Emily and Steven’s Hands on Mix and Match Welsh Wedding by Adam Lowndes Photography

Morning everyone and happy Wednesday! Is anyone else completely confused as to what day it is today? With the bank holiday and now half term throwing me off track, I’m not sure if I’m working  today, looking after Dexter or have a day off?!? Anyway, if you’re looking for a bit of wedding inspiration no matter if it’s Wednesday, Tuesday or Friday, I have a super cute Welsh wedding for you, courtesy of Adam Lowndes Photography. Emily and Steven chose an intimate wedding of 60 guests at a venue that meant a lot to them, which made the wedding even more personal. They had an abundance of help from friends and family, which made the wedding a real hands on affair. From the photography to the dress, the stationery to the cake, all supplied by good friends of the couple. I just love Emily’s flower crowns and the bridemaids mix and match outfits.

I have never smiled as much as I did when I walked down the aisle lasting until the end of the night when my feet were aching. Looking back now the whole day just glows in my mind and I can distinctly remember catching Steven’s eye caught up in the euphoria so much we just smiled and carried on.

Emily and Steven were married on 28th May at Bwyty Mawddach, Llanelltyd, Dolgellau in Wales ‘My sister and her partner live nearby and we occasionally visit from our home in London. We both love being outdoors and often can be found on trails around the UK and further afield. This part of Wales is beautiful. The venue is overlooked by Cadair Idris and surrounded by rolling hills and fields. The venue sourcing all of the ingredients for our wedding breakfast locally was also a decisive factor. We wanted an intimate wedding so only invited 60 guests and it took around 12 months to plan.’

How they met
We met through mutual friends back home in Stone, Staffordshire. We were friends for a long time and then got together in 2010.

The proposal
We were staying at a boutique hotel in Istanbul called Has Han Galata when Steven decided to pop the question one night.

How did you allocate your budget?
The majority of our budget was allocated to the venue and food with the flowers coming in a close second. We were lucky our friends and family were literally falling over their selves to help us in anyway. Steven’s sister Delal designed and made the dress and our very close friend Adam agreed to photograph the wedding whilst refusing to accept any payment. These are two areas which we were prepared to also be big contributing factors to the budget so we are under no illusion of how lucky we were.

Where did you splurge and where did you save ?
We splurged on the flowers, the venue and the food. We saved on the dress, the photography, stationary and decoration.

How did you choose your photographer?
We have known Adam on a personal level for a number of years, and when it came to choosing a photographer for our own wedding, there was simply no discussion to be had; it was always going to be Adam. He was reluctant at first as he explained he treasured our friendship and didn’t want anything to come between us. We had seen so much of his work, not to mention his passion, professionalism, and attention to detail. He takes so much pride in what he does and will go above and beyond to get the best results. That was so clear when he photographed our wedding.

The dress 
Delal Fares, Steven’s sister, designed and made my dress. The silk was sourced from Egypt by Steven’s father who lives there. I didn’t have any accessories and didn’t splurge on shoes as I wanted the simplicity of the dress to be the focal.

The suit and bridesmaids
Steven had his suit from Ted Baker as the material and fit was the best of what we had tried. He splurged on a pair of Loak shoes for the big day. The bridesmaids wore a mix of a Jacques Vert and a Coast top/skirt combination. I loved the contrast of the colours and didn’t want a standard dress.

Theme or colour scheme 
Natural colours with a lot of greenery was the main focus of my day. I didn’t have a set colour scheme and often loved the mismatching of different colours. Fox example the bridesmaids outfits.

Flowers 
I had David Austin rose’s as the scent was absolutely beautiful. I had them everywhere including my headdress. We had these from a local supplier who’s now sadly closed.

Decoration 
Flowers and greenery everywhere. Ribbons lined the tables with empty wine bottles holding candles. The place setting had a piece of welsh slate with each person’s name painted on. These doubled as favours also. We also had a Instax board where people could take a selfie and pin it to their name.

Food 
Roasted Tomato Soup, locally sourced Lamb Shank with seasonal vegetables or Handmade Pasta, Sticky Toffee Pudding.
In the evening we had a buffet, including: Roasted Chicken, Sauteed Potatos, Season Vegetables, Garlic and Parmesan Salad, Welsh Cheeses, Chocolate Tart

Wedding cake
A family friend cake maker made a three tiered cake. It consisted of a carrot cake, a chocolate cake and a lemon cake. Finished with vanilla butter cream and opulent fruits dusted in gold.

Entertainment
Ginger and the Ninja’s played a relaxed set in their wedding attire during the Wedding Ceremony. They then played a more upbeat set in their relaxed wear in the evening. This was the perfect match of different music for the day. People loved their ceremony set also so people were raring to go when they started in the evening.

Who supplied the stationery?
Family, Friends and ourselves did all the stationary.

Special moments
Going off to have our couples photographs for half an hour. Even though Adam and our friend Tom were in the car this was a really nice personal moment where we had chance to breathe.
Having a small intimate number of guests in a venue which never felt empty or full.
Walking down the aisle to Jonny Cash – Walk the Line which was a secret to my father. I chose the song as he brought me up listening to the Man in Black.
My sister’s reading of her poem which spoke of the mountains in the background behind her.

Advice for other couples 
You don’t need to drink as you’re high on all of the emotion of the day. I remember everything and this was so important to me. A friend passed this knowledge on to me and it was invaluable.
We kept things very simple and relaxed.
We showcased our personality within our wedding taking each suggestion from everyone else with a pinch of salt. We wanted it to be our day.

Biggest surprise 
My sister’s poem. All the speeches were fantastic and you could really tell they’d been thought about with great detail.

Supplier Shout Outs

• Venue: Bwyty Mawddach 
• Photography: Adam Lowndes – Photography 
• Band: Ginger and the Ninjas 

For more information on Adams work go to

www.adamlowndes.co.uk / www.adamlowndes.co.uk/blog / [email protected] / 07527547073 / FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM

A little about me – Hey, I’m Adam Lowndes. A Wedding Photographer from Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire where I live with my partner and our miniature dachshund. I’m not a certified giant but will make most people look small at 6 foot 7. I believe people book me because often they want something a little bit different creatively. They also want someone they’ll enjoy to be around and they all cringe at the thought of posing.