Inside: A Magical Oxford Wedding Celebration

From meeting at university in Oxford to tying the knot in a three-day celebration across the city’s historical landmarks, discover the thoughtfully designed details and show-stopping settings of Malea and Aidan’s Oxford wedding weekend. Join The Wedding Edition as we interview the bride, Malea Richardson, on the details of their wedding celebration.

The Story So Far

Aidan is from Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada, and I am from Norway, Iowa in the United States. We met in England in 2020 during our Masters of Business Administration programmes at the University of Oxford.

In December 2021, we had planned a weekend trip to Paris for Aidan’s birthday. We took the train from London with some close friends, including Aidan’s sister Celine and our photographer friend, Stephen Akpakwu (@pixelpann) (who were covertly involved in the proposal planning).

After a visit to the Musee D’Orsay followed by lunch at Cercle de L’Union Interalliée with the group, we walked back to our favourite hotel in Paris where Aidan proposed on the balcony, with Stephen capturing photos through the curtains.

Aidan’s grandmother Tannis Richardson’s ring serendipitously fit perfectly. Parents were FaceTimed, champagne was popped, and the birthday party quickly transformed into an engagement party as the sun set behind the Eiffel Tower.

The Venues

We both appreciate the English aesthetic in terms of its architecture and gardens, and we chose to have an Oxford wedding because it’s the city where we met. Lucy Vail’s floral designs were key to achieving the spring wedding vision across the three days.

On day one, we hosted a welcome reception for our friends at the Ashmolean Museum, and dinner for the bridal party at Queen’s College (Aidan’s alma mater) in their centuries-old dining hall.

On the wedding day, we were married at The University Church of St. Mary, a 1,000 year old church in the middle of Oxford, followed by drinks at the Divinity School, and dinner and dancing in the gardens of the 400-year-old Wadham College.

On the day after the wedding, we enjoyed a relaxed lunch at Oxford Botanic Gardens, followed by punting down the River Thames to end the weekend.

The Fashion

For the Welcome Dinner at Queen’s College, I wore a Halfpenny London dress and a hand-painted cape with blue and green Chatelaine Drop Earrings by David Yurman.

My wedding dress was from Phillipa Lepley in Chelsea, and Aidan wore a Giorgio Armani tux. As an artist, I thoroughly enjoyed the process of working with Phillipa and her team to build the gown. The sculptural satin dress design combined 1950s Hollywood with a bit of British regality (fitting for an American living in London). I wore platform shoes by Freya Rose, my grandmother’s beaded purse as both “something old” and “something blue” and my mother-in-law’s pearl bracelet as “something borrowed”.

For the latter part of the reception, I wore a fun, feathered dress which was great for hitting the dance floor.

For the day-after brunch and punting in Oxford Botanic Gardens, I wore an Oscar de la Renta spring coat, and we laughed at how the coat camouflaged me in the botanical gardens. I wanted to invest in something I could wear for many years, and coats are great for that.

The Jewellery

I wore pearl earrings from Jessica McCormack, where we also found our wedding bands. We loved that she does unique yet timeless pieces, and her stunning London shop doubles as an art gallery.

The Bridal Party

For the morning of the wedding day, bridesmaids wore Petite Plume green striped robes, and I wore a Cara Cara matching set. For the wedding, bridesmaids wore Jenny Yoo green satin dresses. (This color palette was inspired by a feature in Tatler—I thought the green would glow against the golden sandstone buildings in Oxford.)

Aidan gifted his groomsmen personalized Oxford ice hockey jerseys—a nice Canadian touch.

The Transportation

The church is a short walk to the Bodleian Library’s Divinity School. Everyone then walked to Wadham College for dinner and dancing in the garden, though we jumped into the wedding car – a 1965 Daimler for a quick drive around town to take a breather before dinner.

Food & Drink

We gave everyone a choice for their starter and main course– which was no easy feat for Caper & Berry to deliver, but they were completely spot on. For starters, they chose either elderflower cured trout with citrus yoghurt and brown butter rosti, or beets with whipped goat’s curd.

For a main course, we offered guinea fowl with roasted almond potatoes and coronation jus, or Himalayan salt-aged beef with truffle and parmesan chips and thyme jus.

The pudding was rose blossom cheesecake with salted popcorn and Turkish delight ice cream. The wines were: Mâcon Villages, Les Classiques, Vignerons de Mancey 2021 as the white, and Santenay, Les Prarons, Rouge, Bachelet Monnot, 2018 as the red.

The Entertainment

The Kitts Band played at our evening reception, and our first dance song was “Lost in the Light” by Canadian artist, Bahamas– a nod to Aidan’s roots.

Beauty

London-based artists Diana Moar and Mariam Jensen both did a fabulous job on hair and makeup, respectively.

The Honeymoon

We started on a “bestiemoon” with four of our friends taking the Orient Express from Verona to Paris. Then Aidan and I explored South Asia. The highlight was the Amankora Journey in Bhutan— with incredible hiking, Buddhist culture, and hospitality.

Advice

Our only advice is to select wedding planners wisely. We were so fortunate to work with Charlotte and the team at Albion Parties, as they were absolute professionals and made the process both easy and enjoyable. Their team ensured all details were well looked after across the three days of events, and our guests were in great hands.