Springtime in Dorset is a great time of year for a wedding and this couple chose Wilkswood as their venue, which is a venue we work at very often, in fact for those of you that don’t know, Wilkswood is a sister company to Camelot Marquees, so we do all the wedding marquees there.
Being an April wedding, the weather can be a gamble so having a marquee for your big day is often over looked by many couples. This need not be the case though because the structures we install at Wilkswood are of a very high spec.
You will find a large clearspan marquee with enough room to hold all of your guests standing, as well as having space to sit down for your wedding breakfast and then a separate dance floor & staging area. Guest numbers here are not restricted, and we can hold up to 500 guests onsite.
Our wooden flooring system means you are on a solid footing and raised off the ground which helps keep you warm and dry. This is then overlayed with a premium matting which is thicker then most companies use. We feel it helps create a warmth to the event. For the colder weekends heating can be added to ensure a warm and cosy event, but most times this is not needed, with body heat alone from your guests ( and a little alcohol) keeping everyone warm enough.
This wedding had average numbers of 130 people to sit down for food and a few extra people arriving in the evening to enjoy the entertainment and join in with the party.
By default, packages at Wilkswood include round tables that would seat up to 10 people with folding wooden chairs. However you can choose different styles if you want and these guys went for our 8ft rustic wooden tables with Limewash Chiavari Chairs which were further dressed with a cream material over the back.
Our full range of table and chair hire can been seen on our equipment page
Tables were decorated with tall gold coloured frames that supported a floral decoration at the top. Doing something like this is good because the height it provides gives another dimension to the setup and helps the styling to look altogether fuller.
The lighting was simple but effective. White strings of festoon lighting laced back and forth through the marquee until it met the clear roofs over the dance floor which then took over.
— read more about wedding marquee lighting
The natural light the clear marquee roofs provide create a really nice feel as well as a wow factor for your guests. Commonly put over the dance floor, they help create the distinction between the seated eating area and dancing , entertainment area. These guys opted to forgo the dance floor because they were having a ceilidh.
In theory you could a complete clear roof for the entire marquee but we don’t recommend this because event a mildly sunny can create an green house effect that would be very uncomfortable for you and your guests.
Staging was supplied for the Celtic rock band, Black Sheep , a local band, who are always great at getting everyone up.
Adding on a additional space to use as a chillout fits perfectly at Wilkswood. In this case a 6m pagoda is joined to the main marquee to house a soft furnished area where guests can retreat, re-energise after a dance or simply relax whilst taking in the views of the Purbeck Hills, Steam train passing by and tree tops in the distance.
Because you have a good amount of outside space at Wilkswood we create a lawn like area directly outisde the marquee and frequently close this in with festoon lighting installed on poles to define it.
Doing so creates a perfect space for to welcome your wedding guests and have drinks and garden stlye games like bean bag throwing, giant jenga and hook a duck which is what happened on this event.
As the evening draws in, fire pits with strawbale seating really capture the essence of Wilkswood and it’s surroundings. Providing marshmallows to keep the kids busy whilst adults have a relaxing drink.
The whole day was coordinated by Sam, from South Coast Events. Probably the most well known and connected wedding planner in Dorset with years of experience. Sam made sure the day ran to time and went smoothly without a hitch.
Between the Sam and the client an itinerary is discussed and created. Having one of these is a must to make sure your day runs as it should. Sam or a member of her team are present on all weddings at Wilkswood. Should you be planning a wedding and don’t have a planner / coordinator then make sure you are organised and allocate jobs accordingly so you don’t have to worry about what’s happening and when.
Local company Crab Apple Catering provided the food for both the wedding breakfast and evening buffet. As our highly recommended caterer, these guys work a lot at the venue and are just brilliant.
We build them a smaller marquee for the kitchen which is 6m x 6m in size and has service matting, lighting and electrics.
I’ve been fortunate enough to sample many of their wares, as I did on this occasion, and it was scrummy.
Canapaes to start on arrival, Local meats on sharing boards, fresh veg and salad and handmade desserts made up the menu, all of which is perfectly cooked, well presented and professionally served.
Most of the pics on this blog post are the product of Terry Lucas, another great supplier we love having at Wilkswood.
Terry is from Dorchester so also local and has shot weddings at Wikswood before. His experience and knowledge shows in his work and his photos are always exciting to look through.
