Katie and Calum

We both met at work. It was not exactly “love at first sight” but after a year or two we finally decided to go for a drink and the rest was history.

Calum proposed to me in Venice in the middle of a very empty St Mark’s square the night before Valentine’s Day.

We loved the fact that it felt as though we were having an amazing house party with all our family and friends. From the moment we came up the driveway we knew it was special! Having a good band really helped too!

We tried to stick to a classic, elegant theme with a woodland feel. Walking into the ceremony room in the barn with all the fantastic flowers and candles from our wonderful florist (Arcade Flowers) and stationery team (Laurel Designs). We also hired trees from the brilliant “Twilight trees” which helped to make the space so magical alongside the fairy lights and carpet from Luminique and flower arch by Southampton Flower Wall.

We stuck to white flowers with touches of green which were so simple and beautiful. We did not really have a “colour scheme” so our bridesmaids wore beautiful silver dresses by Ghost London and our best men and ushers wore tuxedos.

The dress was a white Pronovias gown and it really was my dream. It was the first dress I found at Anya Bridal who were so helpful and found me a beautiful matching veil. I felt like a princess all day.

They say your wedding really does go by in the blink or an eye and that was certainly the case for us. I remember all our family and friends partying the night away in the most beautiful venue. We both felt so lucky to be looked after so well by the entire Lainston House team.

I am not really one for surprises but there were some truly amazing moments. One of my favourites was the day before the wedding when we had our pre-wedding meeting with Sophie and Lewis followed by dinner in the Mountbatten room and drinks with all my lovely bridal party.  Second to the wedding, it was one of my favourite days! The wedding tasting was also one of the best wedding planning moments we had. The food, service and weather (and wine!) made for one of the best evenings of 2021!

I think my advice would be stay calm and do not worry about the small stuff! The amazing team a Lainston House look after everything you could possibly think of on the day and they helped me to stay so calm! It also rained all day on the day of our wedding and in a way it made it even more special. The cosy fires and gorgeous barn felt even more magical in the rain although I cannot say the same for my hair during pictures!

My second tip would be make sure you invest in an amazing photographer and videographer (if budget allows) who capture all the special memories. Our photographer (Jack Aldridge) was absolutely amazing! He felt like family by the end of the day and we did not want him to leave. The pictures he took are all so beautiful and we could not recommend him more. Our videographer (Brandon at BrandOne Visuals) was excellent and he really did capture the best footage!