A ‘Mardi Gras’ Village Hall Wedding
I know that by now we’ve all heard the phrases ‘your day, your way’, ‘stay true to you’ and ‘create your own traditions’ too many times in relation to weddings, but I’m hoping that today’s mardi gras themed village hall wedding will show you exactly how it can be achieved! Georgia and Ollie’s wedding was fizzing with colour and just oozing personality, centred around a couple who are bubbly, chilled and Crazy in Love (first Beyonce reference of the day…).
A fun, festival Mardi Gras themed wedding
The overriding vibe of Georgia and Ollie’s wedding was relaxed, authentic and really honed in on what was truly important - in Georgia’s words, ‘not losing sight of one another’ and being ‘totally present’. They chose me and my documentary style because they wanted their images to genuinely reflect their relationship, and they thought I had a great sense of humour (they are correct)! In terms of the look of the day they wanted it to be rich with colour with fun, festival flair - and I’d say that’s exactly what they achieved!
A Mardi Gras church ceremony
Georgia and Ollie’s mardi gras themed wedding began with a ceremony in a Church, which is where the traditional elements of a wedding start and finish for this one. Georgia’s mum walked her down the aisle, and their four-legged companion Harry (gorgeous chunky chocolate Lab that he is) partnered with her sister-in-law to walk into church. During the ceremony, a choir sang their favourite pop songs - like Bridgerton, but better obvs! The colour scheme was full of rich jewel tones as they wanted colourful, but not rainbow - the bridesmaids rocked deep burnt orange gowns which matched Georgia’s spicy wedding shoes! Bouquets (made by Georgia) were popping with rich green, navy, red, orange, mustard and purple, and the vibrant vision carried through into their reception later that day.
Mardi Gras village hall wedding
We all then headed over to Castor Village Hall where the decor was super modern and rich in tone and texture. The couple hung homemade ribbon bunting in warm colours across the ceiling and had an 8ft ribbon backdrop with a neon ‘Forever Young’ sign for their photobooth. To finish off the riot of ribbon they even made a giant ribbon chandelier for the dancefloor!
In the spirit of a mardi gras themed wedding, tradition truly was thrown out of the proverbial window. They served a savoury cheesecake to announce the start of the meal, pizza was ordered in for the main course and there were personalised cocktails galore. After their epic first dance to Beyonce’s Love On Top (BANGER!), Ollie and his friends sneaked off to watch a fight at the pub in the evening - Georgia was perfectly content drunk-dancing with her friends and family in her Nike Air Forces! They really stuck to focusing on what they wanted for the day, and every element was something that brought them joy.
How to plan a Mardi Gras themed wedding
I asked Georgia and Ollie what their best piece of advice for couples planning a wedding is, considering their unconventional approach. They advocated for getting as few people involved in the planning as possible, and staying true to what you wanted - block out the noise! They also emphasised how important setting and sticking to a budget is, which is something I wholeheartedly agree with. If you are working with a budget but want to add some low-cost touches to make your day really come alive, check out my tips for luxing up your wedding here. Want to chat about fun, creative documentary wedding photography that captures your essence as a couple? You can do that here!
Dream Team:
Bride’s Dress: Blush Bridal, Bourne // Videographer: Tinbox Memories Videography
