I first met Chas & Tracy in November 2015.  Tracy had already seen some of my work so I came to meet them at their home to find out more about their wedding plans.  Tracy & Chas had organised a lot already and were able to create quite a good picture of how they were hoping it to look and feel on the day and I have to say I left feeling quite excited at being a part of it.

This couple have been together for 8 years.  They both had new babies when they first met and were living in a little rented place together.  They always said they would never get married but as the years have gone by, everything began falling into place and now, with 3 gorgeous children, a beautiful new home, and a family dog it just felt right for them.

Chas proposed on Valentines Day.  Tracy had thought the surprise was Elsie, their new puppy but all was revealed when Chas popped the question!

On the morning of her wedding, Tracy made her preparations at the Cock Hotel in Stony Stratford Milton Keynes.  The hotel is situated on the High Street so you could see all the usual Friday morning comings and goings of the small market town through the 15th Century windows in the suite upstairs.

We had Tracy, 5 bridesmaids, 2 children, a couple of close friends, a make up artist, a hair stylist and myself, all in one room and some of them with slightly sore heads from all the excitement the night before.  They were all team players and  helped each other out, with nail painting, doing up necklaces and getting the children ready meaning that everyone managed to get ready in good time and enjoy their morning.

Chas and Tracy had planned a hessian rustic theme for their day with lots of woods and natural colours so the bridesmaids dresses (which could be done up in 5 different ways!) really complimented the look.   Looking the part, the gents wore navy suits and tweed waistcoats and together the whole wedding party looked a dream.  Tracy had her bouquet hand made from natural materials to match the theme with pretty beads and textures amongst the flower designs.

Next it was on to the service at St Thomas’ Church in Simpson which was carried out by a great vicar who had the whole congregation laughing at times.  The ladies and men threw everything into the songs and it turned out to be a perfect mixture of sentiment and fun.

With spatters of rain on the way, we headed back to the Cock Hotel for Chas & Tracy’s reception.  I couldn’t wait to photograph the wedding party with the camper van that they had hired as their wedding car! Thankfully we got everything snapped before the rain came properly and Tracy ran for cover just as the wedding breakfast was about to begin.

So much of this wedding had been beautifully crafted, created and styled by Tracy herself.  She really excelled herself and the room looked like perfection with every detail having been thought of.

Tracy had made little hessian heart shape place cards, and bride and groom personalised wine and beer glasses.  There were jam jars filled with seasonal flowers and individual picture frames for table centres.  The children had balloon modelling kits and circus tricks such as juggling that kept them entertained all afternoon. Chas and Tracy had not one, but 3 wedding cakes, some of which were gifts from talented members of the family.

With the evening settling in to full swing, Chas, Tracy and I went for a little stroll around Stony Stratford to get some lovely portraits of them.  It can make a nice change to have a less conventional backdrop of a town with so much history for these shots. I love all the little alleyways and historic features it has to offer here.

The evening partied hard with the Prop Corner set up for the guests of all ages, we got some fantastically funny shots in there!  And the dance floor was packed all night.  I particularly recall the fun when “Much too much, much too young” began to play.

Tracy’s bridesmaids did a fantastic job all day with helping to round people up when needed and keeping the bridal party on schedule.  It helps thay there were such great ladies but I could tell they were the tightest of friends who had each others backs always.  Tracy wore shoes down the aisle with handwritten messages from these ladies which will be something she can keep forever,

Tracy openly admitted that she doesn’t enjoy having her picture taken and in fact this couple had opted to pass up the complimentary couple shoot that was included in their wedding package.  When editing their collection I was taken aback by how stunning Tracy looked on the morning of her wedding.  It would have been easy to for them not to bother having a photographer there to capture their wedding day but I am so so pleased that they did.  Thank you so much for having me Tracy and Chas, you aced it xx

VENDORS:

Venue: Cock Hotel Stony Stratford

Church: St Thomas’s Church, Simpson

Car: Calico Moon

Disco: DJ Lee Powell via The Cock Hotel

Make Up Artist: Yasmin Spink