Dorset Wedding Photographers Courtenay Photographic Ltd
The Wedding Photographers in Dorset Blog
Big first wedding anniversary congratulations today to Michelle and Chris Regent, who married a year ago at the fabulous Maunsel House in Somerset. What a fantastic day it was, a real party atmosphere, we even had a full sized stuffed bear in the line up!
Have a fantastic day today Michelle and Chris may it be filled with love and happiness.
Best wishes
Courtenay
(Michelle & Chris…a private moment at Maunsel House 24th October 2009)
Lots of love to Zena & Lee today as they celebrate their first anniversary as husband and wife. Zena and Lee got married a year ago today at the fabulous Maunsel House in Somerset, you can see their wedding story and some of their pictures by clicking here.
Best wishes to you both.
Courtenay
(Zena & Lee at Maunsel House 11th Septemeber 2009)
Hello everyone, hope you are all well and enjoying the latest round of articles from specialist wedding suppliers? Today’s piece comes from the lovely people at one of my favourite locations for a wedding, Maunsel House in Somerset.
Here is Kirsty, one of the lovely team at Maunsel House:
First a little background on Maunsel House itself -
Maunsel House is a magnificent 13th Century Manor set in 100 acres of stunning parkland at the heart of a sprawling 2,000 acre estate, comprising of farms, lakes, woodlands, walnut groves, orchards, Somerset wetlands, cottages and ancient barns.
(Maunsel House set up for the civil marriage ceremony of Michelle & Chris)Currently the Ancestral seat of the Slade Family and home of Sir Benjamin Slade Bt. and Kirsty, the house can boast such visitors as Geoffrey Chaucer, who wrote part of the Canterbury Tales whilst staying here.
(The stunning King’s room – The Bridal Suite at Maunsel House – a fab place for the Bride to ready for her big day, and definite luxury for the wedding night! – from the wedding of Rachel & Chris)The beautiful grounds and spacious rooms provide both privacy and a unique atmosphere for any event. Available for exclusive hire, we host weddings, house parties and corporate events with the house serving as a luxurious venue for groups of all sizes.
(Maunsel House at night – from the wedding of Rachel & Chris)Our in-house wedding planners can organise every detail of your day – your ceremony and reception, catering and accommodation tailored to your specifications. Maunsel House serves equally well as a conference venue, with a range of facilities for corporate events and activity days.
In addition to the house’s 13 bedrooms, the estate includes three holiday cottages available for wedding guests and self-catering midweek breaks. Based near Taunton, Somerset, our estate is accessible from around the South West.
(The lovely bandstand available for outdoor ceremonies being used for garden entertainment at the wedding of Zena & Lee)A hot new trend for this year is the option of having as much of the wedding day as possible outside (weather permitting of couse ) At Maunsel House our civil ceremonies can take place under our romantic, garlanded, antique Bandstand. The wisteria clad bandstand is situated on the front lawn with Maunsel House, our 13th century Manor house acting as a stunning backdrop along with our 100acre parkland setting and four lakes.
(Civil ceremony held in Maunsel House – The wedding of Michelle & Chris)We always lay up for a civil ceremony inside the house as well, just in case the weather takes a turn for the worse and this removes all the stress of having to make a decision as to where to have the ceremony. Dinning al fresco is also hugely popular under our fully roofed Pergola. The Pergola seats up to 200 for a wedding breakfast and is covered with deliciously scented climbing plants such as honeysuckle, jasmine and old roses and adds a very relaxed almost continental feel to the day.
(Wishes in the sky outside a floodlit Maunsel House, very atmospheric – from the wedding of Zena & Lee)The evening can be rounded off with a scrumptious crackling covered hog roast which we can serve again from under the pergola. As evening draws in we turn on our twinkling fairy lights and light the many chimneas and pretty lanterns in the fruit trees which surround the Pergola, all very romantic!
With all best wishes
Kirsty
We say: If you are looking for a fab wedding venue with that something different, then give the team at Maunsel a call, you won’t be disappointed! (Courtenay)
Tel: 01278 661076
weddings@maunselhouse.co.uk
Today’s article come from Janet Waters of JW Blooms. Janet does all things very lovely with naturally grown English flowers, ideal for those special wedding bouquets, decorating the church or beautiful centre pieces for your reception tables.
Here is Janet:
Locally Grown Flowers!
We British are well-known for our love of gardens, but we are also big fans of cut flowers. Who hasn’t grabbed a bunch of tulips on impulse at the supermarket checkout or stopped at the florist for a few sweet peas for the kitchen table? But did you know that 90% of the flowers we buy are imported? Those roses you got on Valentine’s Day? Those lilies you bought for Mother’s Day? Chances are they started life in Colombia, were flown to Holland to be auctioned, and then ferried over to the UK.
Of course, where we really show our love of flowers is a wedding, and now brides -and the flower industry – are catching on to the idea of keeping your carbon footprint to a minimum by sourcing British flowers. Increasingly, the trend is for sustainable flowers, and this year local flowers are hot, hot, hot!
Three years ago, from a secluded field in Somerset, I set up JW Blooms, growing country flowers organically and as ethically as possible. I started off selling at farmers’ markets, but the demand for seasonal, local flowers meant that I soon started to do weddings, and that side of the business now takes up most of my time – and flowers.
Nothing complements a pretty village church like the kinds of fragrant, cottage flowers which would always have been grown in the surrounding gardens. Think fragrant snapdragons, vibrant cornflowers, love-in-a-mist and campanulas. Or towering delphiniums and bishop’s lace flower, interspersed with sweet-smelling honeysuckle and all bound together with a trail of flowering clematis – heavenly!
(some of Janets lovely creations from the wedding of Zena & Lee at Maunsel House last year)With country-style flowers, just a few stems in a small jug can look incredibly pretty – and come in at a fraction of the price of a more formal arrangement!
Or if you’re looking for something more modern, what could be more striking than a few alliums tied with a sword-like phormium leaf? Whatever your taste, British flowers can fit the bill.
Of course, the business is seasonal and weather-dependent. I can’t provide hydrangeas in May or lilac in September, or guarantee that a particular flower will be at the perfect stage for picking on the day. But what I can guarantee is that the flowers will be beautiful, sweet-smelling, sumptuous and guilt-free!
(Another beautiful Bouquet by Janet from the wedding of Zena & Lee at Maunsel House 2009)So if you’re getting married, give me a call – I am more than happy to talk about the possibilities. Or take a look at my website at www.jwblooms.co.uk. Make your wedding flowers truly green!
Jan Waters
JW Blooms
T: 01823 660870
M: 07939 093249
E: jw.blooms@googlemail.com
W: www.jwblooms.co.uk <http://www.jwblooms.co.uk>
As this has proved to be so popular, for the second year in a row we have asked our previous years couples to drop us a line with their favourite picture from their wedding and to say why. We also asked them to provide us with some top tips for this years couples in return for a chance to win a prize. The prize on offer – a 16″x12″ canvas of their choice. So we have just recently put all the entries into a hat and……. we have our winning couple…
(drum roll please…)
Michelle and Chris Regent, who were married on the 24th October in the beautiful setting of Maunsel House in Somerset
Congratulations Michelle and Chris, canvas on its way shortly!
Courtenay Photographic – Wedding Photographers in Dorset
Another set of Top Tips from one of our last year couples for you. Zena and Lee got married on the 11th September last year at St Peters in North Newton and then their reception was held at the lovely Maunsel House near North Newton in Somerset. The sun shone all day and in the evening Zena, Lee and their guests let off about a hundred wish lanterns into the night sky, a very beautiful sight indeed.
Here is what Zena and Lee had to say…
Hey Courtenay,
Hope all is good with you..
Its been mega tough trying to work out our favourite one, after a lot of deliberation we have chosen this piccie -
The reason being is this brings it all back to me… of course the smiles from me, lee and the vicar are from the elation at just being pronounced married, but they are also at sheer relief I managed to get my vows out. (As I’m sure you remember…it was a real emotional struggle!! and was touch or go whether I’d be able to claw it back!)
Anyway…this picture was followed by a huge raucous applause by our guests, all apparently as relieved as I was that I’d completed them!! Ha!
So, my 3 top tips for planning a wedding, hmmm, that’s a toughy.
1. Try to stick to what you and your partner what from the out set!! People (family!) will of course want to give their opinions on how things should be. But don’t stray away from what you really want just to please others. You can’t please everyone and remember it is YOUR day.
2. Enjoy the planning. It is such an important build up to the big day and you want to look back on it with memories of stressful, hectic but fun and exciting times.
3. Try not to bombard your husband to be on wedding type things 24/7. I tried to narrow everything down to 3 choices and presented them to him at a relaxed time in the day (not when he has just walked through the door!) It was received well and didn’t make either of us feel over whelmed at constant wedding talk.
Ahhhh, makes me sad to think it is all over now!! I’d love to do it all again!
Lots of love,
Z & Lee xx
Wedding Photographer Dorset – Courtenay Photographic
You can now view Michelle & Chris’s Maunsel House Wedding Album over on the main Wedding Photography site if you click here!
So, back to one of my most favourite of wedding locations, Maunsel House just outside the lovely Somerset village of North Newton (near Taunton). The day broke to rain, rain, rain, oh and wind to boot….Oh great!! Now whilst I don’t mind working in wind and rain, I always feel sorry for my couples who have spent months, if not years planning and dreaming about their perfect day, and wind and rain doesn’t usually come into it!
Anyway I drive over to Maunsel House and on the way the weather actually seems to brighten a little. On arriving at Maunsel, I head straight back down the drive (on foot) to find the boys (and one girl) in a field, guns in hand, ready to blast to kingdom come any clay pigeon that dared show its……head?!! Great fun, and I wouldn’t mind swapping my kind of shooting for the other kind, well at least to have a go, but my job is to capture the fun and thats exactly what I do.
Back to the Country House and to the fabulous Kings Room, where the lovely Bride (Michelle) and her entourage are readying for the days festivities ahead. Maunsel House is now bustling with activity, last touches to decorations are being made, the splendid chocolate wedding cake arrives (mmmm), the beautiful wedding bouquets and intimate touches with tea-lights, ribbons and alike.
At last its time for the ceremony, and Michelle makes her way down the splendid Maunsel House staircase to find her (somewhat nervous) waiting groom, Chris. A touching intimate ceremony follows, with plenty of laughter, and the Bride and Groom emerge Mr and Mrs Regent at last!
Now the rain has gone (excellent), and drinks are taken to the lawn. The wind however still has some force and soon guests find themselves back in the warmth of the house enjoying their Pimms. At last the sun makes an appearance and its outside again for a few family formals and then a quiet wander with Chris and Michelle for those more intimate pictures for the album.
Back into the house, Michelle and Chris cut their Chocolate Wedding Cake and then into the dining room to take their places for the wedding breakfast. Speeches take place before the meal, always a good idea I think, especially for those unaccustomed to speaking in public.
After the wedding breakfast, everyone moves into various parts of the wonderfully eclectic Maunsel house with their coffees and to the bar of course whilst the dining room is prepared for the evening entertainment.
At last its time for the first dance and the wonderful rock covers band Livewires, kicks in. So with rock band in mind you can imagine Michelle and Chris’s dance is not the usual slow shuffle around the dance floor…brilliant. Soon the dance floor is full, as the first dance ends and Livewires takes the tempo up another notch and Michelle and Chris are joined by their family and friends to dance the night away.
Another great Wedding at Maunsel House!
Courtenay Photographic – Wedding Photographer Dorset
