and caramel), on rustic stands, crates and logs, as well as a sugar paste figurine of Caitlin and Tom. Anna arrived shortly after to start setting up the table flowers.
The barn looked just stunning with the mix of high and low table centres, neutral tones with greens and rustic twisted willow looked just gorgeous and the milk churns outside were just perfect. The twinkly fairy lights in the barn really added to the overall atmosphere.
I tweaked and titivated the tables as well as checking everything else was setup before heading off to see Caitlin with Anna (and their bridal party flowers). We both went to see Caitlin and her bridesmaids at the lovely Hotel du Vin in the centre of Cambridge before heading to the Church. Emma and Gemma who were doing makeup and hair were just great on the day as well as in the lead up. Caitlin’s hair was super thick and she wanted a real bohemian natural style with flowers and Gemma certainly created this. Caitlin looked just stunning, such a beautiful looking girl who didn’t even realise just how gorgeous she was.
At the church, I made sure all that Tom and his groomsmen all had their buttonholes on before greeting Caitlin when she arrived with her father and three bridesmaids.
Straight after their ceremony a few photographs were taken before Caitlin and Tom headed to Childerley in their lovely black cab, they were followed by their guests on coaches.
On arrival at Childerley, drinks were served in the garden, followed by canapes which included Butterbean hummus, togarashi, flatbread, Sea trout sashimi, seaweed mayo, tostada, Miso baked zucchini, chilli mayo and Seared beef tataki, sesame, coriander. A piano trio (keyboard, bass and drums) played during this time and lots of photos were taken.
It was great to work with Nick Grove again, such a talented photographer (and videographer). The images from the day are just perfect as you can see.
I ensured everything was all good in the barn, before everybody was invited over. Their gorgeous seating plan was put into place which was created by one of their friends, Kat. A quick debrief with Kate and her team as well before putting the wine and water on the tables ready before people were invited to be seated.
Speeches were split between the meal (two before the starter and two after dessert), all of which were just great. Their wedding breakfast was either Wood roasted butternut squash, Wood fired mackerel or Hereford Flank steak served with autumn greens salad. Dessert was pressed chocolate cake, vanilla yoghurt, crumble. At the end of their gorgeous meal a film was put on showing Caitlin growing up.
Coffee was then served and the day went into the evening with signature cocktails, including Pimms fruit cup and mojitos being served and expresso martinis.
Their first dance (My Baby Just Cares for Me by Nina Simone) was sung by one of Caitlin’s friends which ended up Tom playing the piano towards the end.
Evening food was a selection of tacos served from Provenance Kitchen’s airstream, along with their scrumptious cupcakes
Such a gorgeous, elegant and timeless wedding day all within the beautiful county of Cambridgeshire. A beautiful bride, relaxed vibe, with music, food and drink key to their special day. Huge congratulations to Caitlin and Tom.
CAITLIN AND TOM’S DREAM TEAM
Wedding Planner – Amy Thorne of Amaranthyne Weddings
Photographer – Nick Grove
Flowers / Floral Styling – Julie-anna Flowers
Cupcakes – Koala Cakes
Hair – Gemma Markham
Makeup – Emma Quin of Pretty Faces Makeup
Wedding Dress – Burr Bridal, Cambridge – La Sposa (Mullet)
Caterers – Provenance Kitchen
Table Linen, Crockery, Cutlery, Glassware – A Place Setting
Bar – La Raza
Coffee – Hot Numbers
Wedding Car – Panther Taxis
Coaches – Youngs
Piano Trio during Drinks & Canapes Reception – Friends of the Bride & Groom
Evening Band – Friends of the Bride & Groom
Ceremony – Church of St Mary the Great, Cambridge
Wedding Reception – Childerley Long Barn, Cambridgeshire
