I was back again at Barn On The Bay for Katie and Jonny’s beautiful wedding. It has got to be one of my favourite venues. What is not to like? The stunning coastline, the beautiful barn and of course the dedicated couple that run the place. If you are after a rustic Wedding Barn, then look no further you have to have a peek at this wedding. Here you can see some of my pictures, your Newcastle Wedding Photographer.
I asked Katie a few questions about her wedding:
Please tell me about Barn On The Bay and why you chose it?
When I was looking for a venue I was struggling to find somewhere that none of my friends had been to and that wasn’t your typical ‘package’ venue – I didn’t like it when people kept saying ‘oh, I’ve been to a wedding there already’ etc. So when I stumbled across our venue I felt like it was made for us!
For instance, even when we first went to see it when the shed was full of cows for the winter, I knew it was exactly the right place for us! We love Druridge Bay and the North east has been our home for 12 years (it’s where we met) and to be able to get married overlooking the sea but also have a HUGE rustic barn available. As well as various types of accommodation (camping, beach huts, bunk barn and a cottage with a hot tub) was literally perfect. The best part was Alison and Phil (the owners) – we got on with them straight away and I knew that they would do everything possible to make our day perfect – and they did!
Were you happy with your rustic wedding barn? Did it live up to your expectations? How?
It surpassed expectations! When we first booked it, it was very new and had only had a couple of weddings. But over the following 18 months Alison and Phil worked so hard at everything that the venue they had described/dreamed of at the beginning was born! It was brilliant being able to choose everything yourself and not being tied down to ‘wedding package A’ or ‘wedding package B’ – I loved the autonomy. But also how Alison and Phil helped us to draw everything (and everyone) together on the day. Getting married overlooking the sea was literally a dream come true!
And that’s not all, continue reading Katies interview after the pictures.
Did you have a theme for your wedding? Is so what was it and were you happy with it?
We didn’t really have a theme, but it probably ended up being ‘rustic barn wedding with a hint of coastal’ theme. It was pretty chilled and very boozy!
Tell me about the food at your wedding? was it yummy? Why?
We both LOVE food! So picking the right caterers within our budget was important, and I think we nailed it! We had Pimp my Pig hog roast who also did our canapes (there wasn’t a small salmon belini in sight! It was things like black pudding scotch egg, yorkshire pud and beef etc) and our dessert (a table that guests could help themselves to with 3 desserts to choose from). And the Hog Roast itself was so tasty! We had so many compliments from the guests.
In addition venue also gave out ice creams to guests as they arrived for the ceremony. Later we had The Pizza Van for evening food – it was genuinely the most scrummy pizza! And I’d also bought a 3-tier pork pie cake and a 3-tier cheese cake from M+S. We had crackers and chutneys etc so people could pick throughout the evening – above all, it was all totally demolished! So I think it went down well lol.
Tell me about the service? Did you write your own vows, how did you feel?
The ceremony was better than I could have expected! Me and my other half wrote the whole thing ourselves and the registrar delivered it beautifully. We’d added loads of personal little details in to a slightly traditional civil ceremony. We had the blessing of the hands as well.
My twin sister had written us a poem which was so heartfelt and had me crying right from the start! My other half’s dad read the velveteen rabbit and my other sister and best friend Dr Seuss. We had written our own vows. Which I was really nervous about because I hadn’t been able to practice them without crying! And, true to form, I obviously cried saying them on the day as well. But I didn’t care and I looked around at all our guests and they were all crying too! Result!
We’d kept the song I was walking down the aisle to a secret from my other half – I’d chosen his favourite song – Somewhere over the Rainbow – and we had a Ukelele band to play it – I saw him holding back the tears as I walked down the aisle! The Ukelele band also offered to learn a song for us – so we walked back up the aisle to George Ezra’s Paradise!
What was the best part of the day of your Northumberland Wedding?
The best part was almost at the end of the evening when the Ceilidh band played Auld Langs Syne and all our friends and family stood around us. (they filled the whole barn!) Me and Jonny were in the middle and we got to look at all our favourite people in one place. All wishing us the best and having the best time. I almost cried it was so touching!
If you wore a dress, why did you pick it and how did you feel wearing it?
My dress was from Grace Loves Lace. I loved it because it was different (it had tassels!), it was super comfy and easy to wear and I could dance in it all night long! You feel fab wearing it! Above all, I particularly loved that is was super low maintenance. I wasn’t worried about creasing it, or how I was going to go to the loo in! lol
What was the funniest thing that happened at Barn On The Bay?
Our dog, Aslan, was my chief bridesmaid so he walked down the aisle with my brother-in-law first and everyone loved it! He was such a good boy! Also, one of our groomsmen had to be put to bed at the tender hour or 10pm lol. But he was resurrected again for our final dance!! It was a miracle!
In addition we also played ‘wedding guest bingo’ – each guest had a bingo card with other guests faces on them and 2 of our groomsmen were the bingo callers. They did an amazing job and were so funny! The prizes were vouchers for free alcohol. We’d made it so that funny music was playing when each person went to claim their prize – Jonny’s mum won a prize and had to collect it while Mr Bombastic was playing!! haha. Above all, the bingo really got everyone into the party spirit before we had food and drinks – it was great fun!!
Did anything surprise you at your Northumberland Wedding?
I didn’t care about the rain!! It was drizzling through the ceremony and I had a split second where I worried about it and then I didn’t care at all! Above all, I’d been really worried about it in the lead up to the big day. But it’s true what everyone said – it really doesn’t matter!!
Tell me about your first dance at Barn On The Bay?
Our first dance was to Kiss Me, by Sixpence None the Richer. Its been a favourite of ours for a long time. Our ceilidh band offered to learn it for us and it sounded awesome with their fiddle and vocalist! For instance, we didn’t dance by ourselves for very long – Jonny spun me round a couple of times and lifted me up (he told me the crowd would love it – and they did!) and then we made everyone come and join in so we didn’t have to do anymore lol.
In addition, the Ceilidh started and the dance floor was full of everyone falling over each other and flinging each other everywhere! I’m pretty sure I was lifted up onto people’s shoulders a few times during the evening! And it all ended with what felt like the worlds longest Strip the Willow – it was awesome!
If you were plan your wedding all other again what would you change?
I really don’t think I’d change anything about the day! I really enjoyed planning it and organising all the suppliers and sorting the finer details and it all paid off! Therefore, what I would maybe do differently is to chill a bit more on the first few days of honeymoon – we were both knackered after all of the organisation and hype of the wedding and the day. After so doing a full day of sightseeing around Paris straight away was enough to almost kill us!! In addition we made up for it by going to Disney the next day though 🙂
Any thing that you would like to add that we may have missed about Your Barn On The Bay Wedding?
Lindsey and Greta are really worth their weight in gold! We couldn’t have asked for better photographers or nicer people. Therefore, I know a few of my friends who are planning weddings are going to be contacting forget me knot images because they could see what an amazing job they did!!
MÉIA
Moira J. Florist
Jiggered Ceilidh Band
Barn On The Bay – Beachside Farm Wedding Venue in Northumberland