A Lesbian, Luxury Barn Wedding in Surrey with a Gospel Choir and Rainbow Wedding Cake

Rustic elegance was the order of the day at Diane and Sarah's wedding, with a dreamily pretty colour palette, beautiful flowers and an enchanting country setting just outside London.

Hannah Davies

30 December, 2020

Planning a wedding for when everything returns to normal? If you're dreaming of a blissful country celebration, Diane and Sarah's rustic-luxe day provides some essential inspiration.

The couple met on a dating website - and as luck would have it, they discovered they lived just a few miles apart. Within a two weeks of dating, they'd started talking about weddings, even window shopping for jewellery together. However, the proposal still came as a surprise to Sarah.

"I told her we were going to visit my mother, to throw her off the scent of a proposal!" says Diane. "In fact, I'd booked a hotel and spa break near Iron Bridge in the Midlands - Iron Bridge was one of my favourite places to visit growing up, and Sarah had never been before.

"The bridge was partially closed for refurbishment, but we were still able to walk across it. Halfway over, I got down on one knee and proposed."

The newly engaged couple turned their attention to finding their perfect big-day backdrop. The boxes to tick? A local venue, where they could hold both ceremony and the reception, with an intimate feel. "As soon as we visited Oaks Farm, both of us knew it was the place for us," the pair say. "We chose it because of its beautiful gardens, rustic feel, and friendly staff."

With the venue sorted, the Diane and Sarah could start planning all the elements of a wedding day to cherish, from two bridal outfits each to a memorable first dance and tables named in honour of famous Black lesbians.

Photography: YTZ Photography

The Wedding Morning

The couple got ready in a hotel near the venue, in separate rooms on different floors. "Our wedding party were relaying messages and items between our rooms on our behalf – such as a request for the toothpaste, and the distribution of wedding jewellery gifts for our bridesmaids," says Diane. "We were also visited by our dog strutting around in his suit!"

Beauty pro Becks Buki did makeup for both of the couple as well as Diane's hair, while Sarah's hair was styled by Cheynie of Majik Fingas.

The Wedding Dresses

For the day, Diane wore an ivory two-piece called Ruby by Riki Dalal that featured a fitted lace bodice and a flowing skirt. She teamed it with floral shoes and bar-drop earrings.

"I found the dress pretty quickly, in the second shop I went to," she says. "I tried on around four or five dresses, but as soon as I tried this one I knew it was the perfect dress, and I felt really happy and confident in it on the day."

Sarah wore the stunning Laramie dress from Blue by Enzoani.

"I tried on around 15 dresses in total," she says. "I actually found the dress in the second of five shops. When I first tried it on I was quietly confident but didn't want to settle too soon. I tried on many others after finding this dress, before returning to it, assured that it was 'the' dress.

"I wanted a style that complemented and accentuated my figure as I know my figure is one of the things Diane loves about me. I wanted to be the perfect picture for her walking down the aisle."

The couple chose their engagement jewellery together: a gold bracelet for Diane, engraved with a special message from her now-wife, and a classic solitaire ring for Sarah.

For the evening festivities, the couple switched up their looks. Sarah changed into an asymmetric ASOS dress, which she paired with a gold belt, while Diane teamed the bodysuit of her wedding dress with a perfectly tailored wedding suit.

The Wedding Party

The couple had four bridesmaids and two bridesmen each, a combination of close friends and family.

As well as being a bridesman, Sarah's youngest brother was in charge of two crucial wedding elements - the rings and the couple's dog!

The blush bridesmaid dresses and bridesmen's suits were from ASOS.

The Wedding Ceremony

Diane and Sarah chose the beautiful rustic venue of Oaks Farm, just outside of Croydon in Surrey, for their civil ceremony.

They had originally planned an outdoor ceremony making use of the light and airy Orangery, however, heavy rainfall the previous night meant the civil ceremony was moved to the barn - but even that change of plans couldn't dampen the magical mood.

A gospel choir sang A Thousand Years by Christina Perri as the couple walked down the aisle with their fathers. Both Sarah and Diane say their favourite wedding moment was seeing each other for the first time at the ceremony.

The Wedding Décor

For a refined, romantic look, Diane and Sarah had one statement flower arrangement per table: sumptuous pink and white roses in towering Champagne vases.

"The table seating plans were designed by us," the couple explain. "We wanted to highlight and educate our guests on successful Black gay ladies, so each table was named in honour of a famous Black lesbian. We had Angela Davis, Janelle Monae, Tracey Chapman etc."

The finishing touches were place name cards with a vintage font designed by Sarah's sister, and a pack of mints at each place setting with a gold key bottle opener.

There were two fabulous wedding cakes. One was a rose-gold rainbow sponge decorated by a friend of Sarah’s in a Pride theme. It was topped off with a bespoke cake topper of Sarah, Diane, their cat, Oreo, and Chokk the dog. Then Diane's mum also made a Caribbean fruit cake bursting with rum-soaked dried fruit.

The Wedding Reception

For the wedding breakfast, the couple chose Caribbean cuisine by Burrell Catering.

After guests had tucked into the fabulous feast, it was time to get the party started - and Sarah had a wonderful surprise for Diane.

"Our first dance was specially arranged and performed by a choir, a mix of So Amazing by Luther Vandross and the gospel song God Bless the Broken Road by Blue Meadow," says Diane.

"After the first dance, Sarah took the lead vocals, singing two songs to serenade me with the choir on backing vocals! That was very special and one of the best moments of the day."

The choir switched to classic floor-fillers for the first part of the evening, then a DJ took over for the rest of the night.

The Honeymoon

Diane and Sarah had planned to go on honeymoon to Thailand - but the Coronavirus pandemic forced them to change their plans. Instead, they headed to Dorset for an idyllic mini-moon.

"We chose Dorset because it was easy to get to, it is a beautiful part of the country with lots of beauty spots and a variety of things to do," they say. "We had romantic dinners by the sea, relaxing walks along the coast, sunbathing, visited the pleasure beach, enjoyed the arcade games and ate fish and chips!"

That sounds like the perfect way to relax after a perfect wedding!