As we start to see the first glimmers of spring weather, it feels like the right time to be sharing a gem of a garden wedding from last year. Yee Lin and Neil married in June at The Fennes in Bocking, Essex. They had their hearts set on an outdoor ceremony, so I joined all their suppliers in crossing our fingers and hoping that the Great British weather would be kind! Thankfully, we were blessed with the bluest of skies, and the couple and their guests were able to enjoy the beautiful grounds of The Fennes.
My brief for this wedding was an absolute delight. Yee Lin is someone with a genuine appreciation for flowers. She wanted something reflective of the season, something that felt natural and pretty and that highlighted shades of peach and pale blue. A colour-based brief like this is always fabulous for me, as it means I can select the very best flowers available, and create something that’s fresh, seasonal and wonderfully varied. As soon as Yee Lin said ‘powder blue’ my mind was already filled with the blousy beauty of hydrangeas. Gorgeous hydrangea varietal ‘Verbena Blue’ is the colour of old china plates, and I knew the big statement blossoms would pair perfectly with peachy pink roses.
A Statement Sweetheart Table
The couple opted for a small sweetheart table seating just the two of them for their reception dinner. This is a lovely idea, popular in US weddings but that’s starting to pop up more and more regularly in the UK. It’s a great way for you and your partner to spend some precious moments just the two of you to enjoy that ‘just married’ feeling, and it makes for an amazing platform for people watching as your loved ones let their hair down and friends from all walks of life get to know each other.
Yee Lin and Neil wanted to make a real statement with their sweetheart table, so I created a low arrangement of Pearl Avalanche roses, hydrangea, delphinium, dianthus and stocks in a soft apricot hue. The finished arrangements were textured and romantic and they smelled absolutely gorgeous. I used a copper frame garlanded with foliage to frame the table, and hung carnations from ribbons at different heights. The finished look was playful and contemporary at the same time - I was really happy with it.
The marquee was a big one, and there was lots of white space to fill. Table centrepieces needed to be a mix of long, low arrangements and taller, more sculptural pieces. I made sure the flowers I created for this wedding really worked hard, moving the low arrangement from the registrars pavilion in the garden to the sweetheart table and the pew ends to small vases dotted around the venue. The warm peach and pale blue made for lovely summery splashes of colour.
The Perfect Shade
Designing a bridal bouquet is always something I treasure. Knowing it’ll be gripped tightly and take you through your last moments of singledom before you cross the threshold into married life is a big deal, and I always put a lot of heart into every bouquet I create. The colours in Yee Lin’s bouquet needed to be balanced. I wanted peach shades that were on the pink end of the spectrum for a clean, youthful freshness, and added white flowers too for a little bit of contrast.
A bouquet needs to fire all the senses, and I wanted to make sure that this one smelled great as well as looking gorgeous.I sourced British Ammi and the sweet and herbaceous Apple Mint from The Midnight Garden for a fragrant finishing touch.
Looking back over these images has made me so excited for the weddings coming up this summer. Here’s to blue skies and warm sunshine!
Love,
Alana
Images: Jimmy Cheng Photography
