Tell us a little about yourselves!
Estela’s a trend consultant with a fashion background, and Aidan is a firefighter, and we’ve been together for just under ten years. We live with our adopted cat and we’re currently renovating our home, which is a Victorian terrace in East London - think dark and gothic-inspired, yet modern interiors.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
We met properly for the first time at a music festival and since we’ve been together that’s pretty much been a foundation to our relationship - we’re both really into heavier music and we wanted our wedding day to nod to those alternative and emo undertones, but in a contemporary way that more closely reflected our own sense of personal style.
Elmore Court really stood out to us from the get-go; it’s this beautiful, historic stately home but one that’s been renovated really carefully to feel modern, and with a focus on sustainability, which we felt was important. It provided us with the perfect canvas where we could layer really romantic florals to create a day that felt dark yet light-hearted. The ceremony space has these beautifully ornate statues of angels at the end of the aisle as well as a stunning piano, both of which we knew would look amazing when dressed with flowers.
How many guests did you have?
105.
Tell us about your outfits.
Estela: I first met Clio Peppiatt through a friend’s introduction and when we visited her at a pop-up for her bridal collection launch, I immediately completely fell in love with her design handwriting, her aesthetic and the craftsmanship of her pieces. I’d been to a couple of the ‘traditional’ wedding dress shop experiences before that and had failed to find anything that felt like me, but the second I tried on some of Clio’s pieces it felt like an easy decision.
I was Clio’s first bespoke bridal corset. The corset is individually hand-stitched with hundreds of beads and little pearls, and has custom silk sleeves, with two skirts: I had a maxi-length skirt for the day and wore a mini for the evening. My veil and bag were also Clio, and were also hand-beaded individually, with my bag having mine and Aidan’s initials on the back. I wore my The Great Frog gold mini skull necklace on the day, which was a gift from one of my best friends and is something I wear every day all the time anyway. It felt right to wear something familiar on the day.
Aidan: I wore an Armani tuxedo, which was tailored. My shoes were Toga Pulla loafers, and my rings and cufflinks were all The Great Frog, which again, I wear every day anyway. My pocket square was a napkin from Estela’s late Abuela, and Estela also had one of these in her bag with her all day too.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
For us it’s all about knowing who you are as individuals and as a couple, and reflecting that through the small details that you include in your day.
And also, use and include the talents of your close friends and family where you can - not only does it help with costs but it makes the day feel so much more personal. Estela’s sister Vicky was one of the bridesmaids and she did all of our on-the-day stationery by hand, which we then included within our thank you letters to guests after the wedding.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?Â
Florals were absolutely one of the most important parts of our day in achieving the goth-inspired undertones that we wanted, and we couldn’t be more indebted to Flavia Studio who perfectly executed our moody and romantic brief in her floral arrangements.
The music was also a really important part of our day, so Elmore Court having top-range sound systems throughout the venue - no matter what area you were in - was perfect. Aidan and his groomsmen used to be in a band and played as a surprise for the guests after the first dance, too, and our incredible pianist Nicole (Pianocole) played a bespoke My Chemical Romance mashup for Estela to walk down the aisle to (which since went viral!)Â
Any tips for couples getting married?
Our best advice would be to listen to your gut. Solicited opinions can be helpful, unsolicited opinions are distracting. Be confident in your aesthetic vision and the identity of your day and make sure your choices reflect those.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
All of our vendors were really special to us, and actually another piece of advice we’d suggest is finding vendors - particularly those that will be there on the day - that feel like friends. Molly Grey and Jay Doan, who did the bride and bridesmaids’ makeup embodied this, as did Melody, our amazing photographer. We prioritised the search for the perfect photographer and found Melody Joy Co. through Instagram over a year before our wedding - her photography style just resonated with us really deeply. On speaking to her (and later her husband Ross, who was the second shooter on our day) the relationship just felt so incredibly easy and made for a relaxed atmosphere on the day where we could just trust her and Ross to do their thing.
Photographer: Melody Joy Co. @melodyjoyco | Ceremony + Reception Location: Elmore Court
@elmorecourt | Entertainment: Groom + Groomsmen | Photobooth: Silver Trailer Photobooth
@silver_trailer_photobooth | Flora: Flavia Studio @flavia.studio_ | Makeup: Molly Grey @mollyjanemakeup_ | Hair: Jay Doan @jay.doan.hair | Catering + Beverages: Elmore Court
@elmorecourt | Cake: Neighbourhood Bakes @neighbourhood_bakes | Stationery:Â Love + Lightning
@_loveandlightning | Pianist: Pianocole @pianocole | Bride's Outfit: Bespoke corset, bag, veil + two wedding skirts by Clio Peppiatt @cliopeppiatt | Groom's Outfit: Armani Tuxedo @armani + Hugo Boss shirt @boss | Engagement + Wedding Rings: DG Bespoke Jewellery @dgbespokejewellery | Shoes:
Mach and Mach (Bride) @machandmach + Toga Pulla @togaarchives | Bride's Necklace: The Great Frog @thegreatfrogldn | Earrings: Marni @marni| Groom's Rings + Cufflinks: The Great Frog @thegreatfrogldn
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