No that isn’t a typo – Lucy and Adam really did only spend £500 on their wedding and they planned the entire thing in a week! With some super clever ideas (and a mother who used to be a professional photographer doing their photos as a gift) the wedding turned out just as beautifully as one with a budget ten times the size.
“Our wedding was a country, simple, naturalistic wedding with lots of pastel shades”, said Lucy. “We were inspired by who we are as a couple and family. We’re not ‘big white wedding’ types so we kept things small. We planned the wedding quickly because my brother, who I hadn’t seen in six years, was coming to stay from America and Adam had just accepted a job offer 250 miles away so we were temporarily moving away from home for a few years. We’d contemplated having a simple registry office wedding for a while because we wanted something small and easy. We didn’t want to spend months of stressful and expensive planning, nor did we want a big wedding. All we wanted was our close family, a beautiful outside venue and a whole lot of love.”
The ceremony was held in a local field and they hosted their small reception at the bride’s mother’s house. “We’re not religious so we wanted a natural ceremony. We had a close family friend read the script, my sister read a poem, we said our vows (everyone cried!) and had a tree planting ceremony. It was one of the best moments of my life! This was my favourite part of the day; I’m still processing it now weeks later because of how beautiful it was.”
The bride made the cake, put together all the flowers and even self-catered the entire thing. “We wanted a buffet so I made mini pizzas, mini salmon and cream cheese vol-au-vents, pigs in blankets, cheesy sticks, salads – I called it posh party food.”
“The colour theme was salmon pink, grey, cream and sky blue with golds and silvers. I used fairy lights, bunting and purchased lots of paper pom poms, tassels and fans. We also had pretty napkins, my gran’s tea set, cake stands, mini party crackers – all found in storage (I’m a hoarder for pretty things). I also made a collage of photos of the two of us and hung it in the bathroom for guests to nose at.”
“The biggest expense was my dress. It was from Needle and Thread and cost £200. We literally saved on EVERYTHING else. The venues were free and doing homemade food saved a ton. Of course having my mum taking our photos was a real blessing too.”
“The best thing about our wedding was how quickly it all came together. My advice for future brides and grooms is to stick to your guns. Use the celebration as a representation of the two of you. Don’t worry about what weddings ‘should’ be like. There is no right or wrong when it comes to your day – do what you like!”
