Real Wedding at Fringford Church, Oxfordshire – Philly and Matt

and Matt had their real wedding at Fringford Church, Oxfordshire in June 2008.

How they met

Philly and Matt shared the same halls of residence at Brighton University as well as a passion for the same subject – Fashion and Textiles – and it shows in their beautiful wedding!

The proposal

Matt proposed to Philly under a horse-chestnut tree on New Year’s Eve. Philly even remembered to collect some of the conkers to grow in their greenhouse and to act as inspired favours for the guests!

The bride’s real wedding outfit

With a gathered waistline and a hand-made lace jacket, Philly looked stunning in her elegant silk gown. The dress was designed by Pronovias and bought from Vanilla Bridal.

“We grew conkers from under the tree where Matt proposed and then gave them as favours”

The bride’s accessories

Philly’s veil was also from Vanilla Bridal and her shoes, which were from Rainbow Club, had a gathered silk front with a crystal brooch. “For the day, I wore a single pearl necklace given to me by Matt,” says Philly

The groom’s real wedding outfit

Matt hired the tail-suits from Henry’s in Bicester, Oxon. He bought his flower shirt from Marc Wallace, London, and looked gorgeous!

The bridesmaids

“I had three bridesmaids: my sister, Gemma, and my two best friends, Emma and Katie,” says Philly. They looked beautiful on the day in their coral silk dresses from Coast.

The hair and make-up

“The bridesmaids did each others’ hair at the same time as me, which was really good fun – all together, drinking Champagne!” remembers Philly. A Bobbi Brown make-up artist from John Lewis came to the house in morning, which Philly describes as, “amazingly stress-free

The flowers

“The flowers for the tables were all peonies and were grown specially by a friend who is a flower farmer,” explains Philly. Other flower Preston Bisset Nursery and were all natural, country-style blooms

The ceremony

“A string quartet played Pachelbel’s Canon as I walked down the aisle. This was something Matt had recorded for me when we were at university so it was very special for us both,” remembers Philly

The reception

For their real wedding, Matt and Philly chose a marquee on the lawn at Philly’s parents’ house in Fringford, oxfordshire. “We had a pink and green theme so all the table decorations were pink peonies and green foliage. Matt and I planned everything using all natural products to tie in with our theme,” explains Philly The details Matt and Philly used Big tree Wedding Stationery for all their stationery with a bespoke horse-chestnut leaf design, printed on recycled card. one area of the marquee was decorated with hay bales, comfy cushions and throws to snuggle under-this was a big hit with guests who sat there to enjoy a crépe (or two!)

“if we could do it all again, i’d have eaten more crêpes. i could only fit one in!”

The menu

The catering was by French chef Michel, of Michel’s Crêperie, oxford. Guests enjoyed salmon roulade, cream of chicken and wedding cake with home-made chocolates for dessert. “Afterwards, we had a créperie running all night for people to order themselves,” says Philly

The cake

Guests were treated to a beautiful four-tier, caramel and white-chocolate sponge cake with ivory icing and pink roses. The delicious real wedding cake was hand-made by Iced Delights in Bedfordshire.

The entertainment

“We had a barn dance to start the evening. our first dance was Desert Sunrise by Brett Dennen. We learnt a dance routine in secret!” says Philly.

The entertainment

“We had a barn dance to start the evening. our first dance was Desert Sunrise by Brett Dennen. We learnt a dance routine in secret!” says Philly. DJ Mark Potter of Blue Mark Entertainment also kept the guests on the dance floor all night!

The wedding night

“We stayed at Horwood House, Bucks. It was a surprise booked by Matt and completely took my breath away!” says Philly

The honeymoon

“We went to Bangkok for three nights and stayed at the Marriott Hotel, then we went to Koi Samui and stayed at the ‘Anatara’. It was amazing and felt like the perfect ending to the whole experience,” says Philly. For more information on the ‘Antara’, find them at Small Luxury Hotels of the World.