A barn and church wedding at Cantley House Hotel, with the most relaxed bride and groom!

When I first met Nicola and Tristan they told me they’d been together for 6 years which, considering they were both about to turn 21, meant they’d started dating at just 15! Despite their short years I was in absolutely no doubt that these two were made for each other. Even on a zoom call, the love in their eyes was so clear to see. They got in touch more than a year before their wedding but were already able to tell me their wedding colours, outfit choices and entertainment plans. Talk about being prepared!

We met again at Cantley house, their reception venue, to look at albums and so I could be vetted by Nicola’s Nonna and mum! Luckily, I passed the test and we were all set to meet at their church on their wedding day.

Getting ready!

Nicola and Tristan opted for getting ready in a room off the side of their church, one usually reserved for sports and Sunday school! They filled it with so much love and fun, you could look right past that and enjoy all the anticipation.

The ceremony…

Their ceremony was held in their church, Hayes town chapel, surrounded by all their friends, family and the other members of the congregation. A last minute change of plans saw Nicola’s mum taking over the role of ‘Flower girl’ which was, quite frankly, perfect! Their ceremony was filled with music, wise words, adoring looks and lots of laughter. Then, to top it all off, they celebrated with a ridiculous amount of confetti and drove off in a car fixed up by the groom himself. Talk about dramatic!

The Reception.

Once we arrived at the beautiful Cantley house in Wokingham the guests were greeted by lawn games, bubbles and canapes. The classic British summer combo! Whilst I wrangled guests for group shots (with a half Italian half Dutch family group it was a test to my well established skills!) the guests milled about on the lawn and enjoyed the sunshine. It didn’t feel like long before we were called into the barn for food and speeches, full of tears and laughter.

Time to party!

We were lucky enough to be gifted with both time to run away with the whole bridal party and a beautiful sunset to play in. I think big bridal parties filled with people who just LOVE you and are so excited for you might be my favourite thing ever. We made the most of it and had some fun! We then sent them all back to the barn to get some private shots of the new Mr and Mrs.

After the sun went down the real party got started, with a dance floor filled to bursting. Such a fantastic day!