Lorna and Chris’s Skylark Farm wedding featuring a live wrestling match
Yep, you read that right! Lorna and Chris’s Skylark Farm wedding not only had a wrestling theme but they asked Progress Wrestling to put on a live wrestling match during the drinks reception.
Watching live wrestling at a wedding we were photographing was definetly first for Pete and I. It was a lot of fun. I’ll be sharing Pete’s highlight film from Lorna and Chris’s brilliant Skylark Farm wedding very soon. In the mean time, keep reading to hear all about the day in Lorna and Chris’s own words.
What Lorna and Chris had to say about working with Babb Photo
Our priority was to spend as much time as possible enjoying the day, so it was important that our wedding photography was relaxed and unobtrusive. We read through Laura’s website and chatted via Skype before booking, so we knew Babb Photo was right for us.
We love her bright, crisp photography and our engagement shoot with Laura prior to the wedding meant meant we knew what to expect. This definitely helped us on the wedding day. We felt way more comfortable in front of the camera. Laura and Pete fit into our day perfectly. They are helpful with keeping things on track, without making you feel pressured or stressed. The day wouldn’t have been the same without them!
Scroll down to the bottom to read more about Chris and Lorna’s wedding day. If you’re looking for a wedding photographer at Skylark Farm do get in touch.
We met in 2005 through a mutual friend at a nightclub and after a bit of online and face to face courting, quickly realised we got on well enough to try the boyfriend girlfriend thing. After about 5 years we moved in together, and just took things at our own pace.
Chris’s proposal was a very informal, no-frills proposal at our home. My family traditionally gave me and my sister ‘unbirthday’ presents when it was the other’s birthday. My engagement ring was my ‘unbirthday’ present from Chris on his birthday.
We’d already been together for just over 10 years by this point so we decided to plan the wedding ASAP. By the end of the day we’d already put a spreadsheet of ideas together!
Rustic Skylark farm wedding styling with a light wrestling theme
We knew early on that we would incorporate a wrestling theme into our day as it’s something we enjoy watching together. Wrestling has been a big part of our relationship. Our styling was still fairly classic with a rustic look, so we kept the wrestling theme limited to the table centrepieces, table plan and entertainment.
We spent about 12 months collecting the toys for the centrepieces, keeping a close watch on eBay for bargains. We were really lucky to have Ben (best man) as he is a graphic designer and created all our amazing wedding stationary and table plan.
A friends and family focussed wedding
Our friends and family were our biggest inspiration. Having a big celebration with all the people we love was important to us. Our venue is close to accommodation and providing transport for our guests made the day as hassle free as possible for them.
We are so lucky to have so many amazing people in our lives and the day wouldn’t have been the same without them. It was important to us to show our gratitude by throwing a great party for them to enjoy with us.
Our focus was using small, local suppliers as much as possible to support independent business. The suppliers we used are all so enthusiastic and knowledgeable about weddings and the whole planning experience fun and easy going from start to finish. It’s really important to find suppliers that you trust and let them guide you on the bits you know nothing about!
Our wrestling match with Progress Wrestling
Our big entertainment for the day was wrestling! When we thought about the wrestling theme, we knew we’d regret not having an actual match. Luckily the venue were very open to the idea.
We had the wrestling during the reception drinks to avoid long periods of downtime throughout the day. It went down really well and even our friends and family that hadn’t watched wrestling before loved it. Red Stripe was one of drinks on offer as drinking it is a tradition when we go to watch wrestling shows.
What we wish we’d known about wedding planning
To be honest, we just winged the whole thing! We didn’t use any online wedding planning guides and we did what we thought was best and made us happy. The guidance of our suppliers really helped where we needed more in-depth advice. It worked well for us so perhaps the way to go into the planning is completely blind!
The ceremony
Our ceremony was fairly short as we wanted more time for socialising afterwards. Knowing we had some surprise entertainment for our guests right after meant we couldn’t wait to get things moving! Though it was brief it was emotional and Chris just about held it together (he cries at most weddings so it was pretty much guaranteed the tears would be flowing for ours!).
Near misses!
As we were signing the register, Chris started letting me know about the things that almost went wrong! The night before, he’d got to the hotel and realised he hadn’t packed his bow tie. He ended up having to go all the way back home (luckily only 45 minutes away) and turning the house upside down to find it. In the grand scheme of things, a missing bow tie wouldn’t have even mattered, so of all the things that could have gone wrong it certainly wasn’t too bad at all!
Our wedding DIY projects
I’m really into crochet so did a bit of DIY for the day. All of the favour bags and jar cosies were handmade (with some help from Chris’ mum!). The dresser that was used as the cake table and the armchair next to the guestbook table had both belonged to my grandparents so there was a few pieces of ‘home’ there too.
Our wedding best bits
Aside from getting married, the wrestling topped the whole day for us. At the end of the final match (where Chris ran in and counted the pin after the ref was ‘knocked out’!), we both got in the ring and shared a kiss which was really special. We found wedding planning was a really enjoyable thing to do as couple and had lots of fun talking about our ideas and getting excited together. It definitely brought us closer.
Our wedding budget priorities
Aside from the venue, photography was the next biggest expense and 100% worth it. We knew the day would go by in a flash and it was so important that we had amazing photos as a long-lasting reminder. It doesn’t matter how much money and time you spend creating your perfect wedding if don’t have someone with an eye for a great photo to capture it. We didn’t want hundreds of carefully posed photos so Laura was a no-brainer for us; in addition to just being an awesome person, her photos are beautiful and fun and emotional all at the same time!
Budget savings
We saved money on the favours. By crocheting the bags all we had to spend was a few pounds per ball of wool and my time. They ended up costing pennies each, even when we’d bought the sweets to go inside. Wedding DIYs can be really satisfying but also really stressful if time management isn’t your thing, as we found out! There was a bit of a last minute panic with getting them all finished so Chris’ mum very kindly stepped in to help with the last bag being stitched together the day before the wedding!
Advice for couples who are getting married
It’s your day, do what you want! It’s your opportunity to have the wedding of your dreams and if you choose to do something that really represents you as a couple, whether it’s having a tiny intimate wedding or a huge, lavish bash it will make sense to your guests and they’ll enjoy it with you.
Get married sooner! We were already really happy so we didn’t think marriage would change our relationship much but it has; we really are on a whole new level of sickeningly ecstatic now!
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