Liv and Dan were inspired by nature, fairies, the night’s sky and a healthy dose of theatricality for their April wedding. Their celebration unfolded beneath homemade paper stars, beside a giant glittering moon and in front of the ruined chapel at Royle Forest.

Dan, an artist, painted the invitations and hand-drew each guest’s place card. Liv’s mum spent hours making paper stars that hung throughout the venue. “Our wedding theme was a celestial fairy feast,” Liv explained. “One guest described it as ‘if Baz Luhrmann directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream‘ which is just as good.”

The venue played a huge part in the theme of the day. Surrounded by trees and overlooked by the remains of a chapel that reminded Liv of Romeo + Juliet, it became the perfect backdrop for their ceremony. The bride’s stepmum performed Kissing You by Des’ree, accompanied by The Harp Lady, as guests arrived. Liv walked down the aisle to Dreams by The Cranberries and the harpist also learned Come What May from Moulin Rouge and As The World Falls Down from Labyrinth for the signing of the register.

The couple were married on a Tuesday, chosen because of it being the date of their anniversary. They had also gotten engaged on the same date three years before. Having a weekday wedding saved them money on the venue hire which was an unexpected bonus.

Liv knew she didn’t want to wear white. Instead, she chose a gown by Teuta Matoshi and leaned fully into the fairy-inspired aesthetic with a ruffled pink veil by Nine Spells. “I never have suited white so I chose a Teuta Matoshi gown which made me feel like the most fabulous fairy queen,” she said.

The reception was full of whimsical details. Each table was named after a tarot card, with Liv and Dan seated at The Lovers. They created the seating plan themselves just days before the wedding. Instead of buying a wedding-specific guestbook version, they tracked down a second-hand copy of The Complete Flower Fairies and invited guests to choose a fairy before leaving a message inside.

Looking back, Liv hopes their wedding will give more couples permission to trust their own instincts during the planning process. “Just because something is ‘the norm’ doesn’t mean it has to be your norm”, she advises. “It’s easy to be brainwashed when you’re shown the same representation of a wedding over and over again. I worried I wouldn’t look ‘bridal’ enough not in white. I’m so glad I went with it anyway and wore a dress that was reflective of me.”