Philippa & Michael's RAF wedding in Southrop, The Cotswolds

Philippa and RAF Sergeant Michael Lingwood, (or Lingy as he is better known) are amongst the most chilled out couples I've ever worked with. They even managed to organise their wedding whilst also renovating their home and working full time! We first met on a chilly winter's day in January at a Whitewed wedding show and they booked me as their florist for their wedding in April 2019. The wedding ceremony was the first to be held at the newly refurbished St. Michael's and All Angels church in Highworth, with the much-appreciated addition of under-floor heating! The reception was in one of Stunning Tents amazing tipi's in the grounds of Philippa's parents' home and had room for a band, dance floor, bar, bean bag lounge and 18 trestle tables - it was a BIG tent!

Philippa's cream lace dress was from the online store Web2B with alterations by Nikki at Fairytale Occasions in Highworth. For her bridal bouquet, I made a hand-tied bouquet with the divine lilac-grey 'Amnesia' rose and added scented lily of the valley, nerines, astilbe, mini spray roses, waxflower, eustoma and eucalyptus. It smelt heavenly! To go with his military dress uniform, we made red rose buttonholes for Lingy and his Yorkshire-born Dad. The other groomsmen had Amnesia rose buttonholes with stems finished in grey velvet ribbon.

The couple said, 'We had an amazing day and our flowers were insanely beautiful!'.

The Amnesia rose bridesmaid's bouquet complemented perfectly the bridesmaid's dress from ChiChi London worn by Philippa's daughter Poppy. The three adorable flower-girls wore ivory dresses from Monsoon with co-coordinating sashes made by Nikki at Fairytale Occasions. I made baby's breath floral crowns for the girls and decorated mini baskets with fresh flowers. To complete the look, I found dried Amnesia grey rose petals from the Real Petal Confetti company.

For the ceremony, we decorated the church with our vintage French grape collecting barrel and milk churns using a blend of hydrangeas, delphiniums, roses and waxflower in lilacs, whites and dusky mauve tones. These displays were moved to the tent for the wedding reception and party where the tables were simply decorated with eucalyptus table runners and lots (75!) hurricane vases and candles. The 3-tier cake was made by the bride's mother and covered with fresh flowers and surf boards - a shared passion of the newly married Sergeant and Mrs Lingwood.

Photos supplied by kind permission of Novel Focus Photography