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Autumn is well and truly here, so I delved deep into our beautiful library of photoshoot images and found the most gorgeous photos to get us excited for the season of fresh mornings and new boots! This shoot, that took place on an especially autumnal day in November 2017, is named 'Autumn Berries' and, looking at the stunning images, you'll see why.

The photo shoot was organised and photographed by Natasha Marie Photography and we were happy to collaborate by choosing furniture that is rich in both colour and character to style the crisp woodland setting. The location was the forest grounds surrounding Millbrooke Estate, Devon, with its stunning lake, where one particular image turned out to be massively successful for us.The lake had a small wooden boat mooring which we used as a focal point for the ceremony photos.Our decorative rustic wooden arch was set up as a window to the water. Unadorned, this is a lovely solid, dark wood - a perfect blank frame to be dressed up to suit the season. We styled it with stormy grey organza, draped to frame the opening, and used ivy cuttings as a natural curtain tie. (Styling tip for any outdoor events - not only is ivy pretty but it's also super strong!)More ivy was woven up the sides of the arch and into a wild autumnal bouquet by Folly Lane Flowers. The floral arrangement was pre-dressed on a wire frame and then attached to the arch. Folly Lane is an eco friendly florist that uses home grown blooms, so the arrangement was full of the gloriously deep red foliage and blowsy autumnal flowers that you'd expect to find at this time of year - even shiny, rosy red apples were included.The arch itself was created especially for this shoot as, at the time, we didn't have anything that was quite the right fit. Upcycling and repurposing is a bit of a habit of ours, and the frame was created from an old wooden Georgian bed frame that director Carmen discovered on Ebay for £10! We were able to preserve its detail and create the lovely ornate shape of the arch. It's available to hire and, although it looks lovely as it is, it also gives customers the flexibility to dress it in a style that fits their theme.Once the arch was positioned on the boat mooring we added a vintage rug to the foreground and gold brass candlesticks and our tall dark church candlesticks to either side. The small wooden structure, with its mossy surface and fallen leaves, wouldn't ordinarily be seen as the most obviously glamorous location but, once dressed, and with the still surface of the lake behind, it became wonderfully atmospheric. The styling couldn't have been easier as nature was beautiful in itself.Creating something so stunning with only a handful of props is something that you can do yourself if you don't have the luxury of an experienced stylist. It's so achievable once you've found the perfect venue and captured the dreamiest photo for inspiration. For a different, more boho look try hanging our macrame backdrop from the arch and suspending giant boho dream catchers to catch the wind in the trees. 

This particular photo of our arch by the lake proved to be very inspirational. It fetched just over 7,000 impressions on Pinterest, and got re-pinned and saved over 50 times. Having shared this across all of our social media platforms it got 466 likes on Instagram with 32 lovely engaging comments. It's so popular that it's been shared across many mood boards and blogs - very exciting for us!The lake not only served as an amazing ceremony setup it also became a stunning backdrop for some of the furniture photos. We nestled our ruby red Emily sofa and rustic tin trunk amongst the burnt orange and brown leaves with our small antlers on rustic shield leant up against the furniture. Some of these items are no longer available for hire but are for sale on our ebay store.Ella of Folly Lane Flowers dressed our industrial brass candelabra with autumn blooms and we used the trunk as a side table.Above our woodland lounge we hung our small brass three arm candle chandelier from the moss-covered tree with matt black candles for moody contrast.We had to make a jolly good trek in the mud to achieve this look. Carmen definitely wished she wore wellies that day #soggyfeet. With all the mud around it's lucky the cake made it to the lakeside in one piece. Mrs Smudgers Kitchen created a pure white cake dressed in similar blooms to those used on the flower crown and archway. The pine cones and flowers were the main details, simple and elegant. We sat the cake on our rustic cake table with the lake as a backdrop.The bride and groom models were, in fact, a real couple so the chemistry between them was natural and genuine. They were both styled in classic wedding attire with a nod to autumn. The bride wore an elegant lace gown wrapped in burgundy around the waist with a flower crown full of berries and ivy.The contrast of the reds against the model's brown hair and blush skin tone looked beautiful and sitting her on the ruby red sofa really made her lipstick pop.Makeup can be hard to get right, especially on a seasonal shoot so Beauty by Cath did a great job.

Although the brief for our photoshoot was strictly autumnal, these colours could also be used for a festive wedding or event. Adding touches like our Christmas cushions on the sofa and a giant wreath sat against the base of the tree would tick the Christmas theme. Our giant baubles would also look very lovely hung in a tree.However much planning you do, you can't predict exactly how the props will look in situ until you arrive on site. This is particularly true of a weather-dependant outdoor shoot. We always have high expectations, but this shoot is one we remember for looking even better than we could have imagined. Our rustic props fitted the setting beautifully and the timing of the shoot was just right - the forest was bursting with the colours of autumn, even though it was a November day. Having the stillness of the lake as our backdrop with almost perfect reflections of the trees gave a mystical feel as if the water was glass and woods were touched by magic.

If you liked the look of the props used to style this shoot see them all here. 

Carys x