Charming couple Charn and Steve were married at the stunning Sandon Hall, near Stafford on a surprisingly hot Spring day, in a wedding filled with vibrant colours, delicious Indian food all day long, and a packed dancefloor. I had a really fun day photographing these two!
Steve and his groomsmen opted for classic charcoal suits, accessorised with lovely little wolf cufflinks given to the groomsmen, who joined Steve at the Dog and Doublet pub across the road from the Hall to get ready (where we discovered that a double Windsor knotted tie is a little tricky to get right!) Charn chose the most beautiful red bridal lehenga, heavily and elaborately embroidered in gold to make a fantastic impact (although she told me it was a rather heavy ensemble to wear!), and complemented this with a vivid bouquet in reds, oranges, pinks and yellows. The peonies smelled amazing! Her bridesmaids also wore gorgeously decorated lehengas, with the two little flower girls dressed in berry tones.
There was such attention to detail with the little finishing touches - the men on Charn’s side of the family all wore red ties and red rose boutonnieres to match her attire, whilst Steve’s relatives and groomsmen sported orange ties and sunset-coloured roses, with groom Steve himself wearing one of each flower to tie together the two sides of the family - what a lovely idea! The intricate henna designs adorning Charn’s hands and wrists took seven hours to complete and included Steve’s name and their wedding date as part of the design.
After a stroll around the venue’s beautiful gardens for some couples portraits, the wedding breakfast was served in the grand Saloon, with some moving speeches given including one tearful toast by Charn’s father who was clearly immensely proud of his daughter, and a lovely ode to the groom by his best man which included a “Guide to Steve” booklet given to guests detailing some of the groom’s traits, and featuring some photographs that were not all the most flattering!
The guests and couple made the most of the hot day by spending the afternoon on the sunny terrace and in the gardens, with the groomsmen playing some hotly contested rounds of Jenga and inflatable Pass the Pigs. Charn and Steve made a grand entrance into their evening reception, coming down the staircase into the Saloon to the music of dhol drummers, which set a fantastic energy for the first dance (although I wish someone has warned me about the pyrotechnics!). The drummers also played a set with the DJ, and I had a great time on the packed dancefloor weaving between guests enjoying the music. A fantastic day from start to end!
Photographs taken whilst second shooting for Paul Smith Photographs (www.paulsmithphotographs.com) and alongside Grace from Visions of Grace videography (www.visionsofgrace.co.uk)
