Rebecca Dore
Today's real wedding will leave you absolutely starry-eyed. Heather and Josh tied the knot at the elegant country mansion Bawtry Hall. 35 very lucky loved ones joined them for their September celebration in picturesque South Yorkshire. They dreamt of an intimate, whimsical and darkly romantic celebration and what they created together was not just bewitchingly beautiful but it was the perfect extension of their home and lives together. This celestial-inspired celebration was bursting with adorable personal touches throughout and swoon-inducing details including a glittering wedding dress, striking hanging floral installations and a spectacular cake. The nighttime brought a whole other level of magic which included lantern-lit portraits and a first dance surrounded by cold sparks and a firework display. With natural and emotive photography from Mollie Higgins, let's check out their dream day below. Born, raised and still based in Yorkshire, Heather and Josh's love story was a case of the 'right person, wrong time'. They've known each other the majority of their lives as they grew up in the same area, went to the same schools and shared the same friend circles but they just never really talked much. "After chatting to a friend who worked in a local pub, Heather went down to speak with the manager about a job, lo and behold, Josh was working behind the bar. As a familiar and friendly face, we just instantly hit it off exchanging messages most days before eventually setting a date to go to the Christmas markets. Well, the rest is history!" As for their proposal it is a story in two parts with Josh 'stressing and being hit with constant obstructions' while blissfully unaware Heather enjoyed a glorious holiday to Iceland. Josh reflects, "So I’d planned this for a while. The idea was to get an antique ring, go to Iceland and propose under the northern lights. Couple of hiccups along the way though. Almost got outed at the airport when I forgot to take eyedrops out of my bag and almost had a full bag search with Heather stood next to me with the ring being in said bag. When we got there, we went about the tours we had booked, with the Golden Circle and ending the tour with the all-important Northern Lights tour." He continues, "Halfway through, we got a message saying that it was cancelled due to the cloud cover, so on the spot I panicked and dragged Heather up a hill to the middle of nowhere. Heather was so confused as to my recent sprint up the snowy countryside but stopped to enjoy the view anyways. She then turned around to see me on one knee (kneeling on my bag because red clay) and immediately burst into tears. I honestly can’t remember what either of us said, and I can with all honest say that I don’t even remember her saying yes, but here we are, married and properly settling down. We went for a Hard Rock Café in the evening to celebrate and even got a free cuddly elephant that we named Gus after the tour guide." The couple wanted to ensure that their wedding truly reflected them. "We wanted to create a day that our loved ones truly could see 'us' in and didn’t just feel like any other wedding." Their family and friends were the heartbeat of the celebration and they really wanted to make the most out of having all their favourite people being gathered together in one place. From the outset of the planning process they wanted to be really clear about what their non-negotiables were, what they couldn't live without and what wasn't essential. "For us, we knew we wanted one venue that could host the ceremony and the reception / evening, but with separate spaces we could designate to different parts of the day (nobody enjoys waiting around while rooms get turned over!). Besides that, we just wanted something that felt good… and that’s probably a weird way of trying to select a venue as honestly how do you describe that? For us, it was something light and bright, and had no horrible dated carpets in sight." They put their own stamp on their entire celebration and while they wanted to keep some traditions, such as the first dance and speeches, they made their own rules for other parts of the celebration. They stayed together the night before the wedding and Heather walked down the aisle solo. Josh reflects on the unforgettable moment of seeing the love of his life walking towards him at the ceremony. "I knew she was going to make an appearance at a certain part, with Heather explaining that she wanted to walk down the aisle at a specific timestamp. This was the part that completely killed me off. I thought I was going to be fine, but no, as soon as that part of the song came up, the dams burst." "Being called awful by my new wife was definitely a memorable moment," he jokes and Heather assures us she meant lawful! Bawtry Hall left them spellbound and they loved that it was bursting with historic period features but at the same time had a clean and modern feel. "It was decorated beautifully but really gave us creative space to design the day exactly how we visioned." Josh brought Gatsby glamour in his limited edition white tux from Herbie Frogg which he wore with Dr. Martens. Heather shone in the shimmering Pallas gown by Madi Lane Bridal which she styled with shoes from AllSaints and vintage accessories. Perfectly bringing their celestial theme to life, her bridesmaids wore starry print black dresses by Molby the Label. We've fallen head over heels for their navy and gold cake that mirrored the glittering sky at night. The breathtaking styling incorporated moody florals, sparkling crystals and oodles of candles bringing a romantic glow. "It was a cosy and intimate wedding breakfast that felt like having all our loved ones around our dining table at home." Their wonderfully stylish autumn fete had a sweet musical spin. Musical bingo was a huge hit with everyone and they opted for a vinyl guest book so their loved ones could sign their first dance song instead of a traditional guestbook, we love it! They had a local tattoo artist personalise a mirror for them to be used as their welcome sign. It is now proudly hanging in their home alongside their vinyl guest book. Heather and Josh also had a quiet room where their guests could have a quick chill from all the celebrating if they wanted. "Ignore traditions and plan your wedding to reflect you as a couple," is their wonderful wedding advice. "Weddings (unfortunately) are expensive, don’t try and plan it trying to please other people or meet expectations. Whether you’re planning a small intimate wedding, or hosting a big family do, the day should be about you and your partner and the small things that make up your beautiful lives together. Everything else will soon be forgotten on the day! On a practical note, planning and communication with your suppliers is everything. If you want to be able to truly switch off on your wedding day and not be in ‘host mode’, make sure everyone is equipped with all the information they need and set a couple of designated points of contacts within your wedding party if suppliers do need to check anything through the day." Their first dance was to Take on the World by You Me at Six and it was one of their favourite parts of the whole day. "When trying to decide on a first dance we counted to three and then both said the song we thought it should be… by some miracle, we picked the exact same song and was able to quickly tick that decision from the list! We decided to do the first dance outside as neither of us felt particularly confident dancing in front of people and again, wanted something that felt a little more intimate, we also had a planned firework display throughout the first dance which truly felt magical." After their wedding they spent a few nights away in Scotland in a small cabin in the middle of nowhere under the stars and their only regret was that they didn't book it for longer. "We’ll probably try and go back each anniversary, but it was a perfect opportunity to just switch off, relive the day talking about our favourite moments, and then look through our previews from our amazing photographer when they landed a few days into the trip!" The biggest congratulations Heather and Josh! The biggest thank you to our wonderful couple and to photographer Mollie Higgins for sharing this enchanting autumn wedding with One Fab Day!
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