An Anglo-American fusion pub wedding with vodka shots, by the canal in Paddington, London.
Samantha + Nick had a real fusion of cultures at their wedding, which really brought it to life! Samantha, a Californian studying in Brooklyn, met Nick, a Londoner (with Polish heritage), while he was visiting New York… and the rest is history!
The pair were married legally in New York prior, but wanted to come back to the UK to have their wedding celebration, a religious blessing, and a pub party with all their friends and family before they started their ‘happily ever’ after stateside.
Samantha + Nick chose to have their ‘first look’ (an American tradition where the couple meet before their ceremony to see each other for the first time that day) in Hyde Park’s Italian Gardens, which was just the most stunning backdrop, I think you’ll agree. There are so many lovely shots and special moments from this part of the day, I would highly recommend couples do this if they have time! This is a long-standing American tradition that is becoming more and more popular in the UK, that I fully support! Samantha + Nick capitalised on this time pre-ceremony and got most of their couple and family shots done at this time too – meaning that this didn’t have to eat into any other parts of their day later.
From a personal point of view, I think I would have preferred this for my own wedding day so that my hair and makeup was at its best for these pics! (I think it also would have made me more relaxed to walk down the aisle, too.)
Their ceremony was at St Mary’s on Paddington Green, just on the edge of Little Venice in central London. St Mary’s is the most intimate, ornate, and beautiful little church, complete with the most stunning chandelier and lots of lovely original features – it was like something from a film! It took my breath away! The most gorgeous little gem smack bang in central London, and the Priest was just so lovely and personable too; he gave the guests such a warm welcome and made the ceremony so special and memorable for the couple. (He even let us have a prosecco reception inside the church!)
After the confetti exit and the prosecco reception hosted by the bridesmaids, groomsmen and I, we trotted off a short 5 mins down the road and across the canal to The Union Pub at Paddington – where one of my assistants had already been setting up some of the couples soft décor.
From there, we did a traditional American entrance with all the bridesmaids and groomsmen arm and arm, and then guests were seated straight away dinner. Dinner was traditional English pub food, followed by traditional Polish vodka shots with the speeches!
After some turnaround time for the pub to clear some space for the dancefloor, the party started with a father-daughter and mother-son dance. This then led straight into the first dance for the new married couple… then the vodka shots kicked in! This, together with some chocolate treats the bride asked me to put strategically by the dancefloor before I left, helped keep the dancefloor full of energy all night!
Wedding Day Coordination + Planning Helping Hand by Devine Bride.
“Laura was an absolute joy to work with! While I thought I was hiring her for on the day coordination, she was so much more than that. I was planning a wedding overseas and quickly realized I needed a lot more help than previously thought. Her pick and mix style is the bees knees and provided us the flexibility to pick exactly the right amount of support we needed. Laura was always quick to reply for any questions that we had and able to provide great recommendations that fit within our budget. Her on the day coordination was spot on and took care of our every need. We did not have to stress about the timeline of the day because she made sure we were always in contact, as well as having a face to face meeting before hand to review the incredibly detailed timeline that she laid out. Our day came together seamlessly because of Laura and I cannot recommend her enough!!”
Photos kindly from Sarah Ann Wedding.
CONTACTS AND SUPPLIERS
Wedding Day Coordination + Planning Helping Hand: @devinebride 💁🏼♀️
Ceremony Venue: St Mary’s Paddington Green
Reception Venue: The Union Bar
Photographer: Sarah Ann Wright
Hair and Make Up: Velvet Muse Bridal
Florist: Green & Envy
DJ: Lemon Entertainment
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