Come to a country wedding

Follow our indispensable directory of everything you need to create a truly memorable day

Hats

● Get Ahead Hats (01254 889574; www.getaheadhats.co.uk). Started by a group of enterprising farmers' wives in Yorkshire, the company has now grown to 22 country-based showrooms across England. Large selection of styles for every occasion, also bags and shoes.  

● Gil Fox Hat Designs (01905 29977; www.gilfox.com) Gil designs and makes vintage-inspired hats mainly in casual styles from her home in Worcestershire using sisal or straw, often trimmed with vintage and contemporary flowers - perfect for a summer celebration. Also fascinators, felts and luxurious ribbons.

● Lock & Co Hatters (020 7930 8874; www.lockhatters.co.uk). Headwear for men and women in classic English styles, traditionally made with quality materials. Top hats, bowlers and straw hats as well as a more exotic, couture women's collection.

● Stephen Jones Millinery (020 7242 0770; www.stephenjonesmillinery.com). Stephen's hats and headdresses are often highly original, sculptural and extravagant. He will tailor each design to his clients, offering a full consultation service.

 

Transport

● Aristocars (01268 293100; www.aristocars.co.uk). Essex-based company covering southern England with a fleet of Rolls-Royces and Daimlers fitted with newly trimmed ivory leather interiors. Amongst the fleet are 4 RR Phantom limousines from the 1920s and 1930s.

● Ascot Carriages (07866 927159; www.ascotcarriages.co.uk). Ride a white horse to your wedding or relax in style in an elegant four-seater horse-drawn carriage with coachman and groom. Various horses and carriages to choose from. Ascot will cover Surrey, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire with prices starting from £295.

● Morris Minor Owners Club (01332 291675; www.morrisminoroc.co.uk). The club is based in Derby but members and cars are dotted throughout the UK. White cars are available. Click on links on the website for details.

● Nostalgia Wedding Cars (01452 730430). A family-run business in Gloucestershire providing vintage cars with smart leather interiors and uniformed chauffeurs. Favourites include the 1954 Grey Lady or a 1928 Citroen AC4.

● Vintage Classics (01225 703377; www.vintage-classics.co.uk). This Wiltshire-based collection of vintage classic vehicles includes an Alfa Spider, Austin Healey, MGC, E-type Jaguar and a 1950s Leyland Beaver lorry. Prices start from £125 per day and include insurance and breakdown cover.

 

Venues

● Birtsmorton Court (01684 833888; www.birtsmortoncourt.com). This is a delightful, medieval, moated manor house in the Malvern Hills, which also contains a bridal suite (but guests must stay elsewhere). The garden room and marquee can house a reception, while the 14th-century parish church in the manor's grounds holds 115 people. Wedding co-ordinators are available. The property must be booked in full.

●  Inchcolm Abbey (01466 793191; www.historic-scotland.gov.uk). A romantic, partly ruined abbey on the Scottish island of Inchcolm, where services can take place in the chapel. Reached by a 30-minute ferry trip from Edinburgh, this wild spot is famous for its seals and wildlife, and is open only in summer.

●  Innes House (01343 842410; www.inneshouse.co.uk). An impressive, historic private house near Elgin in Scotland with beautiful walled gardens set in the countryside by the Moray Firth. A marquee is attached to the main ballroom through the summer months or there are reception rooms in the house which can also provide accommodation for guests. The property is within easy reach of both Aberdeen and Inverness.

●  Rousham Park House (01869 347110; www.rousham.org). This privately owned house in Oxfordshire has famous landscaped gardens and is surrounded by beautiful parkland grazed by rare breeds. A marquee can be erected on the main lawn. No children under 15.

●  Stanway House Tithe Barn (01386 584469; www.stanwayfountain.co.uk). In the heart of the Cotswolds, this medieval barn can be hired for receptions and lies in the romantic gardens of a Jacobean manor house with a pretty church next door.

●  The St Enodoc Hotel (01208 863394; www.stenodochotel.co.uk). Overlooking the beautiful Camel Estuary in Cornwall, this stylish hotel has room for a reception and a garden with space for a marquee holding around 80 people. Local produce features on the wine list and menu for the day. The hotel must be booked out in full, including the 20 bedrooms.

●  The Walled Garden at Cowdray (01730 816881; www.walledgardencowdray.co.uk). This beautiful, ancient garden, where Henry VIII and Elizabeth I once walked, has been lovingly restored by garden designer Jan Howard and lies within Cowdray Park in West Sussex. Rooms in the house can be hired for receptions, or a marquee placed on the lawns.

●  Voewood (01263 713029; www.voewood.com). A private Arts and Crafts country house in north Norfolk, this property has 14 bedrooms, each one individually decorated with great character, plus stone fireplaces, a gallery overlooking the grounds and a terrace leading to sunken gardens. The property can hold up to 200 people.

 

Marquees, tents and facilities

●  County Marquees (020 7267 4271; www.countymarquees.com). This family company supplies marquees around the south east, including traditional, natural canvas types and a choice of lighting and flooring, plus it can organise flowers and entertainment.

●  Crescent Moon (0800 083 8480; www.crescent-moon.co.uk). Beautiful canopies decorated with nets of fairy lights and props such as lanterns and vines.

●  Igloos (0800 112 3205; www.igloos.co.uk). Luxury loos that can be delivered and collected throughout Europe.

●  LPM Bohemia (0870 770 7185; www.lpmbohemia.com). A variety of marquees, from vintage and classic canvas pole tents, to exotic Indian styles, plus tipis, yurts and contemporary structures. A design, lighting and decoration service is also available and, though based in Kent, the company will travel throughout Europe.

●  Raj Tent Club (020 7820 0010; www.rajtentclub.com).  Specialists in exotic handmade canopies, pavilions and tents with special linings. Innovative matching accessories and furniture are also available.

●  The Stunning Tents Company (01256 882114; www.stunningtents.co.uk). This family company provides a range of alternative canvas structures including tipis and yurts, as well as furnishings.

 

Caterers

●  Alison Price & Company (020 7840 7640; www.alisonprice.co.uk). This large firm of caterers produces modern British food with a twist. It can also organise your marquee, venue, flowers, decoration, invitations, lighting, photography and entertainment.

●  Romfords (01434 688864; www.romfords.co.uk). Committed to using fresh, local produce wherever possible, this team covers southern Scotland, northern England, North Yorkshire and Lancashire. It caters for up to 700 people and also provides a wedding planning service.

 

● The Spitting Pig Co (0800 587 5899; www.spittingpig.co.uk). This firm offers traditional hog roasts as well as handmade burgers and sausages from British beef, lamb and English pigs with herbs and sauces for barbecues. Canapés, puddings, vegetarian options and drinks are also available.

● Victoria Blashford-Snell (07976 815015; email victoriabs@tiscali.co.uk). A Somerset-based company offering contemporary British cuisine for parties of any size.

● Wedding Trikes (07958 722252; www.weddingtrikes.com). Adding an element of fun to an outdoor celebration, this firm offers practical catering alternatives from a vintage-style Pimm's tricycle to an ice-cream cart, cocktail camper van or carnival popcorn maker. It is based in Kent but will cover the UK and France.

 

Flowers

● Charlotte Fenwick Flowers (07880 790537; www.charlottefenwick.com). Charlotte's specialities include rose arches, garlands of herbs and seasonal bouquets.

● Country Flowers (01798 875555; www.country-flowers.co.uk). Debbie Howells uses country blooms in classic and modern designs, inviting clients to her Sussex workshop.

● Julia and Linda at Flint (01273 474166; www.flint collection.com). This clothes and accessories shop in East Sussex also sells hand-tied bouquets, arrangements and posies of garden flowers.

● Miss Pickering (01780 482961; www.misspickering.com). Based in Lincolnshire, Simone Pickering creates arrangements using peonies and roses as well as bouquets from locally grown flowers.

● Paula Pryke Flowers (020 7837 7373; www.paula-pryke-flowers.com).
Contemporary florist Paula and her team are stylish and innovative and travel throughout Britain as well as abroad.

● Snapdragon (01360 660903; www.snapdragon garden.co.uk)  This Scottish-based company grows flowers organically for use in its bouquets, confetti and decorations.

Cakes 

● Cakeadoodledoo (01392 851366; www.cakeadoodledo. co.uk).
Kate Shirazi makes pretty cupcakes with eggs from her own free-range hens.

● Confetti Cakes (01684 297220; www.confetticakes.co.uk).
Specialising in wedding cakes, Nicky Fendt produces both traditional and novel designs, offering a friendly, bespoke service.

● Debbie Bone (01932 240274; www.debbiebone.co.uk).
Debbie produces unusual confections such as shards of chocolate or cones of marshmallows.

● Jane Spooner (01789 722405; www.janecakeartist.co.uk).
From the north Cotswolds, Jane hand makes cakes using the best available ingredients to match your requirements or theme.

● Patisserie Lewes (01273 483211).
This East Sussex bakery offers a variety of wedding cakes made by local expert Linda Calvert as well as a selection by Maison Blanc.

Photographers

● Aldeburgh Films Limited (01728 648400; www.aldeburghfilms-weddings.com).
An experienced, professional wedding DVD service in a choice of documentary-style, black and white or colour. Happy to discuss ideas with clients. Covers the UK and abroad.

● Clare Richardson (01267 202252; www.clarerichardson.co.uk).
Clare takes naturalistic wedding pictures, has a great eye for detail and composition and an art for capturing fleeting moments. She has years of experience, is an unobtrusive presence on the day and has photographed many articles for CL.

● Julie Oswin Photography (01530 245725; www.julie oswin.com).
Julie Oswin and Steve Walton specialise in weddings and have won awards for their innovative photographs. They are based in Leicestershire but are willing to travel further afield.

● Nicholas Harvey (020 7350 1501; www.nicholas harvey.com).
Nicholas is known for photographing people and celebrations in an informal style in either colour or black and white.

● Oli Green Photography (07973 835044; www.oligreen.net).
Oli offers a full consultation service, has a relaxed and unobtrusive approach, can shoot in black and white, colour or digital and will take an unlimited number of photographs.

● Picture This (01227 766977; www.picturethis canterbury.com). A team of three photographers in Canterbury, Kent, specialising in wedding photography in high-quality black-and-white or colour.

● Two Belles Wedding Photography (01983 753663; www.twobelles.co.uk). Marianne and Philippa are based on the Isle of Wight and work together to ensure they capture every aspect of your day. They are happy to travel across the south of England.

● Wild Weddings (07903 411193; www.wildweddings.co.uk). Bella and Nick take informal wedding pictures that are stylish and relaxed. They also offer an unusual bespoke service, mounting your photographs in a linen-bound journal.

 

Stationery

● Emily & Jo (020 8244 6338; www.emilyandjo.co.uk). Tailor-made invitations and stationery in an attractive range of designs with good green credentials, including FSC-certified paper and printers. Also bespoke designs made by letter pressing, blocking, foiling and embossing. Alternatively, you can commission an artist or illustrator.

● Katkin Rose (07791 377542; www.katkin-rose.co.uk). Kate Rose offers three ranges of stationery including a bespoke selection where she can match exact colours. She also sells bunting, placemats, napkins and confetti.

● Piccolo Press (01667 454508; www.piccolopress.co.uk). Smart stationery from Scotland using traditional papers and typefaces. Invitations, order of service sheets, place and thank-you cards.

● Scissor Paper Stone (0845 004 1728; www.scissorpaperstone.com). A range of contemporary wedding stationery that can be personalised - whether you want bespoke, luxurious, handmade invitations trimmed with tissue and ribbon, or a postcard featuring your photograph, they can all be printed in a wide selection of colours, designs and typefaces. "

 

Confetti

● Shropshire Petals (01952 691553; www.shropshirepetals.com). Natural, environmentally friendly, biodegradable confetti from home-grown, scented, seasonal flowers: delphinium, lavender, rose, hydrangea and peony petals, or choose your own blend. Hand-picked, packaged and produced with minimal environmental impact.

●  The Real Flower Confetti Company (01386 555045; www.confettidirect.co.uk). Charles Hudson diversified his farm in Worcestershire to grow organic flowers as a natural biodegradable confetti alternative. Delphiniums, roses and hydrangea petals all hand-picked. Also baskets and cones.

 

Entertainment

● Giffords Circus (01451 820378; www.giffords circus.com). Traditional circus performers based in Gloucestershire. This talented troupe entertains with nostalgic style and comedy. From jugglers to acrobats.

● Harriet Adie (07712 455425; www.harpist-uk.co.uk). Accomplished harpist Harriet also composes and arranges her own music. Her wide repertoire includes classical, popular jazz standards or interpretations of contemporary songs.

● Nathan Hassall Music (07786 261911; www.nathanhassall.com). Offers a diverse selection of bands and artists, from a string quartet and jazz group to a solo pianist. Prepared to travel throughout the UK and Europe.

● The Masqueraders (0845 370 7477; www.themasqueraders.co.uk).
Experienced five- to nine- piece line-up with male or female lead vocalist and three-piece brass section The band plays popular hits from the past four decades.

Organisers

● Alison Price & Company (020 7840 7640; www.alisonprice.co.uk). This large firm of caterers produces modern British food with a twist. It can also organise your marquee, venue, flowers, decoration, invitations, lighting, photography and entertainment.

● Green Union (01769 550580; www.greenunion.co.uk). Eco-friendly planners for stylish and sustainable celebrations, offering fair-trade, green, organic, local and low-impact alternatives. Operating throughout England.

● Romfords (01434 688864; www.romfords.co.uk). Committed to using fresh, local produce wherever possible, this team covers southern Scotland, northern England, North Yorkshire and Lancashire. It caters for up to 700 people and also provides a wedding planning service.

● Weddings & Events (0161 903 8499; www.weddingsandevents.co.uk). Experienced organisers who can help with every aspect of the day from venue, dress and entertainment to the details.

 

Table settings

● Cox & Cox (0870 4424787; www.coxandcox.co.uk) Mail-order catalogue with stylish range of wedding accessories and decorations. Favour boxes, signs, bunting, place settings, petal confetti and cones, stationery and stamps.

● Idyllic Days (01483 797979; www.idyllicdays.com). Sam Freeman, a passionate collector of vintage tableware (see CL June 2008), creates wonderful settings using a charming mixture of china and accessories. She can provide a hire-only service or is happy to style the whole reception.

 

Gift lists

● John Lewis (0845 600 2202; www.johnlewisgiftlist.com).
Go online to register and set up your wedding list. This clear, easy-to-use website enables you to keep track of your presents. It has a wide range of gifts including white goods and kitchenware all at competitive prices. Free delivery.

● Divertimenti (020 7581 8065; www.divertimenti.co.uk).
A good selection of quality kitchen equipment and tableware. Expert advice to help you choose. Free invitation inserts to let guests know where the list is held and gift wrapping for each item. Also a five per cent discount on any unbought items left and a £25 voucher for lists over £400.

● Our Green Wedding List (01273 486015; www.ourgreenweddinglist.com). Start married life in an environmentally responsible way with this selection of unusual recycled, artisan, organic, energy-efficient, British or fairly traded items. The website also offers tips on how to make your wedding day more eco-friendly.

● Wrapit (0845 075 1300; www.wrapit.co.uk)
Easy-to-use and manage website which also has 17 showrooms throughout the British Isles. The wide range of gifts includes some novel ideas, such as your own vineyard, cooking and wine courses to spa days and holidays.

 

 

Further inspiration Our sister site, www.youandyourwedding.co.uk contains a wealth of ideas and information on a myriad wedding subjects, from venues to beauty.

 

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