What better excuse to have a pre-wedding shoot than when your brother is a wedding photographer! The couple had not planned to have a shoot however couldn't turn it down when the offer came up. What a great decision, as Emma and Will had a great time exploring the wintry Waltham Forest for their photographs. Their shoot was in December, so a big contrast to their plans for an Australian summer wedding; which Emma tells us all about!

We are simply obsessed with this gorgeous retro inspired styled shoot influenced by hit Netflix show The Queen's Gambit. The 60s bridal styling is evident through the mini dress and shoulder veil, as well as the hair and makeup. The decor has captured the 2021 micro wedding trend of simplicity and elegance with the perfect amount of fun. Nostalgic,  funky and timeless - Osman of Wolf & Co. Photography shares the details of the with us.

This shoot has perfectly captured the countryside rustic charm elements of a modern wedding. With an outdoor ceremony and al fresco dining styled to perfection (including a neon light) we could just imagine wedding guests gathered round celebrating. From the stationery to the three tier cake matching the pops of colours in the florals, this shoot is full of inspo for a British summer wedding.

What was your Something Old, New, Borrowed, Blue?

My something new was my dress, something old was my grandmas glove that she wore on her wedding over 60 years ago! I tucked it into my top as my mum had also done on her wedding day, I also borrowed a little blue bow from my mums wedding dress and we sewed it to the inside of mine. It’s nice to think that we have continued and started a tradition, I’m a bit sentimental like that. 

What was your favourite part of the day?

My favourite part of the day was the moments just between me and jack, the looks, whispers and laughs. Nothing can describe the feeling on the day, pure uninterrupted happiness and love - I wish I could have bottled it. 

What was the most emotional moment of the day? 

The most emotional part of the day was the ceremony, jack cried as I walked down the aisle and I cried any time I had to speak! It was just incredible and there was so much love in the room you could feel it all around. 

Advice for future brides…

Do everything you can to plan the perfect day for you ahead of the day. But on the day, let it all go! Things won’t be set out exactly as you thought, suppliers may be late, someone will be too drunk, but do not let it consume your experience! Loads of little bits went “wrong” but I was floating on cloud 9 so let it go and not one guest noticed any errors.

Song you walked down the aisle to: Hey there Delilah adapted and played by our harpist

Song for walking back up the aisle as a married couple: All Night Long adapted to harp

First Dance: Let’s stay together by Al Green sang by our band

Did you make any Wedding DIYs?

Everything! Pre-wedding I was a designer as my job - I did a design based degree. I knew I wanted to design and make it all for my wedding, so I did. From the invitations, to the order of services, signage, table plan, coffee cups.. the list goes on! I loved it so much and got so many compliments. On our honeymoon I set up a website and I did a complete career change to start a wedding business @thoughfullymadeuk and we’ve been making gorgeous stationery for couples ever since. 

Wedding must-have: 

Flip flops! I bought a load super cheap from Primark and everyone loved it! I got straight into them after the first dance, and by the end pretty much everyone who came in heels had changed into them. They were life savers for sore feet, and meant everyone could dance a little longer!

Best wedding splurge: 

The venue was the best wedding splurge, it was expensive but so worth it. The staff were amazing and I really didn’t have anything to worry about on the day! We went for the upgraded food package and it was amazing, we’re huge food snobs so champagne & canapés followed by a sit down gourmet meal was a must for us! 

Anything you wish you'd done differently: 

Absolutely no regrets! One big thing that went “wrong” was our videographer never provided a video. I’d defo recommend having one, just do your research and trust your gut with people! After months, I persuaded him to send the RAW footage - thankfully I’m familiar with editing and was able to make a beautiful video from it myself. It was a lot of work, the speech & ceremony audio had been recorded on his iPhone.. eek! I wish I’d followed my instincts as there were red flags from the instant I paid the deposit.  I’m so grateful we managed to turn it around and there was some really lovely footage! I watch the video at least once a month, makes me cry every time!

Were there any surprises on the day: 

My dad, the groom & best man all made a speech, on the day they were super nervous and wouldn’t even drink before! All of their speeches were amazing and went down so well, I was nervous about what everyone would say but the speeches turned out as one of my favourite moments. My dads speech especially was so moving and had everyone in tears! 

Funniest wedding photograph: 

One of my favourite photographs that I find funny because it’s in the carpark and was not a planned photo at all is when our golden retriever Storm came! We were so excited to see each other! We couldn’t have her in the venue so I changed into my Docs and we snuck her in for a few photos outside! Our florist even made her a collar to match my crown, so glad we had those photos of our little family. 

Favourite wedding planning moment:

Designing the stationery! It was incredible to be able to create everything exactly as I had imagined. Beyond that it was incredible to find a new passion and have other people love my designs as much as I did! Wedding planning opened up a whole new career and opportunity to work for myself, which I love! 

Worst wedding planning moment: 

The guest list! There were more than a few awkward conversations with people who felt they should have been invited, some of which on my side I’d not spoken to in 15 years!

What was your wedding budget – and did you stick to it? 

At first I wanted everything stripped back with a budget of £15k. I started planning and realised it wasn’t the day I wanted, we could spend more but I was being held back by the “it’s just one day” voices in my head. So we recalculated to have everything we wanted and upped the budget to 30k, I spreadsheeted every penny and we didn’t go over. Although it is just one day, it was so worth the money for us, 2 years later and we still spend hours reminiscing how perfect the day was. If you can manage it without getting into debt and it’s what you want, do it!