Styal Lodge gives family and fun centre-stage
A CBeebies and Creme Eggs love story
Let me just start by saying, Alex and Katie’s wedding in Styal Lodge was so much fun!
But since they met each other while working at CBeebies and fell in love over Cadbury’s Creme Eggs, I always knew it was going to be a blast!
And Styal Lodge in Cheshire was the perfect choice of venue. The intimate, relaxed atmosphere allowed their love for each other and their devotion to their families to take centre-stage. And the flawlessly considered styling let their personalities shine through in every detail, whilst showcasing the contemporary-rustic chic of the venue.
If you’re planning a barn wedding, prepare yourself for some serious inspiration.
A perfect venue for an intimate family wedding
As a wedding photographer based in Cheshire, Styal Lodge holds a special place in my heart.
Blending a laid-back aesthetic with elegant modern touches, it manages to be both contemporary and rustic at the same time. With its own private gardens, surrounded by trees and nestled in the heart of the Cheshire countryside. It’s the ideal venue if you’re looking for somewhere relaxed, natural, and intimate to say your vows.
Katie has a huge family, and you can tell they mean the world to her. If you want your wedding day to centre around family, love and connection, Styal Lodge is the perfect venue. Because it’s just so incredibly welcoming, intimate and relaxed. And without the strange sense of pressure you get from a grander, more traditional venue, you can just sit back and concentrate on the things that matter most. Family, fun, your love, and your future together as a married couple.
The contemporary-rustic chic of Styal Lodge
Not only does Styal Lodge make you feel immediately relaxed as soon as you arrive, this barn wedding venue in Cheshire photographs incredibly well! With floor-to-ceiling windows and a high roof, the barn is bathed in natural light.
Delicate white lace hangings and strings of fairy flights bloom from the beautiful chandelier that hangs from the centre of the barn. And a curtain of golden fairy lights stretch across the back wall behind the altar. With the exposed beams and wooden walls giving a rustic aesthetic to the barn itself, these little touches add a soft and understated modern elegance to the room.
The main barn also doubles as a reception room and dance floor. And with all the festivities in one place, it makes Styal Lodge a really easy, convenient wedding venue. Because with zero travelling time between locations, you and your guests are free to spend the whole day relaxing, celebrating and having fun.
The bridal room
The bridal prep room is just perfect for photographs. And the ornate full-length mirror is a dream come true for any excited, butterflies-in-the-stomach bride.
And it’s really spacious and comfortable as well. I’ve been to so many bridal prep rooms where everything feels cramped and rushed. But in Styal Lodge, Katie and her bridesmaids could spread out, relax, and enjoy the morning together in comfort, knowing the ceremony was just a short walk away.
Styling inspiration for the young at heart
The styling by Planning My Special Day was a true reflection of Alex and Katie’s personalities. Fun and quirky, and filled with countless personal touches that made the day uniquely theirs. And by combining modern details with an overarching countryside theme, the styling blended perfectly with the contemporary-rustic aesthetic of Styal Lodge.
Gold-framed flower baskets hung from the wooden beams, filled with crimson dahlia and white roses. And the flower arch over the doorway behind the altar was exquisite, bringing splashes of vibrant colour into the barn. A gorgeous deep forest green theme ran throughout the styling, with accents in the bridesmaid dresses, the chair covers, and even the bridal dressing gowns. So cohesive and subtle, and wonderfully in-sync with the style of the venue.
And I absolutely adored the table plan and playful hand-illustrated place settings from Love from Poppy stationery.
But most of all, I loved the idea of having the tables named after different highlights in their relationship. Their hometowns, their first date, their first home, where they met, their first kiss. It was such a unique and meaningful idea. And a reminder of all they’d been through together on their journey to this amazing day.
Couple’s portraits in Styal Lodge
Styal’s Lodge has its own private gardens that offer you a convenient and quaint little escape for spur-of-the-moment couple’s portraits.
But the best setting for your couple’s portraits in Styal Lodge has got to be the private lake. After the ceremony, the venue owners came by in a golf cart, sweeping us from the clamour of the party and away to the gentle seclusion of the water’s edge.
Katie looked stunning in her Stella York dress from Ava Rose Hamilton, paired with a shimmering headband, and an elegant bouquet of white roses with eucalyptus. The sheer bliss in Alex’s eyes as he looked at Katie in her wedding dress was just magic.
And that’s why the couple’s portraits are always my favourite time of a wedding day. Because I get to be alone with my couples, capturing the most romantic memories of their lives, in their first moments together as a married couple. Away from the noise and confusion of the wedding, they can let their guard down and be truly intimate with each other.
Let’s be best friends
I absolutely loved Alex and Katie’s wedding. Not only because it was relaxed, laid-back and just so much fun. But because they made me feel like family. And being enveloped in that joyful, welcoming atmosphere is one of the main reasons I love what I do.
As your wedding photographer, I won’t be the kind of girl to blend into the background and take sneaky snaps from the shadows. I’ll be joining in with the laughter, celebrating your love, and taking part in your amazing day with you.
And it’s this bond that will give you the most amazing photos. Because if you’re comfortable with me, and you’re genuinely having fun when we’re together, it’ll shine through in every photo. So when you’re looking through your wedding album in decades to come, you won’t be looking at a posed photo you barely remember. You’ll be looking at a snapshot of pure joy that’ll transport you back to that very moment.
So if you’d like for me to be part of your special day, I’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch today to check my availability.
