David & Marie-Louise at Combermere Abbey
This is the epic wedding of Marie-Louise & David.
You may remember Marie-Louise & David from their awesome Liverpool pre-wedding shoot (you can see that here to refresh your memories!)
Words don’t seem worthy enough to describe this amazing Combermere Abbey wedding. Celebrations spread out over 3 days, at the ever beautiful wedding venue in Shropshire and hosted by the most generous and nicest of couples, was one to remember.
For Marie-Louise, David and their guests their wedding celebrations started on Friday afternoon as they arrived at the courtyard cottages of Combermere for a pre-wedding party and delicious catering by the talented team of Pickled Walnut.
We joined in the fun on Saturday morning by arriving at Combermere Abbey to meet up with our beaming bride and her family, friends, bridesmaids and the two MOST adorable little flower girls. Hair was being done by the very talented (and highly hilarious) Mr. Sam Gorman of SGB Hairdressing and make-up by the lovely Kate Smith of KS Makeup as the ladies sipped on champagne (or orange juice for the little ladies) and laughed and chatted as the sun shone into Crossley Cottage.
After getting to photographing a few bridal details, it was time to focus on THAT dress. Marie-Lou’s stunning bespoke gown was created for her by design royalty, Philip Armstrong. The detailing was exquisite and a shimmering layer underneath the delicate lace added another dimension to an already amazing gown. Tony and Phillip, the designers, arrived to dress our bride once everyone had been preened and pampered by Sam and Kate.
Tobiah had been to catch up David and his groomsmen prior to this and to also capture David’s gift from his bride-to-be being delivered to their cottage. I think complete shock is an understatement for David’s reaction! After discussing gifts with each other before the wedding, our couple had decided to just get each other something small. So you can understand why our groom stared in disbelief as he unwrapped his gift to discover an iconic IWC Portuguese Choronograph Classic watch. Nice bluffing from the bride! Once the sheer surprise had subsided a little bit, the groom and his entourage headed out into the courtyard to head over the ceremony at St. Alkmunds church in Shropshire.
David’s suit had been custom made, again by Phillip Armstrong, and with finishing touches such as an Hermès Grand H pocket square and the most sublime Tom Ford tie, it was fair to say our groom looked über stylish.
It was soon time for the ladies, not forgetting the Father of the Bride, John, to follow to the church and they headed out into the sunshine and into their vintage Rolls Royce cars to head to the ceremony.
The wedding ceremony is the most important part of the day and also one of our favourite times to capture pure emotions of our couples and their families and friends. Once readings had been read and I do’s said, the newlyweds went into the chapel to sign the marriage register. Meanwhile, guests were enchanted by amazing female soloist, Danielle Louise Thomas.
Outside, guests welcomed, hugged and laughed with the new Mr & Mrs before going back to Combermere Abbey for the champagne reception and canapés. The sun stayed shining as everyone enjoyed sipping their drinks and catching up with each other. We started the group photographs after about half an hour and then stole the bride and groom away for some portraits before going to The Pavilion for the wedding breakfast.
The Pavilion looked unreal. The very best and immensely talented team of Red Floral Architecture had, as always, created the most amazing, opulent designs. There were stunning centrepieces and table decorations wherever you looked with a HUGE Japanese blossom tree next to the entrance of The Pavilion with hundreds of candles hanging from its branches. There were 2000 candles (!) lit and incorporated in the designs that Mat and his team had created.
As guests enjoyed the wedding breakfast, the incredible John Witherspoon aka Flynn’s Piece, who you can usually hear playing at Lark Lane’s Moon & Pea and other Liverpool venues, provided live music and magical vocals to create an amazing atmosphere. He is so unbelievably talented, with such an honest and unique voice – we’d recommend anyone looking for a cool soloist at their wedding or event to get in touch with him.
Once the fabulous wedding breakfast was served by Mark and his team at Pickled Walnut and all speeches had been given, we set up our photobooth ready for that evening. We always love a photobooth and they make for lots of fun, relaxed photographs of guests.
Marie-Louise and David had 2 bands to entertain and provide the coolest soundtrack for their evening reception. As our couple are both from Liverpool, it was easy to see why the first band they had was the awesome The Beattles band who had EVERYONE on the dance floor. More talented musicians followed and the dance floor stayed packed with a set from Great Scott. An 80s tribute band that, like the Beattles, dressed the part as much as well as sounding unbelievably authentic. We both (Laura mainly) left this wedding with little voice left from singing along as we photographed guests and our bride and groom dancing into the night.
We hope everyone enjoyed the final leg of their wedding extravaganza on Sunday with more delicious food from Pickled Walnut; this time a barbecue in the courtyard, and some karaoke!
Thank you so much to Marie-Louise & David for the most amazing of days, it was a pleasure to be a part of it and we didn’t want to leave!
If you are looking for Combermere Abbey Wedding Photography please do just contact us.
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