wedding at The Natural History Museum Tring full of fun and colour

A colourful museum wedding with an outdoor ceremony and lots of animals, at the Natural History Museum at Tring, in Hertfordshire.

WWhen I first had a chat with Dee and Drew, it was clear that they wanted something quite untraditional for their day – but definitely wanted lots to see, do, and lots of fun!

Self-confessed introverts, they were keen to have lots of different things for their guests to explore on the day, without making it feel too hosted or directed (or too wedding-y). For their stage, they chose the Natural History Museum at Tring – which provided just the right recipe for all of the above. Imagine the Natural History Museum in London, but a miniature version – so much to see, do, explore, and an amazingly unique venue for a wedding!

They had their intimate legal nuptials a few days before, so that they could do everything their way for their ‘big’ day at the Natural History Museum. As with most museums and public buildings that host weddings and events, we had very limited access inside until the museum actually closed at 5pm. Dee + Drew absolutely fell in the love with the venue, so they planned their day around the museum closing times – and it worked wonderfully.

The museum very kindly let us store our furniture delivery overnight, so that there was less thing to worry about on the day itself with such a short set up window. This included some benches for the outdoor ceremony, and some comfy chill out seating for inside. On the day itself, the couple had a leisurely morning, then started their getting ready process around 1pm. I arrived in Tring to start around 3pm, and it was all systems go for me assisting with set up from there on in. We were able to courier small bits and pieces (cake, balloons, etc) to the museum reception desk from about 3pm-ish onwards for safe keeping, meanwhile the groomsmen arrived to set up the woodland area outside – with me doing some soft décor and final set up once the benches were set. I prepared all I could in advance ready for a super quick start as soon as the museum closed at 5pm. However, the couple kept décor to a minimum, as there was already such an amazing setting inside anyway! The museum was super accommodating (where possible around the public), and their team was great on the day – always helping and assisting where they could. By 4pm the outdoor bar and the catering arrived for set up on the museum lawn, meanwhile the couple capitalised on their time pre ceremony by doing a ‘first look’ shoot and getting their couple shots done in and around Tring. I think couple shots are a great idea to do pre ceremony (time permitting), as it means you get to fully enjoy all the food, drinks and party you have planned with your guests, without having to sneak away for more photos – and be in danger of missing any fun!

Guests started to arrive around 5pm and, and as this wasn’t a legal ceremony, they were welcomed with a prosecco reception before the ceremony started. Dee and Drew arrived for their ceremony together at 5.30pm, and Dee’s mum walked her down the aisle to meet Drew at the end. They had a wonderfully relaxed outdoor woodland ceremony and exited their aisle through a shower of bubbles. They then led guests into the museum to start the festivities, where canapes were served as guests wondered through the building, exploring the different areas and nooks that had been set up. None of the museum was off limits, so it was amazing to see guests wandering around enjoying a private VIP experience of the Natural History Museum!

There was a pop up bar in the woodland for pre ceremony drinks, a proper bar on the museum lawn (the cute campervan), and then another pop up bar inside the museum in the zebra room (which was close to where the dancefloor would be). The food was BBQ style and was set up outside too; canapes were circulated, while guests were invited up to the pop up grill to collect mains and dessert.

What followed was lots of fun and food, including an open mic session by the couple’s friends and family, some short speeches, and an amazing party on the top floor of the museum amongst the animals!

Wedding Coordination and Take Down Service by Devine Bride.

Photos kindly from Chloe Lee Photo.

CONTACTS AND SUPPLIERS

Wedding Coordinator: @devinebride 💁🏼‍♀️
Venue: Tring Natural History Museum
Photographer: Chloe Lee
Hair and Makeup: The Makeup Girl
Catering: Up In my Grill
Bar: Midsummer Nightcap
Band: Mandy and The Midnight Swingers
Furniture Hire: Anthology Vintage Hire