Not all weddings have to be made up of pastel colours and whimsical floral arrangements, sometimes couples want something bolder to suit their personality. When I first saw the images from this fabulous shoot based on the work of Skye, Queen of Skulls I knew that I had to share it with you. Bedfordshire based photographers Perfect Timing Photography are here to share their images, and the inspiration behind the photo shoot.

The inspiration

Skye, Queen of Skulls is an amazing local artist who uses ethically sourced animal skulls and turns them into unique pieces of art. As she sets out on a new venture that allows couples to incorporate her art work into their wedding day – we decided to turn her ideas into a styled shoot – to show off her amazing talent.

The Venue

We wanted to showcase a local wedding venue too – and Putteridge Bury is a gorgeous, grand venue fit for the role. Darren Smith, general manager, gave us the opportunity to show you this beautiful wedding venue in our images. The manor house was built in the style of Chequers and the grounds and reflecting pool provide a wonderful setting for photographs.

The Colour scheme

We wanted to have a theme that would be appealing to many couples, slightly boho and slightly moody with a hint of alternative, but still fairly traditional. We chose colours that we though would work well with our theme and wouldn’t necessarily be just for autumn/winter – so we chose to go with marsala/burgundy and rich colours. 

The artwork

Skye chose a selection of skulls to be included in the styled shoot – large water buffalo, the amazing twisted horns of the racka sheep, and the small roe deer ones which we included in the table setting. All the skulls are ethically sourced, then cleaned, treated and embellished to accentuate the natural splendour of each unique skull.

The Flowers

We worked with Tracey from Floral Art and Design who designed us an amazing bouquet, buttonhole and centrepiece. The beautiful bouquet incorporated peacock feathers along with black baccara and pearl avalanche roses, hypericum, dahlia, Leucadendron, skimmia japonica rubella, eucalyptus and pittosporum foliage.

The venue styling

Venue styling by Sara took our ideas for table planning, dressing and ceremony table and brought them all to fruition. She incorporated marsala and a hint of blue, with a soft coloured chiffon chair dressing to our Chiavari chairs (from Rosetone Event Furniture) to keep a feminine, soft feel. Large lanterns, a variety of candles, bottles and even matching coloured fruit brought our table to life.

The Bride

Cathy was our lovely bridal model, and we chose a lovely Lilian West boho dress, Xanthe, which fitted our theme well – a beautiful all over lace, fit and flare dress, with spaghetti straps and an illusion back.  It was loaned to us by George James Bridal. based in Bedford. Catherine from Silk Garters made a selection of beautiful garters for the shoot, and we incorporated a few of these during the day.

The Groom

Our handsome model Josh had a blue 3-piece wool suit from The Vintage Suit Hire Company, which included a burgundy tie and handkerchief, and a buttonhole from Floral Art Design.

The bridal hair

The boho themed hair vine was designed by Hazel at Honey V. It incorporated diamantes, pearls and crystal flowers, silver leaves and opalescent stones for a subtle shimmer, and with a diamante chain. Emma Kim styled Cathy’s hair using heated rollers and styled it in a half up style in-keeping with our boho theme.

Makeup

The brides makeup was inspired by the delicate detailing on the dress and her eye colour, so Jasmine (JA Makeup) chose soft matte browns and a shimmery gold/copper for that pop on the eye, and finished with a glowing, radiant skin. The lip colour matched the pinks and reds of the bridal bouquet.

The cake

Ruby, cake designer at The Rose Cake Parlour was inspired by the floral ideas from Tracey’s bouquet, and designed similar flowers and berries for her beautiful 3-tiered wedding cake, complete with intricate icing detail on all three tiers.

The stationery

Jenny (Ever After Paperie) designed the beautiful marsala invitations with gold calligraphy writing and gold wax seals. She also hand painted some stunning Capiz shells place names. These exquisite details worked perfectly to highlight the themes of our shoot.

The details

The little details on your wedding day are what set it apart, and that is the same on a shoot. Little details are important for bringing the theme to life. Our favour boxes for the table were created by Maria at Bomboniere by Maria made lovely little favour boxes for our table settings with marsala coloured ribbons to match the theme. 

Thank you Perfect Timing Photography for sharing your stunning images with us. I absolutely love the idea of theming your wedding day around a piece of art, a great way to bring unique personality to your wedding day. If you enjoyed any of the elements from this shoot, the great news is that all of the suppliers are involved are local, so get in touch with them to find out how they could help you. What inspiration have you used to set your wedding theme? Let me know in the comments below.

Love the ideas? Here is a list of all of the suppliers who were involved in this photoshoot…

Skull Artist: Queen of skulls

Photographers: Perfect Timing Photography

Venue: Putteridge Bury

Venue Styling: Venue Styling by Sara

Bridal wear: George James Bridal

Men’s Formal wear: https://www.vintagesuithire.co.uk

Hair Stylist: Emma Kim – Bridal hair stylist

Makeup Artist: JA Makeup

Florist: Floral Art & Design

Cake: The Rose Cake Parlour

Hair Accessories: Honey V

Stationery: Ever After Paperie

Garter: Silk Garters

Favours: Bomboniere by Maria

Chair Hire: Rosetone Event Furniture

Male Model: Joshua Gould

Female Model: Cathy Wilson