When Liz Binns and her now husband began looking at Bleaklow Farm, they were not originally searching for a wedding venue.

The Derbyshire couple were planning a Christmas gathering that would bring together their large extended family spread out across the UK and Sweden. They wanted somewhere neutral, spacious and comfortable, where everyone could stay together and enjoy proper time as a family.

Then Liz found Bleaklow Farm. And what began as a search for a Christmas celebration venue quickly became the starting point for a relaxed, three-day DIY winter wedding.

From an Italian-themed wedding meal in the barn to a ceilidh, hog roast and decorations, guests pitched in with everything from clearing glasses to moving sofas, making Liz’s Bleaklow Farm wedding a true family celebration.

We sat down with Liz to find out more about her DIY winter wonderland wedding and what went into organising it.

What made you decide on a Christmas wedding?

There were two primary reasons. The first was the weather. You cannot control the weather, so we decided that rather than plan for a summer wedding and then have everything go pear-shaped, we would plan for everything to be indoors from the beginning.

If you plan a summer wedding and the weather does not do what you want, you can end up having to change everything at the last minute. Because we were doing so much ourselves, I wanted to avoid that.

The second reason was that we have family in Sweden who were coming over for Christmas. It meant they could plan a visit to us around the wedding and we could absorb the accommodation cost into the overall wedding budget, helping them save them time and money.

I am very conscious that weddings these days can cost guests almost as much as they cost the people getting married.

Why did you choose Bleaklow Farm?

There were so many reasons Bleaklow Farm worked for us, but it was a complete accident that we found it when we did.

Even though we were engaged, I was not actually looking for a wedding venue when I was doing an online search. We have a large family, which includes children, stepchildren and grandchildren, and I was looking for somewhen to get everyone together for Christmas.

I searched online for large houses in the Peak District and Bleaklow Farm appeared. We came to have a look and absolutely loved it. As soon as we saw the barn, we thought: ‘actually, we need a venue, and a Christmas wedding would be lovely.

The fact Bleaklow Farm was already decorated beautifully for Christmas made the decision even easier because I knew it would save me time and effort.

With lots of family travelling for the wedding, Bleaklow Farm actually made economic sense because it could also accommodate our guests and allow us to have an extended wedding celebration.

You did a lot yourself, including the catering. How did you prepare ahead of your stay?

The Beyond Venues’s team was extremely flexible with us regarding access to the property. There had been guests staying earlier that week, but as soon as they had gone, we were able to start dropping things off. We came up on the Wednesday, ahead of our booking on the Thursday, and put food and drink into the fridges.

That meant I could get a lot of the organisation done before anybody arrived. We were also able to get in quite early on the Thursday, which helped.

Just as importantly, we did not have to leave until late on the Sunday. That made a big difference with the clean-up operation and gave us time to say our goodbyes and thank everyone properly.

Talk us through the 3-day wedding celebration.

Day one of the wedding celebrations began with an intimate family meal for around 20 people at Bleaklow Farm on the Thursday evening.

We had then had a civil ceremony at Bakewell Registry Office on the Friday. I booked it nearly two years in advance and they only had one slot available, so if people want to get married at Bakewell, they need to be organised.

It was just myself, husband and our adult children at the registry office but afterwards we met up with all our guests at Thornbridge Brewery, who were brilliant. They reserved an area for us, and we had pizzas and beer. It was like a mini wedding reception.

The party then returned to Bleaklow Farm, where the Great Barn became the setting for nearly 60 people for an Italian-themed sit-down meal of tapas boards and tiramisu.

We have a house in Italy, which inspired the meal which we ate surrounded by mini Christmas trees, which my friends and I had decorated the week before and brought up to Bleaklow.

Later, the party moved through to the sitting room where we had a band. We pushed the sofas to the side and created a dance floor. It worked brilliantly.

On the Saturday, we then all went to St Giles’ Church in Great Longstone for a blessing by the vicar from Chatsworth. That was when we had the proper winter wonderland wedding where I wore a white dress. After the blessing it was back to Bleaklow for more celebrating.

For the Saturday celebration, however, I brought in caterers from The Pantry. I am a food technology teacher, so I felt perfectly confident doing a lot of the catering myself, but I just wanted to relax on the Saturday and let someone else do all the work. The Pantry had done events at Bleaklow Farm before, so were familiar with the venue.

We had a hog roast, which they set up under a marquee in the courtyard at the front of the house. Later in the evening, they also did a tapas buffet in the kitchen so people could help themselves. That worked really well.

The evening then ended with a ceilidh in the barn.

We got all the guests to clear the dinner tables and create the dance floor. We had spoken to Jake from Beyond Venues in advance about storage and he advised us to put the tables in the games room, which he made sure was empty and ready for us.

Then we danced the evening away in the barn.

How much did the DIY nature of the wedding rely on everyone pitching in?

We could not have done what we did if everybody had been sitting around looking for a seating plan or waiting for the cake to be cut. It was not that kind of wedding at all. It was a pitch-in and do-it-yourself wedding, and everybody understood that. It worked beautifully.

How did the accommodation at Bleaklow Farm work for you and your guests?

We used the big bedroom downstairs at the front as our bridal suite, and it was absolutely brilliant. There was loads of room to hang my dresses, a lovely big bathroom and plenty of space. We were also a bit away from everybody else, which was nice.

The accommodation was one of the things guests commented on most. People were gobsmacked by the quality of the rooms and the finish. They loved the en suites and the fact nobody had to share a bathroom.

It was like a hotel, only nicer, because people could use the other spaces in the house to meet up, relax and spend time together.

How would you sum up your DIY wedding at Bleaklow Farm?

We had a lovely, lovely time. We wanted everyone to feel as much a part of the wedding as we were. We didn’t even use a professional photographer. Our friends used their mobile phones. We have amazing candid photographs of everything over the long weekend. We just wanted to get on with the party, and that is exactly what we did.

Start Planning Your Wedding at Bleaklow Farm

For couples looking to create a wedding that is truly personal, memorable and entirely their own, Bleaklow Farm offers the space, flexibility and setting to bring your vision to life. To find out more about hosting your wedding at Bleaklow Farm, get in touch with the team here or call 07810155366 and start planning a day that reflects you in every detail.