Hi bloggers, so this is the fourth post of the Wedding Series and today we are moving onto the Wedding Reception Venue and all the pretty little details. So let's start with the venue itself......
Venue: The Talbot Inn, Cuckfield, Sussex
We came across this venue for the wedding completely by chance. On the way back from a visit to a local craft shop we were driving through the village of Cuckfield and noticed The Talbot Inn with its beautiful outside dining area and clocked a small function room above the pub that turned out to be a new extension for the pub. As soon as we got back we started researching the pub and found their Facebook page which showed recent events that had been hosted in the function room, so we were straight on the phone to my sister and arranged a viewing for the next weekend, when we fell completely in love with the place!
Outside dining area with the upstairs function room in the backdrop.
As you walk through the door there are a set of stairs that lead up to the function room, keeping it separate from the pub.
So let's see what we had to work with.....
We arranged for the venue to provide tablecloths and the china needed for the afternoon tea while we provided the pretty little details. As you may be able to see in the photo the venue had some lovely 'lightbulb' lights and also some fairy lights wrapped around the beams which added some lovely detail in terms of lighting.
We decided to deck the place out with doily bunting, keeping in theme with the wedding invitations. I have to say this is also a really cheap way of making a large amount of bunting as all you need is some twine and a couple of different sizes of doilies.
Flowers were the perfect accent to decorate tables and ledges around the venue. We used tin cans and Kilner jars to put the flowers in decorated with some burlap, doilies and twine. We sourced flowers from a local supermarket and became florists for the day by making our own arrangements to fill the jars and cans. To keep the bunches of flowers together we used tiny elastic bands around the stalks of the flowers to stop any drooping over the edge.
Top table with the flowers as a backdrop.
For the table centre pieces we used tin cans to put the flowers in, placed on top of some vintage books. We included a vintage Paris postcard sitting next to a table number designed to look like a postcard. Guests were only assigned to a table, leaving them to choose what seat they took. For that extra vintage touch we attached the table numbers to a plain thread spool.
Instead of a guest book my sister wanted to use these feedback cards to place on the tables for guests to give their feedback and advice for the happy couple. The cards were sourced from Marks & Spencer and we bought a box of small pencils from eBay.
Keeping in with the theme of the Afternoon Tea my sister decided to give tea bags as a favor. Herself and Ben chose two of their favourite blends of tea and I designed a pocket envelope for them to go in that included an appropriate quote with the date of the day for the guests to keep as a keepsake from the wedding day. I have to say the quote was not my own - I was inspired by Pinterest!
As guests entered the venue and walked up the steps they were greeted with some more flowers - this time in the form of a large pot plant that had a sign for Joanne & Ben's Wedding reception pointing the way for guests to follow......
We also made use of the table on the stairway adding some more flowers and a picture of Joanne & Ben from their Paris trip - where Ben proposed - which also explains the use of Paris postcards as part of the table centre pieces.
Once guests made it upstairs they were greeted with a glass of bubbly and came across the table that had a vintage suitcase on for guests to place their cards and gifts in. We lined the case with a vintage doily and included pictures of their parents wedding days. We cut out the word 'Cards' from glitter card using a die cutting machine and pegged the letters to some pink ribbon going across the back pocket of the suitcase.
The table plan was made from a large frame that we covered the insert of the frame with padding and burlap to pin the luggage tags onto.
All these pretty little details came together to provide the perfect setting for an afternoon tea wedding reception. Make sure you check back for the last few posts in this Wedding Series covering bouquets, buttonholes and thank you cards.
I will leave you with one photo of the happy couple speaking to guests as they enjoy their afternoon tea..........
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