Karen and Rob’s Real Life Wedding
Karen and Rob
15/10/2005 – St Giles Church, Codicote, Hertfordshire. 
How and when did you meet?
In May 1998 at our local gym through friends
How old are you both?
I’m 36 and Rob’s 34.
Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?
On our 6th anniversary of getting together. We went out for a meal and he had planned to propose on the walk into town but another couple were already sat on the bench on the hill. So he proposed at the same spot on a hill overlooking the town of Hitchin on the walk home.
Did you have hen and stag celebrations?
The hens went quad biking, then for some pampering and into London for a meal and then onto CarWash nightclub and everyone was dressed in 70’s/80’s clothing, even my mum.The Stags went Go-karting, then into London for a meal then to the comedy store and onto a few bars for drinks.
Did your groom help you with the wedding planning?
Rob was involved in just about every stage of planning, from the colour scheme to design and printing of the invitations etc.
Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?
We used the Suppliers pages and the Venue Search to search for venues which proved very helpful after our original venue was put up for sale.
Do you have a confetti web page?
It was partly done
Did you buy any confetti products for your wedding? If so, did you visit a store, buy online or by mail order?
Yes we did, and bought in-store and online.
Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it.
I wore a Maggie Sottero dress called Monet in gold/light gold with a light gold veil and tiara, all bought from Mignonette in Luton.
Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?
I chose two of my closest friends: my oldest friend was asked but fell pregnant and as she lives in Greece she felt that she was not able to come back regularly enough for fittings etc. We therefore decided mutually that it was not practical for her to be a bridesmaid. e chose the outfits between us and they wore dresses by Raylia, in a style called Elle in Wine.
Rob’s niece, God daughter and best man’s daughter were flower girls.
All the bridesmaids and flower girls dresses also came from Mignonette
Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?
He chose his oldest friend as best man, then another old friend as an usher, my brother and my cousin. We then had one of his God sons as ring bearer and another as page boy.
Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?
Religious.
Where did you hold your ceremony?
St Giles Church in Codicote, Hertfordshire.
Where did you hold your reception?
The Node Conference Centre in Codicote.
Did you have any special wedding transport?
Yes, friends of the groom’s parents allowed us to use their vintage Rolls Royce. The husband even wore his chauffeur’s uniform.
How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?
There were 95 guests invited to the day although there were more in the church and an extra 45 guests invited to the evening.
Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?
The colour scheme was ivory, burgundy and gold.
How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?
The table arrangements were burgundy and ivory flowers. The menus were tied with the same gold ribbon as the favours and the chair covers had a gold sash/bow.
Did you give your guests favours?
Yes, cream boxes filled with gold foil wrapped chocolate balls, tied with gold ribbon, all from Confetti.The children had the plastic teddy bear cases filled with Jelly Babies.
My uncle’s favour box was also filled with Jelly Babies as he has an allergy to chocolate.
Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?
Our florist was Carole Smith (www.carolesmith.co.uk).
My bouquet was a shower style with black baccarra roses, cream roses, lisianthus, small gerberas, hypericum berries and foliage. The table arrangements were in three-foot high straight vases filled with aqua gel and large burgundy and cream gerberas, hypericum berries and various other tall-stemmed flowers.
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 Oriental spaghetti of vegetables wrapped in filo pastry, roast beef with tarragon Yorkshire puddings, chateau potatoes and steamed seasonal vegetables, lime brulee and homemade shortbread.
What did you choose for your wedding cake?
We had a four-tier stacked cake: the bottom layer was fruit then chocolate sponge, then vanilla sponge and a top tier of carrot cake. It was iced in ivory with groups of three gold dots and a cake topper made by the florist. It was made by Kirsty at Katie’s Confectioners in Old Welwyn, Hertfordshire.
Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?
We had a disco in the evening.
Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?
Yes, with John Lewis.
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?
We spent our first night at the reception venue, then flew out on our Honeymoon on the Monday for two weeks in Sanur in Bali.
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
Walking down the aisle as husband and wife in front of our friends and family.
Also my nan finally getting her wish to see me married as she passed away on Boxing Day.
Did you experience any ‘nightmare’ moments in the run up to your wedding or on the day?
Yes, we were informed our original reception venue was being put up for sale on 14/10/04, the day before we flew out to Australia for my brother’s wedding. We then had a tense time trying to secure another reception venue for the same date.
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
Maybe to have had the service earlier so we would have had more time with our guests before the wedding breakfast.My advice would be to believe it when everyone says the day will pass really quickly as I didn’t initially but couldn’t believe how quickly the day did go!
