Swallows nest barn wedding, Warwickshire.

Swallows nest barn can be found in the heart of the countryside in Warwickshire. It has traditional brick walls and exposed beam features combined with glass and high ceilings, making it the perfect mix of old and new. It is located on a private family run farm and is licensed for cilvil ceremonies and wedding receptions and it was the perfect place for the wedding of Beci and Jay. So back in April I headed out of Staffordshire and spent the day with them both.

Tea, cake, biscuits and wedding talk.

Beci got in touch with me around this time last year, after seeing my advert in Rock n Roll Bride magazine. We arranged to meet in one of my favourite little places The Artisan in Eccleshall (if you want to meet me before booking or even after you have booked, this is a great place for us to hang out), before we started talk about anything weddingy, we got straight down to the important business of choosing what cakes we were going to have! In fact for quite a lot of our first meeting I think the three of us covered most subjects other than their wedding! Jay and Beci were due to meet another photographer and said they would be in touch… A week later Beci sent me a message asking if I took payment in biscuits and the rest as they say is history.

The next messages I got from Beci were to arrange some pre wedding photos and to ask me what food I would like on the day. Both big ticks in my book! They saw the engagement photos as the chance for us to get used to working with each other – THE exact reason I would say to anyone thinking about having them. 

By the time the pre wedding photos (and maybe some more food) on Cannock Chase in Staffordshire (a place both myself and Jay had thought of, great minds and all that) were done, I knew on the wedding day it would be a breeze. I wasn’t wrong. Jay and Beci are both incredibly easy to get on with and along with sharing the same surname, we also had similar senses of humour. Their family and friends were also all lovely, in fact I’ve actually stayed in touch with a few of them too.

Relaxed wedding with a stunning Eliza Jane Howell dress.

Beci and Jay are big into going to gigs and wanted music to be a big part of their day, so along with tables named after bands they also had a great band, Plastic Pantomime, perform in the evening. Their first dance was also one of my all time favourite songs (one day like this – Elbow). They had done a lot of little touches themselves, including fabric flower button holes with brooches, a bouquet made from a whisk (yes really), jars for the flowers that decorated the room and tables and their invites. 

I also need to mention the gorgeous vintage Eliza Jane Howell wedding dress that Beci wore. The detail on it was stunning.

Having a relaxed wedding or awesome band play? Get in touch.