If you’re after some chic, modern wedding inspiration then you’re in the right place! Both creatives themselves, Suzie and Andy created the most beautiful stately home affair for their celebrations at Pynes House last July. From their handmade decorations of silk ribbon bows with stitched pearls and embossed gold foil stationery to the disco funk band, saxophonist and violinist keeping music flowing throughout the day, there’s plenty of memorable wedding ideas inside this modern wedding feature. Read on to hear about their feasting style wedding breakfast, spontaneous afternoon rave and more…
Colour Scheme: Pastel Lilac, Baby Blue and Green
Style: Modern Wedding, Elegant, Detailed
Season: Summer
Ceremony Location: Drawing Room at Pynes House
Reception Location: Drawing Room and Ballroom at Pynes House
Entertainment: Disco Funk Band, Saxophonist, Violinist
Extra Touches: Bow Modern Wedding Dress, Mediterranean Feasting Style Wedding Meal, Frosted Acrylic Welcome Sign Displaying Lyrics from First Dance Song, Live Disco Funk Band in Addition to Live Saxophonist and Violinist.
Number of Guests: 75
Suzie & Andy on their Chic Modern Wedding at Pynes House…
The grandeur and beauty of Pynes House stole our hearts. We wanted a large country house that could accommodate our nearest and dearest, which would be solely ours for a whole weekend. It is quite difficult to find a manor house with beautiful grounds that aren’t dark and old-fashioned inside. The light and brightness with modern touches throughout the interior won us over.
The Outfits…
I wore a custom Mirror Mirror dress in a buttery ivory silk with a corseted top, long train and a huge bow on the back! My veil was handmade by Rebecca Andrews with cascading pearls with hints of iridescence to match my earrings with hand stitched embroidery that read ‘forever and ever, and the day after that’ (a saying which my husband and I have used since we met). My husband and his groomsmen wore bespoke Edit Suits tuxedos but with modern touches. My bridesmaids wore lilac satin Dessy dresses, in their own unique style.
The Modern Wedding Look…
Pastel lilac, baby blue and green. These were the colours that my husband chose for the flowers that he used when he proposed. Bows were also a key feature, as who doesn’t love a bow!
My husband and I are both creatives, so we designed everything ourselves. 80 handmade silk ribbon bows with stitched pearls lined the tables in the dining room. Embossed gold foil stationery all designed by us filled the venue. Flowers by The Flower Sessions were the icing on the cake. I was relieved we decided to go all out with our floral displays, as we ended up having to spend the whole day indoors so relying on the beautiful Pynes gardens wasn’t an option. Our welcome sign was untraditional, a large frosted acrylic sign displaying our favourite lyrics from our first dance song ‘Home by LCD Soundsystem’ (another unique choice to bring the party atmosphere). The words read ‘look around you, you’re surrounded, it won’t get any better’. This moment rang so true at 3pm!
Read more: Stylish modern wedding romance – a Monet inspired editorial
The Day…
Our original plan was to have an outdoor summer wedding, however due to the weather, we had to make last minute changes and host the whole event indoors and we’re so glad we did. The atmosphere that is created by having all of your guests confined to a smaller space was immense and the staff of Pynes rallied around to still make it incredible for us. My partner and I walked down the aisle together, hand in hand down the beautiful grand staircase with our wedding party in tow.
We had a band that lifted the roof off of Pynes for our welcome drinks, because we wanted the ultimate party from the get go. This was followed by a stunning wedding breakfast by Pickle Shack – a dinner I’m still dreaming of to this day. We then had a DJ with live Sax and violin to dance the night away. The thought of galeforce winds on your summer wedding doesn’t sound ideal but boy did it make for gorgeous photos outside!
See more: The Pynes House Gallery – The House & Grounds
Always have a backup plan that you’re happy with as what will be will be, especially if you’re relying on mother nature! I got told so many times that rain on your wedding day is good luck, I didn’t want to hear it two days before I was due to get married but we really felt that on the day!
The Food…
We had the most amazing 2 course feasting style dinner by Pickle Shack. We decided to go with a slight Mediterranean menu for the summer. The whole menu was fully curated by us and the amazing chefs at Pickle Shack. To top it all off, Pickle Shack created the most incredible dessert table in replace of a cake, as I am the ultimate dessert queen. We had miniature versions of all of our favourites including cheesecake, sticky toffee pudding and tiramisu!
The Entertainment for the Modern Wedding…
Music was a huge part as my husband has grown up around great music! The ceremony was played by my husband’s brother and his wife, we had a live disco funk band for our welcome drinks and then a DJ with a live Saxophonist and violinist for the evening. The last thing we wanted was the usual cheesy wedding band so we searched high and low for High Fade for 9 months and they delivered! We also had a photobooth that was a huge hit! Looking back and seeing people that have never met get in to have photos together was amazing.
Most Memorable Moment…
Our accidental rave at 3pm! My father-in-law and Pynes House on-site wedding coordinator Phoebe (an actual angel sent from heaven) gathered all of our guests into the Drawing Room for the last two songs of the welcome drinks that our band High Fade played. Never have I experienced such an atmosphere when 75 people jumped up and down to Faithless – Insomnia played live at 3pm in the afternoon. Absolutely incredible to look around the room to see everyone we love in the world having so much fun with us. It really was the ‘we did that’ moment!
Something to Add…
Make the day as unique to you as possible! It’s the small sentimental touches that you’ll remember but also don’t stress the small stuff as it’s the atmosphere you create on the day that will make it! Also create a team around you that will make the day amazing for you and that will rally when the rain starts to pour and the winds are blowing!
It’s been an absolute pleasure to feature Suzie and Andy’s chic modern wedding and we hope you’ve got some lovely modern wedding inspiration from it. For more real wedding features at our wedding venue in Devon, see Josh and Sarah’s classic minimalist wedding here, or Elisa and Rich’s English country garden wedding here. We’ve also got an ultimate guide to choosing a weekend wedding venue here, if you’re interested. If you’re interested in seeing Pynes House for yourself, please do get in touch to book your private virtual or in-person show round.