Welcome to the first addition of Who What Wear UK Weddings, the destination for style-minded nuptials. Expect insightful tips straight from the newlyweds, shoppable elements and plenty of inspiring imagery as we share the wedding ceremonies of some of our favourite fashion people. To be featured, share your submission here.
"Within the first five minutes, I knew," shares Isabelle Harvey as she recalls her first date with her now husband, Martyn Harvey. The couple met 11 years ago at a festival thanks to Isabelle's cousin. "The following day, he made it his mission to take me out. After six months of asking, I eventually caved," she says. "After a boozy date, we spent the entire weekend together and every other weekend since!"
Isabelle is a stylist and vintage dealer. She owns her own vintage business, Fauntleroy, and her expertise in both worlds was reflected in every aspect of the wedding. "I felt the only way to approach wedding plans was collaboratively and sustainably, as though it were an extension of my work. The vibe of Fauntleroy—a curated vintage showroom in Barcelona—is present in every aspect of the wedding," she explains. "It was important that my philosophies of thrifting, sourcing unique details and investing in local, small businesses to reduce unnecessary waste and be mindful of cost were core to the entire wedding. I chose the expertise of set designers rather than conventional wedding planners [for] our Montseny wedding under the sun."
The wedding took place at a 13th-century monastery in Montseny, Spain; a location that hits close to home for the couple, as they both reside in Barcelona. They say that having the event in Catalonia was a "non-negotiable". They incorporated their traditional Spanish roots into their ceremony, their love of vintage into their ensembles and their attention to detail into every part of their special day. Scroll down to read more about the Harvey wedding from the bride's point of view, including everything from getting ready to the after-party.
"I wanted everything to feel very chill, so me and my four bridesmaids picked an outside area with good light and cracked open our magnum, specially made for us by [my] winemaker friend Lucy Chilvers. No robes or extra fluff. My friend Anna used to be a makeup artist, so when she agreed to do my makeup, I was so pleased, as she totally got the vibe. I wanted to look like me but just a little more fabulous.
"It felt like we were getting ready for a night out or something. We even did our own hair. We laughed, cried and nervously wafted fans. It ended up being so casual that we did the run-through as the guests were arriving. Thankfully, the delicious vermut on arrival kept the guests busy in the monastery. In true Izzy fashion, I'm always late, and as a result, so is Marty!"
"My outfit was inspired by some of my favourite vintage pieces I've sourced for Fauntleroy and a couture dress I'd seen online. I knew the look needed to be very different but still something I'd love 10 years from now. Trousers underneath was that unexpected twist, and felt very me.
"Every bride's worst fashion nightmare came true when, six weeks before getting married, the outfit arrived, and it was terrible. I worked with a Spanish crocheter to produce the first design. Turns out, she was amazing at crochet but horrible at following briefs. Let's just say she took some serious creative license, and it was too late before I realised. With difficult crochet patterns, you can't really go back and change things very easily. The worst part was that I couldn't confide in Marty, who usually knows exactly what to say.
"After a debrief with my best friend, several glasses of wine and one internal breakdown, we decided I needed to find someone on Instagram in London. Six weeks to go, I'm a stylist and I'm dress-less—perfect! For three days straight I was deep-diving into Central Saint Martins fashion-school graduates. I asked fashion friends and eventually found my guardian angel, Beatrice, who runs Korlekie.
"She'd never even done a wedding dress before, and this was no small ask, but as soon as I met her I had total faith. We sat in her lounge and laughed at my crazy request, but she completely got my vision and elevated it to a place I never have even imagined. She even makes crochet crowns, and if someone shows you a crochet tiara covered in gemstones, you're instantly a tiara girly."
"Marty and I source vintage suits together under Fauntleroy. I found this white tuxedo jacket with silk lapels, and it inspired an idea for him to wear off-white silk trousers. He ended up wearing a women's pair from Danish brand Malene Birger and getting them altered. He thought it was a little wild at first but always trusts me when it comes to styling. He was keen to wear a shirt for that cool-casual vibe, so I said, 'let's make one'. We found a vintage beautiful tablecloth at a flea market and asked a local designer to work her magic.
"The funny thing is, I didn't go to any wedding shops and get my Say Yes to the Dress moment, but thankfully, Marty did. We went to collect the shirt with two of our best mates after a few white wines at lunch. When he pulled back the curtain, we all gasped. The seamstress said, 'Well, do you?' He said, 'Do I what?' [She said] 'Say yes to dress?' We all burst out laughing, and he said, 'Yes!'"
The bridesmaids and groomsmen.
The wedding party.
"We saw five venues in total, but we fell in love with the beautiful 13th-century monastery. It was high up the mountain, so it felt like our own little world up there, like floating in the clouds with our nearest friends and family. It also had that outdoorsy, rustic Sicilian vibe we love, but being in Catalunya was a non-negotiable."
WWW Weddings tip: "We created our own invites online. A destination wedding requires lots of details, so it didn't feel like the best place to spend our money."
"For us, the ceremony was the most important part. We're both obsessed with music and wanted to make this one of the key elements, creating atmosphere, tension and release; and playing with visuals, sounds and smells to evoke feelings, memories and new experiences."
"Walking in to a Fred Again instrumental from his NPR Tiny Desk—the song was Faisal (envelops me)—the tension was insane. Literally, everyone was crying. It was just such an emotional feeling. It's incredible how music can create such an atmosphere like that. Consistently untraditional, our best friend Robyn Salt officiated the ceremony, leading the guests through special and funny moments and milestones."
"We wanted to recognise the influence living in Spain has had on us, borrowing from the Spanish wedding tradition las arras matrimoniales, where godparents gift 13 coins signifying commitment and care. Making this concept our own, we asked 12 friends to make a promise by throwing a coin into a bowl to support the relationship, each coin representing a month of the year, producing a unique moment, playfully weaving between sincere or silly—a great representation of us."
"After working together on a recent shoot for Fauntleroy, I knew I needed film photographer Marcie Dvorak, whose work has been published in Vogue, Teeth Magazine, and AD España. We work really well together. I love her and her work. She knows exactly our vibe, so we felt very relaxed with her behind the camera. She captured the magic perfectly in her signature style."
WWW Weddings tip: "Be really proud of sharing and presenting a small window into your love, relationship and your life with everyone involved."
"I approached the day as though it were a photo shoot, collaborating with set designers Jess and Van Salgado. Being skilled in art direction and architecture, it felt like a natural fit [for them] to bring our concepts to life. Starting with mood boards, they broke down the elements of the wedding—table displays, floral arrangements and lighting—to create 'sets' that could capture different moments, creating a truly immersive and sensory experience.
"Our florist, Sabato Studio, was newly qualified, and I predict she will be the next big thing. She also designs jewellery, and I feel like you can really see that perspective for art and sculpture in her work. She loves to make bold and interesting statements with her work—just like me!"
Guests enjoying the reception.
"Food being a big part of our social life, we approached our favourite local restaurant, Mambo. Head chef Martín Bado put together the menu for the day, focusing on seasonal and plant-based dishes. Having catered for events and fresh off a stint cooking in Madagascar, this was also his first wedding. He built the menu inspired by the aesthetics and floral displays, working in edible flowers and leaves to serve canapés, which really complemented the overall vision."
"Many elements, right down to the favours, were handmade and crafted by creative and talented people. My bridesmaid and artist Aggie Davies made beautiful shrines in oyster shells for our guests, all with individual mantras to bring luck and good energy to everyone on the day and beyond."
"Lucy Chilvers, a natural-wine producer and co-owner of Mambo, paired the wine list to the menu and helped us create our very own wine for the occasion called This Is Nice (one of our little sayings). Fresh off the back of her collaboration with Italian fashion brand Sunnei with Highsnobiety for Sunnei's Milan flagship store, we also wanted to utilise Lucy's own vineyard, where she produces indigenous grapes representative of Catalunya's thriving wine scene."
"For tired partygoers, we created a fun 'chill out' area and smoking lounge decorated with thrifted vintage objects, props and seating, inspired by a glamorous, sexy after-party—with a touch of Gucci thrown in too."
Everyone enjoying the food.
"Marty's cousin made the cake as her gift to us. She's such a talented chef and baker and completely understood the brief being chaotically chic! It was more edible and sculptural than a wedding cake. She collaborated with Sabato for the final floral touches, delivering an unforgettable experience for us and the guests."
WWW Weddings tip: "Get thrifty. Work smart by leaning on friends and small businesses within your community."
"The dance-floor area didn't need much, as we just wanted to elevate the monastery's beautiful architecture. Placing two huge olive trees brought the outside indoors, and three humongous disco balls… We love a party. Our first dance was Just the Two of Us by Grover Washington. It's always been our song, and the lyrics are so true to us as a couple.
"While sourcing one day, I found a vintage hot-pink cape, and as soon as it arrived I fell in love, but there was one snag—it wasn't white! After staring at this beautiful piece for a week, I thought, 'Everything else in the wedding was unconventional, so why the hell can't I wear a hot-pink cape to my own wedding?' So I did!"
WWW Weddings tip: "Don't be afraid to go against the grain. Don't feel the need to conform to the traditional wedding format."
Photographer: Marcie Dvorak
Videographer: Zoe Van Gorp
Makeup Artist: Anna Gerrans
Set Designers: Jessica Salgado and Vanessa Salgado in collaboration with Fauntleroy
Florist: Sabato Studio
Bouquet Florist: Viva Studio
Wedding Cake Baker: Rachel Cullen
Caterer: Martín Bado—Cocinero en Movimiento
Wine Maker: Lucy Chilvers Wine
Wedding Favour Designer: Aggie Davies
DJ: Dadame
If you're interested in having your wedding featured, please fill out our Who What Wear Weddings submission form here.
This story originally appeared on Who What Wear US and has since been updated.
