Katie and Matt first encountered each other online. "Matt actually mentioned this in his speech, referencing the fact that he thought he might have made a new pen pal for himself!" laughs Katie.
Having planned a weekend away in the Cotswolds, Matt dropped to one knee to present Katie with a beautiful ring that belonged to his mum. "He also had a ring that he had made especially for me, which was just perfect," she adds.
Katie drew on her professional experience to plan a stunningly styled day. "I am an interior designer with my own design company, so I wanted to plan and style my own wedding," she explains. "It was honestly one of the most enjoyable things I've ever done and now I'm branching out into wedding styling!" she enthuses.
Taking their venue, Place Estate, as the visual springboard for their day, Katie was inspired by its French chateau feel, to which she added an elegant and rustic twist. "I used lots of candles to create a soft and warm light and I intertwined them with long floral table runners. The colour scheme was very soft, we used quicksand roses and earl grey roses, as I loved their soft nude colours and their antique look."
All elements combined to create a spellbinding scene, from the stationery to the floristry, which alongside the roses featured eucalyptus, stocks and lizzyanthus in the marquee.
Kate cites her favourite moment as "arriving at the church, knowing that all our closest family and friends were all there under the same roof", after which guests were transported by vintage coach to Place Estate for a drinks reception to the stellar soundtrack of singer-songwriter Kaj.
There followed a feast of Parma ham and mozzarella salad with peaches and mint, rolled roast sirloin of local beef with crushed new potatoes and buttered green beans and a 'his and hers' dessert. "We couldn't agree on just one!" says Katie. "I picked tart citron and Matt's choice was chocolate brownie with a warm caramel shot and vanilla ice cream."
In the evening, a crowd-pleasing DJ set, firepits and fireworks drew Katie and Matt's dream day to an atmospheric close.
"We had a barbecue at Place Estate on the Sunday; it was so nice to reuse the venue and get everyone together again the day after," says Katie, who echoes many a newly-wed's gratitude at having extended their time with loved ones both before and after the big day.
"Start early to secure the best, they get snapped up so quickly!" she advises other couples, suggesting booking their favourite suppliers as the first item on their planning checklist. "And get some help to make sure the day runs smoothly; this massively relieves the stress!"
Photography Kirstin Prisk Photography kirstinprisk.co.uk
Venue St Just in Roseland Church stjustinroselandchurch.org.uk Place Estate placeestate.co.uk
Marquee Sperry Tents South West sperrytentssw.co.uk
On-the-day coordination Mimi & Grace Events
Catering The Good Food Catering Company thegoodfoodcateringco.co.uk
Dress Suzanne Neville suzanneneville.com
Bridesmaids' dresses Watters watters.com
Groom and groomsmen's outfits suits Reiss reiss.com shoes Suitsupply suitsupply.com
Hair Brigitte Fisher brigittefisher.co.uk
Flowers The Flower Shed at Trebilcocks trebilcocks.co.uk
Furniture Virginias Vintage Hire virginiasvintagehire.co.uk
Stationery Paper Knots paperknots.co.uk
Cake Nicky Grant nickygrant.com
Barbecue Harbour & Field harbourandfield.com
Transport Perranwell Garage perranwell.co.uk
King Harry Coaches kingharrycoaches.com
Entertainment Kaj kajmusic.co.uk
DJ in Cornwall djincornwall.co.uk
Copyright Wed magazine 2019
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