This day was a slightly different one for me, but what a day it ended up being. I'd originally booked a wedding with G&N that looked drastically different that what ended up happening, and like many people nowadays part way through the planning process everything changed.


There comes a certain point where you're planning a wedding where everything starts to feel a bit more real and maybe a bit too much. All of your initial ideas and plans are in the works, and you're finally faced with the final price of that big wedding and it's scary! And that moment can really make or break your plans. For G&N it gave them the opportunity to really rethink what they're priorities were, and it wasn't that big wedding at a manor house like they thought. So off to Nashville they went with their nearest and dearest for a wonderful elopement that was perfectly them.


And then it became time for my job. Although the elopement was exactly what they wanted, they did also really want the chance to celebrate with extended family and friends and an opportunity to honour family traditions. So a second day was planned with a church blessing and a big party, which I was honoured to be asked to cover.

A bride and her bridesmaids getting ready for the wedding together, the bride putting on her cowboy boots.
Close up photo as a friend does up the buttons on the back of the brides dress.

Getting Ready


Without having to worry about tradition, G&N decided to get ready together in their home surrounded by their bridal party and a few close family members. This created such a chill, calm environment where nobody felt rushed and left plenty of time for giving bridal party gifts and taking a few extra group photos in the garden with a glass of prosecco.

Bride and her Bridesmaids smile for a photo as they raise a glass of champagne.
Bridal Party (made up of bride, groom, bridesmaids ad groomsmen) pose for photos in the garden before the ceremony
A groom and his groomsmen pose for a photos in the garden, beer in hand.
Bride and Groom walk up the stairs to the church, as their bridal party wait patiently at the top.
Bride and Groom walk down the aisle in the church together.

Marriage Blessing at St. Nicholas


St. Nicholas Church in Moreton was a very special place for the Bride's family, with her grandparents having been married there many years before, so it was a clear, very perfect choice for their Marriage Blessing. Although they'd already exchanged rings and been legally married, this blessing gave them a chance to honour their family and carry on traditions.  

Wedding guests trying to hide their laughter during the hymns at their friends church wedding.
An order of service sits open, resting in front of two wedding guests.
Bride and Groom share an order of service to read the words to the hymns as they sing along.
Portrait of a groom in the middle of his church ceremony.
Vicar places her hand above the bride and grooms as she speaks the wedding blessing.
Side profile portrait of a bride in the middle of her church ceremony.
An order of service for a church wedding ceremony lying on one of the pews.
Guests sing hymns together, reading the words from the order of service at a church wedding.
Bride and Groom share a passionate kiss during their Church wedding ceremony
Bride and Groom and their Best Man pose for a photos outside the church.
Bride and Groom and their bridesmaids pose for a photos on the steps outside St Nicholas Church in Moreton, Dorset.
Bride and Groom and their groomsmen pose for a photos on the steps outside the church.
Bride and Groom pose for photos with family on the steps outside St Nicholas Church in Moreton
Bride and Groom walk hand in hand down the stairs outside of the church

Formal Photos at St. Nicholas, Moreton


The steps outside St. Nicholas are the perfect spot for taking your family photos! A beautiful green backdrop and enough space of even the biggest of family groups.


They also allowed us to recreate the family groups and staging from the Bride's Grandparents wedding.


Moreton Village Hall & Country/ Western Details



Moreton Village Hall is a lovely venue out in the Dorset countryside. Tucked away from the main road and surrounded by trees, it feels like such a secluded and exclusive space for you and your guests. The hall itself is bright and modern, with a wall of glass doors that allows for a seamless flow between indoors and outdoors. It has a large car park for your guests to use, and a large green out the front which is perfect for lawn games, keeping young children entertained and for any food or drink trucks you decided to bring in.


G&N decided to use all this space to bring a touch of Nashville and country music to their guests. Inside, there were fairy lights everywhere and wooden décor bringing a slight rustic, country vibe. And outside, guests sat on hay bales whilst drinking a nice, cold cocktail from the Cheeky Tipple caravan.  

Close up photo of delicate blue icing flowers on the top of a beautiful white wedding cake.
Wedding centrepieces made up of clear vases full of string lights, wooden log slices and blue table runners.
White wedding cake with delicate blue flowers surrounded by carrot cake flavoured cupcakes.
Cold drinks bucket sat on the side ready for use during a wedding in a heatwave.
A guest writes a message under a Photo Booth photo in an album for the bride and groom.
Giant wooden letters spelling out the word Love used a decorations at a wedding reception.
A selection of wedding decor set up to collect cards and gifts for the bride and groom. All wooden, giving a rustic, country vibe.
Wedding guests sat on hay bales out on the grass at Moreton Village Hall.
Two men playing giant jenga out on the field attached to the wedding venue.

Lawn Games


This is definitely your sign to set up lawn games for your guests on your wedding day (as long as the space allows it of course!). G&N had a mix of giant jenga, connect 4, beer pong and a cornhole set (bean bag toss) out on the grass outside the venue. And I've never seen a group of guests so invested and so competitive with each other, it really created some incredible moments.

Groomsman lining up his shot during a game of bean bag toss.
Groomsman strategically placing a piece in giant connect 4.
Candid photo of wedding guests reacting to an intense game of beer pong.
Bridesmaid celebrates, throwing her arms up in the air, after beating her boyfriend at giant connect 4.
Bride sitting on the edge of the stage at her reception venue, with the big wooden letters spelling Love placed next to her.
Black and White photo of the Father of the Bride making his speech.
Bride and Groom stand together as the Groom makes a speech to his guests.
The best man reading his speech as the bride sits listening on the edge of the stage behind him.
Bride and Groom cutting into their wedding cake.

Following Traditions


Even though G&N had had their full legal wedding abroad a month before, it was still really important to them that they followed some traditions during their celebration to make sure they got to share them with all the guests that couldn't make it to Nashville. They had speeches from the Bride's Dad and the Groom's Best Man, and then they donned their Cowboy Hats ready for a cake cutting.

A groom shows off the jacket of his wedding suit in the middle of a busy dance floor at his wedding reception.
Two wedding guests pose for a photo on the dance floor, cowboy hats on and peace signs raised high.
The groom and his groomsman stand up on a stage getting ready to stage dive into a bunch of wedding guests with their arms raised.
A bridesmaid and her dad dancing together on the dance floor.
A couple share an embrace on the dance floor at their friends wedding reception.
An older man dancing in the middle of the wedding reception, cowboy hat on.
A bride and her bridesmaid singing their hearts out using foam light sticks as microphones.
Two male wedding guests posing for photos on the dance floor.
Wedding guests on the dance floor at the reception, dancing with arms raised.

A Busy Dancefloor



The sign of a good wedding or party is definitely a full, busy dancefloor. And that's exactly what happened for G&N. They opted out of hiring a DJ and instead put together a playlist for the evening with the help of some of their bridal party. It ended up creating the best atmosphere! The music choices were so personal to them, and to their friend group, that they had no choice but to stay on the dancefloor.


I think this shows that you don't always have to spend the money and hire somebody in, and that it's okay to make more personal choices that suit both you and your guests.

A bride and her best friend locked in an embrace dancing to their favourite song at the wedding reception.

Fellow Suppliers -



Photographer - Rebecca Vallard Photography

(www.rebeccavallardphotography.co.uk)

Ceremony Venue - St. Nicholas Church, Moreton

(https://www.stnicholasmoreton.org.uk/)

Reception Venue - Moreton Village Hall

( https://www.moretonvillagehalldorset.uk/)

Wedding Dress - Chameleon Bride

(https://chameleonbride.co.uk/)

Groom & Groomsmen Suit's - Wedding Time

(https://wedding-time.com/)

Cake - Kerry's Cakes

(https://www.kerryscakes.co.uk/)

Styling - Mary Jane's Styling

(https://www.instagram.com/maryjanesweddingstyling/)

Cocktails - The Cheeky Tipple

(https://www.thecheekytippleuk.com/)