Philippa & Louw held a beautiful African inspired barn wedding on Troy Farm near Bicester in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside. Their inspiration came from the groom’s South African heritage and the couple’s shared love & connection to Africa. Philippa worked with her family and bridesmaids to bring Africa into their day through the flowers, music and reception details. Stunning Proteas claimed their place amongst beautiful English flowers. Traditional English bunting and table linens were transformed by using vibrant traditional African fabrics. Louw’s home language was incorporated for the South African guests by having both Afrikaans hymns and an Afrikaans reading as part of the ceremony. The couple’s table plan was a gigantic map of Africa denoting the 6 month journey from England to the Southern most tip of Africa that Philippa and Louw are currenly undertaking for their epic honeymoon. An incredible day, every part of their wedding was tailored to what the bride and groom wanted for their wedding and made it completely personal to them. We loved photographing Philippa & Louw’s wedding, capturing the thoughtful details and the amazing moments shared with the many special people in their lives.
Philippa wore an elegant Alan Hannah Mia Mia wedding dress from Morgan Davies Bridal in London. She looked absolutely breathtaking as she finished off the look with a few classic pieces of jewellery passed down from her grandmother as her “something old”. Friends Kerry & Susie where there on the morning to do Philippa’s make-up and hair.
Philippa & her bridesmaids went to Covent Garden flower market the week before the wedding to pick up all the blooms for the day and spent the few days before the wedding creating all the stunning floral displays for the church and reception. Philippa did an amazing job with her bouquet, which looked beautiful with soft shades of ivory, purple, blue and sage green.
An extra personal touch to the day was having Philippa’s brother-in-law conduct the ceremony.
The rustic barn on Troy Farm made the perfect rural setting for Philippa & Louw’s relaxed and African inspired wedding reception. The African element even featured in their wedding transport as they arrived at the wedding reception venue in their new Toyota Hilux, which is their trusted transportation during their honeymoon.
The barn made an incredible wedding reception venue with the bright African fabrics and stunning flowers bringing the building to life. Lanterns, bunting and fairy lights created a fabulous atmosphere with maps of their various destinations marking the table layout.
Rita from The Food Workshops did an amazing job with the food for the day, which brought as much colour to the room as the beautifully decorated tables it was placed on. The wedding cake made by a friend also had an African touch with copper wire bicycles adorning the sides and a couple of wood crafted animals making a unique cake topper. Six of their friends provided the music for the evening as they took turns to DJ. It was lovely how every guest on the day had a special part to play, even during the evening reception people got involved to serve and clear the main course using Philippa’s very clever rota system.
An incredible day to be a part of, we wish this vivacious couple all the joy for their future together and all the best for the amazing journey they are currently undergoing on their honeymoon. To see more from their beautiful day please have a look at Philippa & Louw’s wedding slideshow below.
