Emily wearing a tulle wedding dress by Maggie Sottero

We were delighted to provide Miss Bush bride Emily with the most beautiful lace and tulle wedding dress by Maggie Sottero, which she wore for her relaxed, intimate Dorset wedding to husband Jon in August this year. The wedding took place at the stunning country house, Shillingstone House, and we’re thrilled to share the images by Violet Pearl Photography with you today along with some details about the day from Emily.

THE DRESS

Emily wore Maggie Sottero’s ‘Mirelle’ wedding gown, a romantic lace and tulle wedding dress covered with exquisite lace appliques.

Emily tells us all about finding her gown;

“I originally thought I wanted something much more bohemian but as soon as I put on that dress I knew it was the one! It was incredible – I felt amazing in it.”

“I really never thought I would have ‘that moment’ that every bride talks about when they find their dress. I just didn’t think I was that kind of girl. However, I brought my mum, bridesmaid and my mother in law with me to Miss Bush and my mum and I had a really special moment where we both cried because we knew it was the one!

The first dress shop I went to I hated! I felt really awkward and pressured into ‘finding the one.’ My Miss Bush experience was completely different. Corinne was amazing and made me feel so at ease. She didn’t pressure me at all and I guided me towards trying on a few different ones which I wouldn’t have expected to have tried on. I really enjoyed the calm space which was created in store and loved going to my fittings!”

“As my dress was strapless I knew I wanted to have my hair down. I still wanted to keep the bohemian look so I had beach waves put through it and had flowers in the back of my hair which included some spray roses & lavender. I wore a chapel veil for the ceremony but took it off as the party got started- everyone kept standing on it! I wore my mums sapphire earnings (which matched my engagement ring perfectly!) and, as we were getting married outside, I wore some wedges from Kurt Geiger (which were crazy comfy and I have even got to wear them again!)”

ABOUT THE DAY

Emily tells us more about her relaxed, intimate wedding day, which was packed with special, personal details;

“We got married in the gorgeous gardens of Shillingstone House amidst the rolling Dorset countryside which is the family home of the amazing Lady Caroline & Sir Michael Salt. After we returned from travelling for six months, Jon and I basically knew every detail of our wedding. We knew we wanted to be married in Dorset (where I grew up) and we were determined to officially get married outside in a personal, DIY (non- wedding factory) venue. After hours of trawling through websites and gawping at price tags I stumbled across Shillingstone House (who only do 6 weddings a year.) Caroline was so lovely but unfortunately, they were already booked up for 2017. Being a teacher, I knew I had to get married in the holidays if we wanted a honeymoon. So I continued my search albeit always thinking about Shillingstone. After a month or so I emailed Caroline again to check about getting some of local honey they produce and she told me the amazing news that one couple had switched dates and the 5th August had come available! It was meant to be!”

“We knew that we wanted our wedding to be completely personal, relaxed and to feel like a big party full of love! We wanted it to reflect the beautiful surroundings and us as a couple- with everything from a live band, a campfire, wines from the vineyards we visited on our travels, handmade signs, bunting and a ‘posh’ BBQ by the incredible – Tickled Pig – who source all their food locally.

We got married outside, underneath a registered gazebo and then had the party in a traditional pole marque infant of the house. It all happened within a stones throw of each other! In hindsight our day probably had a 70s vibe to it but I didn’t realise that at the time!”

“My family are all potters and really keen about art, so pretty much everything was handmade. We made our own pottery centre pieces with our own flower arrangements (the incredible flowers were supplied by Martha & the Meadow & my auntie) and my sister wrote all the signs & table settings. My father in law (who is a wine buff) helped us choose all the wine and prosecco for the day. My dad (a retired builder and carpenter) made our homemade bar. My mum made the deserts – Oreo cheesecake – and as we camped in bell tents at the venue that night- my mum made Canadian pancakes for everyone the following morning. It was hard work the days leading up to it but I absolutely loved it. Made the wedding feel much longer and much more involved that just a day.”

“I loved all of it and it went like a blink of an eye! I felt like I was walking around in a daze the whole time – watching our dream unfold in front of us. It was incredibly bizarre! But my favourite part was walking down the aisle with my dad. As we were driving up to the house a huge thunder cloud was above us and the heavens opened! I had been totally calm all morning but I must admit – the nerves did start to creep up when I saw the amount of rain! In the lead up to our wedding everyone kept saying “What if it rains…what will you do?!” but we just kept saying “It won’t. And if it does – we will sort it.” The weather forecast had been all over the place all day so we didn’t know what was going to happen. Once the rain cloud passed we found ourselves ready to walk down the aisle in the brightest sunshine. And that is what we did- accompanied by our stunning acoustic singer called Alice singing ‘Wings’ by Birdy. I remember seeing Jon’s facial expression at the end of the aisle (who was trying to hold it all together) and it made me giggle.”

FINAL WORDS

Some words of wedding planning advice from our bride, Emily;

“Relax, smile, have fun. Don’t stress about the little things as they really don’t matter. Keep in perspective that the most important thing is that you are marrying your love.”