On Saturday 20^th May Pippa Middleton and James Matthews officially became man and wife at St Marks Church, Englefield in front of a host of high-profile guests. Their stunning invitations with delicate floral detailing set the scene perfectly for a quintessentially elegant countryside wedding.

Just before 11.30am, a vintage Jaguar Mk IV car arrived up in front of the 12^th-century church carrying the page boys, flower girls and the Duchess of Cambridge.

The pageboys, dressed in gold-coloured breeches and shirts caused a little stir as they larked around on the steps of the church, causing the Duchess of Cambridge to hush them which raises that well-debated question as to whether to have children present at a wedding. The bridesmaids wore cream dresses with sashes by childrenswear designer Pepa & Co.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge who wore a silk peach dress designed by Alexander McQueen and matching hat by Jane Taylor perfectly complemented the bridal party.

Pippa shortly followed accompanied by her father Michael in an open-topped vintage Jaguar.

In the weeks leading up to the wedding, there had been much speculation as to designer of Pippa’s dress. All was finally revealed when Pippa arrived wearing a spectacular lace bodied, high neck wedding gown created by British designer, Giles Deacon. The silk cotton lace was hand-appliquéd, and the bodice was embroidered with pearl detailing over an organza and tulle underskirt. The figure hugging design was finished with cap sleeves and featured a heart-shaped keyhole back and perfectly complemented her petite frame.

The bride also wore a delicate bespoke tulle veil by milliner Stephen Jones, a Maidenhair fern tiara by Robinson Pelham and bespoke ivory satin pumps by Manalo Blahnik with pearl detailing. In a nod to the ‘something old’ rule Pippa wore the same Robinson Pelham pearl earrings which she wore for the Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding in 2011.

Earlier last week we had predicted that Pippa’s blooms would have a very natural and romantic feel to them, seemingly we were not wrong with the lychgate and archway dressed in beautiful blush pink and white blooms by Chelsea-based florists Lavender Green. The stunning floral arrangements comprised of peonies, roses, astilbe, wax flower, and masses of greenery.

Inside the church, flowers spilt out of the window sills and the tops of the stone pillars. Two large rustic arrangements perfectly framed the entranceway to the alter where the couple exchanged their vows.

Pippa’s bouquet was a little smaller than we had anticipated but beautiful nonetheless. In a recent interview with Brides Magazine, Sue Barnes founder of Lavender Green Flowers spoke of the design process and said:

“The style of the bouquet is always dictated by the style of the chosen dress and most importantly the silhouette of the bride. For more petite brides we design much smaller bouquets. It can be a disaster if a bride is swamped by her bouquet, as it is important not to hide the size of their waist and their tiny frame. “

After the ceremony, guests attended a champagne reception at the stunning Englefield House. Around 3.45pm the happy couple were seen leaving the estate in a racing green 1961 E-type Jaguar driven by the groom, James Matthews for their evening reception held at Pippa’s parents home in the village of Bucklebury.

The evening reception was hosted within a stunning glass marquee erected within the grounds of the Middleton’s Manor house.

Just before the sun set the guests were treated to a spectacular flyover by a World War II spitfire followed by the wedding breakfast which is said to have included trout and Scottish lamb.

Later on, guests partied the night away into the early hours of the morning whilst footage of the happy couple was beamed across the rear of the Middleton’s manor house.

By Helen Eriksen Wedding and Event Design

HELEN ERKISEN IS A TRUSTED MEMBER OF 5 STAR WEDDING DIRECTORY. VISIT HELEN ERIKSEN PROFILE

Pippa and Matthew will wed at the beautiful 12^th century St Marks Church in Englefield, Berkshire just miles away from the Middleton’s family home in the quaint village of Bucklebury. As the village church can only accommodate a small number of guests, rumour has it that some guests are to be seated in the vestry.

Next Saturday all eyes will be on the bride but for now the question on everyone’s lips is ‘who’s designed Pippa’s wedding dress?’ that we don’t know but if the press predictions are correct then British fashioner designer, Giles Deacon is set to catapult into international fashion fame. Also rumoured to be in the running are British designers, Suzanne Neville and Jenny Packham.

Whilst everyone’s focus may be on the dress we have turned our attention to other elements of their big day. Take a look at our predictions below, for what will undoubtedly be the most talked about society wedding of 2017.

The Florals

Rumour has it that Pippa and James’ ceremony is set to incorporate large trees in a similar way to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s ceremony, held at Westminster Abbey in 2011. However, with Pippa and James’ nuptials taking place in a countryside setting we are anticipating that Pippa’s florals will have a much more natural, organic and free flowing feel to them.

With the Pantone colour of the year being greenery, we are expecting to see an abundance of beautiful foliage and leaves, soft blushes, white and silver accents and dramatic floral arrangements incorporating elegant peonies, hydrangeas and David Austin roses.

Pippa and James’ wedding reception will take place in a marquee amongst the grounds of Carole and Michael Middleton’s Georgian Grade II-listed manor house. For the marquee celebrations, we are predicting suspended florals, overflowing table centrepieces and large-scale floral installations which have become major décor items for 2017.

The Food

Whilst a traditional style sit down wedding breakfast is more than likely to be on the cards, we anticipate more innovative and fusion-style dining for the evening feast.

Creative food stations are a huge thing for 2017 and with that in mind we envisage a raw bar with live shucking oysters for the cocktail reception together with canapé pairings, Petite ahi tuna poke bites (minus the rice and served on top of homemade taro chips with avocado mousse) paired with miniature glasses of champagne.

For the evening feast, we are thinking comfort food on a miniature scale, noodles, American style sliders and lobster tacos would be a great choice for soaking up the evening’s excesses.

The Cake

For the cake, we are anticipating something fairly traditional, white iced elaborate piping work and an abundance of beautifully crafted sugar flowers.

The Drinks

Of course, it goes without saying that fine wines and champagne will be flowing freely throughout the day. Pippa and James are alleged to favour Blanc de Noir Tillington 2009 from Nyetimber.

Herbaceous, vegetal flavours are a huge thing right now not only with cocktails but gins as well and with the Gin revolution showing no signs of slowing down, we wouldn’t be at all surprised if a customised gin bar were to make an appearance at some stage during their day.

The Party

With the notorious London socialite, Spencer Matthews as the Best Man and Prince Harry rumoured to be in attendance, we are anticipating something pretty epic for the evening party celebrations. Of course Ellie Goulding took centre stage at Kate and Wills wedding in 2011 but for now, the question of who will be the celebrity singer remains heavily veiled in secrecy – watch this space!

By Helen Eriksen Wedding and Event Design

Helen Erkisen IS A TRUSTED MEMBER OF 5 STAR WEDDING DIRECTORY. VISIT Helen Eriksen PROFILE