Magical outdoor wedding at dream venue
Village Farm Marquees • Nov 03, 2020
London couple Tiffaney Kaulmann and Stuart Alexander first set eyes on each other 10 years ago across a crowded dancefloor in glamorous city nightclub, Movida. They might have only been aged 18 and 23 at the time, but it was love at first sight and from that moment on their destiny was sealed.
Fast-forward to December 2017, and Tiffaney found herself being ushered into her aunt’s garden chalet in Germany where, unbeknown to her, close friends and family were waiting breathlessly in the wings to witness what was to be an emotional proposal from Stuart.
Tiffaney said: “Stuart once bought a really beautiful and very valuable ring at an auction, and even though it didn’t fit me I joked that if we ever got engaged, it would have to be with that ring!
“I’m originally from Germany and my aunt played a huge part in my upbringing, so the chalet at her home is quite special to me. It was a massive surprise, I had no idea he was going to propose and couldn’t understand why he wanted me to go down the garden to the chalet, I think I was grumbling about it being too cold to go outside.
“I couldn’t believe it when he produced the ring and asked me to marry him. I said yes and there was this big cheer from the balcony where everyone had been hiding. It really was a lovely moment.”
Renovation project
The pair, who live in Wimbledon and work in property development and management (although not together – Tiffaney says they would ‘murder each other’ if that was the case!), then embarked on a fraught search for the perfect wedding venue.
“I always wanted a summer wedding outdoors,” said Tiffaney. “I must have dragged Stuart to around 10 venues across the country but I couldn’t envisage any of them working, plus they seemed so expensive.”
One year into the search, an unusual solution presented itself. Tiffaney explained: “Some family friends who I call my ‘step-parents’ surprised us with a suggestion to hold our wedding at a property they’d just bought outside Malton in North Yorkshire. My twin sister, Tatiana, died three years ago, and they are her partner’s parents; we’ve all remained very close. “However, it was a basically a huge renovation project. The building required a lot of work, and there were more than 20 acres of grounds to tend to.”
With her heart set on a June 2019 wedding, Tiffaney was thrilled by the offer but admitted to being a little worried whether the development would be completed in time. “This was only one year before we intended to marry and I was a bit concerned about the timescales, but I knew it would’ve meant so much to my sister so we went for it.”
True to their word, Tiffaney’s ‘step-parents’ pulled out all the stops to create what turned out to be not just a magnificent family home but a dream wedding venue, in time for the couple’s big day. “It wasn’t just the house, they worked so hard on the grounds too,” Tiffaney added.
“There’s a beautiful lake in the middle of the garden with a lovely bridge over it, and a boathouse. They even bought a canoe for us to paddle across the lake.”
Perfect summer’s day
As every British resident knows, you never know exactly what the weather will throw at you, even in mid-summer. With this in mind, the bride and groom-to-be needed to safeguard their outdoor celebration with a suitable marquee.
Tiffaney said: “I found three marquee companies on Instagram, and invited them all to visit us at the venue. Chrysta and Tony at Village Farm Marquees instantly put us at ease, they seemed so nice and relaxed, we felt like we wanted to work with them. “They were very honest and professional, and gave us lots of advice. They suggested ways of making the marquee as light and open as possible, and we went with their idea of having a clear roofed veranda and clear gable to maximise views of the garden, as well as the panoramic windows that can be rolled up.”
The couple ended up being blessed with a quintessential English summer’s day, with temperatures reaching a balmy 24 degrees, so guests were able to enjoy the outdoor reception and ceremony in the glorious gardens before dining and later dancing the night away within the marquee.
A huge chandelier with streams of fairy lights formed an eye-catching centrepiece in the marquee roof, while rose gold vases on the round tables and chairs styled with baby’s breath flowers created a simple, elegant tone.
The bride dazzled in a strapless dress of ivory blush, and her six bridesmaids all wore rose gold or pink gowns in different designs. Stuart was attended by two best men – his friends Jacques and Daniel.
The ceremony began at 2pm, hosted by a celebrant to create an extra-personal service, and the bride’s father travelled over from Germany in order to give his daughter away. Tiffaney said: “I felt a bit nervous but enjoyed the ceremony more than I expected! We’d planned it all ourselves and everyone had worked so hard to make sure everything was ready. It started to feel very real when the marquee went up, and then we were really lucky with the weather.
“We both felt so grateful to everyone for being there to share our day. Some had travelled from as far as China, New York and Australia.”
Memories to treasure
After canapes including prawn tempura and mini Yorkshire puddings with beef, guests were treated to a three-course sit-down meal. The starter of watermelon and feta salad or salmon risotto was followed by sea bass fillet or beef, with a dessert choice of wild berries crumble or chocolate brownie. Hungry disco dancers were able to refuel during the evening with burgers and fries.
Groom Stuart said the day was memorable for many reasons: “The ceremony was so nice, and we were just so fortunate with the way everything came together. Everyone said they’d never seen a venue quite like it! It went so fast. We were on site for the week leading up to our wedding and it was so full on getting everything ready, then the actual day just flew by.
“I think the biggest moment for me was waiting for Tiffaney to arrive, then seeing her there, looking so beautiful.”
Photographer Jane Beadnell sensed there was something very special about this celebration. She said: “This was such a lovely wedding. Tiffaney looked stunning in her gorgeous wedding gown by Liz Martinez along with all their guests in their black tie attire. I guess the great thing about having a marquee wedding is you can create your very own wedding venue, making your wedding day truly unique to you.”
After the wedding the newlyweds travelled to Cyprus for a ‘mini moon’ and were due to enjoy a luxury honeymoon in the paradise island of Mauritius at Christmas.
Chrysta Newman, Co-director of Village Farm Marquees, said: “When I went to meet Tiffaney and Stuart the property was in the midst of renovation, but the grounds were stunning and I could really visualise what they wanted to achieve there.
The next time we saw them everything was coming along well with the renovation, and we were blown away by the finished look – the gardens look like Monet’s ‘Water Lilies’ painting.
“I’m sure everyone present would agree, it was a truly beautiful day.”
Photos courtesy of Jane Beadnell Photography
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