Fun luxe wedding day, ft. a celebrant wedding ceremony and sustainable wedding flowers

If you’re looking for inspiration for a wedding that feels just like a party, then Lucy and Danny’s Davenport House wedding is a must-see. I had the total pleasure of photographing their day in the summer (actually, both days – you can see their civil ceremony earlier in the week here) and it’ll be one I remember fondly always. I can’t pick a favourite part – the celebrant wedding ceremony, the dress change before the dance floor, the thoughtful touches like their sustainable wedding flowers and the downright breathtaking ones like the champagne tower – but that’s ok, because luckily I don’t have to choose.

Here they all are, then, in glorious detail, in something I’m deciding is called Lucy and Danny’s Ultimate Guide To Wedding Planning (a.k.a How To Make Your Wedding Day Great, By Two People Who Smashed It.) Without further ado…

A wedding day full of personal touches

Lucy and Danny met while doing their PhDs at Oxford, though Danny is half-Irish, half-American, and they now live in Switzerland. With this in mind, they wanted to include as many Irish nods as they can – and straight off the bat, I noticed a bag of Taytos at groom prep.

But this wasn’t the only element of their lives together that Lucy and Danny wanted to nod to. Lucy wore a stunning Eva Lendel dress from Laima Boutique, complete with a flowy, sheer cape that she wore around her shoulders. She had three pairs of shoes to choose from throughout the day, but opted first for some gold strappy heels from Next. But my favourite part of her outfit – this outfit, anyway – was that as a nod to her and Danny’s shared love of science and jobs as scientists, Lucy had a mathematical formula for love embroidered on her veil by Rebecca Anne Designs.

Sustainable wedding flowers

As they were flying in from Switzerland, and their guests were flying in from all over the world, Lucy and Danny wanted to offset this environmental impact as much as possible in their plans for the day.

One way they did this was by working with their florist to have sustainable wedding flowers form their bouquets and arrangements. They asked Gretel from Queenies Floral Design to use only sustainable wedding flowers which were seasonal and locally grown. This meant that they didn’t know what they were going to look like until the day!

Luckily, Gretel knocked it out of the park with their seasonal wedding flowers, in beautiful shades of green and white, with pops of bright colour. Amazingly, they were all grown within 10 miles of their venue, plus they were reused the next day to decorate a family barbecue – so I would say sustainable wedding flowers was a definite tick on the list!

Celebrant wedding ceremony

Another element of Lucy and Danny’s wedding that I loved was their celebrant wedding ceremony. A celebrant wedding ceremony is one led by an independent celebrant, who personnalises the ceremony to reflect the couple. Charlotte Williams made sure that Lucy, Danny, and all of their guests had the time of their life as they said I do – which can’t be said for all wedding ceremonies, that’s for sure!

Fun luxe details

Lucy and Danny were masters of luxury details that were still full of character and joy. They picked elements of the day that were undeniably elevated, such as a stunning harpist for their cocktail hour and opulent table styling for their reception, but still felt super fun. Though the day had been undeniably stressful in parts to plan, especially from abroad, Lucy and Danny soaked up every second of having their loved ones all in one place. Plus, their number one concern was the weather, which they totally lucked out with on the day, with sunshine so lush they did their speeches outside in it!

Special mention, of course, must go to the champagne tower, which was set up on the lawn ready for the newlyweds once they’d exited the ceremony. Also, after the delicious meal by Jimmy Garcia, they served coffee 2 ways: one, in dainty china cups for those who wanted a hot drink; and two, in the format of espresso martinis, for those who wanted a cold, alcoholic one.

And a dress change to round the night off

Lucy had not one but TWO stunning bridal outfits for her wedding day. After the meal but before she was called to the dance floor, she shimmed out of her floor-length bridal gown and into a mini Nadine Merabi number covered in embellished, sparkling tassels. Paired with some statement silver Prada heels, her, Danny and their guests danced the night away to the soundtrack provided by The Smooth Criminals.

From dads to Davenport House

It really is a small world – when second shooting for Dani Salmon last year, I saw a photograph during groom prep that contained a couple I recognised. It turned out the groom was Lucy’s brother – and the man I asked about it was Lucy’s Dad! It was lovely to have Dani as my second shooter for this wedding too, to complete the circle together.

It was also a joy to return to Davenport House, where I’m lucky enough to be a recommended supplier. (Want to see more of my work shot there? You can check it out here.) The biggest joy, though, was capturing Lucy and Danny having the day of their dreams – thank you for having me!