Today I am really excited to be able to share this incredible Lord of the Rings Inspired Wedding Day with fantastic DIY Elements.

Images of the day were captured by Pengelly Photography at Layer Marney Tower, Essex.

 

 

Pengelly Photography specialise in reportage, creative and contemporary wedding photography.

They  provide wedding photography services in Suffolk, Essex and Norfolk.

 

I hand over to lovely Bride Katrina to share her story,

 

How did you meet?

“We met through a social group in Cambridge called Reality Checkpoint – we were both at one of their fortnightly drinks.”

“It felt so natural talking to each other and we really enjoyed each other’s company.”

“I was excited that Rob was from San Diego, my  favourite conference destination, and Rob was amazed that I had heard of one of his favourite musicians, Danny Elfman (who does the music for Tim Burton films).”

“I later asked Rob to join me for dinner before another fortnightly get-together, and the rest is history…”

 

When did you get engaged?

“n October 2012 we had a twin-city holiday in Barcelona and Nice.”

“Whilst staying in Nice, we took a coach day trip – and we were the only two people who had it booked that day.”

“We stopped off at Fragonard perfumery (and Rob treated me to what would become my engagement perfume), and then visited a medieval village called Eze.”

“We climbed to the top of the hill, which happened to be in the Botanic gardens, where Rob popped the question.”

“We then relaxed with James Bond-style cocktails at the Grand Casino in Monte Carlo.”

 

Tell us about your wedding planning journey

“We spent nearly a year planning our wedding.”

“I wanted Rob to enjoy the planning, and since weddings are so focused on the bride I suggested picking a theme he would find exciting.”

“Since we both love Tolkein, it seemed natural to pick a Lord of the Rings inspired wedding theme.”

“The challenge then was to create a wedding that looks fairly traditional, but tastefully incorporates lots of elements from Middle Earth.”

“Our chosen venue (Layer Marney Tower) is a Tudor gatehouse, which looks like a castle and fitted perfectly with our theme.”

“During the course of the year, we collected lots of Lord of the Rings artefacts for our centrepieces, but we struggled to find a florist who could understand our vision.”

“Thankfully, I met Clare Luke at a wedding fair in Brentwood, and it was clear that she was very passionate about our theme.”

“She suggested woodland touches, such as ivy and pine cones, to accompany our artefacts which we displayed in bell jars.”

“We also arranged for a harpist (Xenia Horne) to play music that complemented the theme throughout the day.”

“Our beautiful cake was made by Lucie at Wonderland Bakery, who iced our own secret message in elvish script onto the cake.”

“I worked on the initial planning and sourcing the suppliers, whilst Rob was the creative energy behind the theme.”

“He handmade all of our wedding stationery (including beautiful gold-leaf invitations with a real wax seal), as well as the order of service and scented candles for the favours.”

“We really planned every last detail, creating inventories of all the decorations we brought to the venue (21 boxes in total!), and we even had a spreadsheet for our honeymoon!”

“After the wedding we had one day to rest, and set off on our three week honeymoon to Hong Kong, Sydney, and of course New Zealand (to visit the Hobbiton film set).”

 

When did you get married?

“We got married on 4 October 2013 at Layer Marney Tower, Colchester.”

 

What was the best bit of your day?

“My dad and cousin arranged a surprise for after the speeches.”

“They played guitar and sang ‘I’m Yours’ by Jason Mraz.”

“Since we had planned every last detail of our day, it was wonderful to see that someone had a surprise for us.”

“They sat on the windowsill next to top table and played for us which was lovely.”

 

What advice would you give to other couples getting married?

“After such a long time planning, you won’t believe how fast the day flies by.”

“Try to take a few moments to yourselves as a couple – we went for an evening stroll around the grounds, and it was the perfect way to feel connected with each other and to celebrate our special day.”

 

 

Thanks to Kevin at Pengelly Photography for sharing this awesome Lord of the Rings inspired Wedding Day.

Thank you also to Katrina and Rob for sharing their extraordinary creativity and talent for bringing together such an inspired day.

Extra kudos must go to Clare at the Traditional Vintage Flower Company for truly inspired centre pieces, they are just beyond comprehension in their fabulousness.

And I love how the theme even though celebrating days of old has been brought bang up to date, particularly love the wee cupcake favours with the swords…just too cute!

 

Supporting Cast

Venue: Layer Marney Tower 

Photos:  Pengelly Photography

Floristry: Clare Luke at The Traditional Vintage Flower Company

Transport: came with the venue

Catering: Bouquet Garni (came with venue)

Wedding dress: New Beginnings Bridal 

Brides Circlet: Elnara’s medieval bridal fashions

Bridesmaid dresses: Looking Good 

Groom and Goomsmen’s suits: Moss Bros

Harpist: Xenia Horne 

Cake: Lucie at Wonderland Bakery  (also made the cupcake favours in LOTR style)

Hair and make up: Stacy Kelly 

Live music in the evening: The Hot Shots 

Bride’s hotel night before the wedding: Rye Farm

Groom’s hotel night before the wedding – Marks Tey Hotel Chester 

Chocolate fountain: Kelly’s occasions 

Lots of the LOTR memorabilia and jewellery were official merchandise from the movies, often from Forbidden Planet

DIY: We supplied all the figurines, hand-picked lavender bundles, stationery, table plan, candles, books, my Grandma did the Hobbit hole paintings, we supplied the booze and Hobbity menus and food name cards!

 

To Contact Pengelly Photography

Website: http://www.pengelly-photography.co.uk/

Email: kevin@pengelly-photography.co.uk

Phone: 01787 377503

Blog: http://www.pengelly-photography.co.uk/ourblog/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PengellyPhoto

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