The Story
What made Manor By The Lake stand out for you?
Beautiful architecture, a good range of bedrooms (not too many, not too few), stunning grounds, exclusive use, the friendliness of the team, the flexibility to have exactly what we wanted (guest numbers, food, etc), lots of different rooms/outdoor areas that could be used however we wanted.
Tell us about your wedding journey in the lead up to your wedding and how did you feel?
We were quite relaxed the whole time, the main bulk of the planning got done in the 6 months leading up to the wedding. The only things we had done prior to this was booking the photographer and sending out save the dates. This might be too last minute for some but it worked for us. Carrying out the planning so close to the wedding day not only meant that we were very invested and excited in the final run up to the wedding, it also meant we had exactly what we wanted on the day (sometimes if planning is done too far in advance, tastes/preferences can change closer to the time). We also very much enjoyed the events leading up to the wedding – planning showcase, food tasting, wine tasting and final planning meeting.
What was your theme? Any favourite unique touches?
Our colour scheme/theme was dark green, lots of flowers & greenery, very classic and romantic. We designed and printed all the stationery ourselves so it felt very personal. Our favourite being a wedding newspaper/booklet containing lots of special photographs and moments throughout our lives – guests seemed to really like this.
With several ceremony spaces available, where did you choose and why?
We loved all the options but the Maximilian was our favourite. It was a practical option because it wasn’t weather dependent so how we pictured it all to unfold was exactly how it would end up being. The bride had always pictured an indoor ceremony too. We had the best of both worlds because we still had a view of the gardens from the room. The room is a good size, not too cramped but not too large and overwhelming. Lots of natural light and would look good with a range of themes/colour schemes.
Favourite moment of the day?
Bride – the receiving line when we walked out with our dogs and did a confetti shot with all our guests. The speeches were also a highlight.
Groom – the anticipation and bits leading up to the ceremony and then seeing the bride walk down the aisle.
Tell us all about your food! What did you choose and why?
We chose Greek Mezze to start, we both visited Greece a lot as children and is a cuisine we really enjoy and we liked the laid back feel of it. We chose a Mexican feast for the evening food as this is a cuisine we eat a lot of at home,
Mexico was also our honeymoon destination. We liked being able to have exactly the food we wanted and multiple options for guests to choose from, some venues were strict on only eating off a set menu and only offered one option plus any dietary requirements.
With unlimited photo opportunities, where was your favourite spot?
The Manor Arches are incredible, as is Yew Tree Walk leading up to it. We also loved the bridge overlooking the lake.
What was your favourite space/area at Manor By The Lake? Why was this your favourite space and how did you use it?
The outside space overall was just lovely. Being able to have our cocktail station, canapés, garden bar, lawn games and photographs all in one area after the ceremony was so nice. Even though we spent most of the time having our photographs taken, we didn’t feel like we were missing out and could see guests enjoying themselves.
Tell us about your evening reception, did you party the night away?
Most of our guests stayed until 10pm (ish) which we were fine with as it was a weekday. Around half of our guests (20/40) danced until midnight which we were really happy with considering it was a Monday night and some of them were of an older generation. It felt really nice and intimate, we laughed a lot and it was really special.
Did either of you stay the night before in the cottage or lodge?
Did you enjoy being closer the night before? Bride stayed in cottage with bridesmaids – such a nice experience and there was a wedding the day before so made me feel even more excited seeing their day and evening unfold.
Did you and your overnight guests enjoy the afterparty experience?
We offered this to guests but we were all unanimously very tired as most of the overnight guests had been dancing for 2-3 hours at this point. We personally wanted to spend some time just the two of us and were keen to get back to our room to see our dogs. This is a great option for a livelier bunch though!
Any suppliers that you would recommend to others? Perhaps your photographer or florist?
Would definitely recommend our photographer, he is incredibly skilled and passionate. Our florist was also amazing and brought our vision to life.
Photographer: Dan Round Photography
Florist: Teazle and Bear Floral Design
