Festival Flair

Sarah and Martin took inspiration from Woodstock to create a wedding with a festival feel and cool country details.
Images by Eyeshine Photography

Click on any of the images below to view a larger version

Early days…

Sarah and Martin met at a 10k charity fun run after being introduced by mutual friends. "I think they realised we were both outdoors-types and took the initiative to set us up," Martin tells us.
"We all got together for a drink after the run and that's when Sarah and I got chatting. I loved Sarah's smile, she loved my skinny legs. From there we agreed to go on a bike ride together in the Brecon Beacons a few weeks later where, in an attempt to impress her, I tried to jump a small ditch - and ended up in it. After Sarah had stopped laughing - 10 minutes later - she came to my rescue, and hauled me out."
After love grew between the pair, Martin chose a riverside setting in Amsterdam to pop the question beneath a full moon.

The venues…

With the great outdoors firmly in mind, Sarah and Martin chose Folly Farm as the setting for a country wedding with a twist. "We loved the place from the moment we stumbled across it during a walk in the countryside," recalls Sarah. "It's a beautiful farm in an amazing location. We booked it for an entire weekend, and invited all of our guests for a barbecue the day before the wedding."

The attendants…

"My sister Emma was my bridesmaid and our little cousin Daisy was a flowergirl," Sarah tells us. "I asked Daisy what she would like to wear and she chose a pretty white dress and little white shoes. We made her a posy of flowers to match my bouquet and my sister wore a wrist corsage."

The dress…

"I had a run of bad luck with my dress and with just two weeks to go till the big day, I went into super-organisational mode and found one I loved by Sarah Arnett. Three fabulous ladies from Glamorgan Tailoring then did the alterations and customisations - they were fantastic," says Sarah.

The flowers…

"The ceremony room was wonderfully light so all it needed was a little touch of colour and country charm. We put small arrangements of flowers in to antique glass vases and placed them on the windowsills and put tall arrangements of flocks at the back of the room. I also made rustic-style wreaths of flowers, which we hung on the chairs. To continue the country-flower theme at our reception we put blooms in handpainted pots and used them as table centrepieces," explains Sarah.

The transport…

Sarah and Martin continued their festival theme with cool transport for the bride which looked great in photos. "I got picked up on the morning of the wedding in a vintage camper van; it had a very hippy feel and Martin and I loved it!"

The decorative touches…

"I took inspiration from village fêtes for our place names and wrapped vintage fabric corsages around each guest's napkin. From the ceiling of our big top-style marquee we hung paper lanterns, which had pretty ribbons and beads attached to them," Sarah tells us. "For favours I made strawberry jam and put pretty fabric lids and cute labels on the jars - I've since been told they were scoffed up very quickly! We also sourced local cider and made up little bottles of it for our male guests."

The best bits…

The entertainment that Sarah and Martin provided for their guests was the perfect end to their big day. "We arranged for a cool Mexican-style band to play in the afternoon while we had cocktails, who were very funny. DJ friends of ours then played some really funky stuff for us in the evening, which included brilliant mixes they had created as a surprise. The party carried on until about 4am!"

The honeymoon…

"We spent our honeymoon in three different countries in Central America as it was a part of the world we'd always wanted to visit," says Sarah. "We booked all of the flights at home and then arranged accommodation and events as we travelled. The best bits included visiting the historic Mayan sites in Guatemala, scuba diving in Honduras and exploring the rainforests of Costa Rica. It was the trip of a lifetime and couldn't have been better."

Useful Contacts: