Alternative Wedding at Asylum Chapel: From the Archives

Looking for something that truly celebrated their uniqueness, Nina and Jack wanted an alternative wedding photographer to meet their alternative wedding vision. They chose to celebrate their London wedding on the date of their tenth anniversary.

The Venue: Alternative Wedding at Asylum Chapel, Peckham

As the couple are complete opposites, with Nina wanting to elope and Jack wanting a huge wedding, they met in the middle, celebrating with close friends and family. Family played a huge part in their day, as well as their planning, even helping with research for venues. They chose an alternative wedding venue, The Asylum Chapel in Peckham, London. It perfectly matched with Nina’s dramatic dress. Jack’s sister, a florist, offered to do their flowers, and Nina gave her a colour scheme to work to, as well as one request – fruit in the centrepieces. Nina told me, “All the flowers were just perfect but my favourite was the vuvuzela rose crowns the flower girls wore!”

The Theme: Homemade Vegan Food and Crystals

Nina and Jack made all their own food, choosing an entirely vegan menu, including the buffet for two meals, cake and cupcakes, all for only £150. They did their best to be sustainable as possible, using a local market to source the produce and biodegradable plates made from banana leaves and bamboo cutlery. They followed their vegan beliefs by ensuring there was no wool in Jack’s suit and no leather in their shoes.

Incorporating crystals wherever they could, Nina and Jack had rose quartz and clear quartz in their welcome sign and place name cards, which then doubled up as favours for the guests. These matched Nina’s necklace – a beautiful pink opal, designed especially for her. They did a lot of DIY projects, giving a personal touch to their day. They hand-made all their invitations, featuring their cats dressed as bride and groom, and painted a welcome sign, seating arrangement and a sign for the card basket. They also created their own playlist of special music. But the food was the biggest DIY!

The Vibe: Casual, Alternative London Wedding

The day was full of special moments, and Nina explained to me, “The wedding was really just about love, those little belly-flipping moments like walking in to the ceremony, being announced as husband and wife, seeing our family’s faces,hearing Jack talk so openly in his speech about us all – that was an amazing moment to me!”