A Colourful Autumnal Wedding at Walcot Hall, Shropshire

Planning a colourful autumnal wedding!

Some of you may have guessed, but if you haven’t, I enjoy a bit of a colour in my life, so when I have a couple enquire and they say their aim is to have a colourful wedding, I am OVERYJOYED! Ciara and James reached out in the lead up to their autumnal wedding wanting a more documentary style wedding photography so that they could spend the day immersed in the moments with their family and friends!

“ON THE DAY SHE WAS EVER PRESENT CATCHING MAGICAL MOMENTS AND INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PEOPLE. SHE ALSO MADE US FEEL AT EASE DURING OUR RATHER QUICK 'COUPLES' SHOTS”.

Having gotten engaged in the middle of the pandemic (on a blustery October afternoon in the middle of The Peak District!) James and Ciara were very lucky to find their perfect venue, Walcot Hall, and also find out the there was a last-minute free date less than a year from their engagement! Even through the normal chaos of planning a wedding, this pair had to contend with all the Covid madness, but Ciara and James (ever the optimist’s) enjoyed the challenge and used it as a very good reason to keep themselves busy!

Choosing Walcot Hall for their wedding was a no-brainer for James and Ciara, with the array of quirky accommodation for their family and friends, the onsite pub(!) and the extraordinary turquoise Georgian ballroom – they knew it was just the unusual wedding venue they needed to start the next chapter of the exciting and colourful lives!

Walcott Hall, with all it’s eccentric guest accommodation, enabled Ciara and James to have the weekend-long wedding celebration that some can only dream of. They especially loved the fact that each room, with its spectacular decoration, had been filled with these incredible trinkets and curiosities! With 100 guests being able to stay onsite they were able to start off with a Friday night pub session, leading onto their full wedding on Saturday and then a big family BBQ on the Sunday afternoon – making this feel more like a wedding festival than a wedding day!

The guys had a chilled morning getting ready in one of Walcott Hall’s coolest spots – the Victorian Tin Chapel. It’s tucked away in the woods, all rusty turquoise metal on the outside, and just so colourful and full of character. I absolutely love it. The bridal crew took over the main house for the morning – all the excitement, laughter, and getting-ready energy you'd hope for.

Having gone into dress shopping with zero expectations, and no particular vision in mind, Ciara went through over 30 dresses before she found her chosen one! A fitted, long sleeve, backless dress was far from what Ciara expected, but after trying on the Willowby dress by Watters at the lovely Evelie store in London she knew this was the one for her! After a splurge on some golden Jimmy Choo platforms, she paired them with a gorgeous gold and pearl halo headband by Honey & Ember!

James selected a blue wool suit, with mustard accessories, from the Vintage Suit Company for himself and the groomsmen as it worked with the coloured theme of the day. Each of the brides squad was given a colour palette to work with and they all turned out with the best autumnal shades! And SO MUCH COLOUR!

As Ciara and James enjoyed a good beer, they thought it would be a good idea to incorporate this into their floral theme with dried hops lining the aisle and along the top table. The flowers were provided by Bride and Bloom, creating natural looking wild arrangements for the bouquets and buttonholes (these were also included in the table settings alongside the hops and vintage bottles and candelabras!). They also named their tables after their fave breweries and pubs, including my local Attic Brew Co, and supplied beers for each table with tasting notes for each guest (AWESOME!).

Having felt that their celebrant, Jennie Hermolle, presented their story in its truest form, Ciara and James kept their vows short and sweet, but they did ask members of their families to light two candles, which Ciara and James then lit one candle with to symbolise their new partnership. These 3 candles are something they are able to keep forever as a special memory from their day!

As both are a strong lovers of music James and Ciara knew it had to play a big part of their day! Ciara walked down the aisle to The Cure (Just Like Heaven), which happens to be one of my fave ever songs and being the string quartet version it was so beautiful! They had one of Ciara’s friends sing an Irish folk song (She Moved Through the Fair) during the ceremony, and they walked out of the ceremony to Stand on the World by The Joubert Singers!

Ciara and James also knew that they wanted a brass band to play throughout the day, as it would keep the mood fun but also as the band would be able to easily move throughout the day and play in different locations! What an excellent decision this was! The Fat Cat Brass Band popped out during cocktail hour on stilts - this resulted in a 2:30pm dancefloor!

Walcot Hall has the perfect spot for drinks on the sunken lawn, and Ciara and James made the most of it with a brilliant mix of garden games – from hula hoops and table tennis to a full-on bouncy castle. I’ve got to say, the egg and spoon race was a first for me at a wedding, and it was a total hit.

With the speeches bringing on tears, laughter and even a birthday cake, in the brightest of ballrooms I’ve ever seen, the guests enjoyed the sumptuous feast that was provided by Walcot Hall! I managed to sneak James and Ciara out for some gorgeous autumnal themed portraits before they got to tuck into their towering cheese cake – it was tall enough to make me want to steal a layer home with me!!

Wanting to make the evening and as memorable for each of their guests as possible, Ciara and James used Prop Til You Drop, who provide you with an abundance of fancy dress items, and a massive photobooth within a vintage style dresser! All fashioned around a pink neon ‘Til Death do us Party’ sign, because (as the bride and groom said) why not?! If that’s not words to live by, I don’t know what is!

The party commenced with a second set from the fabulous Fat Cat Brass Band, and then as a selection of good friends had DJ experience, they took over the party, taking the guests through the evening and onto The After Party! Their evening ended with wigs, wild song mixes and wonderful memories – what more could you ask for!

Ciara and James have the best advice for couples who are currently navigating the crazy world of wedding planning:

Don’t try to please other people – do what works for you and celebrates who you are as people and as a couple.

Excellent advice – you’re not going to be able to re do this day, this is all about you two and how you want to celebrate the start of this chapter of your lives!

 See more from this Walcott Hall wedding here:

Awesome suppliers for this colourful Shropshire wedding are:

Planning your own joyful, personality-packed wedding at a one-of-a-kind venue like Walcot Hall? If you're after a photographer who’ll capture every colourful, candid moment with heart — I’d love to be there for it. 💛Head over to my contact form to get in touch — or have a scroll through more beautiful weddings on my blog for inspiration.

Real Weddings, Wedding Photography, WeddingsKate JacksonComment