Wedding Ideas

Jessica & Jason

After almost a decade together, Jessica and Jason chose Gaynes Park for their fabulous modern classic wedding.

The Wedding & Reception Venue

The first step that Jessica and Jason took on their wedding planning journey was towards their venue. “I knew that as soon as I had chosen the venue, it would sway the theme of the wedding,” says Jessica. “We knew that we wanted to get married close to home which would mean either a city or country wedding.”

Jessica and Jason opted for a Friday in May for their big day and this meant that they also missed clashing with the Royal Wedding as well as giving their guests an extra day to recover!

Wedding guests enjoy a drinks reception outside the Orangery at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

“The venue is absolutely breath-taking, from the initial drive up through the fields and on to the beautiful Orangery, barns and Walled Garden. We chose Gaynes Park as the ceremony and reception could be in one place and because we knew that the venue has hosting weddings down to a tee.”

The Orangery at Gaynes Park is set up for a beautiful summer wedding ceremony — © Three Flowers Photography

Wedding Planning

So that they could allocate their wedding budget appropriately, Jessica and Jason decided to look at their priorities early on in the planning process.

“Jason and I sat down separately and ranked our top 10 priorities for the wedding and that was really eye-opening. The venue and DJ were really important to me whilst the food and live band were really important to Jason. This exercise helped us allocate our budget and it was also a really fun thing to do.”

The Mill Barn at Gaynes Park is set up for a beautiful wedding reception — © Three Flowers Photography

The Bride’s Dress & Accessories

Jessica chose a stunning Pronovias dress and although she’d looked at the label’s current collection before her bridal appointment, she avoided making any decisions before trying gowns on.

“I had heard a little bit about Pronovias before I started looking at dresses but I hadn’t researched styles too much before I visited a boutique. This actually helped me find the dress because I didn’t have any set ideas about what I would have. The assistant at Matchmaker Bride was fantastic and the third dress I tried on turned out to be the one.”

Jessica accessorised with Kurt Geiger heels, a single tier Cathedral length veil with satin piping and tear drop earrings from Liberty in Love. Jessica also wore her nan’s eternity ring as her ‘something borrowed’.

A bridesmaid helps the bride with finishing touches to her wedding dress in Apple Tree Cottage at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The bride wore a beautiful white gown with a stunning beaded back for her wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The bride and her father walk down the wedding aisle in the Walled Garden at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The Bridesmaids

Choosing the bridesmaids’ dresses was possibly the hardest part of wedding planning for Jessica. “I struggled with a colour theme but went with my gut and decided to have dove grey as the palette for our wedding. My sister in law recommended Jarlo and in the end, I opted for Bardot style tight dresses with small trains. They were classic yet glamorous which was exactly what I wanted.”

Bridesmaids wore grey bardot style bridesmaids dresses for this classic wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The Groom & Groomsmen

Jason and his groomsmen wore three-piece dark navy suits from Reiss along with white double-cuffed shirts from TM Lewin. Jason also wore a grey waistcoat, from Reiss, along with Russell & Bromley black loafers, a blue and white polka dot tie and pearl cufflinks, both from TM Lewin.

“We opted for Reiss as this is where Jason normally shops and the suits were stylish and great quality. Jason added his late grandad’s silver tie pin to this outfit too.”

The groom and his groomsmen wore navy suits for this summer wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The Decorative Touches

As Jessica is an interior designer, the styling of the venue was incredibly important to her and she knew that she wanted the day to be classic and beautiful but also relaxed. Jessica and Jason also wanted to enhance the beauty of Gaynes Park with their decorations.

“The venue has the most beautiful grounds with flowers all around and we decided to focus on this, so we put flowers everywhere! Flowers lined the aisle in the Orangery and we also had two large urns full of flowers at the front of the Orangery as the main focus.”

The bride and her father enter the wedding ceremony in the Orangery at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

A simple table plan was adorned in green foliage for this summer wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

Large urns are filled with wedding flowers and placed in the Orangery at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The couple chose large table centrepieces for the Mill Barn and for extra sparkle they hired a huge disco ball from Mediterranean Occasions.

“I wanted the grey theme to run through into the wedding breakfast so I made my own washed linen napkins and created Cosmopolitan shots for our favours. As entertainment for the wedding breakfast we formed our own personalised version of pass-the-parcel. It was great fun and I’d really recommend it.”

The Mill barn at Gaynes Park is decorated with florals for a beautiful wedding reception — © Three Flowers Photography

For a wedding reception milk bottles were filled with wild wedding flowers and placed on tables in the Mill Barn at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The couple chose pink and white wedding flowers for their wedding day at Gaynes Park in Essex — © Three Flowers Photography

A white three tiered wedding cake was adorned with wedding flowers for this classic wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

Frames filled with pressed flowers were used as unique table numbers for this beautiful wedding at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

Grey napkins were placed at each table setting for this classic wedding breakfast at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The Wedding Day

Jessica and Jason’s civil ceremony in the Orangery was absolutely beautiful and had the intimate feeling that they were looking for. Jessica walked down the aisle to the sounds of the string trio, The Dotted Crochets, and the musicians played on through the couple’s drinks reception too.

Newlyweds share their first kiss as husband and wife in the Orangery at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

A string trio played during the wedding ceremony in the Orangery at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

Newlyweds are showered in confetti following their wedding ceremony at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The newlyweds and their guests enjoyed canapes, Pimms, passionfruit martinis and gin and tonics in the Walled Garden before moving to the Mill Barn for their wedding breakfast.

“We served scallops as our starter, beef as our main course and Eton Mess for dessert. We also added candy floss to the top of our toast drinks as a fun touch.”

: A selection of wedding cocktails were served throughout the wedding reception at Gaynes Park in Essex — © Three Flowers Photography

The wedding party enjoy the wedding speeches in the Mill Barn at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The bride and groom share a moment in the Gather Barn at Gaynes Park on their wedding day — © Three Flowers Photography

The evening reception was just brilliant. There were stone-baked pizzas served directly from a pizza oven, freshly made popcorn, vintage barrels of beers and mini bottles of prosecco. A photo booth complete with lighting and props plus a doughnut wall were a real hit. Jessica and Jason spent most of the evening dancing with their friends and family under their glitter ball, enjoying the best day of their lives.

The newlyweds cut their wedding cake in front of guests in the Mill Barn at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The couple chose to have a doughnut wall as a focal point during their wedding reception at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

The newlyweds share their first dance during their wedding reception in the Mill Barn at Gaynes Park — © Three Flowers Photography

Wedding Planning Tips

“Do your research, make a decision and then move on. I spent too much time mulling over the same thing and that just left me confused. Remember that when you make a decision, you do so with all the facts and information that you had available to you.”

“Trust your gut – don’t always go for the easy option because it’s the unique things that will make your wedding special and personal. Something might seem like unnecessary stress at the time but it will all be worth it on the day.”

The bride and groom stand in front of Apple Tree Cottage at Gaynes Park for some wedding photographs — © Three Flowers Photography

The newlyweds take a stroll down the Long Walk at Gaynes Park after their wedding ceremony — © Three Flowers Photography

The bride and groom share a moment on the Long Walk at Gaynes Park during their wedding day — © Three Flowers Photography

For more wedding inspiration, take a look at Hannah and Tommy’s summer wedding, which had plenty of flowers and personal touches to give you great ideas!

Suppliers

Photography :	Three Flowers Photography
Flowers :	The Workroom Florist
Bride’s Shoes :	Kurt Geiger
Groom’s Shoes :	Russell & Bromley
Wedding Dress :	Pronovias
Bride’s Veil :	Matchmaker Bride
Bride’s Earrings :	Liberty in Love
Bridesmaids Dresses :	Jarlo
Flower Girl & Page Boy Outfits :	Monsoon
Groom’s Suit :	Reiss
Groomsmen’s Outfits :	Reiss
Venue Stylist and Lighting :	Mediterranean Occasions
Doughnut Wall :	Little Big Things Essex
Band :	OJ’s Soulband
Entertainment :	The Dotted Crochets
Cake :	Spooned
Rings :	Madison of Hatton Garden
Videographer :	Philip Smith Visuals
Photobooth :	King Of The Booth
Glitter Face Painting :	Glitter Dolls

Share your wedding