Heather and Pete's winter wedding

And so to the last wedding of 2010. I've been going a bit giddy over this wedding ever since I heard about the plans - but particularly taking the photos and going through them all - I've been falling in love with oh so many of them. 

Heather and Pete were at the first wedding I ever shot back in April (which I shall blog about sometime soon). They approached me about their British themed, vintage style, DIY wedding back in the summer and I swooned as I heard their plans. It was great getting to know them more and more during our pre-wedding chats and emails. Although snow threatened to create a bit of a pickle with guests travelling in, the light covering ended up providing a gorgeous white backdrop without too much disruption.

So ... a few of my favourite things.

1) Where to begin. I loved seeing Heather pour herself into the little details, drawing on a history of making and creating to produce: bunting made from fabric inherited from grandparents, her birdcage veil, fabric flowers for her shoes and the bridesmaids hair, table decorations, a big fabric and button message board, jam favours, scrabble-tile cuff-links with the initials of the ushers and groom and probably even more. Not only a girl after my own heart, but also a gorgeous array of little details to absorb.

2) As this was a DIY wedding there was so much support with behind the scenes work done by friends and family - they were amazing in their buzy-bee-ness with gifts of self being given in abundance. I adore friendships of this kind.

3) The comedy value. The speeches were a veritable smorgasbord of hilarious moments - from the brides' eye test (read it carefully), to a demonstration of a 'Jagger-off' (put on Rolling Stones music and competitively throw Mick Jagger-esque moves), by way of a whole-room audience participation rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas. This crowd knew how to have a good laugh.

4) The theme: Britishness. My husband was proud! Produce was sourced locally including Our Cow Molly ice-cream and Chatsworth shortbread. Delicious.

5) The style. This wedding was a visual feast! I adored the use of bold red - especially against the smattering of snow. I loved the 30's glamour - the girls hair and make-up was just scrumptious. And the Whitworth Centre provided the perfect backdrop with its wood panelling and parquet floor.

Right. I'm off to buy some red lippy.

All images ©KateCooperPhotography2010