Sarah and Matt's Big Christmas Party Wedding in Leeds by Photography by Charli

Happy Wednesday everyone and how is your week going so far? I’ve already had one day off this week and another one on Friday, so I am having a lovey time enjoying the summer holidays! Today we are off to Leeds for this gorgeous Christmas wedding, classic and modern with a big old party to celebrate. Sarah and Matt didn’t want a run of the mill wedding, so they opted for Northern Monk Brewery which gave them the urban warehouse feel that they were looking for. They filled the day with seasonal flowers and subtle Christmas decor, along with a great selection of food and drinks, including tequila and cocktails and then continued to party into the night. Photography by Charli was there to capture the day beautifully for us.

The best party ever!

Sarah and Matt were married on 29th December 2018 at Double Tree, Granary Wharf Reception Northern Monk Brewery, Leeds. ‘We didn’t want a traditional wedding – just wanted a relaxed space where we could do what we wanted. Although I’m originally from Leeds, we live in East London now and Northern Monk reminds us of the warehouse spaces down there. Also, Matt loves craft beer and who wouldn’t want a ‘piss up in a brewery’ as the location for their wedding! We had 100 guest and it took 6 months to plan.’

How they met
We both work in the Civil Service and first met through work. We’ve been together about 4.5 years.

The proposal
In Matt’s words… ‘10/10 for organisation, 1/10 for execution’. It probably wasn’t the most romantic! We went to Manchester for the weekend (where I went to uni). When we checked into the hotel there were flowers and champagne in the room so and I thought we were in the wrong place! After a bit of confusion, Matt thrust a ring box at me. I was completely shocked.

How did you allocate your budget?
I am an accountant so we had the best wedding budget spreadsheet ever! We had a chat beforehand to decide what was important to us and what we cared less about. We knew we wanted to provide good quality food and drink for everyone and didn’t want an off-the-shelf ‘wedding venue/ package’. Picking a non-traditional wedding venue saved us so much money.

Where did you splurge and where did you save?
We had an amazing DJ which also came with a sax player and percussionist. Worth every penny! We had unlimited drinks which included cocktails. We cut back on things that weren’t that important to us like a cake and wedding outfits. We also got married at Christmas which was slightly off season (cheaper) and most places were already decorated with lights so it saved on decorations.

How did you choose your photographer?
We found all our suppliers via Instagram! Although I would say to make sure you ask to view a full album from a wedding before selecting – sometimes the highlight pictures on a website can be misleading of the full range and quality of photos that you would get. I absolutely recommend our photographer (Photography by Charli).

The dress
Dress, Catherine Deane. Accessorises Web2B and leopard print shoes (!) New Look.

The suit and bridesmaids
Suit Reiss. Bridesmaids ASOS (Maya)

Theme or colour scheme
Not really – tried to keep in with the theme of winter and used seasonal flowers/ colours.

Flowers
Lots of seasonal foliage and greenery. The ceiling of the reception was covered in eucalyptus and pine, which smelt divine!

Decoration
Mainly greenery, but also lots of candles and a few balloons. We did a lot of it ourselves which was fun.

Food
Sharing platters – BBQ theme. Think grilled halloumi, brisket, sweet potato fries, glazed chicken, coleslaw. Sharing plates are a good way to get everyone chatting at a table as well and helped it feel more informal, rather than having a 3-course set meal.

Wedding cake
Victoria Sponge, M&S special! My mum added a few personalised decorations on top.

Entertainment
Does tequila count…?

Who supplied the stationery?
My friend is a designer so did it for free.

Personal touches
Or things that you did yourself? We each picked our favourite cocktails (espresso martini and whiskey sour) and had them as welcome drinks at the reception.

Special moments
I loved all the speeches – I gave one, as did the bridesmaids, in addition to best man and groom. I was nervous but felt incredible afterwards. It was good to have females speaking at a wedding – girl power!

Advice for other couples
Do not feel tied to traditions or feeling pressure to do certain things. Think about the things that you love doing as a couple and make the day personalised to you.