Chantal and David’s Real Life Wedding
Chantal and David
12/06/2004 – Acacia Hall, Dartford, Kent
How and when did you meet?
David and I met in May 2001, through David’s best friend Lewis. David is Godfather to Lewis’s little boy Max.
Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?
David and I had already chosen and bought my engagement ring. For a few days David kept opening and shutting the ring box down the phone. We were in the throws of buying our home. After about a week or so, David and I went to a pub in Mottingham and after several drinks on my part David got down on one and asked me if I would do him the honour of becoming my wife. I just burst into tears and obviously said yes.
Did you have hen and stag celebrations?
My hen do was organised by my sister Zia, on the 15th May 2004. I didn’t have any idea what we were doing or who was even going. All the girls started arriving at my house at about 6.30 then two limos pulled up and wisked us off. Zia had arranged everything and we went to the Embassy club in Mayfair for dinner and drinks and then downstairs to the nightclub.
David and his freinds went up London and did the normal thing – pubs, strip clubs etc. They had arranged a limo for him in the morning. He left the house at 10am on the morning of the 15th May 04 and got home around 2.30am. I didnt get home until about 4.30!
Did your groom help you with the wedding planning?
David could only do so much. He helped me look into venues, and he had a say in what he and his best men wore. He also helped me choose the invitations.
Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?
I used some areas of confetti and found it to be very helpful.
Do you have a confetti web page?
No.
Did you buy any confetti products for your wedding? If so, did you visit a store, buy online or by mail order?
No.
Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it
I wore a ball gown style strapless dress with embroidery and crystals scattered on the bottom around the top and up the inside panel of the dress. It had a train and from the top of the dress all the way down to the bottom was a row of little buttons.
Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?
I had two bridesmaids and a chief bridesmaid. My CBM and one of the bridesmaids were my sisters Zia and Kiera and the other bridesmaid was my best friend Paula. They wore strapless dresses in an aubergine colour from Debut at Debenhams.
Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?
David had three bestmen – two of his best friends, Bun and Lewis, and his brother Ralph. They hired black suits with white shirts, ivory waistcoats and ivory ties.
Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?
We had a civil ceremony and it was lovely.
Where did you hold your ceremony?
Our ceremony was held Acacia Hall in Dartford.
Where did you hold your reception?
Acacia Hall.
Did you have any special wedding transport?
David and I hired a Daimla Lundelette in the same colour as the girls dresses, aubergine and silver.
How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?
We invited very close friends and family members to the day and more friends and famiy came along in the evening.
Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?
Our reception was aubergine and ivory.
How did you incorporate this into your table settings?
Each table was scattered with rose petals. On each table was a square vase filled with glass crystals and flowers that fitted the colour scheme.
Did you give your guests favours?
No.
Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?
I had a hand-tied bouquet of very tight aubergine coloured roses with crystals scattered in them tied with ivory ribbon and crystal pins. My bridemaids also had hand-tied bouquets in ivory and aubergine. Their bouquets had longer stems than mine and the stems were wrapped with aubergine ribbon with crystal pins in. This was incorporated into the table decorations.
What did you choose to have on your menu? Did you have an outside caterer or did your venue handle the catering?
Acacia Hall.
What did you choose for your wedding cake?
Our wedding cake was bought from Marks and Spencers. It was plain white and three tiers. Our florist decorated the cakes with the same flowers used in the bouquets.
Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?
We had a disco in the evening and music going on in the background of the day.
Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?
No, no gift list as David and I have been living with each other for a while and have most things. We just asked for vouchers for department stores.
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?
We spent our first night as a married couple in a local hotel which had a huge bed!. For our honeymoon we went to a golf club in Cancun, Mexico which was absolutley out of this world.
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
It was all memorable! We didnt get too drunk as we wanted to remember everything. It was just brilliant, exciting, emotional…. you name it – everything was memorable.
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
Relax on the day. If anything goes wrong and nobody notices it then they’ll never know. Don’t get too drunk as you’ll want to be able to remember everything. The day goes very quickly so take everything in and have a brilliant time.
