Katie and Sam’s Real Wedding by AVA Photography
For our summer brides the planning is almost over and we know you’ve planned the perfect wedding. Now we want to give our winter brides a glimpse in to what they can expect. Katie and Sam’s real wedding from AVA images, is a beautiful projection for weddings this winter, with the soft hues of pinks, creams, combined with the intriguing textures of roses and thistles, this is the perfect start to your winter planning. Winter brides take note!
Bride and Groom… Katie and Sam
Wedding date… Saturday 28th December, 2013
We met… When my family moved to Torquay and we started going to the same church as Sam’s family. Going to the same Sunday school led to the same sixth form, going on a gap year together and both ending up at Durham University.
The proposal… Sam proposed on a very cold November evening after dinner and a show in London. He insisted on walking along the banks of the Thames, eventually finding a quiet spot near Westminster where he popped the question!
We knew it was ‘the one’… At university
Length of engagement… 13 months
How did Confetti.co.uk help in your big day? We read the ‘real weddings’ articles for inspiration.
Our wedding ceremony was… St Matthias Church, Torquay. We had a traditional Church of England ceremony, with 150 of our family and friends.
My bridesmaids were… My cousin, 2 friends from Torquay and 5 from university, I had 8 in total.
Our wedding photographer was… Hannah from Ava Images, she was amazing!
Our groomsmen were… Sam’s father, my father, my brother and 4 of Sam’s friends from university. We also had 3 pageboys.
Our wedding was unique and special because… I couldn’t have imagined getting married anywhere else, being at St Matthias was my way of having my late mother there celebrating with us. Our friends and family had wanted this for a long time, their happiness and love was overwhelming. We also took a top tip from the royal wedding and Sam drove us away from the church in his Dad’s vintage MG.
My dress was… A Benjamin Roberts dress. One of my new sister-in-laws recommended Truly Delightful, a lovely boutique in Totnes and when I went there I was overwhelmed by the beautiful lace dresses. I tried on 4 all of which were gorgeous but dress number 4, the Benjamin Roberts had the wow factor. I suppose I’d always knew I’d have a fishtail style dress and when I got into the shop it was all my eyes were drawn to. Thanks to some good advice from my sister-in-law I had a customised belt made for the church service, saving the sparkly belt for the evening do. The dress also had optional cap sleeves which allowed me another look for the meal.
Our wedding reception was at… The Imperial Hotel, Torquay. We chose the venue because it over looked the sea, it was close to both our childhood homes, we loved the rooms and the price was very reasonable.
Our wedding theme was… Greens, creams, dusky pink and pale blue. Sam insisted on getting some thistles into the bouquet to add some blue!
Our favourite part of the wedding was… For me it was saying our vows, for Sam it was seeing me in my dress.
Did anything funny or unusual happen at your wedding? The photo booth provided many funny moments which we have now digitalised forever!
What is your advice for other brides? We chose to have a selection of cocktails for the drinks reception instead of the standard buck fizz this went down very well with the guests
For our honeymoon … We went to a spa hotel in London for a mini moon after the wedding and plan to go to Fiji in the summer.
Suppliers
Wedding Dress: Benjamin Roberts 2392 | Wedding Shoes: ‘TheVictorianGarden’ on Etsy | Wedding Suits: Moss Bros | Bridesmaid Dresses: Monsoon | Wedding Flowers: 2020 Flowers | Wedding Photographer: Ava Images | Wedding Make-up: Elegant Nails | Wedding Hair: The Salon’,Wellwood | Wedding Gift list: John Lewis | Wedding Venue: The Imperial Hotel