Nicola and Darren’s Real Life St. Mary’s Church in Bucknall Wedding

When was your wedding?

8th September 2007

How and when did you meet?

I was at college and working in a chip shop.I met Darren when he came in one night

How old are you both?

I’m 23 and Darren is 27

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

We were in Zante, Greece and when we got back to the hotel room one night, I turned around and he was on one knee with a ring proposing. It was beautiful

Did you have hen and stag celebrations? If so, what did you do?

Yes I went to Spain for a weekend with my family and friends which was absolutely brilliant, we dressed up as the 118 men, it was hilarious. Then I had a night out locally for everybody that couldn’t make it. Darren had a weekend in York with his family and friends

How did your groom help with the wedding planning?

He was brilliant helping with ideas. We did everything together apart from dress shopping

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

Yes we did it was really useful it helped us with things we never would have thought of.

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

Yes we bought thank you gifts for the top table and we bought lottery ticket holders all online.

Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it

I had an eternity bridal dress which I bought from Aisle of Brides in Stoke-on-Trent. It was an ivory strapless dress which had detail and diamonds on the top and tied up at the back with detail down each side of the lace, it had a triangle piece at the front that had a layer of netting and diamonds. I had a cathedral style train that also had detail and diamonds and a thin layer of netting. I felt absolutely stunning in it.

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

Yes I had four, my sister-in-law to be Sam (21) my cousin Colette (11) Darren’s sister Paige (12) and my little sister Leah (5). Sam, Paige and Colette all wore full length cerise coloured dresses with thin straps, and Leah wore a soft pink dress with a little butterfly on her waist

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

Darren had his best friend Neil as his best man and my brother Ryan was our usher. They all wore grey pinstripe trousers, white shirts, silver waistcoats, black jackets and cerise cravats and hankies to match the bridesmaids.

Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?

Religious.

Where did you hold your ceremony?

St. Mary’s Church in Bucknall, Stoke-on-Trent.

Where did you hold your reception?

The Masonic Hall, Stoke-on-Trent.

Did you have any special wedding transport?

Yes I had a white limousine and Darren had a black one.

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

We had about 60 at the church, we invited 37 to the wedding breakfast and we had about 120 in the evening.

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

Pink and white.

How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?

We had white tablecloths, white chair covers with cerise bows, we had glass bowls with pink floating candles and pink and ivory petals on the tables. We had white place cards hand written in cerise for a personal touch. In the evening we had pink and ivory balloons.

Did you give your guests favours?

Yes we gave them lottery tickets.

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

I had a shower bouquet with soft pink and cream roses and a touch of cerise, my bridesmaids had a small bouquet of cream roses and the men had soft pink buttonholes. Our flowers were done by Spoilt For Choice in Stoke-on-Trent, they did a fantastic job.

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 absolutely brilliant, we had vegetable soup for starters, then the guest had a choice of chicken or beef with potatoes and veg, there was also a vegetarian option and we had chocolate fudge cake and ice cream for dessert.

What did you choose for your wedding cake, and who made it?

Our cake was a cream fairytale castle with pink flowers and little butterflies it was made by Food for Thought in Stoke, it was amazing. We had two layers of sponge and the top tier was chocolate fudge cake.

Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?

We had a disco in the evening.

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

We spent our honeymoon in Corfu, I booked it as a surprise for Darren and presented him with the tickets when we did the speeches.

What was your most memorable moment of the day?

It was all fantastic, but I’ll never forget seeing Darrens’ face smiling at me when I walked down the aisle towards him and him telling me how stunning I looked.

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

Yes with my maid of honour, in the end she wasn’t a part of our wedding.

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

I wouldn’t change a thing, it was fantastic. My advice for other brides is if you experience any problems with anyone it’s best to clear the air before the big day however hard it may be, you don’t want anybody ruining your big day. Enjoy every minute of it, it’s very special.