Usk Castle Wedding of Ruth and Sebastien
Ruth and Sebastien got to be king and queen of Usk Castle for the day as they hosted their wedding day. It was quite a multi-cultural affair with Ruth's side of the family travelling from as far as the Caribbean and Seb's family and friends from France.
The couple met nine years ago. It wasn't always easy as they spent many times apart. Thankfully this only made them stronger and Seb proposed last year.
Ruth's mother made the beautiful multi-layered dress. What a beautiful labour of love. The train was simply stunning!
When we arrived, our bride was very chilled. Ruth's best friend from college was her bridesmaid and another friend her make-up artist. Both girls were great at following Ruth's lead and staying calm.
Sebastien had great support from his Best Man; not only a best friend, but a handy translator for our instructions to the French guests. We did try the odd phrase, but photograph better than we speak French it turns out!
Ruth chose to walk to the castle, which was simply lovely. There was much giggling as they climbed the path!! Couples get married in the tythe barn which is wonderfully cool in the summer heat.
So after the obligatory chat with the celebrant, Ruth was ready to be walked down the centre of the barn to her waiting groom. The atmosphere was electric!
The castle owners allow the use of their beautiful gardens for an hour after the wedding. The new Dr and Mrs Sicre chose to have their groups photographs there with the castle tower and barn as their backdrops. There was then a family bonding exercise as all the chairs were carried up to the castle grounds which housed a stunning marquee.
The guests were welcomed with champagne and local ciders. Seb is a food fan and it was really important to both of them to share local produce with the guests, but particularly the French guests. They had even sourced local cheeses to give the French a run for their money ;-) After a sumptuous four course meal provided by Sugarloaf Catering and washed down with plenty of wine produced by one of Seb's relations, we snook the couple out for some more personal shots in the warm evening sunlight.
After cutting the cake and their first dance, the guests partied the night away to the sound of Ruth's brother's band. They provided just the right energy to get everyone up on their feet.
As the stars came out we took some of our last images before wishing our couple goodnight.
What a wonderful album we shall create!