Martin & Kelly tied the knot at South Farm last Summer – their day was filled with the most vibrant Summery blooms and elegant displays. The moment they arrived at South Farm for their first visit; they knew instantly South Farm was the perfect venue for their special day. From our charming Farmhouse, friendly staff and beautiful grounds and gardens they truly couldn’t believe they had found such an ideal location. Read all about the story of their remarkable wedding day in our latest blog…
Date of your wedding: 9 June 2023
Time of your ceremony: 2pm
Location of your ceremony: Summer House
We’d love to hear how and when you first met!
We first met at University 15 years ago, and both caught each other’s eye. Martin bribed Kelly with cookies to first speak with her….and the rest is history 😊
We had a long distance relationship for the first 8 years of our relationship – Martin living in Essex and Kelly in the West Midlands, before moving in together halfway between us.
Which parts of the venue did you use on your big day?
We had our ceremony in the Summer House followed by an outdoor drinks reception on the patio. We used the Tudor Barn for our meal and then the Horse Barn for dancing in the evening.
Which was your favourite spot for wedding photos?
There are soooo many beautiful spots it so hard to pick one. If we had to pick, it would be the front of the farmhouse – the colour’s in the roses made it so vibrant and we have so many wonderful pictures of us outside. We also loved the driveway both in the day and at night with the twinkling lights which have made for some dramatic pictures as well!
Tell us about your special colour theme and how you styled your wedding day?
When we first started planning, we didn’t really have a theme however Kelly knew she wanted traditional but vibrant flowers and it all flowed from there. Martin designed Kelly’s engagement ring with an art deco/vintage vibe and, given we had been together for 15 years by the time of the wedding, we decided we could draw on all of the places we had been and/or that meant something to us. Keeping with a vintage theme but with vibrancy we came up with an idea of designing vintage travel type posters as our table names and used the same type of vintage design for place cards.
We are however so lucky to have family that are creative and we relied on them – A LOT!! Martin’s family helped to design and print our invites and all our stationary on the day (all following the vintage travel type theme) and Kelly’s mum spent hours hand embroidering everyone’s names on their favour bags.
Our florist was absolutely amazing and made the room for the wedding breakfast look absolutely incredible with the colour of the flowers along with garlands.
How did you first hear about South Farm and what made you choose our venue for your wedding day?
Kelly found South Farm online after searching for venues focused around food. We knew we wanted somewhere with a dedicated kitchen team and with good food….(and boy we were not disappointed). Seeing the photos of the venue and how beautiful it is we thought we would take a look.
As soon as we stepped on site, we knew South Farm was our venue…..from the beautiful farmhouse, friendly staff, the wonderful grounds and gardens to the sustainability and eco values of the Farm we just couldn’t believe we had found such a beautiful venue that ticked all the boxes for us.
Tell us some detail about your special day?
We were just so happy to finally be getting hitched, being together for as long as we had, and we didn’t stop smiling all day!
We had a beautiful sunny day, it being the start of a wonderful heat wave in June, although we don’t think any rain would have spoiled anything. We hadn’t originally planned to get married outside but as soon as we saw the beautiful gardens and the Summer House on the water we couldn’t resist.
We had a relaxed afternoon chatting with our guests over a few tipples in the sun, had a formal three course meal for our wedding breakfast and then had a live band for the evening.
We’d also made and put on a few games for our guests during the drinks reception and the meal such as a large crossword about us for the guests to have a go at and also a fun game where the guests caption a few silly photos of us over the years – these went down well 🙂
How did you feel on the day?
Incredibly happy, emotional, and really well looked after. The staff at South Farm were incredibly thoughtful and absolutely amazing at making everything flow and go to plan that we didn’t have a care in the world. It really felt like we were in a little wedding bubble – it’s amazing to think back on!
What was your most memorable moment from your wedding?
It’s so hard to pick one moment, our whole day was incredible.
If we had to choose, it has got to be the lead up to and when Kelly walked down the aisle and we saw each other for the first time – it was such a lovely moment!
We have also both said our first dance. This was not something we had expected would be stand out but we felt so happy to have that time together dancing to the song we had picked, it felt like it was just us on the dance floor and a special moment just for us before the party got started.
How did you choose your ceremony and first dance music?
Kelly always knew she would like a classical piece of music to walk down the aisle to but didn’t want anything too well known. Kelly and her Dad often go to classical concerts and Kelly picked a beautiful piece that they had both heard live (Intermezzo – Cavalleria Rusticana). My Dad still gets emotional when he hears it now!!
We’ve recently got into country music and Martin suggested a song that was fun and lively to walk back up the aisle to (and which makes reference to wearing a wedding ring which we thought was fun). It was a song by Jordan Davis – What My World Spins Around.
We had originally picked a different song for our first dance than what we decided on in the end. Sticking to a country theme we both love Luke Combs and he had released a beautiful song a couple of months before the wedding. As soon as we heard Love You Anyway and the words, we knew it was the song for us. It has a traditional ballad vibe with a modern country twist – we love it!
How many bridesmaids did you have and how did you ask them to be your bridesmaids?
Kelly decided not to have traditional bridesmaids but had her closest friends involved in the wedding in some way including having her friend from childhood being “best woman” for the day (and the lead up to the wedding). I asked her with a gift and a small card/letter.
How did you pick your best men and ushers?
We didn’t have ushers but again Martin involved his closest friends with different aspects of the day. Martin has been friends with his best man since birth – they lived across the road from each other growing up and their relationship is more like brothers.
How many speeches did you have and do you have any advice for anyone giving a speech?
We had three speeches, one by Kelly’s dad, one by Martin and one by Martin’s best man. For advice we would say to not have the speeches too long, avoid any forced jokes and try to keep a narrative /story throughout for you to loop back to.
What did you wear?
Kelly wore a dress by Savin – London and Martin wore a bespoke suit from a local tailor to us – Souster & Hicks.
Is there anything you would have done differently?
Literally nothing, we felt so lucky to have such a wonderful venue and staff that took care of everything for us. We had so many comments about how brilliant the day was – we even had a few people say it was the best wedding and venue they had ever been to!!
We would however do it again if we could!
What are your top tips for other couples?
Pick South Farm as your wedding venue 😊 !!!
In all seriousness though, start planning early as there is always something to do or think about, so that you’re not stressed immediately before the wedding. Also, don’t worry so much about the little details – there’s always something you could have thought of but it’s important to go with it and just enjoy your day and celebrate you.
Where did you go on honeymoon?
We went on honeymoon a couple of days after the wedding for almost 3 weeks – what a treat!! We have always wanted to go to Canada and so spent the first couple of weeks visiting different places in Western Canada. We then also had a chill out at the end with six nights in St Lucia.
Suppliers |
Photographer: Lina & Tom
Videographer: Rideout Films
Dress: Savin (London)
Grooms & Groomsmen outfits: Souster & Hicks for groom and Fogarty Formal Hire for groomsmen
Cake: We had a brownie tower by Kelly’s Kitchen
Hair: Ieva Genovesi
Makeup: Ieva Genovesi
Flowers: Clare Jones Floral Design
Entertainment: Sega and the Boombox
We loved catching up with Kelly & Martin to hear the story of how they planned their perfect day and seeing their gorgeous colour scheme come to life around the venue! Their florals were simply stunning!! Thank you both for your incredibly kind words about the whole team at South Farm – we are just thrilled to hear you felt you were both taken care of so well which enabled you to have the most relaxed day with your wonderful guests as husband and wife.
If you are looking to book your dream garden wedding venue in Hertfordshire for your wedding day please get in touch. We’d love to hear all about your wedding plans and to show you around our Hertfordshire wedding venue, rustic wedding barns and stunning gardens. Our fantastic choice of ceremony and reception spaces is perfect for intimate weddings or larger guest numbers. There are so many gorgeous spaces to choose from and we offer exclusive use for your wedding day. What’s more, our friendly, experienced team will make sure your perfect wedding day runs perfectly to plan in our garden wedding venue.
