A Viking Winter Wedding at Oxnead Hall / Amy and Jonny
In the UK at least, most weddings happen in the summer months. My portfolio is the same! A lot of sun, al fresco drinks and garden games, and even some outdoor ceremonies. OK, and maybe some grey skies and rain showers too - it is the UK after all.
All this to say, winter weddings need their moment in the spotlight too. A lot of venues decorate for Christmas, so a festive wedding can feel really cosy. And maybe, like Amy and Jonny, wintery vibes are the perfect aesthetic for their Viking-inspired vision at Oxnead Hall in Norfolk.
There was a lot to love about their wedding, but one of my favourite things was how they did things their way. They had a unique vision, mixing ancient traditions with a contemporary wedding day.
Before their legal ceremony began, Amy and Jonny’s guests were invited to choose a pebble from a basket - a Viking wishing stone. Guests would hold these stones during the ceremony, imbuing them with love and good vibes. After the ceremony, the wedding party went down to the River Bure and tossed the stones in, releasing the wishes out into the world. I love it! Call me an old romantic, but I think this kind of thing just works in the grey.
Before the wedding breakfast, they held a handfasting ceremony, officiated by a family member. Which I also love, it’s so personal and meaningful.
These Viking and Celtic traditions carried over into their decor and outfits too, nodding to family heritage as well as reflecting their interests. And it helps that woollen tweed and faux fur are warm for a wintery day too, so we could make the most of the remaining daylight for a couple shoot, despite the cold weather.
Here are some top tips for a winter wedding you might like to consider:
Have a hot drink option for cocktail hour. Amy and Jonny had mulled wine, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions
Have blankets available for guest use - not everyone brought a coat!
Dress for the weather - with several outdoor elements to their day, Amy and Jonny wore layers and appropriate footwear! Gold cowboy boots are always appropriate footwear if you ask me, but they probably handle wet grass better than Jimmy Choo’s
When choosing your venue, consider the indoor spaces available. Is there somewhere indoors for guests to go while the room is being turned around between ceremony/reception/evening?
Consider the daylight hours and how that might fit in with your schedule. In December the sun starts going down by 4pm, so a later ceremony will give you less daylight hours for any outdoor elements like confetti, group shots or couple shots.
Embrace the darkness! Amy and Jonny included loads of candles for decor and leant into the cosy vibes. They had sparklers in the early evening too, giving us more time to get everyone together for a sparkler tunnel, and then for some bonus couple shots too before the dancefloor opened.
So let’s give winter weddings a bit of love, they’re just as magical as their summer counterparts.
Looking for more winter wedding inspo? Lorna and Rick married in Lancashire in February, you can’t get much colder than that - we even had a furry of snow! Peter and Natasha were absolute troopers in the cold wind too, even nipping out for the last scraps of winter sun.
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Venue: Oxnead Hall
Photographer: Joshua Patrick Photography
Frankie May Weddings - Natural Documentary Wedding Videography based in Norfolk UK, capturing beautiful moments wherever love stories are found.