OUR KENTISH CEREMONY
MARRIED AT DANSON HOUSE
BEXLEYHEATH SHANNAH SMITH AND CHRISTOPHER CARMICHAEL CELEBRATED THEIR WEDDING DAY THEIR WAY , WITH A RELAXED FEEL AND PLENTY OF FAMILY MOMENTS
Photography by : Photography by Petrina
THE VENUE We wanted a relaxed wedding , so a registry office suited us . Danson House was the perfect blend of what we were looking for , as we have always been interested in the history of places and old buildings . We searched online and in magazines and saw Danson House ’ s ‘ salon ’ room and fell in love with it . The room was so nicely decorated and colourful , and the octagonal shape of the room was unusual , too . It meant that most guests had a close up view of the ceremony , which really suited us as we wanted a small and intimate wedding . We also loved the beautiful views of the park , and the photo opportunities inside the venue . We just couldn ’ t believe it was a registry office !
THE DRESS For me , the dress was actually the least important part of the wedding . I wanted a relaxed , boho sort of feel for the dress to match in with the relaxed style of the wedding . Mainly , I wanted something that was comfortable and that I could dance in and run after our one year old in . I felt the dress I chose suited our style and wedding perfectly . We were also trying to reduce the amount of waste in our wedding so I decided to buy my wedding dress and veil second hand online .
THE HAIR & MAKEUP Having my hair and makeup done was the biggest thing I wanted to make me feel pretty and confident on the day , but I still wanted to look like ‘ me ’. I went for a more natural hairstyle , with it being mainly loose - a great change from my usual ‘ mum bun ’! Again , I wanted to keep the style quite relaxed to suit my dress and the atmosphere we wanted for the wedding .
For my makeup , I wanted a ‘ natural glam ’ look , with glowing skin and a bit of sparkle on my eyes .
THE PHOTOGRAPHY Our photographer was Petrina from Photography by Petrina . We chose her after seeing an advert in A Kentish Ceremony magazine and decided to find out more . We looked her up and we loved her style of photography as it was artistic but natural . She knew the venue really well and knew how to get some amazing shots for us , both in the venue and the gardens next door .
Our favourite photo was in the gardens with our little girl . It was the first time we ’ d had professional photos taken of all three of us as a family and the picture really captured our joy and our daughter ’ s natural cheekiness - she was smiling straight at the camera while pulling her sock off !
THE HIGHLIGHT One of our many highlights was our wedding car . It was Chris ’ s parents classic car , a Hillman Minx . They surprised us by decorating the car , affectionately called ‘ Winnifred ’, with ribbons and flowers and she looked amazing .
40 | AKENTISHCEREMONY . COM | SUMMER 2023