Ann-Marie and Barry’s Real Life Wedding

 

Ann-Marie and Barry

13/08/2005 – St Michael and All Angels Church, Dalton
The Wrightington Country Club

   

How and when did you meet?

We met 3 years ago, when I started working in the same office as Barry.

How old are you both?

I’m 22 and Barry is 34.

Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?

Barry proposed on the 16th June 2003 on a jetty in the sea in Benidorm.

Did you have hen and stag celebrations?

Barry had a stag weekend in Amsterdam and I had a hen weekend in Benidorm. We both took eleven of our friends and family with us.

Did your groom help you with the wedding planning?

We planned our wedding together – he really wanted to be involved but most of the decisions were up to me.

Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?

Yes, right from the start and it has been an amazing help. When I first became a member there were 650 days ’til my wedding. The site really does have everything you need to plan the perfect wedding.

Do you have a confetti web page?

No, I don’t.

Did you buy any confetti products for your wedding? If so, did you visit a store, buy online or by mail order?

I bought personalised confetti (hearts with A and B on them) in silver and red, the order of service and menus in silver and white also came from the internet. We went to the Leeds store and bought 10 cameras, 3 sets of cufflinks, a table plan kit, cars and teddy bears favour boxes for the children, and more confetti!

Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it.

I wore a white wedding dress fit for a princess. I got it from Creation in Wigan and the style is called ‘Annabelle.’ The dress is white with silver beading, a bodice with a full skirt and a long train.

Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?

I had four bridesmaids and a flower girl. My four bridesmaid dresses were from Creation too. The three older girls wore red, full-length gowns with Swarovski crystal detail and the younger bridesmaid wore a white dress with a satin top and tulle skirt with red waistband. My flower girl wore a similar dress, but with a red satin top and flower detail.

Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?

Barry’s best man was his brother, Paul and our ushers were my brother-in-law Paul and family friend, Rob. They all wore black morning suits with frock coats and they all had red waistcoat and cravats except the groom who wore silver.

Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?

It was a religious ceremony.

Where did you hold your ceremony?

St Michael and All Angels church, Dalton.

Where did you hold your reception?

The Wrightington Country Club.

Did you have any special wedding transport?

Yes, we had a silver Royale, with matching seven-seater Mercedes and a silver stretch limousine.

How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?

There were seventy guests in the daytime and a hundred and sixty in the evening.

Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?

Yes, the colours were red, white and silver and the theme was red roses and silver hearts.

How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?

The arrangements on the tables carried the red rose theme and all of the menus, place cards, favours, and napkins had all been printed with silver hearts and our names and wedding date

Did you give your guests favours?

Yes, the men had vodka miniatures in a plastic case with silver hearts and our names and date; the ladies had sugared almonds in cones with two red roses entwined and a silver ribbon. The children had either a teddy (girls) or a car (boys) with ‘just married’ love hearts.

Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?

My flowers were a hand-tied posy with long stemmed red roses with red tulle and diamantes. My bridesmaids had the same but smaller versions in white. The flower girl tossed red and silver petal confetti. My table decorations comprised vases with red roses and tulle entwined. We also had 2 large pedestals which had a variety of red and white flowers, including roses and gerberas. My florist was Country Florist in Skelmersdale.

What did you choose to have on your menu? Did you have an outside caterer or did your venue handle the catering?

The venue handled our catering and they were fantastic. They gave us lots to choose from but if we wanted something else that was fine too.
Starter: cream of vegetable soup
Main: roast angus beef
Dessert: apple meringue and ice cream.

What did you choose for your wedding cake?

My cake was the cake of my dreams. Barry, his mum and my mum saw it first and all knew it would be the one I would choose. It was a four tier heart-shaped cake, two tiers of fruit and two of sponge. It had white glitter icing and silver ribbon with red roses going all the way around the hearts. It was made by AS cakes in Leyland.

Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?

During the wedding breakfast, special songs that Barry and I had chosen were played quietly and then in the night we had a karaoke disco.

Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?

We did, but we also asked for dollars for our honeymoon, as we bought our house last year and have most things that we needed. Items on the list were mainly decorative.

Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?

We stayed in the honeymoon suite at the Wrightington hotel the night of the wedding and then we spent an unforgettable two weeks on a cruise of the Mediterranean on royal Caribbean’s ‘Brilliance of the Seas.’

What was your most memorable moment of the day?

Apart from the persistent and torrential rain (considering it was August, when the organ played the first notes of ‘Here Comes the Bride’, I just froze and thought ‘This is it.’ Also Barry’s face when he saw me in my dress at the top of the aisle. He has always called me his princess and he said when I met him at the altar I looked every bit a real princess.

Did you experience any ‘nightmare’ moments in the run up to your wedding or on the day?

Not at all of the suppliers I chose were perfect and did an outstanding job.

Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?

There is nothing I would do differently, but I wish I could do it all over again – it was the most amazing day of my life. The only advice I’d give is to enjoy yourself and never bank on the weather and remember RAIN NEVER SPOILS YOUR WEDDING DAY! In fact, they say it’s good luck.