I am in love with tattooed bride Lauren and her husband James’ whole DIY and vintage wedding! From the polka dots to all the gorgeous pastel colours (Including Lauren’s peach hair!)
With the wedding and reception taking place at Shropshire Golf Centre, a VW camper van and photography from Marie Lloyd Photography – Lauren and James’ wedding is a beautiful collection of pastels and sweeties!
We first met 8 years ago on new year’s eve at a local pub. We became close friends but after a couple of years, drifted apart and met different people – Even though it seemed everyone around could see we would be perfect together! After my relationship ended, I started to see little reminders of James everywhere. Despite having lived in the same small village, and even over the road from him at one point, I hadn’t seen him more than twice in the whole 5/6 years we weren’t talking!
Most of our wedding was DIY! I begrudged paying a fortune for things I could probably make myself and found a creative side I didn’t know I had! We decorated jam jars with different pastel colour ribbons, stuck buttons onto colourful stripy and polka dot paper flowers, hand stamped everyone’s place names and the seating plan with individual letter stamps, and made at least a hundred paper pompoms to be hung from the beams in the venue and to sit into the vintage teacups on the tables, these although painstaking to make, where my favourite things to do as they looked so pretty and effective but were so easy!
I also bought and decorated my own vintage style candy jars and cake stands for our sweet/desert buffet which we had instead of a dessert. It incorporated lots of traditional sweets and mini cakes.
Music played a big factor on our wedding day, from the lyric table names, the walk in music; first dance song and even the background music that people probably didn’t take notice of! We carefully selected songs that meant something to us and that we could relate back to times in our lives, and we felt that lyrics fit with us.
There was a very laid back, vintage feeling to the day. We are a laid back couple, several people were asking me if I was stressed, and commented on how laid back and relaxed I was as a bride.. Even when there was a minor power cut at the venue just before we were due to sit down for our meal! We incorporated colour, tea cups and polka dots, which our house is full of, and our cake was rainbow sponge and had a polka dot teapot on! We had 1940’s polka dot bridesmaid dresses from Viva-La-Rosa, and a vintage VW camper van from VW Bus Hire, and incorporated our moustache tattoos with chocolate moustache lollipops favours.
We have plenty of tattoos between us – We have matching moustache tattoos on ours fingers that we acquired at a festival a few years ago! James also has an anatomical heart with a keyhole, which I have the key to on my pocket watch tattoo. I also got a vintage teacup wedding tattoo that has our initials and wedding date on a few days after we got married.
I was asked by a couple people how I was going to cover up my tattoos on the day, but I said “Why would I?!”. My tattoos are part of me and who I am, and James fell in love with me including my tattoos! I didn’t really think about them though, I already knew what type of dress I wanted so just went with that.
How cute and colourful is Laura and James’ wedding?! Thank you to them both and to Marie Lloyd Photography for sharing with Marry Me Ink today. Be sure to leave them all some love!
Photographer – Marie Lloyd Photography
Venua – Shropshire Golf Centre
Laura’s Dress – Inspirational Bridal
James’ Suit – Next
Bridesmaids’ dresses – Viva La Rose
Cake – Made by family friend
Flowers – Nigel Whyles
Hair – Gareth Dawson. Make up – Fiona Brunt
Camper – VW Bus Hire
Balloons & Chair Covers – Occasionstation
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