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Wedding Stories | That Amazing Place | July 2019

Wedding Stories | That Amazing Place | July 2019

eresa and Ugnius Wedding Stories at That Amazing Place

Today, we continue with our wedding stories blog.  Our wedding stories blog highlights stunning romantic weddings held at our beautiful venue, That Amazing Place.

Wedding Stories July

Teresa and Ugnius tell us all about what led them to tie the knot and create their perfect wedding day at That Amazing Place.

The happy couple initially met at a party in January 2017 and whilst Ugnius can remember every detail of their meeting, it is all a little hazy for Teresa!

Whilst it wasn’t quite love at first sight for this happy couple, romance later blossomed.

In March 2018  both were persuaded to go on a road trip by their best friends, who were interested in each other.

After spending five days with Ugnius, Teresa suddenly realised that she had found ‘the one’ and they ended up becoming a couple before their friends did.

The Venue

Neither Teresa or Ugnius are City people, so they found the countryside location of our venue to be exactly what they were looking for.

Teresa said “We love nature and the outdoors, and we liked the idea of being able to have the ceremony and reception all on the same property.”

What made the venue especially enticing for the couple was the fact that the two families and the wedding party, were all able to spend time together at the venue before the wedding.

As Teresa’s family are based in South Africa and Ugnius is from Lithuania, the wedding was the first time they were all able to spend time together and get to know both sides of the family.

The couple found the support and service that we are able to offer here at That Amazing Place key to enjoying their dream day, Teresa went on to say “Angie and Paul were great, they make you feel like you’re at your own home, in your backyard and just having your friends over.  Angie was phenomenal and made sure that the entire day ran smoothly from beginning to end, it never felt like there was lots of waiting around.”

Theme and entertainment

Whilst Teresa and Ugnius didn’t have a strong theme as such, they were determined to keep the day simple, relaxed with a touch of vintage vibe.

Teresa was lucky in having a graphic designer as a close friend, who designed stunning wedding stationary incorporating the national flowers of South Africa and Lithuania with succulents (Teresa’s favourites).

The most important consideration for the happy couple was that everything bought for the wedding could be re-used or re-purposed.

They sourced most of the decorations themselves and then gifted the table decorations to family and Bridesmaids.

The Wedding Cake

HoneyBee Bakes created an amazing bespoke cake which turned out to be “simply striking”.

In order to keep the wedding as relaxed for the guests as possible and stop them becoming bored whilst photos were taken, the couple settled on the novel idea of a vintage games supplied by Rock The Day Styling.  Not only did the games keep everyone well entertained, they also provided some fun, candid photo opportunities.

Andy from Herts Events provided the music for the evening entertainment and Teresa said “Everyone who attended the wedding said it was the most relaxed, happy wedding they had ever attended and two couples have asked us to help plan their weddings now!”

Flowers

Teresa had a very specific, unique idea for the flowers and was keen to keep arrangements simple to ensure that as much as the bouquets could be re-purposed and replanted to thrive as living plants.

This unusual floral dream was brought to life by Suzanne at Little Tin Shed Flowers with simple small bouquets incorporating stunning proteas, succulents, a few roses, hydrangeas and a sprinkling of wild flowers.

The table centrepieces were lanterns with a candle, dressed with succulents, thus ensuring the conversation could flow freely without being impeded by large table arrangements.

Teresa’s mother was able to replant all the succulents used and they continue to thrive in a specially created a “Bridal Garden” in her backyard.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Flower Bouquets

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Dress

Teresa knew that a traditional wedding dress was not for her and instead decided to try to source one in her favourite colour of blue.  Google came up trumps with David’s Bridal and a stunning Vera Wang dress, which was just perfect!

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Dress

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Catering

Our newlyweds opted to go with Premier Crew Hospitality for the catering and said all the guests agreed that the food was impeccable.  They opted for some simple starters, and then a BBQ main, followed by fish and chip cones during the evening.  The feedback from the guests was a definite thumbs up.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Desert

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Special Moments

During this stunning wedding there were several special moments, but at the top of the list was the touching first dance that Teresa had planned as a special surprise for her father.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 First Dance With Father

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Teresa’s parents both love dancing, teaching others how to dance too and her father was a semi-professional ballroom dancer.

“My fondest childhood memories were when I was about 3 years old, of dad coming home from work and I’d be waiting for him by the front door. I would put on music the minute I saw his car in the driveway and he would walk through the front door and immediately pick me up and start dancing with me. This was our routine until I was about 10 years of age. There is a particular song, which really means a lot to us both, so with my husband’s permission my first dance was with my dad to Paul Simons – Father and Daughter, a symbolic last dance as Miss Hilder.  When the song ended my dad spun me round into my Husband’s arms, and we had our first dance as husband and wife. Lots of happy tears!” Teresa

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 First Dance With Father Spinning

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 First Dance

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Another moment that will always evoke happy memories of a special day, was when the groom first saw his lovely bride.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 First Look

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

“My husband’s face when he saw me is a moment I will never forget. He isn’t the most emotive human, and his family all said they knew I was the one for him as I was the first one to make him laugh in 10 years! But when he turned around and saw me, his face broke into the biggest grin and he didn’t stop smiling the whole day. Neither of us did! Our photographers were wanting some non-smiling photos. Well, that didn’t happen as we both couldn’t stop grinning!”

In Summary

We are so pleased to have been part of this lovely couple’s special day, which really was a wedding with a difference.  We wish them both a long and very happy life together filled with love and laughter.  We hope to see them in the future to help celebrate many anniversaries and create many more special memories for them to share.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Groom Throwing

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Dancing

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Wedding Stories That Amazing Place Teresa & Ugnius July 2019 Countryside

©Copyright Ezio Photography.

All photography is ©Copyright Ezio Photography.

Hannah and Jamie’s Wedding Day

Hannah and Jamie’s Wedding Day

Hannah and Jamie Wedding, That Amazing Place, Easter 2019

Hannah and Jamie Wedding That Amazing Place Harlow July 2019

Brendan O’Sullivan Photography

In our latest Real Wedding blog of our country wedding venue, we’re meeting the beautiful Hannah and her handsome groom Jamie.

This happy couple were together 9 and a half years before they tied the knot in a day that can only be described as, spectacular. After meeting at University in North Wales in 2009 and their first date ending with a Chinese takeaway, these beautiful people fell for each other hook, line and sinker and the rest they say, is history.

Here’s the happy couple themselves giving us a little insight into their magical day right here at That Amazing Place, the ultimate country wedding venue in Essex.

The Venue

Hannah and Jamie Wedding That Amazing Place Harlow July 2019

Brendan O’Sullivan Photography

Hannah and Jamie stumbled upon That Amazing Place completely by chance as they were actually visiting another venue nearby.

With an off the cuff decision to visit our country wedding venue, they walked in and decided it was the one, “On the drive home we stopped at a country pub to talk about the venue. We both agreed that was the venue for us. We contacted Angie the next day! The welcome we had that day was true to the welcome and warmth we would receive throughout our wedding planning and beyond our wedding day from the team at That Amazing Place.”

Hannah also went on to say, “From start to finish we couldn’t have asked for more! From day one Angie kept us updated with all the information we needed. The owners are so welcoming and made you feel at home and Angie keeps the day running like clockwork. On the day we didn’t need to think about anything, it all happened and was sorted for us, leaving us to soak in the best day of our lives and spend it with family and friends!”

Theme and Entertainment

As their wedding took place over the Easter weekend, they decided to create a nod toward the April holiday by creating wedding favours in the form of Easter baskets filled with mini eggs. They also had a much larger basket created filled with even more Easter eggs for everyone to help themselves to. In terms of their theme, they wanted to capture a true spring feeling so went with yellows and navy blues. They also had daffodil flowers set off beautifully with the greys and silvers of the thistle. Hannah explained, “We didn’t even need to tell the team at That Amazing Place what we had in mind; they already knew. They set the whole place out better than we could have planned! We used their candelabras, which brought some drama to the room and then simple silver tea lights which looked very pretty on the tables.”

For their entertainment, they used the amazing Andy from Herts Entertainment. He played all of the couples suggested songs and kept the dancefloor packed for the entire night. Jamie explained, “he even had an encore as the guests didn’t want the party to end!”

Flowers

Hannah and Jamie Wedding That Amazing Place Harlow July 2019

Brendan O’Sullivan Photography

Hannah and Jamie chose the incredible Barbara from Lillies of Wanstead for their flowers. They wanted lowkey flowers, natural, tight bouquets and that’s exactly what they got. Hannah explained, “They looked beautiful with colours of yellow, cream and greens, the table arrangement was similar to the bouquets but had thistles in it! We had buttonholes for the bridal party. Barbara delivered the flowers on the morning and laid everything out ready! It was so exciting seeing them for the first time and they were perfect!”

Dress

Hannah got her dress from a designer called Diana Harbridge in Chester, her place of birth. Her dress was a beautiful A line number made of the finest satin material. It nipped in at the waist and flowed out. It was finished off perfectly with sequined detailing which kept it simple yet elegant, “I liked the simple and clean design! I felt so special! I did keep knocking things over with my long veil though!”

Catering

The happy couple chose Magpie Catering as their caterers for the entire day and said it was nothing short of fabulous, “The food was so tasty and plentiful! All the guests were complimenting the meals and the service was impeccable! Would definitely recommend these caterers for any wedding or any event!”

Hannah and Jamie Wedding That Amazing Place Harlow July 2019

Brendan O’Sullivan Photography

Special Moments

A particularly special moment for the couple came at the moment Hannah walked down the aisle. While it’s usually common place for the father of the bride to settle the brides nerves, in this instance it was the other way around as Hannah had to comfort her father Mike. Mike was so overcome with emotions on the day, that Hannah kept reassuring him, which evidently meant her focus was instead taken off of her own nerves.

This was actually a great distraction because in Jamie’s words, “Hannah would have definitely cried.”

For Hannah, seeing Jamie at the alter made her feel calm and forget any nerves that may have crept in, “Seeing him made me feel at ease and I started to relax.”

Being a part of this special couple’s happy day was nothing short of glorious. We wish them both a long and happy marriage and hope we get to see them soon to celebrate their continued anniversaries, hopefully in the very country wedding venue they said ‘I Do’.

Greta & Paul’s Wedding Day At Our Essex Wedding Venue

Greta & Paul’s Wedding Day At Our Essex Wedding Venue

There’s nothing we love more than sharing the breathtaking details of the wonderful weddings we see take place here at That Amazing Place. This week we’re looking at the nuptials of Greta and Paul who said I do right here at our Essex wedding venue.

Greta and Paul had been together for 9 years before saying “I Do” however, they had actually met through mutual friends 20 years previous when they dated for just three months.

Here’s the story of their special day and how they turned our wonderful manor house into their own special love nest for that unforgettable day.

Wedding Photo at That Amazing Place Essex Wedding Venue for Greta And Paul

The Venue

Greta stumbled upon That Amazing Place by chance as she scoured the Internet and saw that it had an upcoming open day.  She said, “As soon as we walked in, we knew it was where we wanted to get married. Angie was just brilliant too. I’m pretty sure we asked a million questions, some twice or even three times as my wedding brain took over. But she was always there to answer each and every one of them.”

When it came to the actual night before their wedding, Greta, the mother of the bride and the bridesmaids and flower girls all stayed at That Amazing Place and Greta, “couldn’t recommend this enough.

Paul and Jane let us have the entire house to ourselves and said to treat it as our own. It was a wonderful start to the weekend.”

Wedding Photo at That Amazing Place Essex Wedding Venue for Greta And Paul

Theme and Entertainment

Their big day didn’t have a theme as such; in fact everything changed a month before their wedding when they saw the marquee. The happy couple fell in love with the setting so much that they had to have it for their big day too. Their colour scheme was a very on trend blush pink and rose gold which complemented the marquee beautifully. They were also incredibly lucky to have stunning weather the day they got married which meant the marquee was open, over looking the beautiful lake and extended grounds. The view from the marquee became very much a focal point of the day with guests commenting on how beautiful it was.

With over 20 children in attendance, the day was very family orientated so seeing the children playing on the grass was very much a memory that Greta wouldn’t be forgetting in a hurry, “It was so lovely to see all the children enjoying the grounds whilst the adults were enjoying a few glasses of prosecco.”

For their entertainment, they enjoyed the talents of Piano DJ who they said had everyone up dancing, even out on the terrace thanks to the beautiful weather.

 

Flowers

Their flowers were taken care of by Sophie Wilson. The bride’s bouquet was made of pale pink roses, pale pink astilbe and white peonies. It was finished off simply yet elegantly hand tied. The three older bridesmaids had the same bouquets however, but a slightly smaller version and the three flower girls had smaller versions still. The colour theme of pinks and rose gold’s continued throughout the marquee. The centrepieces had candelabra arrangements made on a removable ring so the flowers could be taken after the wedding. They were made with the same selection of flowers from the brides bouquet with the top table enjoying seven small glass containers with the same flowers again. They also had a scattering of rose petals around the small glass containers for added effect with two pink blossom trees placed in the gazebo for the ceremony and then moved to the front of the gazebo for the rest of the evening.

 

Dress

Greta looked a picture of elegance in her beautiful dress from Matchmaker Brides in Brentwood. The dress had a beautiful sweetheart neckline and a stunning illusion lace back. It was also accented with shimmering beads and ivory over light gold.

 

Catering

Greta and Paul chose the amazing bunch at Premier Crew to do their catering who they said were, “absolutely fantastic. They were always on hand and super helpful throughout the whole day and even the months leading up to it. The food was stunning and we really couldn’t have asked for anything more. The service on the day itself was second to none. When we moved inside for the evening reception, instead of a buffet we chose a wood fire pizza van which went down a storm for everyone too.”

Wedding Photo at That Amazing Place Essex Wedding Venue for Greta And Paul

Special Moments

The most memorable moment for Greta was having her brother walk her down the aisle. Her dad passed away 4 years previously, so for Greta, there were mixed emotions but it was a very special moment. Greta also spoke fondly of the moment Paul saw her for the first time and the attention she received on the day, “I was so excited to see Paul and for him to see me. I’m not usually good with all the attention being on me but I loved it all day. My mum wrote me a beautiful card and my girlfriends had put a beautiful photo book together with some really heartfelt messages in it.”

 

From everyone here at That Amazing Place, we cannot smile enough when we think of the wonderful day we had watching the fabulous couple, Greta and Paul, get married. We wish them all the happiness in the world and hope to see them in the future celebrating their anniversaries. If you’d like more information on our Essex wedding venue, please don’t hesitate to contact ustoday. Our team will be in touch as soon as possible to show you why so many choose That Amazing Place to make their dreams come true.

Adele & Victoria’s Day At Our Essex Wedding Venue

Essex wedding venue

Real Wedding Blog – Victoria and Adele

It’s been quite a while since we shared a real wedding story from our Essex wedding venue so today’s blog post feels extra special. We’re looking at the beautiful nuptials of one of the loveliest couples we’ve had the fortune of coming across, the wonderful Victoria and Adele Hughes. Victoria and Adele met three years ago at Brighton Pride, August 2014 through mutual friends. Victoria said, “we all met up and the moment we saw each other, we fell for one another and haven’t really spent a day apart since” and the rest they say is history…

The Venue

When it came to choosing the venue, Adele and Victoria knew exactly what they wanted. Victoria explains, “We wanted somewhere solely exclusive to us. Adele had googled some places near to where we lived and That Amazing Place came up. As soon as we visited, we knew that it was the one.” Here at That Amazing Place, we often find the fact that being an exclusive use wedding venue sets us apart from so many others. Our country house wedding venue was indeed exclusively Victoria and Adele’s for their special day too and what’s more, Victoria added, “there was nothing we needed to do to the venue. It was perfect as it was”. Victoria pointed out they were after a “less is more” kind of feel. It wasn’t just the venue itself that drew them here, the service was also a big pull as they both complimented the service from Paul and Jane, “from start to finish, Paul and Jane always made us feel welcome and was more than happy to facilitate our needs. The whole day was just perfect and a day we’ll never forget.”

Theme and Entertainment

As we previously mentioned, the reason Adele and Victoria loved our country house wedding venue so much (exclusivity aside) was that they enjoyed the ‘less is more’ feel. Though their wedding wasn’t without a certain style with the pair opting for a real vintage theme, which included a fantastic sweet cart and a vintage photo booth. When it came to their entertainment, they used a company called JF Weddings whom they’d spotted at a wedding fair in Dunmow. He sang during reception drinks to entertain guests and also sang for their first dance. For the rest of the evenings entertainment, they hired a DJ to ensure their guests danced the night away.

Catering

For their catering, Adele and Victoria used one of our recommended suppliers, Premier Crew Hospitality. They chose canapés with reception drinks, which included mini prawn cocktails, Welsh rarebit, tomato and mozzarella skewers and vegetable spring rolls. They then enjoyed a BBQ for their wedding breakfast with an array of dishes to cater for their guests. Sarah at Premier Crew Hospitality even provided brioche buns for the burgers, along with gluten free buns at their request. For desserts, the girls chose chocolate brownies, Eaton mess as well as mango and passionfruit meringue. For the evening, they enjoyed mini takeaways with fish and chips in cones, chicken and pittas as well as pizza. Victoria had this to say about our recommended caterers, “what we liked about Premier Crew Hospitality was the fact that they were coming round to the guests with the evening food. Sarah and her team were superb and every guest went away happy and well fed.”

With Adele picking her suit from Asos, Topman and Curtis Hawes, and Victoria picking her bridal gown from Rock The Frock, these two beautiful women were guaranteed to look nothing short of stunning and the photos captured by the ever-talented Nigel Read Photography, only prove that fact. We couldn’t have been more pleased to witness such a beautiful ceremony and wish Victoria and Adele all the best for the future.

Photo Credit: Nigel Read Photography

Our Essex Wedding Venue Hosts Emma And Ronnie’s Big Day

Essex Wedding Venue

Paul Grace Photography

Wedding season is in full swing here at That Amazing Place and as always, we just can’t help but share the beautiful nuptials taking place here at our Essex wedding venue. Today, we’re talking about the beautiful couple that is Emma and Ronnie. Emma and Ronnie are the epitome of childhood sweethearts having met at primary school but love wasn’t to blossom just yet as they ventured off to different secondary schools. Fast-forward to the age of social media when they just so happened to stumble upon each other and it was a very different story…

The Venue – When it came to the venue, Emma and Ronnie were determined to find something that felt stylish and contemporary. In Emma’s own words, “That Amazing Place ticked all of the boxes. The building and the grounds were simply stunning, and the owners and staff were so friendly and accommodating. We knew as soon as we viewed it that it was where we wanted to hold our big day.” And so, our Essex wedding venue became the centre of their big day. Reviews for That Amazing Place have often left us speechless, but Emma and Ronnie left us with a lump in our throat after explaining, “Apart from being such a stunning venue, the owners and staff were fantastic. Angie, the Events Manager was super supportive and made sure everything ran without a hitch, and Paul and Jayne, the owners, were so friendly and accommodating it made the whole experience truly wonderful.”

Essex wedding venue

Paul Grace Photography

Theme and Colours – When it came to theme and colours, Emma and Ronnie kept it minimal, contemporary and romantic, “We took a lot of inspiration from how the venue had been styled previously and the neutral décor lent itself well to what we wanted to recreate.” When it came to the flowers, they used Joanne Truby Floral Design, “She had decorated the venue previously and we loved the romantic, sophisticated styling she had managed to create. We were going for quite neutral whites, creams and pinks for the colour scheme, and Joanne was able to capture that beautifully in the arrangements chosen by using a lovely mix of roses, peonies and ranunculus, amongst others.”

The Dress – As anyone knows, one of the most important aspects of any brides big day is the dress (aside from marrying the love of her life of course) and Emma’s bridal gown was of no exception. Her dress was by Pronovias and according to Emma, “Was always going to be – had loved the brand for years”. As with her theme for her big day, Emma wanted something simple yet striking and her dress achieved that look perfectly. Ronnie wasn’t to be left out either with his grooms suit coming from the contemporary designer that is Ted Baker, with the groomsmen following suit.

Emma and Ronnie’s big day really was a day to remember and one we’ll cherish taking part in forever. Thanks to this wonderful couple, our Essex wedding venue will always feel that little extra bit special. Emma, Ronnie, we wish you all the love in the world and thank you for choosing our venue.