Victoria and Matthew celebrated a magical September wedding on a Sunday at Farnham Castle, surrounded by 80 day guests and a further 35 joining them in the evening.
Finding Farnham Castle
The couple weren’t set on a particular style of wedding venue, but wanted to compare three venues and keep an open mind before committing to one. The first venue they visited wasn’t for them, and Farnham Castle was the second. They loved it so much that they cancelled their third venue viewing. The couple knew that they needed to find a wedding venue with accommodation on-site, and they loved that they could have their wedding at Farnham Castle with everything under one roof – including a Church of England Chapel to hold their religious wedding ceremony. The charm, character and the fact that the history of Farnham Castle is apparent throughout the whole building, ticked every box for the couple – plus the added bonus of having access to The Gatehouse for the bride to get ready on the morning of the wedding!
Once the date had been set, Victoria got in touch with Liquorice Press in Basingstoke in order to have them design a collection of elegant, Farnham Castle themed stationery, decorated with gold foil.
Wedding Day Fashion
After a couple of frustrating visits to a handful of bridal boutiques, Victoria fell in love with an A-line, off the shoulder, blush pink design by Le Spose di Gio. These particular gowns are designed perfectly to fit your body and offer a collection of simple, classic styles with minor contemporary twists. Victoria teamed her gown with pretty satin court shoes and had JoJo Hicks style her hair and makeup.
Victoria didn’t have any bridesmaids as she’d made a promise to herself years ago that she’d only want bridesmaids if friends or relatives had small children, but as this hadn’t yet happened, the bride kept to her original promise and decided against having any bridesmaids on the big day.
Matthew wore his RAF No.1 uniform for the wedding ceremony and then changed in to his RAF No.5 uniform for the evening reception. He invited his best friend James to be his Best Man and both Victoria and Matthew’s brothers we’re ushers.
Wedding Flowers at Farnham Castle
Victoria didn’t want fussy or messy flowers decorating the wedding ceremony and reception at Farnham Castle, so opted for delicate blush roses, hydrangeas and eucalyptus and commissioned Longacres in Bagshot to be in charge of everything floral. Victoria carried a handtied posy with blush pink roses, liianthus, eyucalyptus and white veronicas down the aisle and the wedding reception table arrangements were an enhanced version of the bridal bouquet, but with additional blush hydrangeas and white hypericum.
Victoria commented that her bouquet was far too pretty to toss at the end of the evening!
Wedding Ceremony: The Norman Chapel
“We chose a small ceremony in the Norman Chapel with Reverend Heather, she was brilliant and put everyone at ease, allowing us to enjoy it. The Chapel was perfect, with the simple stonework and white wash walls it had just enough space for close friends and family. It had a wonderful welcoming feel to it.” quoted Victoria.
The bride-to-be, her mother and future mother-in-law got ready in The Gatehouse on the morning of Sunday 25th September. The ladies had an exciting morning, toasting the bride-to-be with MOET and perfecting their hair and makeup before the big moment ahead. At 2pm, the bride walked down the romantic aisle of The Norman Chapel in front of 80 guests, on the arm of her father, to the sounds of Pachelbel’s Canon in D. The couple made their wedding vows and after a kiss to seal the deal, wedding guests celebrated with Pimm’s in The Stone Hall and outside on The Great Lawn.
Wedding Reception
Victoria and Matthew decorated The Great Hall with a simple yet elegant theme and didn’t want to over-crowd the reception tables with too many decorations. They numbered their tables and decorated each place setting with a delicate macaron box tied with a blush ribbon.
The couple chose a delicious three-course menu prepared by Farnham Castle’s chefs and invited a further 35 guests to celebrate with them later in the evening once the meal and emotional speeches had taken place. The couple’s wedding cake was designed by the wife of Victoria’s cousin, who is also a professional cake designer and the three-tier cake offered a variety flavours; fruit cake on the bottom tier, chocolate in the middle and lemon on the top tier. The cake was iced with pale pink icing with pearl beading between each tier and a pretty iced bow on the top.
Once the cake had been cut, the newlywed couple took to the dance floor and danced their first dance as a married couple to ‘September’ by Earth, Wind and Fire. It was the perfect start to an evening of dancing and celebrating in The Great Hall. At the end of the night and once carriages had departed, overnight guests made their way up to their unique castle bedrooms and the bride and groom relaxed in the Guildford Suite – the ultimate location to spend your first night as a married couple.
The newlyweds booked The Maldives for their honeymoon and both agreed that their favourite part of the wedding day was having their friends and family with them at Farnham Castle to share the experience.
Wedding Suppliers
Wedding Photography: Hannah McClune Photography
Wedding Flowers: Longacres, Bagshot
Wedding Stationery: Liquorice Press
Wedding Insurance: Wedding Plan