Oh my gosh, how I adore this adorable duo and their whimsical wedding festivities! From their engagement session to their rehearsal dinner (complete with croquet, a colorful lounge area and balloon animals!) this Bride and Groom couldn’t be cuter (neither could their flower girls!). And don’t even get me started on their wedding—drenched in out-of-this-world florals by Zita Elze. Check out the full gallery here to see it all!
From the beautiful Bride… With guests coming from each corner of the world, and the fact that we chose The Savoy as a venue, we wanted to create a special experience for our guests for a very memorable occasion. We wanted something that reflected both mine & Andrew’s quirks and was grand whilst also intimate so our guests felt relaxed and enjoyed the day as much as we did.
The Savoy is one of the most incredible hotels in the entire world but furthermore it allowed us to have all our guests over three very different stunning rooms and move comfortably within them.
My dress was bespoke couture and encompassed everything I had envisaged and more. It was A-line with an internal drop waist corset, white lace over ivory duchess satin with a cap sleeve and the back had sheer lace at the top & a 72 inch train. Beading was on the bodice & sleeves and added along the hem and scattered up the skirt and up the centre of the train. The process of its creation was a real joy, I met every few weeks for 6 months with Philippa’s team who could not have been lovelier and those meetings were always the highlight of my week, their devotion to their craft was really inspiring and seeing the dress slowly come together was a joy. Nicholas Kirkwood Bespoke made a lace ankle boot for me in the same lace as my dress. The bridesmaids and my sisters/maids of honour chose their own dresses as we wanted them to look & feel their best.
The floral brief was a sense of magical organic romance —a very romantic wild country garden where the theme flowed from room to room. I didn’t want anything structured or too formal. The aisle in the ceremony room was grass lined with moss and trees which created a magical garden for my walk up the aisle. The main focus in the reception room was a tree covered in bespoke paper lanterns which replaced escort cards—each one had guest names and their table numbers.
We used poetry plates as favors which acted as the charger plate on the dinner tables. We had our names and wedding date printed on the reverse side. These were later boxed and placed in gift bags with our initials on for each guest to take away at the end of the evening.
The most memorable part of the wedding day was being on the dance floor when Beverley Knight started singing my favourite song Black Butta, which is something I will remember for the rest of my life!
Cranes were incorporated into our wedding theme which signify good luck in Sudan, and small watercolours of scenes from our hometown of Khartoum were given as favors.
For the Rehearsal Dinner, the florist created two distinct styles for the two different sides of the party. The first was an english garden style on the front lawn, with english blooms & roses in antique
vases on the tables. For the second part of the party, in the back garden, the style was modern Asian and the flowers were in jewel tones to match the decor.
We set up a Pad Thai station in the garden for an informal and fun dinner, which was served in polished coconut shells. There was also a tent filled with a buffet of miniature desserts.
We incorporated lots of entertainment for both adults and children including a balloon artist, a magician, singers, a band and we ended the evening with fireworks on the lawn.
Since lots of our guests don’t drink alcohol, we wanted them to feel like we hadn’t forgotten about them, and so we hired professional mixologists to create a wonderful selection of non alcoholic cocktails.
Photography: Catherine Mead | Videographer: Bloomsbury Films | Wedding Planner: By Bruce Russell | Floral Design: ZITA ELZE | Wedding Dress: Phillipa Lepley Couture | Cake: Peggy Porschen | Stationery: Grosvenor Stationery Company | Ceremony Venue: The Savoy | Reception Venue: The Savoy | Wedding Shoes: Nicholas Kirkwood | Hair Stylist: Shaun Hoffman At Sejour | Lighting: Wise Productions | Balloon Artist: Miss Ballooniverse | Chairs: Great Hire | Escort Lanterns: Cutture | Flowergirls’ Dresses: Nicki Macfarlane | Groom’s Attire: Tom Ford | Indian Tents: Raj Tent Club | Linens & Glassware: Options | Magician: Christopher Howell | Make Up Artist: Rachel Jones | Poetry Plate Favours: Mineheart | Rehearsal Dinner Caterers: Rhubarb | Rehearsal Dinner Dress: Oscar De La Renta | Rehearsal Dinner Floral Design: Wildflower Cafe | Rehearsal Dinner Groom's Attire: Paul Smith | Rehearsal Dinner Headband: jennifer behr | Rehearsal Dinner Oyster Shuckers: Oyster Meister | Rehearsal Dinner Planner: Teatime Production | Rehearsal Dinner Shoes: Chanel | Rehearsal Dinner Venue: Family’s Home | Singer: Beverley Knight | Singer: Cassia O’Reilly | Veil: Phillipa Lepley Couture