Our minimalist wedding in the Surrey countryside – part 1

It’s been nearly six months since we said I do! It’s taken me this long to get round to writing about our simple, minimalist wedding in the Surrey countryside, partly because it took a while to process the whirlwind that was the big day and take it all in. But also because our photographer Tania took so many beautiful photos, I wanted to do them justice and think about the best way to show them all.

So this week marks something of a ‘wedding week’ on the blog – over the next few days, I’ll be sharing all the little details from the day as well as some useful tips if you’re planning your own minimalist wedding and want to try and keep it simple. From spending my weekends sewing napkins, designing signs and obsessing over every little thing like the perfectionist I am (it literally became a full time job for me the month before!), I’ve learnt a thing or two about styling a wedding, bringing a cohesive look together and knowing what to prioritise. I wouldn’t say I was a girly girl (I’m most comfortable in jeans and converse trainers) and I didn’t want a really showy day, but I did seek to create an intimate, elegant setting to celebrate our love surrounded by close friends and family. For me, a minimalist wedding meant taking a considered approach and really thinking about what we wanted from the day and how it would (visually and meaningfully) represent us as couple.

All imagery Tania Joy Gault

We got married on the 7th September 2019 at a picturesque, little church perched on top of a hill in the Surrey countryside. With views stretching across the Downs (some say you can see eight counties on a clear day), it’s my favourite place in the world and holds a very special place in my heart. I saw the Millennium dawn from up there and have lost count of the number of times I’ve walked up that sandy hill, hand in hand with Olivier, family and much loved four legged companions. It’s been a tonic in good times and bad, and it always manage to uplift my soul even on the greyest day when the clouds descend.

I also liked the idea of our guests having to walk up the rough, dirt path (visitors have to leave their car in the car park at the bottom and ascend by foot – don’t worry we told them to bring a spare pair of shoes) and having that same element of surprise and wonder when the view and church is finally revealed. It really is a magical place. And I had probably been dreaming of getting married there since I was about 12!

After we had secured the location and knew we could get married in the church, my thoughts turned to the dress, of course! I looked EVERYWHERE, from bridal shops to high street stores. I had a vision in my mind of something very simple, plain and minimalist, but with a little contemporary twist to give it a wow factor and help me feel my very best.

Then I went to A Most Curious Wedding Fair with one of my bridesmaids and met Bon Bridé. Marrying a French man, already the name was perfect. Even better that her studio was near me in south London. Founded by former fashion buyer Pippa Cooke, Bon Bridé makes ‘understated yet striking dresses about women and for women who dress for themselves’. Working in London with seamstresses who used to work for Alexander McQueen among others, the dresses are refined and beautifully tailored yet relaxed and effortlessly stylish.

Says Cooke, ‘I want to offer alternative options and for each collection to evolve with a new generation of modern women. It is not “timeless” and it doesn’t claim to create “classic” pieces. It’s of the moment and it celebrates the women of this moment in time, the bride of now.’

I instantly fell in love with the bb:10 dress, with its high, round neck, long, slim sleeves, contemporary cut out sides and that show stopper v-neck back. Pippa made me a bespoke version that perfectly fitted my slim frame. I wanted to cover up my chest and arms but show a bit of flesh at the back to stop it looking too prim and proper – there was even a zip in the skirt so I could raise it up for the party after the church! Ooh la la!

With a tailored dress, there’s no place for the seamstress to hide. Pippa’s attention to detail was incredible, from getting the toile (the initial mock-up in calico) right to all the little tweaks at the subsequent appointments so it ended up fitting like a glove. Even each sleeve was very, very subtly different as most people’s writing arm is just slightly bigger than their non writing arm – I didn’t even know! Every woman has their own body issues, but Pippa made me feel so comfortable and at ease. And on the day I felt incredible, like the dress was made for me (which it kinda was!).

For the bridesmaids dresses, I didn’t want anything too traditional or frumpy. I thought white was a little different and that it would tie in with the very simple, contemporary colour palette, contrasting well with the wild greenery. Most of all, I wanted them to feel relaxed and to be able to use the dress again after the wedding. I chose a beautiful, white wrap dress from French brand Sézane – a simple, below the knee style with floaty sleeves that would suit any shape.

The flowers were by Worm London, a floral studio founded in east London by Katie and Terri. I’d met these two jolly Irish ladies at an event with Habitat and loved not only their warmth, but their perfectly imperfect floral style. Inspired by the bucolic surroundings and fern covered banks of the church, they created a series of wonderfully wild arrangements. They described it as if the foliage was growing out from the ground. My bridesmaids bouquets and my own smelt divine – there were woody ferns, olive stems, sprigs of eucalyptus, sweet dahlias, wax flowers and the almost edible chocolate cosmos (it really smells like chocolate!).

I walked into the church with my mum to the atmospheric chords of September Song by Danish singer Agnes Obel. It’s a softly soothing song that gently builds, note by note, and it makes me think of the seasons changing each September. And the name of the song was a particularly good fit, the wedding being in September!

I was so incredibly nervous before we walked down the aisle, I hadn’t been able to eat anything that morning and my legs turned to jelly. It’s ever so slightly overwhelming walking into a church full of your favourite people, all eyes on you, but I just kept taking deep breaths and taking it all in. It’s quite a small church so it felt really cosy and intimate with 100 people packed into the pews. The love and support you feel during a wedding is just on another level, and I guess that’s ultimately why people get married and have a ceremony, to have that support carry you through the ups and downs of daily life.

But let’s get back to the details…

For the readings, one of our friends read Song of Solomon in French while one of my bridesmaids read the poem Us Two by Winnie the Pooh writer A. A Milne in English. While we signed the register, our family friend (who happens to be an incredible pianist) played ‘Nocturne No. 1 in B Flat Minor, Op. 9 No. 1’ by Chopin on the piano – it gives me goosebumps just remembering it.

I designed the order of services booklets myself on InDesign and got them printed at a printers in London. On the back we had this Rupi Kaur poem:

“i do not want to have you
to fill the empty parts of me
i want to be full on my own

i want to fill so complete
i could light a whole city
and then
i want to have you
cause the two of
us combined
could set
it on fire”

To get everyone in that feel-good mood (and because who doesn’t love Love Actually…), we walked out to All You Need Is Love by The Beatles. It was just the right tune to celebrate a French-English union – the song opens with the ‘Marseillaise’, the French national anthem, but it’s by a British band. My mum and aunt had been making confetti from rose petals for months and months prior to the wedding so we had plenty for everyone to throw as we came out of the church.

With that incredible view, we thought it was a shame for everyone to walk down the hill straight away and not enjoy the view. So as people came out of the church, we served champagne in brown, biodegradable paper cups and had some trestle tables set up with a wedding cake, yummy tray bakes, brownies and macarons by my very talented friend Sophie of Scrumptious Catering. 

Then it was time to get into a vintage French Citroën and head back down the sandy hill to our reception venue, a short 20 minute drive away. Stay tuned tomorrow when I’ll be sharing part two of our simple, minimalist wedding – inside a charming grade 1 listed Manor House in the Surrey countryside. See you then!

Supplier details:

Church: St Martha’s on the Hill, Chilworth
Photographer: Tania Joy Gault
Bride’s dress: Bon Bride
Bride’s shoes: Charles & Keith
Groom’s Suit: Burberry
Groom’s shoes: Common Projects
Bridesmaid dresses: Sézane
Flowers: Worm London
Catering: Scrumptious Catering
Hair and Makeup: I went to my local Toni & Guy for a blow dry the morning of the wedding and did my own makeup. A few weeks before the wedding, I had gone for a makeup tutorial at Space NK for a little guidance and bought some items from Nars and Laura Mercier that I would use again (the appointment costs about £20 and you get that back on anything you buy).