Peter and Caroline Marwood's Perfect Wedding & Perfect Wedding Entertainment!

We booked Hipster to play in the evening, and they were just brilliant! A fantastic mix of rock, pop and indie, plus some classic oldies, which meant that everybody was on the dance floor having a good time.

Where did your wedding take place, why did you choose that venue, and how big was your wedding party?

With only 9 months in which to plan our big day, we booked Iscoyd Park in Shropshire as our wedding venue - whilst it was still something of a building site undergoing renovations! We were very glad we did as the result is a beautiful Georgian house with a gorgeous ceremony room which you can take over for the weekend. 

We had an intimate family dinner the night before, 110 people at our wedding, and then a brunch for close family and friends from abroad the following day. We then ended the celebrations by planting our own apple tree in the grounds before we left.

Did you have a theme for your wedding, and what sort of look and feel did you want to create?

We wanted our wedding to be elegant and stylish but, most of all, lots of fun! (*check out ALive Network's blog post on "How To Make Your Wedding More Fun!")

My wedding dress was soft French lace which, together with the venue, lent itself to what we liked to call “English Elegance”.

A midnight blue and Windsor colour scheme, soft pink roses, a large flower-ball in the centre of the marquee and tea-lights etc.

Please tell us about the running order and format of your day, including details of any live music or entertainment.

We chose to get married at 3.00 pm and laid on vintage buses to transport guests from their accommodation to Iscoyd Park. We had a string quartet playing while guests arrived and during the ceremony.

We were really lucky with the weather, so guests moved outside after the ceremony while photographs were taken.

We had a caricaturist to keep guests entertained and made sure we provided lots of champagne and canapés! 

The wedding breakfast was at 6.00 pm, followed by speeches and then dancing from 9.00 pm. (Well, that was the plan but the speeches over ran somewhat....).

We booked function band Hipster to provide our evening wedding entertainment, and they were just brilliant! A fantastic mix of rock, pop and indie, plus some classic oldies, which meant that everybody was on the dance floor having a good time. The time just flew by and it was midnight before we knew it.

How big an impact did live entertainment have on your wedding day and would you recommend it to others?

We had always said that we wanted to hire live music if we ever had a big wedding and are so glad that we booked Hipster. 

How big an impact did live entertainment have on your wedding day and would you recommend it to others?

We had always said that we wanted to hire live music if we ever had a big wedding and are so glad that we booked Hipster. 

One of the most important things for us was that all our guests had a fantastic time and we wanted there to be people on the dance floor at all times. Hipster made sure of that, as shown by the 3 encores and cries of "more" that followed their last song!

What were your favourite moments of the day?

Too many to choose from!  Getting ready with my bridesmaids in the morning and then watching guests arrive on the buses through the window. 

Waiting to walk into the ceremony room, just before the service. Holding each other’s hand when I reached the end of the aisle. 

Walking in the grounds on our own after the service, and having photographs taken. 

Dancing on the dance floor and realising that everybody was having as much fun as we were!

What pearls of wisdom or words of advice would you extend to future brides who are planning their perfect wedding?

We have three valuable pieces of advice.

1. Make sure that you savour every minute (both of the day itself and the build-up) because it goes so very quickly!

2. If you can, invest in the services of a wedding planner, especially if you both have busy jobs and limited time. We used Cherry Topped Bespoke Weddings and I cannot recommend them highly enough. Stacey-Marie Chalk was fantastic, taking all the stress away, which meant that we could just enjoy it.

3. Make sure you get a really good photographer to record all those perfect moments. We used Tom Pollock who was a joy to have there on the day and we were thrilled with our finished album.

One of the most important things for us was that all our guests had a fantastic time and we wanted there to be people on the dance floor at all times. Hipster made sure of that, as shown by the 3 encores and cries of more that followed their last song!