An Enzoani Bride for a Rustic, Bright, Colorful and Whimsical Jewish Wedding at Micklefield Hall, Rickmansworth, UK

Woweeee! After a very cold and (beautifully!) snowy weekend here in central London, we could definitely use a splash of color to transport us out of deepest, darkest winter and into a bright, whimsical dreamscape of a Jewish wedding! Who’s in?

Claire and Dave tied the knot in a rustic, vintage-inspired celebration in the grounds of beautifully picturesque Micklefield Hall. Graphic designer, Claire, turned the full force of her fantastic creative eye to her big day, with expert attention to detail.

Every last decoration was bursting with color and perfectly matched the theme, from the magical paper lanterns by The Hanging Lantern Company to the quirky and adorable grass “LOVE” letters by Ever So Vintage Party Hire. Butterflies were dotted everywhere, from the floral arrangements to the stationery suite and beyond. The entire effect is truly something to gaze longingly at – absolutely breathtaking. 

Of course a wedding with THIS much pretty in it had to have a supermodel of a chuppah. And what a beauty Claire and Dave’s outdoor chuppah was – a rustic wooden dream with bright and bold flowers adorning the sides. We couldn’t take our eyes off it, and we’re sure you won’t be able to either. Alexandra’s Florist did just the most amazing job. 

Claire looked like an A-lister in her glamorous Enzoani gown, surrounded by her best gals in picture-perfect floral, flowing dresses.

The details, love and joy of the day were all captured by the expert eye of photographer Jordanna Marston, who really brought the camera-shy couple out of their shell to create a spread of sublime shots, while the romantic trailer below was created by none other than wonderful STG Recommended Vendor, the one and only Denee Motion.

We’ll leave you in Claire’s capable hands for the full writeup – we hope you enjoy this visual feast of a wedding, and that it warms you all up too!

How we met

Claire, the bride: We met on Tinder in 2013 and it just grew from there.

A venue with inner and outer beauty

We chose to get married at Micklefield Hall in Rickmansworth. We wanted something that was an all-in-one space for both the ceremony and the reception.

We loved the idea of an outdoor ceremony, but as it’s London, and the weather is temperamental, this was a gamble, so we needed somewhere we could be transformed in case we didnt get our wish. Luckily, it stayed dry and we got married on the beautiful grounds, looking out over acres of greenery.

A whimsical, rustic theme with a self-designed stationery suite

I love the whimsical/vintage/rustic look and wanted to incorporate this into our wedding. As a graphic designer, I could envisage what I wanted, and just needed to make it happen.

The party was held in a barn, which was lovely to start with, but by adding in the lanterns and the fairy lights it just added a bit more flavor to the setting. I wanted some unique signage and a few bits and bobs around the venue that showcased our personalities. I created signage out of an old wooden palette, and supported it with a ladder covered in flowers and items that showed who we are.

I designed the stationery suite continuing my floral/butterfly/whimsical theme. I also wanted a table plan that could be adapted last minute, as I didn’t want the stress of having to change lots too near to the wedding day.

For the table centerpieces, I wanted there to be various designs. I sourced birdcages, watering cans, wooden crates and jars to allow each table to have an unique feel. My florist helped bring my vision to life. I loved incorporating butterflies into each centrerpiece, as this tied in with my unique bouquet as well. 

We also wanted a few extra touches that would be eye catching, as well as fun props for our guests to have photos with. We sourced giant grass ‘LOVE’ letters which were placed just before our chuppah outside which everyone loved!

We used giant light-up initial letters to add some more flare to the dance floor too, as well as having a giant Tinder sign floating around for people to take photos with. This was personalised with how and when we met, and just reinforced the fun aspect of the day that we were looking for.  We had a simple guestbook too, but also included a wish jar, which definitely was amusing to read the following day!

Butterfly invitations

I designed my own invitations, as I wanted something pretty, but rustic, and wanted to make them match the menus, table plan, table numbers and additional framed artwork.

I included subtle butterfly illustrations on the invitations, which tied in with the butterfly place names and my bouquet.

Trusted hair and makeup artists

My makeup artist is someone I’ve worked with professionally for years. I art direct photoshoots as part of my work, and wanted someone who I would feel in safe hands with. I did a trial a few months prior, and wanted a natural but glam look on the day. 

For my hair, I used a stylist called Abbie Tyler, who had done my hair for when I was a bridesmaid. I had some extensions clipped in and kept it down for the long, wavy look.

An Enzoani gown 

My dress was by the Italian designer Enzoani from a boutique shop in London called JS Couture. I wanted a dress that had a vintage feel, but that I could move in!

I was never the dress-wearing kinda girl, so finding one didn’t come naturally for me, but the chantilly lace and the vintage detail on the front of the dress went with my theme beautifully.

Heirloom jewelry 

I wanted to follow some of the wedding traditions and I borrowed my grandmother’s antique jewelry, which matched the beading on the dress exactly.

I wore a long, flowing veil, from the same designer

The handsome groom

I had to convince Dave of the bow tie and braces look, as I just loved it, and it went with the vintage theme. The fact that I smiled every time he tried it on, he just couldn’t say no to me (the perfect groom!).

Summery bridesmaids

I had three adult bridesmaids, three flower girls and one page boy. I wanted something summery and floaty and found lovely floral maxi dresses from ASOS. The flower girls wore cute ivory dresses, but we dressed them down in sequin trainers.

The best men, ushers and page boy all matched Dave’s attire, with the bowtie and braces look, but were different in patterns and colors to differentiate.

A simple chuppah

I loved my chuppah and I spent along time looking for something that wasn’t too ‘fancy’ and was more rustic. I wanted something that fit in with the setting of being outdoors, but that also wasn’t too over the top.

Some chuppahs are also very big and busy and the guests can struggle to see what is going on so I wanted something simple, but effective. I nearly had to get something made as I couldn’t find the right one, but then my florist helped me create the look I was going for and it came out beautifully. 

We also hired a Chazan, Steven Leas, who sang some of the blessings to the music of Les Miserables (I’m a massive fan of musicals).

Pastel flowers

I wanted pastel flowers and to incorporate a mixture of colors to add to the whimsical theme. I love the simplicity of baby’s breath, and had them dotted around the chuppah in glass jars for some subtle decor.

Our fabulous photographer

As a creative person myself, my main research went on photographers, as neither of us are overly keen on having too many pictures taken!

I much prefer non-staged photos, and when I came across Jordanna Marston’s work, I knew she was the perfect person to capture our day. She has a documentary feel and creates shots with such great composition that they look like works of art.

She kept us at ease the whole day and we LOVE our pictures as she captured real emotions of us and the guests throughout the day and the night.

…and videographer

Our videographer was Denee Motion, who also helped us capture those precious moments. I love the highlight reel, as that really shows off all the hard work that goes into planning a wedding.

It’s funny, as you plan all the little details for months, but on the day you are so distracted you don’t notice them, so it’s lovely to see the photos and videos afterwards, which show all of the details you put into the day.

Themed catering

We opted out of a cake but our caterer was Celia Clyne. We wanted casual-looking food and they continued our theme by serving the courses on wooden boards and colored glass plates, rather than normal china.

The perfect entertainment

We used Creation Band and went with the DJ Live line up, who were fantastic! By having a more casual setup, it helped keep it less formal, which we preferred. They also played at the ceremony and we had a electric violinist at the reception.

They were also our MC, and their events team helped coordinate everything on the day, which helped relieve a lot of pressure.

Advice to couples currently planning their wedding

My advice is to just focus on what you really want. My husband and I don’t enjoy being centre of attention, so having to plan a wedding which is ultimately about us was sometimes a struggle! By getting to showcase my creativity and keeping our style and personalities at the forefront of our minds during the planning stages we got to be our true selves on the day. We wanted a more informal feel and we achieved that by the styling, the venue, and the lack of speeches and the creative touches here and there.

Claire & Dave’s little white book

Photography – Jordanna Marston
Videography – Denee Motion
Venue – Micklefield Hall
Bride’s dress – Enzoani purchased at JS Couture
Bridesmaids – ASOS
Makeup – AJ Hair & Makeup
Flowers – Alexandra’s Florist
Chazan – Steven Leas
Band – Creation Band
DJ – DJ Live
Catering – Celia Clyne
Invitation – Claire Frank Designs and Printed
Paper Lanterns  – The Hanging Lantern Company
Grass Love Letters – Ever So Vintage Party Hire
Initial Letters – Light Up Love
Robes – Robes by Silk and More