Louisa & Ellie first met at a bar - not just any bar, but Toronto's top drag bar - where Ellie worked and Louisa would come to make eyes at her. After a few months, Ellie relented on her "don't date customers" rule, and the rest, as they say, is history. The two of them make such a fantastic couple: one of my favourite things about Louisa & Ellie is how quickly they can switch from goofy to romantic (and back again!). They are playful and sweet together, and warm and welcoming to those around them. From the first evening we met, we got on like a house on fire, and
we'd already had a blast photographing two engagement sessions together (one in
Toronto and one in England), so we knew their wedding was going to be a really
fun day!
Coming from somewhere as young as Toronto, the first thing that strikes you about England is of course how beautifully old and full of character the buildings are there. A few years back, Louisa had visited Butley Priory with a close friend, and said that if she ever got married she wanted to do it there. Fast forward to the present, and a fairy tale day of that and many more long awaited dreams coming true :)
Here are some of my favourite images from their stunning wedding day, capturing the atmosphere, the ancient setting, the gorgeous details, and of course all of the heart-felt moments..
Butley Priory, built in the 14th century, was a perfect setting for this vintage-inspired day!
Louisa & Ellie's rings were created by
Andrea Apa, and feature each others fingerprints etched into the rings. The beautiful image of the Priory that they used on the invitations was done
by their friend Ghyl Lebentz.
I absolutely love the embroidered detailing on Louisa's dress!
Straight out of a Jane Austen story :)
Ellie's wardrobe for the day was dashing - including fancy gold shoes and a pocket watch purchased at her first visit to Portobello Market earlier in the week :) As a fellow Canadian marrying a Brit, she and I could relate to each other about many things, including how everyone local giggled every time we talked about "pants" or "suspenders" (which mean different things there than they do here!)
Ready to go, we headed to the Great Hall for the ceremony to begin..
Louisa's long time best friend Hayley Atwell performed the lovely ceremony :)
Champagne toast as newlyweds (shortly followed by Pimms!)
And then out to the garden, to be showered by rose petal confetti and kisses of congratulations :)
The Priory was full of alcoves and nooks - I stole the brides for a private moment together tucked away, and I love how cosy these images feel!
The treats on the cake table were made by some of the more local guests, and didn't last long ;)
The speeches had everyone laughing and crying all at once..
Dinner had a distinctly Spanish feel, to honour the Spanish side of Louisa's family - there was classical Spanish guitar to accompany the paella, and Louisa's dad carved up the jamon for everyone :)
A fantastic surprise for dessert - a vintage ice cream truck, loaded with yummy flavours of handmade gelato! After a brief lesson, Ellie was ready to scoop for the crowd, while Louisa drizzled some sweet Canadian ice wine on top :)
An important step in Ellie's assimilation with the culture - learning to
make the regionally appropriate rude gestures when needed ;)
Once the guests had all been served, Ellie scooped one last gelato for Louisa :)
That's right: cheese. Layers of beautiful delicious cheese. Cutting the "cake" was followed by one last speech and a video of well-wishes from everyone who couldn't make it to England
And just before getting the party kicked into full swing, first dance together as wife and wife :)
A great end to an amazing day :)
Louisa & Ellie: Your wedding day was filled with so much beauty, and most of it was the kind that could be felt rather than seen. There are clearly a lot of people who love you both very much, and who are overjoyed to see you so happy together :) May your years together be filled with the kind of laughter and joy between the two of you that we saw so much of on your wedding day! Thank you so much again for the allowing us the honour of traveling across the ocean with you to capture it all - we can't wait to celebrate with you later this month in Toronto!
xo
