Beautiful Church Wedding Near Acton Trussell: Gemma and Joe
The Moat House, Acton Trussell
Whilst I have been busy rebranding, rebuilding my website and blog, starting another blog and getting all my business administration in order over the winter, I feel I have really neglected to share some of the beautiful weddings I have had the absolute best time photographing and this wedding has been on my 'to blog list' since the end of 2014! Well overdue I think! Gemma and Joe were so lovely to work with and their wedding day was a beautiful November day in 2014 at The Moathouse in Acton Trussell.
Gemma told me: 'Joe and I have been together for about 8 years! We actually went to school together and we were friends from high school through to university. We started dating after we both finished university; being friends for so long meant that our relationship grew quite quickly and we brought our house together after 2 years. We got engaged 6 years later. I think everybody else knew that Joe and I would start dating/get married before we did!
Joe proposed to me, when we went for a few days away in the lake district, he booked us into a lovely little B&B ( I never would have guessed what he was planning!) on our first day we went for a walk up Cat Bells, once we got to the top, Joe got down on one knee and proposed, he had to ask me again as I was in total shock and couldn’t talk properly! When we were walking down the mountain, I just wanted to tell everyone I saw that we had just got engaged'
WHAT WAS THE MOST MEMORABLE THING ABOUT YOUR WEDDING DAY? I have a few! Crossing the main road to meet my future husband! Walking into the church and seeing Joe at the end of aisle waiting for me! Joe and I finally being married and being able to call him my husband. Being with all of our family and friends,
Gemma writes: We got married at my families local church, just across the road from my parents house. It was amazing being able to get married at the church that I grew up at. Being so close to my parents house, meant I got the delight of crossing the main road in my wedding dress, my dad and the vicar stopping the traffic for me to cross the road was something I will never forget.
The best thing about the Moat House for our reception was the lovely staff the great building and lovely surroundings, The Moat House deal mainly with weddings, so it all works perfectly. They pride themselves on the small touches, and every bit is made to feel so personal to each couple. At each point through the day, a set person was there to look after us with anything that we needed. Rachel and Gaynor helped us throughout the year in planning the wedding and making sure everything was OK. The Moat House also had a full wedding package, which included the wedding breakfast and the evening meal, but also included the chair covers, the flowers in the venue and the DJ. It meant the whole thing was just a little bit easier for us, as we just had to meet with the florist and the design company regarding the chairs once, an email to the DJ and all was sorted!
'We first met Helen a few years ago at ones of Joe's University friend’s wedding. I was amazed at the quality, style and emotion that each picture showed. When Joe and I got engaged and started the process of planning our wedding my first thought was having Helen as our photographer, but as the wedding we met her was in Warwick, we assumed that Helen would be based too far away. We were so happy and surprised to find that she was based in Lichfield, just down the road! Helen was great with us right from the start, and when we had our pre shoot, it was great, we were a bit nervous to begin with, but we were put at ease by Helen. when we received the pre shoot pictures we were absolutely amazed and knew we had made the right choice and couldn't wait to see the pictures from the actual wedding. On the actual wedding day, having Helen there made me feel completely at ease. As Helen takes natural shots, and not "posey" shots, it actually gave Joe and I some time to talk and enjoy our wedding day together as a newly married couple, which has come across in our pictures. Helen gave me great advice throughout the day and our wedding wouldn't have been the same without her! I would definitely recommend Helen as a photographer for any occasion'
BRIDE'S DRESS Maggie Sottero from Mix and Match in Rugeley -
BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES: From BHS - Alterations were by a family friend
GROOMS OUTFIT: http://www.greenwoodsonline.com/
GROOMSMENS OUTFITS: http://www.greenwoodsonline.com/
FLORIST/FLORAL DESIGNER: Lavender Flowers - https://www.lavenderflorist.co.uk
CAKE: Fruit cake made by Gemma's Mum, the sponge cake was made by Joe's Mum. It was iced by a family friend
FAVOURS/TABLE DECORATIONS: We made all of our decorations, favours, table plans, name cards ourselves.
WHERE DID YOU SPEND YOUR HONEYMOON? 'We had a week away in the Lake District, in a lovely little barn conversion, with a log fire and a hot tub! We took a good supply of champagne to keep us going through the week! We went for numerous walks up mountains and around various Lakes. A perfect week away'
ANY TIPS FOR BRIDES AND GROOMS PLANNING THEIR WEDDING? 'I think it’s very important to know that every wedding is different, so it is important that you make your wedding special for what you as a couple want, and try not to compare your day against others.
The day itself goes so quick, so it’s very important to try and remember and enjoy every moment. If something doesn’t go according to plan, shrug it off and carry on, no one else will know!'