From the heart: Maria and Sam’s chilled out woodland wedding

From goofy teenagers to happy ever after – Maria Crampsie and Sam Wood have come a long way.

The loved up couple from Surrey met in their teens and have been inseparable ever since.

Sam, 28, popped the question on Maria’s 24th birthday while the couple were in Thailand. “It was the perfect way to start our travels,” Maria, now 27, recalls.

The bride describes herself as “chilled” and took that attitude in when planning their woodland wedding.

“We didn’t feel the need to stress over finer details and went with the flow. We took our time with the decorative aspect and much of it was DIY, which we loved because it we could truly make it our own,” Maria says.

The couple wed on July 2, 2016 at St John the Baptist, Penshurst in front of 110 friends and family.

The celebrations continued at High Rocks, Tunbridge Wells, a unique venue that the couple transformed with their DIY skills.

“Sam made most of the trinkets such as the cake stand, the menus, table plan, order of service crate and various little personal touches,” Maria says.

“My mum is Swedish and we incorporated subtle Swedish wedding themes where we could, such as the flowers which included myrtle, a traditional Swedish flower.”

Photos courtesy of White Stag Wedding Photography.

It was love at first sight when Maria found her wedding gown. “It was the first and only dress I tried on and I absolutely fell in love,” she says.

Sam and his groomsmen looked dapper in tuxes, while his pageboy wore traditional attire from Roco Clothing.

“I love Sam because of his kind and gentle nature – he also makes me laugh so much!” Maria says. Sam says he loves Maria’s passion, pride and sense of humour.

“Still to this day, we sit back and can’t believe how magical it was that we had all our favourite people with us on our special day, celebrating, having fun and supporting us,” Maria says.

Maria tells future couples who walk down the aisle to make sure they take in every moment. “There is something so overwhelmingly wonderful having all of you and your groom’s favourite people in one place celebrating and supporting you!”

A cheerful three-tier naked cake and delicious individual cupcakes were arranged on a rustic cake stand that perfectly matched the woodland wedding theme.