Beautiful Dorset is the setting for today’s brilliantly boho celebration, and an outdoor ceremony filled with warm summer sunshine, followed by a reception inside a lovely old, stone barn filled with quirky, personal touches.
This is the wedding of Holly, a property manager, and Craig, a sheet metal worker, who were wed on the 29 June 2019 in the rustic and welcoming surroundings of Kingston Country Courtyard, Corfe Castle, on Dorset’s Jurassic Coast. Our outstanding Little Book member Claudia Rose Carter is the talent behind the lens for this feature, and it’s always a delight to share her exquisite work on our pages.
I adore the way she’s captured the golden summer light throughout Holly and Craig’s day, from the clear blue morning skies right through to those precious moments right before sunset.
“We chose Claudia as we were really drawn to her creativity and natural, documentary style.”
Claudia Rose Carter Photography + Follow
Holly’s ‘Woodrose’ dress from Willowby by Watters was a boho dream; striped, geometric Sevighy lace with fringing on the back and tiered skirt to give lots of lovely movement. She discovered this beauty at Southampton boutique Ava Louise Bridal Wear.
“I really struggled finding a dress that was different, and I tried on so many until I found Willowby. I loved their different, boho designs.”
“Kingston Country Courtyard provides an amazing setting and buildings. We were able to have free rein to decorate and use the spaces exactly how we wanted. Also, we really wanted to have an outdoor ceremony.”
The bridesmaids wore pretty circlets of fresh waxflower blooms in their hair, and together with Holly, carried beautiful bouquets by Jessica Hillier Floral Design. Huge protea flowers were the focal point, surrounded by blush pink roses, dahlias, hypericum berries, and lots of eucalyptus and grasses like pampas.
“We really wanted organic, boho style flowers, and I opted for an oversize bouquet. All of the bouquets and buttonholes were different; the boys buttonholes were tied with leather, and we also had pampas grass and feathers in all of the designs. Jessica helped us bring our vision to life using her skill and creative eye.”
“My perfume was Le Labo Santal 33. This was my ‘something borrowed’ from a good friend of mine. I fell in love with the scent.”
Holly also wore a chain finger bracelet from Local Eclectic, which looked lovely with the rest of her boho look.
Craig wore a smart suit from Tiger of Sweden, which he paired with a crisp white shirt, and a bow tie and pocket square by Devils Advocate via ASOS, and shoes from Topman.
The page boys’ cute, casual white shirts and blue chinos were from Zara and H&M, worn with classic white Converse sneakers. They walked down the aisle hand in hand with the bridesmaids, who wore their own tops, and long, chiffon skirts from Amazon.
Holly was accompanied down the aisle by her dad, and chose Holocene by Bon Iver as her entrance music.
“We first met in a bar on a night out in town. Craig dragged me out on a walk in between Christmas and New Year in 2017 to one of our favourite beaches. Little did I know he was going to propose at one of our favourite spots in a little secluded area on a cliff top overlooking the sea. We were engaged for exactly 18 months.”
I love that Holly re-purposed an off-cut of lace and fringe from her dress and wore it as an armband! On her feet she wore handmade espadrilles by Maslinda Designs, covered in matte sequins and tied with blush pink ribbons.
“I’m quite tall at 5’11”, so knew I didn’t want to wear heels, and again I really struggled finding anything different. I ended up buying my shoes from a lovely lady in Greece via Etsy. They were beautiful handmade espadrilles.”
The ceremony was conducted by a registrar from Dorset Council, and Holly and Craig were able to use a framework with which they tailored their vows.
Promises were made in the sunshine, and rings exchanged, which Holly and Craig had handmade by a local jeweller, artPaulStorm.
Post-ceremony drinks were enjoyed outside, and I love the way the space was decorated, with homemade bunting, garlands of lace, and feather and macrame dream catchers suspended from tree branches and draped across railings.
Holly and Craig made all stationery and signage themselves, which included an order of the day stencilled onto a wooden pallet, and a table plan made with lots and lots of coloured string, with tables named after favourite fictional locations from books, film and TV.
“We wanted a really relaxed and free flowing day, inspired by boho feels and hints of our geeky personalities. We really wanted the day to reflect us.”
The stone barn was beautifully decorated, with items like lace bunting handmade by Holly and Craig’s talented parents. A group of crochet and lace hoops hung from one wall, and a mobile of colourful paper cranes fluttered from the ceiling.
There was a vintage suitcase for cards, and all around there were lanterns, fairylights, and more crocheted and macrame decorations.
Table centrepieces were clusters of floral arrangements in vases and bottles, as well as pampas grass, feathers and handmade paper flowers, made from the pages of books.
Place settings were hand stamped and tied with pegs and string to little boxes containing guest favours, which were stick on moustaches!
The wedding feast came courtesy of the team at Kingston Country Courtyard, and this was followed by speeches, along with a delicious cheese tower, and a three-tiered semi-naked cake made by Patty Cakes.
After a sunset stroll through the fields surrounding the venue, Holly and Craig made their way back to the barn, and to the dancefloor for their first dance, followed by live music from three-piece ukulele band, Mother Ukers.
“Our first dance was to Follow You by Bring Me the Horizon. This was a song we both connected with when we first met, the words are beautiful, and we felt it reflected us in all angles.”
“We loved all of it! We wouldn’t have done anything differently apart from slow down time if we could!”
Words of Wedded Wisdom
“Don’t stress about the small stuff in the run up. On the day you’re so happy and excited, the small bits really don’t matter.”
“Take a few moments throughout your day to ground yourself and really let it soak in, because it goes so quickly. When you get your photos back, make some time to sit together alone and look at them all, as they bring back so many amazing emotions from the day.”
Thank you so much Holly and Craig, what a wonderful day you had, and I’ve loved to see all of your beautiful, boho details. I have no doubt getting your photos back from Claudia Rose Carter was an emotional moment. Claudia, they are sublime. Dear readers, do make sure you look through these real weddings featuring her work.
With love,
Laura
Laura Callan
View all Laura’s articles
Laura is a freelance writer and content creator who loves telling stories. She has keen eye for photography and art, and lives with her husband, cats, and huge amounts of books.