Photography HBA Photography hbaphotography.com Venue East Soar Outdoor Experience eastsoaroutdoorexperience.co.uk
Having met via a dating app, Kirsty and Matt quickly fell for one another despite their hectic schedules. “Matt is in the RAF and I’m cabin crew for Virgin Atlantic,” says Kirsty. “We’d had a few months of feeling like ships passing in the night, so Matt suggested a weekend away.” Returning to her home county of Devon, the couple headed to Hope Cove for a cream tea and a sunset walk overlooking the sea. “The sun was just setting when Matt got down on one knee,” she recalls. “I burst into tears. It was just so perfect.”
East Soar Outdoor Experience provided the dream setting for the couple, who planned and styled the entire wedding themselves in just five months. With a vision centred around soft sage and cream tones alongside a rustic yet elegant aesthetic, Kirsty and Matt embraced a hands-on approach from the very beginning.
“We did everything from scratch,” says Kirsty, who handmade everything from the stationery and signage to the table décor. The barns were adorned with flowers, festoon lighting, lanterns and flowing fabric details, creating a warm and romantic atmosphere throughout.
Their celebrations actually began the weekend before with an intimate church ceremony in Lacock, where Kirsty grew up. Continuing the DIY spirit, the couple created their own décor and hosted a three-course supper for 22 guests afterwards.
Despite it being August, the couple woke on their wedding day to sideways rain and gale-force winds. Guests gathered at East Soar Outdoor Experience for the main celebration, where drinks were served as singer Paris Adams provided the soundtrack. Kirsty made an emotional entrance to How Long Will I Love You? “Walking down the aisle to Paris singing that song was my favourite moment of the day,” she says.
Inside the cosy Swallows Nest barn, complete with a crackling log burner and twinkling fairy lights, the couple exchanged self-penned vows and shared a touching rose exchange with their mothers and each other before making their exit to Simply the Best, once again sung by Paris. “It felt magical,” says Kirsty.
Post-ceremony drinks and canapés were followed by a windswept photo shoot and a guard of honour – “it was so special and unique to have it on a farm” – before sitting down to the wedding breakfast. Moving speeches featured alongside a relaxed barbecue-style feast of pork belly ribs, peri-peri chicken, sausages, Mediterranean vegetables and salads. Desserts included pavlovas, banoffee pie and apple crumble cheesecake.
As the stormy skies finally cleared, the newlyweds slipped away for quiet clifftop portraits before returning for their first dance to Die With a Smile by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars. “We didn’t practise,” says Kirsty, “but we somehow managed to put a few moves together!”
An evening of dancing, feasting and celebration ended with a sparkling send-off, leaving the couple exhausted, elated – and proud of the wedding day they had created together.
“If we can organise two weddings and source all our suppliers in five months without any help, it really shows it can be done!” says Kirsty. “It was just fabulous!”
Photography HBA Photography hbaphotography.com
Venue East Soar Outdoor Experience eastsoaroutdoorexperience.co.uk
Dresses Abella Idina from All About Eve allaboutevebridalwear.com
Celebrant Gayle Armitage gaylearmitage.com
Club L London clubllondon.com
Hair Beth Dawes Hair instagram.com/bethdaweshair
Make-up Get Glamorous by Bea getglamorous.co.uk
Entertainment Paris Adams parisadams.co.uk
The Atlantic theatlanticpartyband.co.uk
Videography BaDeYa badeya.co.uk
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