Secret River Garden Wedding // The thing I love most about the London wedding photography I get to do for my couples is that every day is so personal, it could only ever have been the wedding of those two particular people, at that particular moment. Jazz and Greg’s Secret River Garden wedding was exactly that: an explosion of colour and playful energy that was nothing short of spectacular, and a day that I’ll be thinking about for years to come.

70’s style Secret River Garden wedding setup

When they set about planning their wedding, Jazz and Greg knew that they wanted to get married in London, and ideally West. “We have both always been calmed by water, so getting married near the River Thames was our big wish. We had no idea what we were stumbling upon when we came upon the Secret River Garden but the kids were completely in utopia when we went to visit, which had us sold!”

As it turns out Jazz and Greg’s kids have excellent taste, as the Secret River Garden is a pretty sensational venue. It’s a beautiful, wild riverside lawn and woodland hidden in Twickenham, perfect for the laid back, colourful day they hoped for.

They’d enlisted the help of Zuza from Whole Lotta Love Weddings to plan and style their Secret River Garden wedding, and she had worked her magic on the interiors of the tipi. Guests gathered under huge paper pompoms and sat on rainbow-hued chairs facing the top of the aisle. The focal point was a mustard yellow velvet sofa, framed with stunning asymmetrical floral pillars and multicoloured disco balls, and a vintage signing table.

A relaxed, bespoke ceremony

In stark contrast to the idea that so many people have of wedding ceremonies, that they have to be stuffy and formal, this Secret River Garden wedding was totally relaxed. Jazz, Greg, and their kids kicked back on the sofa during the ceremony, and Jazz breastfed through portions of it too. Whilst this was happening at the front, their live sketch artist Cherie captured it all from the back, providing them with gorgeous mementos to treasure forever.

Jazz and Greg chose a Humanist wedding ceremony, led by Nat Raybould. “She worked with us to create a personalised ceremony, crafted around our whole family, with ring bumps for all the kids.” Jazz says. “We loved everything about our ceremony; it was special from start to end. Walking into rapturous applause was a lot of fun, and the sing-a-long (dedicated to my dad, who’s no longer with us) was the best.” 

An explosion of colour at Secret River Garden Wedding

The colourful vibe was present during every part of their Secret River Garden wedding, including in the bride and groom’s outfits. “My outfit was always going to be a little boisterous.” Jazz continues. “The dress fabric, made with a gorgeous smattering of sequins, was the first I saw and fell in love with, and I worked with Phiney from Poppy Perspective to make a dress that worked with my body shape (and party plans!!!).” (That last bit is very important.) “Again, my bespoke shoes – cobalt blue low heels with a patterned front – were guided by creative process, always a case of what felt right and what felt ME. My colourful floral crown and hairstyle were inspired by Frida Kahlo; I just wanted fun and explosive energy.” She also accessorised with a chunky beaded Nadia Minkoff necklace.

“Greg loved the vintage look of his suit and the colour popping buttons.” Jazz continues. “His shirt and tie (and socks!) were picked with a fun colour explosion in mind. Playful energy was really important to us.”

A key part of this colourful Secret River Garden wedding was the flowers, too. Jazz wanted bouncy, mismatched florals, and Filth Florist certainly delivered! Her bouquet featured bold, oversized blooms in vibrant, technicolour shades, while her bridesmaids carried one or two singular oversized stems.   

I wanted to include a few of Cherie’s finished illustrations – aren’t they just brilliant?! Such a gorgeous, unique and colourful memento of the couple’s day.

Personal and personalised details

Colour was also the name of the game for the reception. Guests were directed to a colourful table plan, where they found a colour-soaked picture of them pulling a funny face and discovered their corresponding table. Inside the tipi, a cloud of vibrant paper pompoms and disco balls hung in the middle, and the poles were wrapped with fairy lights. Later on, they danced the night away on an LED dancefloor that made the whole tipi glow different colours!

Jazz and Greg utilised the funny faces of each guest that featured on the table plan for their inspired favours too, which were plastic cups printed with the disco ball motif that ran throughout the stationery designed by With Bells On.

They also made an appearance as the topper for their PHENOMENAL cake by Den Bake Shop. During the speeches, the cake was moved to the vintage dresser in the ceremony tipi, and surrounded by taper candles in bold primary colours, a couple of vases of bold stems, and a photo of Jazz’s dad. The cake itself was three stacked tiers – the middle one was cube-shaped, which blew my mind – decorated with brushstrokes of colourful buttercream, dried palm spears and tiny gold disco balls.

Colourful wedding photography

As someone who specialises in London wedding photography that’s full of colour and fun, Jazz and Greg were absolute dreamboats to work with. Luckily – otherwise, this could have been awkward – they felt the same! Here’s what they had to say when I sent off their colour wedding photography gallery for the first time: “​​Ahhh man Jordanna you’re AMAZING! Your pics couldn’t have been any truer a document of our day. Love your colour and zing and realness. Lots of fun!”

If you’re planning a Secret River Garden Wedding and are looking for colourful wedding photography to capture the day, I’d love to chat about your plans – you can get in touch here.

Little Black Book

And here’s the other brilliant suppliers who made this Secret River Garden Wedding possible.  It’s a long list, but as Jazz says: “We knew exactly what we wanted like vibes and feelings – finding suppliers from that was easy, we just knew the fits when we found them!”

Planning & Styling: Whole Lotta Love Weddings

Venue: Secret River Garden

Tipi: The Stunning Tents Company

Dress: Poppy Perspective

Necklaces: Nadia Minkoff

Suit: Vintage Suit Hire

Shirt: Koy Clothing

Ties & pocketsquares: The Little Greyhound

Stationery & Signage: With Bells On

Cake: Den Bake Shop

Florist: Filth Florist

Celebrant: Nat Raybould

Furniture & Props: Luna and the Lane

Chairs: Purple Door Props

Paper pompoms: Paperpoms

Production: Event 7 Ltd

Hair & Makeup: Naomi Spurr Studio

Custom made shoes: Hetty Rose Shoes

Wedding rings: Victoria Bedwell Jewellery

Props, games & crèche: The Little Top

Disco floor: Dancing on Stars

Tableware: Well Dressed Tables

Illustration artist: Cherie Jerrard

Craft beer: Jawbone Brewing

Guitarist: Filippo Dall’Asta

Videography: You Do The Shoot

Confetti: Your Confetti

Caterer: Tom Thornton

Serving bowls: Cameo Event Hire