DIY Festival Wedding | Hookhouse Farm, Sussex

Exactly one year ago today I took the long trek from Kemptown to the other side of Brighton (don’t say I don’t put in the legwork!) to photograph Laura getting ready to marry Sam at her home on the edge of Hove. One year prior to that I had received a message from Laura via my Instagram that sparked a very beautiful friendship filled with Vine references and incessant WhatsApp voice notes. Laura tells me her and Sam only decided to get married so they could meet me and I’d believe it 100% if they weren’t made for each other (enjoy this rare moment of sentimentality).

To say Laura and Sam did their wedding differently is an understatement. Laura drove herself to Hookhouse Farm, Sussex where her and Sam walking down the aisle together, followed by THE most hilarious outdoor ceremony, performed by one of their good friends. The line “and now I’ll ask Laura and Sam insert their fingers into each other’s rings” is particularly memorable. Their DIY wedding decor inside the barn included a large “Fuck the Patriarchy” sign on their top table along with a seating chart that read “Enjoy your free lunch, you c*nts”. (Laura and Sam you win the most offensive wedding award hands down). 

Laura made her own wedding cake (along with a sign that said “I regret making my own wedding cake”, so let that be a lesson to everyone) and Sam got in touch with me months prior to the wedding to orchestrate a distraction so the lead singer of Laura’s favourite teenage band could sneak in to sing their first dance song. These folks know how to plan a party.

Scroll down to see this diy, festival wedding ft. rude af signs, “definitely not drunk on one glass of prosecco” Laura in a gorgeous boho wedding dress, “I’ve danced so much I might pass out” Sam in a three-piece bottle-green suit, glitter errywhere, some of the most beautiful couple’s photos I’ve ever taken and some slammin’ barn dancing to Papa Roach.

Happy anniversary you absolute reprobates!