An idyllic summer evening ‘in the field’

Chris and Toni Massey are from farming families in the rural village of Garton-on-the-Wolds, East Yorkshire.

Their wedding centred on a beautifully dressed marquee in a paddock on the family farm – just a stone’s throw from the village church where their ceremony took place in summer 2016.

And despite the pressures of organising what started out as a low-key event but soon evolved into a huge one with 220 guests, Toni maintained her laid-back approach, allowing her and Chris’s vision for their special day to unfold gradually.

Relaxed and rustic celebration

“We wanted a relaxed summer celebration in the countryside and planned and designed everything ourselves,” said Toni.

The couple opted for an abundance of wildflowers and many of their wedding decorations were made by talented friends within this close-knit farming community.

“We had craft nights, where groups of us got together to make hundreds of metres of bunting,” said estate agent Toni. “And a friend of ours made beautiful rustic wooden boxes as the centrepieces for our table displays.”

Toni and farmer Chris were also easy about their colour scheme. “We wanted wildflowers and simply asked a local grower to give us what was in season,” Toni added. Their star guest, 18-month-old black Labrador Oscar, even sported a floral collar!

Expert styling

One of our key wedding stylists, Cherry Williams, provided large candlesticks for the wedding and lovely lace trims for the tables and chairs.

Working on an event which evolved so organically and grew in scale from the original plan might have proved a challenge for some companies, but not for us.

Toni added: “I was thinking of new things all the time and Chrysta and Tony were so patient, going out of their way to source whatever we had in mind – including white balustrading to separate the dance floor from the rest of the marquee interior.

“I can’t recommend them highly enough. It was stressful organising an event for so many people but these guys helped keep that to a minimum and I had absolute confidence that they would just take care of everything on the day.”

Chrysta Newman, Village Farm Marquees Co-director, said: “We’ve built up oodles of experience supporting couples through their wedding planning journey and we completely understand how the goalposts can move!

“Flexibility is key to our service and we’re always ready to respond to and advise on new ideas and changing needs as plans progress.”

To talk to Village Farm Marquees about your marquee needs, email info@villagfarmmarquees.co.uk or ring 01262 468160.