A fun Hackney wedding in December with a dance off, crazy golf and a croquembouche, in a railway arch in the heart of East London.
Alanah and Elliott had a cosy winter wedding, but you would never know it was cold torrential rain outside for most of the day from the photos, let alone that it was December! Holding his few months old baby, Elliott even joked in his groom’s speech, ‘they say rain on your wedding day is supposed to be a sign of fertility, well, I think we have that one covered already!’.
Alanah and Elliott live in Hackney, so wanted to keep things local. They had an early ceremony at Sutton House (a National Trust owned property on Homerton High Street) and had a short drinks reception there to get some photos. They then transported their guests by routemaster bus across Hackney to Hoxton, to what is now known as Big Sky Studios, for fun, food and lots of dancing.
The reception venue was particularly special because the studios got bought over mid wedding planning for the couple (not ideal), but that meant that this was the last ever wedding the venue would hold! The staff actually couldn’t have been more accommodating, and they definitely went out with a bang! Such a shame as it was such a unique railway arch wedding venue, providing 2 arches under one roof – meaning you could have your wedding breakfast in one arch, and reception drinks/fun/party time/dancefloor/bar in the other.
For this wedding, we set up a cloakroom in the studio office reception, had the wedding breakfast in the first arch, and crazy golf and beer buckets set up in the second arch.
The crazy golf and beers were enjoyed during ‘Games Time’ between approx 3-5pm, during a kind of cocktail hour between main course and the cutting of the cake, and subsequently dessert (from the wedding cake – the croquembouche). Once guests were seated again for dessert, the crazy golf was collected discreetly, the mobile bar arrived for set up, and the room was reset for the dancefloor and party later.
As a surprise for the first dance, Alanah changed into an all over sequin jump suit and stormed the dancefloor with a fun routine her and Elliott had learned especially! And it was anything but cheesy, because they absolutely nailed it! All while dancing to tune of something you might hear in Fabric, never mind as a first dance at a wedding! It was fantastic, and you could literally hear guests gasp! It was brilliant!
I also have to give the caterers (Vamos Paella) a special mention though, them and their team worked wonders with me and mine. Not only was there not a kitchen of any kind at the venue, meaning they had to set up their own pop up one in the alley parking of the arches outside (in freezing December), but their team was amazing, efficient, friendly, well dressed, and their food was super tasty! The caterers, as in most places, are responsible for the majority of the wedding breakfast set up, including the complete assembly of all the hired in tables, chairs, and laying up all the tables, as well as keeping everyone fed, watered and happy. But I have to say they did a wonderful job on this one, as it was a particularly difficult dry hire venue, with limited access for loading and unloading, no washing up facilities, and very limited space to work overall – but I couldn’t recommend them highly enough. I was thrilled to work with them again this summer at a tipi wedding and have another wedding booked with them next year at Trinity Buoy Wharf and can’t wait; the caterers can make or break timings on the day, but they nailed this one and the food was on point as well. It was a super fun Hackney wedding that went off without a hitch.
Wedding Coordination by Devine Bride.
Photos kindly from Louise Moule Photography
CONTACTS AND SUPPLIERS
Wedding Coordinator: @devinebride 💁🏼♀️
Ceremony Venue: Sutton House
Reception Venue: Big Sky Studios
Photographer: Louise Moule Photography
MUA: Amanda Roberts Make Up
Bus Hire: London Retro Bus Hire
Wedding Car: Lux Wedding Car Hire
Florist: Grace & Thorn
Caterer: Vamos Paella
Crockery: Classic Crockery
Bar: Classic Bar Box
Lighting: Fusion Sound and Lighting
Crazy Golf: Crazy Golf 4 You
Toilets: Portable Toilet Hire London
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Please email any hellos or enquiries to laura@devinebride.co.uk
