Vintage Countryside Wedding in England

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We’re here in (sometimes!) sunny England today, for Vicky and Kiel’s beautiful countryside wedding at Chaucer Barn in Norfolk.

This pair have quite literally crossed the world for their love, and as their fabulous photographer, Julie Michaelsen Photography, said of their celebration, “They are so expressive in their love for one another, making it a wonderfully emotional day.”

The Australian groom and English bride went for a vintage feel to their day, with pearls, teacups and pretty florals for their decor. The couple kept it classic for their style too, with Kiel sporting a traditional morning suit and Vicky opting for a dreamy long-sleeved wedding dress with a full skirt, much to her own surprise.

From the story book beginnings to the idyllic setting for their vows, and their dreamy florals to their choice of catering and cakes (plural!) there are so many cool ideas from this day to swoon over.

This is a particularly sweet one, I know you’ll enjoy it…

The Love Story

Kiel is Australian and I was over there on a working holiday visa. We met in his hometown of Perth, Western Australia.

We got chatting and hit it off straight away. We went on our first date a week later and somehow, meeting on a Friday night to see a basketball game turned into a weekend-long roadtrip to Margaret River, which is a really gorgeous foodie and wine region further along the coast.

A few months after we met I found that I couldn’t extend my Australian visa and would have to come back to England quite quickly. Within a couple of weeks, Kiel had packed up his life to come back with me.

Moving to another country and a new city wasn’t easy, but all those challenges really solidified us as a couple. Everything we did in those first few months and ever since, we worked on as a team and tackled together and it has made us even closer.

We are both big Disney fans and when Kiel proposed it was the last night of a trip to Disney World in Florida. He organised a really fun day of surprises and things he knew I would like to do; he is always really thoughtful in that way. Then in the evening he organised for us to go on a private boat trip to watch the fireworks with some champagne and just before they started, he proposed, it was really perfect.

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Our Wedding

Our colours were whites and creams with a touch of blush pink and for the flowers. Soft blush pink for the bridesmaids dresses. Sage green ties and pocket squares for the groom and best man to contrast with the bridesmaids dresses and tie in with the flowers as I didn’t want them to look too ‘matchy’.

We wanted to get married in Norfolk where I (Vicky) am originally from, as there are so many beautiful locations and venues to choose from. We wanted a traditional summer English country garden wedding theme, so the outdoor space was really important to us.

Chaucer Barn, had beautiful gardens, with landscaped beds and also wildflower meadows, a woodland area with a stone circle, and huge rolling lawns. It also had very versatile indoor spaces which were just the right size for our smaller wedding.

We decided to have an outdoor ceremony in the wildflower meadow – luckily the weather held out and we had some gorgeous sunshine. We set up garden games and drinks on the lawn for the afternoon. For our wedding breakfast we had an afternoon tea served on vintage china in the conservatory. It went with the theme of the day.

For the evening food, we had pulled pork barbecue rolls and we had an ice cream van come later, which all the kids there loved. We had our band play in the main hall of the barn in the evening.

Favourite Moments

Kiel: I will never forget seeing Victoria in her wedding dress for the first time and not being able to stop smiling. It was a perfect day and better than anything I could have hoped for. Also, enjoying our first dance after feeling very nervous about it beforehand. And the sunny weather which was very unexpected because it rained all week before the wedding.

Vicky: Too many! Walking down the ‘aisle’ which actually led up to the front of our ceremony, rather than in through the back and past our guests’ seats. It took a few minutes to walk down through the meadow and it was great having those few minutes to breathe and take it all in and see Kiel up ahead waiting for me.

I was really glad we could have my grandma there as she has been a bit poorly the last few years and we weren’t 100% sure that she would be well enough on the day.

Getting ready before the ceremony, there was a window that overlooked the lawn and I could see Kiel in his morning suit chatting to guests and realising that it was all actually happening, which was quite surreal!

Advice for Other Couples

although it was difficult for us on our short timescales, taking regular time out to do non-wedding stuff will help you stay sane as it can dominate your life.

I’m an Olympic-level worrier, so telling me not to worry is kind of pointless but I felt so anxious about a lot of things. I would say to other brides if they can, do try not to worry about it.

You will have an unbelievably amazing, special and fun day no matter what, and then everything that comes afterwards is even better because you realize that your wedding day is just the first day of your marriage – and being married to your sweetheart is awesome beyond words!