I am so excited to share my first wedding of 2017, and what an amazing start it was! I met Laura & Matt at a wedding fair at the beginning of 2016, and had the privilege of being their photographer for their colourful, fun & relaxed wedding at Kingston Estate, Staverton and ceremony at Marldon Church in February 2017.

The wedding they planned was a true reflection of them, a big celebration that was laid back and fun, with lots of colours, DIY touches and music, as they met performing in a band.

The beautiful bouquets & table flowers were done by Laura’s best friend and bridesmaid Hayley, of Aster Floral Design. Combining purples, red & pinks, they brought all the colourful elements of the day together. Blue Geranium, Totnes, supplied the beautiful rose and lavender buttonholes.Laura’s shoes were from Benjamin Adams and her beaded box clutch bag from Accessorize. Handmade veil by De Voice and her Ivory & Co wedding dress were from Browns of Totnes, who source the most beautiful range of sample dresses; stylish, traditional and classic designer gowns.

For the bridesmaids, they went for two completely different dresses as another way to inject some fun and colour into the wedding! The lilac dress was from Kelsey Rose and the Purple dress was from Monsoon. Jade Isla beautifully did all the ladies make up. Melissa Hood Hair Artistry did Laura’s amazing hair; with brushed out curls to one side and a loose plait to the other, incorporating a hair vine she found at a vintage market. Glamorous & laid-back!Two of Matt’s band mates took up their guitars and sang ‘I feel fine’ by the Beatles and ‘I’m a believer’ by the Monkees, making their ceremony a real celebration as everyone sang along. They walked out of the church to Stevie Wonders ‘For Once In My Life’.As soon as they saw Kingston Estate, they knew it was the right place for their wedding. A beautiful Georgian house just outside Totnes in Devon. It was stunning, even on a grey February day! The owners Jamie and Sarah did everything to make sure that their wedding day ran smoothly and was as beautiful as they’d hoped it would be!Laura made the seating plan with a glue gun and bit and pieces sourced from the Range and Hobbycraft. They knew straight away that they would name the tables after their favourite bands as music is a big part of their lives!Their amazing 3 layer cake of coffee and hazelnut, lemon and gooey chocolate was a gift made by their fiends Sam & Polly Higgins. It was covered in truffles and macarons and cupcakes and I really want some cake now!On the natural wood slices from Laura’s brother were gorgeous jam jar & vintage vase arrangements by Aster Floral Design with a variety of candles in glass tealight holders. Each table was named after one of their favourite bands and the centrepieces included a little card with a special lyric from one of their songs. They laid the place settings and centrepieces themselves, so it was a real labour of love.Their favours were from local Cockington Chocolate Company. They produced little chocolate bars with each guests name piped on the top.“We met Holly Collings at a wedding fayre in Torbay and I loved her pictures as soon as I saw them. She was easy to talk to, understood what we were after and went out of her way on the day. The fact that she arrived early and left late on the day didn’t go unnoticed! Her stayed is very much on the candid side, rather than the stiff and formal. She captured moments throughput the day that expressed how happy and joyous it was! We can’t thank her enough and I would recommend Holly to any couple!”

When Hannah first stepped inside Bickley Mill Inn she got butterflies and knew it was the one! An intimate and enchanting venue with everything she had dreamt of; rustic elegant rooms, beautiful garden & decking area and newly refurbished rooms.

Liam proposed to Hannah at Disney Land, which inspired many elements of this wedding in a beautiful & tasteful way. The proposal was in front of the Magical Kingdom Castle, which features as a silver silhouette on top of their three tiered white cake, with glitter swagging draped between brooches by Cut Me Off a Slice.

Louise at Wild Floral Designs did a perfect job of taking Hannah’s ideas and creating a look that was fairytale inspired and floral vintage. Her buttonholes, beautiful bouquets, and venue decorations are always a pleasure to photograph!

The make up was by Aimee Welsh – Buff Beauty and hair was by Emma at Head of Hair & Beauty. The bridesmaids wore pearl stud earrings that Hannah gave to them when she asked them to be her bridesmaids and she brought them matching necklaces to wear on the day. The bridesmaids looked stunning in their pink ‘Lola’ dresses from Janes, Torquay. This Mori Lee dress was the first Hannah saw, in the first wedding magazine she bought, and she fell in love! The moment she tried in on at Serenity in Newton Abbot she knew it was the one. Feeling like a princess, it was everything she wanted; low back, lace, fitted but with the fishtail bottom to feel like a bride.

The silver freshwater cultured pearl cubic zirconia drop earrings were a wedding gift from Liam, matching her engagement and wedding ring. Doesn’t Hannah look absolutely stunning putting them on?! The suits were hired from Angel Face Bridal Studio and the groomsmen had personalised socks which were part of their gifts.  Hannah took to Pinterest to look for vintage table plans. She brought the birdcage from Wild Floral Designs DIY’ed it with the rose garland, Mr & Mrs sign, card, pegs and pearls, all put together in an afternoon with her sister.
They chose candelabras as one of the centre pieces to fit in with the fairytale theme as they looked identical to the one in Beauty and the Beast, and the pearls matched the vintage feel and complemented the pearls on Hannah’s dress. The 2nd centre piece was a birdcage full of fresh roses and foliage. The tables had personalised ‘Mr and Mrs Pellowe’ rose pattern heart confetti scattered on them. The floral vintage theme continued throughout with hessian bunting, pots full of fresh roses and foliage, mini birdcages, tealight candles and a hanging heart wreath made with fresh roses and foliage. All beautifully done by Wild Floral Designs. The tables were named after different parks in Florida, with a polorised style holiday photos of Hannah & Liam. The top table was called the Magic Kingdom with a picture of the proposal.    Hannah’s advice for the day: Enjoy your planning and don’t wish time away because before you know it the day arrives and goes so quickly. On the big day, remember to breathe and take it all in together as husband & wife. When planning don’t worry and stress over the finer details because you will realise on the day that’s not what the guests notice!  “We couldn’t have picked a better photographer, from our first consultation I knew Holly was the photographer for us. She completely made Liam and I feel at ease and relaxed and blended in beautifully. When we received our photo’s we shed lots of happy tears and laughter. Holly captured every single detail of our wedding and we got to re-live every single moment of our magical day. Our wedding album, prints and usb stick came in the cutest packaging and I literally can’t recommend her enough.” – Hannah & Liam

If you’re getting married & looking for a documentary wedding photographer in Devon, I’d love to hear from you!

Holly x

Kath & Tom officially married 6 years ago in a registry office ceremony. On 29th December 2016, they finally had the wedding of their dreams, surrounded by their closest family, friends and, of course, their 3 lovely children at Dartington Hall, Totnes with vow renewal at St Mary’s Church, Abbotskerswell.

Their theme was country & rustic to reflect a gentle and relaxed day, with a colour scheme of browns, silvers, greys & deep purples and the men grew out beards just for the occasion. They tried to do as much as possible themselves & sourced things from eBay (which you’d never know!) so they could invest in talented suppliers <3

Hollyhocks Florist provided all the beautiful bouquets, buttonholes and table centre pieces, and when Kath saw her bouquet, she couldn’t hold back happy tears. Their orders of service, template from Etsy, had little bags of lavender attached for the confetti throw which smelt incredible!

It was a magical winter day, illuminated by a golden sun & the last wedding I did in 2016, a perfect end!

 All the lovely ladies makeup was done by Libby Short, Tom’s talented cousin and Kath’s hair with sprigs of gypsophila in was by Aimee Wynne of Glow Hair & Beauty in Paignton.Kath’s beautiful wedding dress is a Mori Lori and her shoes are from Quiz.The bridesmaids huddle together while Kath & her dad arrived in vintage car from Squires, Torquay.This cheese cake, adorned with gypsophila, was from Godminster Cheese. Aren’t those mice holding gyp absolutely adorable?If you’re looking for a documentary photographer in Devon, I’d love to hear from you! Get in touch to see if your date is available and chat about your day & photography!

From the moment I arrived to St Josephs Church in Newton Abbot, where Marie & Philip had their beautiful ceremony, I knew it was going to be a special day. The church was bright & beautiful, and everyone was so happy & friendly!

Marie arrived in style in the 1952 ALVIS TA21 from Torbay Wedding Car Club. She was the smiliest & most beautiful bride in her dress from Angel Face, Newton Abbot with the biggest bouquet I have ever seen. All of Marie’s beautiful flowers were made by a friend, Christine and combined Roses, Lisianthus, Gypsophila and touches of gold, perfectly complimenting the bridesmaids in their purple dresses from Debenhams.

Marie & Philip, from the day you booked me it has been so lovely to know and work with you, your happiness is contagious!

They had a cosy reception at Dainton Park Golf Club, decorated with lovely autumnal touches. The table names were all places that meant something to Marie & Philip, Brooklyn Bridge being where they got engaged! The wooden place names, which I love so much, are from VM Bespoke and the favours are bottles of homemade cassis.This amazing cake, with mini Marie & Philip, is by Crafty Cakes in Exeter and their lovely autumnal seating plan is by Swoon at the Moon.If you need wedding photography in Newton Abbot, Devon, don’t hesitate to get in touch to see if your date is available & I’d love to hear from you about your day!

Jamie & Mark got married last July at the beautiful Deer Park Country House Hotel. Despite the drizzle, they had their ceremony outside at the lovely little summerhouse. Once the rain cleared up it was gloriously sunny, and most of the day was enjoyed in the stunning grounds at Deer Park, with the wedding breakfast in the newly build orangery.

There were lots of lovely homemade touches with Jamie’s mum making the bunting and arranging the flowers from Peamore Flora, and Marks aunty making all the cakes. The wedding breakfast had a coffee theme inspired by Mark’s business; the seating plan with coffee beans and coffee names was put together by Jamie’s dad and sister, and the flowers on the table were in cafetieres.

This was such a fun and relaxed wedding to photograph, thanks again Jamie & Mark for having me as your photographer!

The lovely ladies at Changing Faces did Jamie’s hair and makeup and her stunning wedding dress is from Prudence Gowns. The bridesmaids navy blue dresses were from ASOS and the mens suits from Next.I’ll be photographing this lovely couples wedding in June! I can’t wait!^^The excellent Chris Thomas performed after the wedding breakfast while everyone chilled outside.Evening food was fresh pizza straight out of the pizza oven! I tried an apple, cinnamon and clotted cream one which was delicious and I’ve since made it at home!Dirty Strings performed for Jamie & Marks first dance and through the evening reception.If you need documentary wedding photography in Exeter, I’d love to hear from you & chat about your day!