An Ethereal Woodland Wedding Weekend in Suffolk, UK

It’s kind of impossible to describe the meaningful, magical experience that was UK-based couple Ivy + Chris’s wedding weekend in the woods, but we’re going to try.

Ethereal romance. Enchanted forest fantasy. It was basically every wanna-be wood nymph’s dream come true.

Ivy, an art curator and Chris, who works in speciality coffee, first met the way tons of contemporary couples do: on Bumble. And like so many, their love story had a crucial COVID-era chapter: “It was the beginning of COVID-19, still in the first UK lockdown. We would text and FaceTime as much as we could, and at our first opportunity we had our first date at the zoo (because that is all we could do outside as all restaurants were still closed – we should add, it was raining!). That was on the 16th of July 2020 ~ we said “I love you” on the 10th of August, and we were engaged on November the 17th of the same year ~ exactly 4 months and 1 day after our first date. We really did just know!”

When they began dreaming up their wedding day with event designers from Synched Events, a connection to the earth was a crucial consideration. “Ivy is pagan,” the couple says, “so an outdoor, spiritual ceremony, really connected to nature was incredibly important to her.”

So Ivy + Chris put together an experience that would embrace the natural beauty at Upthorpe Wood in Suffolk and mark the significance of their coming together as a couple, both legally and spiritually. “We had the wedding spread over a weekend,” Ivy + Chris remember, “getting legally married on the Friday, and spiritually on the Saturday.”

Hand-crafted textiles + decor. Flower petal confetti. Sunlight peeking through the forest canopy. We are spellbound by the whole weekend’s dreamy, fairy-worthy festivities, and we cannot wait to show you all of Scarlett Cook’s photos.

On Friday

“I knew I wanted to make something to wear for the Friday,” remembers artistic bride Ivy. “To suit our beautiful outdoor venue, I decided that I would make a cloak instead of a veil out of the most beautiful crewel embroidered fabric.”

“Textiles have always been a really important aspect of my artistic practice,” Ivy says, “but it was hard keeping it a secret from Chris as it took me a full week to make!”

Chris’s earthy green wedding suit was a perfect choice for the setting. “I am 5’3” and thus, buying clothes off the rack is exceedingly difficult, even more difficult for a suit,” Chris shares. “I found a suit by Moss Bros that I loved: sage green Herringbone! Perfect. But the fit was more difficult. The wonderful sales assistant told me that they do a ‘made to order’ suit where the entire suit is made to your measurements and then finished by a local tailor. I was able to pick out the lining, thread colours and personalisation on the inside of the jacket. I chose to have our names and wedding date sewn into the lining.”

“Ivy and Chris are the blueprint for love,” says photographer Scarlett Cook. “Their adoration for each other shines through these photos.”

Pure joy 🥰

“To feel more connected to the earth, Ivy walked down the aisle barefoot,” Scarlett says. “Her feet were laced with handmade jewellery, and she explained to me how being barefoot always made her feel more grounded.”

Check out some other barefoot brides in this free spirited Fall Wedding and this bright pink Australian wedding!

We always love a bridal cape, but there’s definitely something extra special about one crafted by the bride herself.

So into the hand drawn floral + celestial details of this wedding day schedule sign. And, if you’re curious, “scran” is an English term for food!

Can we just take a moment to appreciate the way the floral arrangements from Scorcha Herbert made the venue feel like a bountiful magic forest?

“Our Saturday ceremony was a handfasting ceremony performed by Ivy’s mama, our biggest supporter throughout our relationship,” remember Ivy + Chris.

We love the story of how Ivy found her flowy-sleeved wedding gown: “I had had what I thought was my dream wedding dress on my Pinterest board before I even met Chris… however when I got the chance to try it on, it simply wasn’t right.”

“I always knew I wanted to be barefoot for as much of the day as possible, and that flowers and crystals in my hair were a nonnegotiable- but after that moment, I couldn’t envision what I would actually wear. But then I stumbled across Indie Bride London, where the owner, Miina, designs and hand makes all of the dresses with comfort at the forefront. “Pixie” was the first dress of Miina’s that I tried on, and I just gasped. I knew the second I put it on.”

“I have never been the most confident person, so I didn’t really think that I would have that properly breathtaking “this is the one” moment. But I did! The feeling was exactly the same feeling as falling in love with Chris; yes, I was excited and had butterflies, but the overriding feeling was one of coming home. The dress already felt like mine. And then came the coloured veil ~ it was just meant to be!”

The Reception

Ivy + Chris organized their wedding reception seating chart with tables named for meaningful places the couple has visited throughout their love story. 

On top of decor hand crafted by Ivy made (like these colorful textile garlands), the couple’s reception was full of unforgettable elements. The guest book was a canvas that everybody painted, they played a guest bingo wedding game so that everyone could get to know each other, and they had individually chosen tarot card place names for each guest.

We love this shot of Ivy taking a moment at the reception to show off her wedding nails by Paige Nash.

Chris: "Getting engaged is one of the most exciting moments of your life - and suddenly the idea of planning the entire wedding can become a daunting task, especially if you’re planning it yourselves without the help of a wedding planner. My advice is to take it slow, one step at a time and enjoy it. You can budget on the small things like having your own wedding playlist instead of a live band and baking your own cake (or biscuits in our case). And in the most stressful moments, remember that your wedding is just one day, marriage is for the rest of your life. Cherish it.
Ivy: "Enjoy every bit of it! Planning a wedding is so unbelievably stressful- but try to enjoy that stress! I know it’s what everyone says, but it really does just go so quickly ~ but this is the only time you’ll ever just be each others fiancé, the only time you’ll plan your wedding; relish in it!"
But most importantly ~ the day is yours. It is about your story, your love, your life together. Never leave each other’s side on the day. The only thing that truly matters is that you love each other, and that you have an entire day that is dedicated solely to that love; how beautiful is that?! I know it may seem like the world, but if the wrong songs plays, or if the decorations are on the wrong table, or if someone forgets something, ultimately none of that matters. They will not be the things you cling to when you are old and wrinkly."

The couple’s guests were treated to a feast by Funnells Kitchen at tables adorned with twinkly fairy lights and mismatched bud vases.

			
Processional: "I Giourni" by Ludovico Einaudi
			
			
Recessional: "Anything But" by Hozier
			
			
First Dance: "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel 
			
		

We really can’t get over the flower-filled bridal hairstyle that Ashley Kay Beauty created for Ivy. “Ash and I had the most simple exchange on the Saturday morning: “Abundance?” “Abundance.” And that was how she came up with my hair design!” Ivy says.

This is a difficult one. Our first most memorable moment was Ivy’s twin brother James, who was also Chris’ best man surprising us with a personal second dance. Ivy’s favourite musical artist is Megan Dixon, and James had secretly asked her if she might record us a version of the song ‘The Man Who Can’t Be Moved’ by The Script. We danced to this away from all our guests, tucked away in the woods. It was such a perfect, intimate, grounding moment that made us slow down and appreciate the day. We will remember it for the rest of our life.
Our second most memorable moment was our last dance. Instead of a slow and romantic last dance, we chose to belt ‘Patricia The Stripper’ by Chris de Burgh at the top of our lungs. Utter perfection. 

Some final thoughts from these beautiful newlyweds: “They always say your wedding day goes so fast, and we didn’t quite believe it until we were waving our guests goodbye and heading off for the night. Enjoy every moment, and plan to have a moment of reflection, whether it be a photography golden hour, or a walk round the grounds just the two of you. Take a moment for yourself; you won’t regret it.”

Congratulations, Ivy + Chris! Your enchanted woodland wedding weekend was a ethereal, romantic dream. Wishing you both nothing but the best!