Tags: decor

An eco-friendly shoot at the Bromley Court Hotel

23 Jul 2020

Mercedes Gale from 4YaParty explains the inspiration behind this eco-friendly shoot at the Bromley Court Hotel

Image gallery

The inspiration
I decided to make 4YaParty eco-friendly after watching my little boy playing outside. It suddenly dawned on me that I needed to do more to make sure that my son would see the world for his children and their children. I stopped providing balloons and single use plastic and started working on making my business processes as eco-friendly as possible.

We are all more aware of the need to live ethically and sustainably. This resonates with me at 4YaParty and is what all the suppliers involved in this shoot stand for. Weddings can be a big creator of waste in so many ways. Did you know a wedding can cause up to £500 in food waste, 14.5 tonnes of carbon emissions and a third of a tonne of solid waste?

This shoot will show couples that being conscious of your big day doesn't mean that style and quality has to waiver. With locally sourced florals, local handmade attire, handmade props from reclaimed wood, preloved dresses and more, this shoot will provide inspiration for a beautiful day with the planet being a priority.

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It was also very important to me to see diversity in this shoot. When I was getting married, page after page of magazines were slim white men with slim white women. I wanted my shoot to represent just how diverse the world around us is. Our suppliers were also a diverse range of strong women, mostly mums and we just had the best time! I want to personally thank The Bromley Court Hotel, Fatma from Smiley Huseyin Photography and all the suppliers involved for making my ideas a reality in this shoot.

The venue
Bromley Court Hotel is an independently run hotel, steeped in rich history, lucky enough to have the character of a London hotel with the picturesque gardens akin to the Kent countryside. I am fortunate enough to be a recommended supplier at The Bromley Court Hotel which is very important to me having lived in Bromley since I was a child up until recently.

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The flowers
The florals were locally sourced by Hannah from Peachy Blooms. We had a gorgeous bouquet and floral crown for our brides made of eucalyptus, roses, carnations, gyp and more. These flowers and foliage were also incorporated into the table centrepieces

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Hair & make-up
We were lucky enough to have two stunning brides, so our make-up and hair took a very natural look, and was done by Adriana Herran MUA. The plus size tea length dress was a preloved dress from Lamour Curves Bridal Boutique and our floor-length gown was a handmade couture dress by Sema Mann Atelier, as was our petal filled flowergirl dress. Our kids were wearing dresses and accessories from Matchimony.

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The décor
The décor needed to be rustic but elegant. I went for a minimalist style showing that sometimes less is more. The wooden arbour, welcome sign, ceremony signs and table plan boards were all hand made from reclaimed wood by myself at 4YaParty. The chair sashes were ivory lace with a small sprig of green foliage. We kept it simple so that the audience could focus on the details in the shoot.

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The accessories
We had gorgeous jewellery provided by BishBoshBecca. A stunning back necklace that tied in perfectly with the handmade dress and its low back and some stunning rose gold jewellery that worked beautifully with our black bride’s skin tone.

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We had some lovely kids at our shoot and felt it necessary to show a more sustainable way of keeping the children entertained with a children’s play area by tepee and softplay.

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