Claire & Sy’s Styal Lodge Wedding
We always love returning to be Styal Lodge wedding photographers, Claire and Sy chose the perfect venue for their spring wedding in Cheshire.
On the day, we woke to sunshine, that remained all day (Yay!) and headed straight to Claire and her bridal party who were getting ready at her parents’ house in Worsley. We wanted to capture those all-important bridal prep images.
The house was buzzing with excitement. Claire’s bridal party consisted of Claire, chief bridesmaid Katie, bridesmaids Susan, Ruth and Sarah, mini bridesmaid Madison, the cheerio munching flower girl Evie and Claire’s lovely mum Julie. Also in attendance were make-up artist Collette Thorpe, hair stylist Lynsey from Reform Hair and Beauty, and one very unobtrusive Worsley wedding photographer.
There were some great co-ordinated pyjamas and a little bit of fizz to get the celebrations started. Claire’s dad Peter having been issued with the important job of pouring the champagne. Flower girl Madison, who was having quite the leisurely breakfast, had now moved onto crumpets.
Claire looked amazing in her dress that had a plunging v neckline, intricate lace detail and a stunning ballgown skirt that gave her the most dreamy silhouette in all of our images. With her tiara and long blonde tousled hair, she looked every inch a fairy tale bride. Claire bought the dress at online bridal boutique The Confetti Box. Her dress was complemented with a stunning bouquet of pink flowers with green foliage created by Helen from Whole Hearted Florists who did all the flowers on the day.
Experienced Styal Lodge Wedding Photographers
The bridesmaids looked elegant in soft pink dresses, the youngest two members of the bridal party Madison and young Evie looked lovely and Madison did a great job of keeping Evie entertained before the ceremony. Before leaving for the church, we captured an emotional reveal moment for Claire’s dad Pete and the bridesmaids.
Because there’s two of us, we can be in two places at once. So, we were able to capture Sy and his grooms party who were getting ready at the John Gilbert Pub across the road from the church. (Well planned boys!). The grooms party consisted of Sy, his dad Nigel, best man
Tony and groomsmen Nick, Thomas and Daniel. They all looked very smart in petrol blue three-piece suits with brown brogues.
They were in great spirits, welcoming guests who were getting a cheeky drink in before the ceremony. We especially liked the images of them walking to the St Marks church.
We just loved the wedding transport. Sy’s Dad Nigel is the chairman of the North West Casual Classics Annual Show so was able to source a fantastic vintage car. It was a real beauty and made a change from the usual wedding cars that we see.
The ceremony was held at St Mark’s Church in Worsley. Built in 1846, this pretty church has dramatic arches and high ceilings giving it a majestic feel that’s so perfect for a wedding. It also has impressive stained-glass windows that throw light around the space that we played with to create even more beautiful images of Claire and Sy’s ceremony.
Storytelling wedding photography at Styal Lodge
After a lovely ceremony, we got some great candid images of everybody outside congratulating Claire and Sy, as well as some group images of the wedding party and a few romantic portrait images of Claire and Sy around the idyllic grounds of the church.
Everybody then headed to Styal Lodge for the reception, with Claire and Sy travelling in that gorgeous vintage car, and enjoying a cheeky bottle of lager on the way!
Great, now we get to talk more about why we love being Styal Lodge wedding photographers. Situated in the National Trust village of Styal, this beautiful Lodge is tucked away in the grounds of Styal Golf Club next to a serene lake. It enjoys unspoilt views of the idyllic Cheshire countryside. Their stylish and contemporary light filled Lodge is a stunning blank canvas from which bespoke weddings are created by their talented and dedicated team.
Claire and Sy couldn’t have put their wedding in safer hands.
On arrival, we boarded a golf buggy with Claire and Sy to whisk us around all the beauty spots for a mini photoshoot. The images we got of them on the jetty with the purple smoke canon were really impressive. Though Sy gave the game away by revealing just how we did it! Here, take a look!
We then headed back to Styal Lodge where Claire and Sy’s guests had lined up to welcome them to their reception. There was a great confetti moment that we captured perfectly, before everybody enjoyed a drinks and canapes reception outside in the pretty courtyard.
We got some lovely candid images of guests mingling and soaking up the sunshine, as well as some great images of the wedding party. After a few formal ones, things inevitably got sillier and we captured some really fun images too.
Award winning Cheshire wedding photographers
The wedding reception was hosted by Event host and DJ Tom Finkell, who really set the tone for a fun time. It was held in the lodge and it looked amazing all dressed and ready for the reception. The floral arrangements were really impressive, along with the ceiling strewn with paper lanterns and fairy lights. The venue dresser on the day was Emma from Special Days Events. There was also the most stunning semi naked four tiered wedding cake made by Elaine Maimon. Oh, and a very tempting looking sweet cart!
Local caterers Sarah and Neil of Pink Pepper Catering provided a delicious wedding breakfast, with speeches taking place between each course. Speech givers were Claire’s dad Pete, Sy, best man Tony and chief bridesmaid Katie. Tom Finkell also sang, and got everybody else singing as well as partaking in the French wedding tradition of waving their napkins over their heads. He also got Claire and Sy to play a funny Mr. and Mrs game with Sy’s shoes. It was very entertaining.
After the meal, as guests happily milled about, there was a chance to get more images of the wedding party. The ones we took of Sy and his grooms party were fun. Evening celebrations started with the cutting of that gorgeous cake, with a sword, followed by a romantic first dance for Claire and Sy.
When it came to evening entertainment, Claire and Sy had everything covered. They had live band Creme Brulee play a fantastic array of rock and pop covers, and Tom Finkell ensured that guests all got there chance to sing into the mic. And it was the image of Claire, Sy and all their family and friends having it large on the dancefloor that felt like the perfect image to close the story of their day.
A fabulous wedding for a fabulous couple at an amazing Cheshire wedding venue. Congratulations to Claire and Sy for getting married and creating such a wonderful day to remember. And thanks for allowing us to tell the story of it. We loved it!
