Fourth time lucky! In these times during the pandemic and the lock downs we know many couples experienced the disheartening reality of their wedding not going ahead and having to change their plans over and over again. Caz and James got within 3 days of our original date, before it was cancelled due to restrictions. They then chose a new date twice more, in the hope restrictions had eased by then and finally got fourth time lucky on 27th May 2021 at Trevenna Barns near Liskeard in Cornwall. But when the postponed couples had their day, wow, just how special it felt after everything people have been through to all come together again in celebration!
Getting Ready at Trevenna Barns
Caz and James had the venue for the night before and after the wedding. I love it when couples really make the most of their venue like this and it allows all the family to spend extra time together. Especially post pandemic, it felt really special having everyone together for a few days to catch up, for both sets of grandparents to see the grandkids altogether and to have that positive feeling that normal life was coming back again after all the lock downs!
The groomsmen and bridal party all got ready at the venue but Caz and James stayed in different parts of the venue the night before. Caz stayed in a room with a couple of her bridemaids and James was in a room with his best man.
The bridal party got ready in a beautiful room with old beams and a balcony looking out onto the gardens and Cornish Countryside. It also has a dressing table and mirror and sofa so there was plenty of space for the hair and make up team to set up.
Their original idea was for a winter wedding but due to postponements they ended up with a summer wedding on a beautiful sunny day! A bit of a change but it certainly worked out in the end!
Caz’s jewellery was a pearl necklace and earring set from her mum and her bouquet was a dried flower bouquet (I’m really loving brides using dried flower creations at weddings!). One of her bridesmaids, Brit, also got Caz a beautiful memento of Caz’s grandad (who was a Welsh opera singer and who was always having a laugh!) to go around her bouquet. A lovely thoughtful touch.
Grandma keeping an eye out & checking one of the Grandad’s have the kids….
The little ones wanted to come and see what was going on.
William took a self portrait!
William was really interested in the camera so Raj showed him what to do and he learns quickly! Raj turned the exposure dial and William would copy and say “Too bright! Too dark!” He even takes a photo of his mum in her wedding dress later and it’s really good! We might be out of a job haha!
Groom Prep
Groom & Best Man
The groom and best man are in the navy together so they decided to wear their uniform for the ceremony and change into a suit later on in the day. You can see James, the groom, has his general service medal on next to his corsage.
The father of the bride seeing his daughter in her dress for the first time. They both just looked so happy!
The Ceremony
As it was a beautiful sunny day the ceremony was outside on the lawn.
Caz and her dad were full of laughs walking down the aisle which was lovely to see.
Highlight of the day!
During the ceremony the couples little boy, William, was playing over on the grassy hill with his cousin and they starting roaring at each other at the top of their voices! Everyone burst into laughter and you could see their cheeky little faces when they realised they were entertaining everyone! The unpredictability of little ones at weddings adds a magic to the day as everyone is always going to tell them about this story as they grow up especially as there are photos to prove it!
Once the vows were said and rings exchanged and they were officially husband and wife they were able to grab their little roaring dinosaur and walk back down the aisle as a family altogether.
Cocktails in the Garden and Photo Time
The bride was having such a good time she just started swishing around in her dress and showing off her glittery converse’s… I absolutely love these photos! She looks like she’s modelling the dress!
As well as capturing natural photos we do love to take a moment to take the bride and groom off to a beautiful spot to create some photos that we like to think of almost as a ‘poster image’ of your big day.
Dinner
They had this beautiful over hanging display piece above the tables. The bride did all the other decor herself by collecting colourful gin bottles to put the flowers in…. they had to drink a lot of gin! Fairy lights over the tables which created lovely atmospheric lighting in the evening. The table runners were made from hessian and lace. All these little touches made the space look lovely.
The best man announced the bride & groom.
The food was delicious. With many different courses and later in the evening they also did traditional Cornish Pasties. Yum!
Speech’s & Cake
The best man gave a funny and touching speech and then in true Navy tradition toasted the couple with a tot of rum.
Then the Groom made a loving speech as well (whilst the bride was trying her best to take it in whilst their little boy was busy eating the lime out of her drink! I love the funny little moments that kids add to the day!).
The cake display area became very entertaining!
Before putting the cake in place they popped their son there for some photos when he picked the rose up and reeeeeally sniffed it pulling a hilarious and cute face. He saw everyone laughed and started his own little stand up comedy show of sniffing and messing around the flower. It was very cute so we got some super cute in the moment photos!
Cake Cutting
Congratulations & Celebrations
The boys didn’t get tired of roaring like dinosaurs!
A little secret… Their little boy took this photo!
Their son loved the camera so again Raj showed him what to do and he pressed the shutter button and took this beautiful photo of his mum!
The Evening
As the sun set the fairy lights looked so magical. Caz was having the best day and especially after a few cocktails started twirling around in her dress again!
As it was still during the pandemic there was still a no dancing advised policey. So people sat and chatted around the tables and the bar, whilst others improvised and had a little dance in their couples or bubbles. To finish the night there were smores in the garden on the fire.
Congratulations Caz and James!
Top Wedding Tip from Caz…
Choose everything for your wedding (including guests) based on what you would both like. Don’t do anything just because it is expected, or the traditional way. Your wedding is about the two of you and should reflect that, not what other people want or expect.
So true! Your love, your way!
Despite the difficult times during the pandemic these intimate weddings are truly special and the perfect time to celebrate what’s important in life with the ones you love most.
Suppliers List in Caz’s words because nothing is more important than hearing recommendations and happy experiences from the bride:
Dress – The Wedding Company, Plymouth – I sometimes struggle to make decisions, but nothing was too much trouble and despite me trying on what felt like every dress in the shop, they were so patient and took on board my likes and dislikes to help me find the perfect dress.
Bridesmaids dresses – Asos.
Suits – McKay Menswear at Prudence Gowns, Plymouth.
Flowers – Did them myself! I bought fake flowers from The Range and arranged them in gin bottles we had saved up.
Cake – Trevenna’s wonderful Mark made our wedding cake.
Stationery – I bought a template set from Edenwood Paperie on Etsy and edited and printed all the invites etc myself.
Bridal hair & make up – Glam Ward, Plymouth – What can I say about Sasha other than she is genuinely one of the most amazing people I have had the pleasure to meet. She is so talented and made me feel a million dollars on the big day. We instantly clicked and nothing was too big or too small and she made the whole process from start to finish so easy. Despite the fact we had to change our dates four times, she made sure she was available, even going so far as to rearrange her regular studio days to ensure she was there for me and my bridesmaids.
Entertainment – Brit my wonderful bridesmaid and playlist maestro! As we had a reduced guest list, we decided that spending money on a DJ etc wasn’t necessary.
Silverlinings Wedding Guide Cornwall loved this weddings so they featuerd it on their blog here:
https://silverlinings.co.uk/real-weddings/cairwen-james-trevenna-barns-cornwall/