A destination wedding, held at home
Isabel & Matt
Isabel jokes that the word “journey” was verging on overused at her London wedding — but there’s no better way to describe her love story. After meeting at fifteen, Matt and Isabel said “I do” more than fifteen years later, holding their ceremony in the hometown they share. From their venue’s 14th-century walls to the decades they spent as friends and more, the couple’s wedding was steeped in history, making for a celebration they’ll remember for years to come. Read on as Isabel shares the most special details — including the pleated shoes of her dreams
Photography by Carr & Senteno
"Matt and I have known each other since we were fifteen. We grew up around the corner from each other in South East London, fell in love as teenagers, and stayed in touch throughout university and our twenties as we went down different paths. In our early thirties, I moved back to London from Amsterdam and we found our way back to each other, eventually falling back in love in the same corner of South London where it all started!
"We held our wedding ceremony at The Charterhouse, a former monastery in the centre of London in Farringdon. It is an oasis of calm, with beautiful courtyard gardens and such a sense of peace within the 14th-century walls. It’s a place that holds many memories for both of us, including our first night out to Fabric together as underage teenagers, steak sandwiches at The Eagle where we’d meet while both working in Clerkenwell, and my parents later lived at The Charterhouse for a few years during lockdowns.
"We wanted our friends & family to experience the feeling of a ‘destination’ wedding while still in our own home city, so we chose venues that felt unexpected — in contrast with the urban setting of South London. On the Friday night we hosted friends for poolside frozen margaritas & pizzas at our local Lido in Brockwell Park, and on Sunday we had a very hungover session at Frank’s Campari bar on the rooftop of a multi-story carpark in Peckham. We wanted to celebrate the quirks of the city we grew up in, and surprise our guests with little details they might not anticipate from a traditional London wedding."
"I loved Camellia as soon as I tried it on. The ruffled pleats and bow were the perfect feminine contrast to the simplicity of the dress, and the delicate pale pink worked next to my bridesmaids who looked amazing in bold, punchy pinks and reds. The heels were so comfortable all day, even whilst dashing from North to South London, being on my feet all day, and running at full speed through our friends’ enthusiastic confetti throw. Our photographers Carr & Senteno later told us that they’d never seen newlyweds sprint so fast through a confetti tunnel — which I think is testament to just how amazing and confident I felt in Camellia!"
Shop Camellia in Beauty
"We kept our outfits a surprise from each other, but perhaps unsurprisingly we had both gone with designs that were created and made in London. Matt wore a navy bespoke suit by Casely-Hayford, Grenson shoes, and a vintage YSL tie passed down from his grandfather. I always knew that I wanted to wear a wedding dress designed by Galvan London. I love that the brand's ethos is all about strength, with structured tailoring that still feels very feminine. The designs are timeless and elegant, and I loved the simple silhouette of the Fiorentina dress. I felt completely myself in it. The structure of the dress meant that I could go for more delicate accessories, including my great grandmother’s pearl necklace."
"We knew we wanted to do all the planning ourselves, and our first big decision was that we wanted Matt’s older brother Jack to be our celebrant. We had a very small legal ceremony a couple of days before with our families, and then worked with Jack on our Charterhouse ceremony which was the absolute highlight of the whole day. He did a beautiful job bringing together the various strands of our 20 years’ history, with readings from friends and family who’d known us in each stage. The word ‘journey’ was possibly the most over-used word of the day…
"The music during the ceremony and throughout day was one of the most important details for us. Our bridal party came down in pairs to the main theme from the film ‘True Romance,’ I followed with my Dad to Aretha Franklin’s ‘Call Me,’ and our first dance was to Janet Jackson’s ‘Together Again,’ which kicked off truly the most joyful and rowdy dance floor I’ve ever experienced, with my treasured disco ball getting fairly knocked about due to a combination of low ceilings and enthusiastic dancing."
"We wanted our friends & family to experience the feeling of a ‘destination’ wedding while still in our own home city."
"There were so many special moments. The speeches, the makeshift Paloma bar, the flower arrangements by our talented friend Blaise Flowers, the incredible feasting menu served family style by our long-time favourite restaurant, The Camberwell Arms, London postcards that my mum had hidden under everyone’s place setting, and a dessert table laden with apricot tarts baked by our wedding ‘aunts and uncles.’ So many friends had thrown themselves into helping us with the DIY approach we took to creating the at-home garden wedding of our dreams, complete with stretch tent, hanging lanterns and menus designed by my sister’s best friend Kat Illustrates."
"The overall highlight for us was seeing all our friends and family together in the place that held so much meaning for us, and the relaxed nature of it being at home which meant that I could just pop upstairs and change into my Clio Peppiatt after-party dress, ready for the MCs to surprise everyone by poking their heads out of a window and announcing the last stage of the night — a move to an underground Jazz bar in the Crypt of St Giles’ Church, a 5 minute stumble from my parents’ house, where we danced the night away to a non-stop set of bangers from our DJ Adam Glover, from Disco classics to 90s R&B and UK Garage. The night ended in unglamorous fashion as Matt and I had to maneuver all the sound equipment back from the Crypt to my parents’ house on a wobbly trolley. A precarious job let alone in a sequin mini dress and platforms after several Palomas, but it was the most fitting and hilarious end to the perfect DIY Camberwell wedding that we had dreamed of."
Graphic Design: Kat Illustrates
Hair & Makeup: Myla and Davis
Wedding Rings: Georgia Kemball
Jewelry: Completedworks
