Helen and David’s Real Wedding
Helen and David
28/05/2005 – Sutton Bonington Hall, Loughborough, Nottinghamshire
How and when did you meet?
We met 4 years ago. My best friend was getting married and she arranged to have a few drinks with her work mates a couple of days before hand. David worked with her, she asked me to come along as well and it went from there.
How old are you both?
I am 27 and David is 32.
Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?
He proposed on my birthday, March 12th 2004. He took me away to Paris for my birthday and got down on one knee on a bridge on the River Seine. It was very romantic.
Did you have hen and stag celebrations?
I had 2 hen nights. The first was a pampering day at a spa with close friends and family, the second was a night in Nottingham where we live. About 20 of us went for an Italian meal and then hit a few bars. David went to Budapest with 8 of his friends and family.
Did your groom help you with the wedding planning?
David let me do most of the organising, I had to run everything by him of course. He picked the suits and had a big say in the honeymoon (as he was paying)!!
Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?
Yes. The website gave me loads of ideas, it was very useful and I love the "Real life wedding pages".
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 an A line Mori Lee gown. It was fantastic, I wanted something simple but elegant, and I found just that. I wore a 7ft veil to compliment it. It was from Pronuptia and they were excellent help there.
Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?
I had 4 bridesmaids, my best friend Hannah, my sister-in-law Hannah, my cousin Rosie and David’s niece Olivia. The 2 grown up bridesmaids wore an off-the-shoulder Aqua colour dress from Debenhams with an orchid in their hair and the little ones wore fairy tale dresses from Debenhams.
Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?
David had his best friend Glen to be his best man and the ushers were my brother and David’s brother. They wore knee length black Oxford suits, grey waistcoats with Grey cravats.
Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?
We had a Civil ceremony as neither of us are particularly religious.
Where did you hold your ceremony?
We held the ceremony and reception at "Sutton Bonington Hall" in Loughborough, Nottinghamshire.
Where did you hold your reception?
Sutton Bonnington Hall.
Did you have any special wedding transport?
I had a Silver Mercedes.
How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?
We had 60 to the wedding and a further 50 to the evening.
Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?
The reception was very pale colours, silver, pale pink and white. It worked very well.
How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?
We had our reception in a light and airy conservatory with white roof blinds and white walls. The tables all followed a very pale theme with everything pale pinks and whites and silver.
Did you give your guests favours?
he ladies all had a candle with their name on it covered in net, and the men had a box of Elizabeth Shaw Truffles which went down a treat.
Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?
My bouquet was of pale pink roses, Dendrobium Orchids and trailing with Cymbidium orchids tones with Eucalyptus. On the guests tables we had tall vases with Pale pink roses with grass coming over the top which had rose petals attached. The head table had small round bowls filled with cymbidium orchids, the bowls were sitting on mirrors with tea-lights which worked really well in the evening. Along the front of the table were cut stems of orchids. Our florist was "Flowers by Susan" in West Bridgford, Nottingham.
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 the catering. We had Salmon with lime curd or melon to start, Filet of Beef with red wine jus with potato rostis, the veggie option was a spicy chickpea fritter for main and dessert was Raspberry and Almond tart or Creme Caramel.
What did you choose for your wedding cake?
We chose a traditional fruit cake for 2 of the tiers and a sponge cake for the third tier. We wanted a plain sort of cake so we had some silver icing piped on the corners which looked like ribbon and 3 roses on the top with sparkly things coming out of the top.
Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?
We had a string quartet for the ceremony and whilst the photos were being taken. In the evening we had a disco.
Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?
We had a Gift List with John Lewis.
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?
Our wedding night was spent at the hall where we got married. For our Honeymoon we went to Hong Kong, Vietnam and Bali. We booked this with Bridge the World, it was amazing.
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
Seeing David waiting for me at the end of the aisle and seeing my dads face when he first saw me in my dress.
Did you experience any ‘nightmare’ moments in the run up to your wedding or on the day?
The night before the wedding I got a call from my wedding car agency and they said my car had been vandalized, they got a replacement and it was a better model. On the day, the clutch on my bridesmaids car went so that car had to be replaced too. The florist didn’t send enough flowers for the bridesmaids but my dad jumped in a car and went to collect them.
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
I wouldn’t do anything differently. It was the most amazing day, just relax and things do go wrong but there are always ways around them and they aren’t as bad as they first seem.
