Rachel and Marc’s Real Wedding Story

Rachel and Marc

September 1999

How did you meet?
University – same college, same subject. Got together in Freshers’ Week!

Describe the marriage proposal.
On our fifth anniversary, very drunken, in a Spanish restaurant. It was meant to be a few weeks later in Paris (he had it all planned) but the subject came up over dinner and so he asked me then…

How long did you spend preparing for the day and how was it?
11 months from proposal to wedding day – it was all really good fun. A few minor hitches when we realised we couldn’t afford to do everything we’d been planning, but all in all it was great. Biggest problem was booking a reception venue. Easiest thing was getting my dress!

What type of wedding ceremony did you have and where?
In our college chapel in Oxford – fairly traditional but apart from the vows we chose everything we wanted in the service – hymns, readings, order of service. We were lucky to have a really laid-back chaplain.

Where did you hold your reception and what was it like?
First we had champagne in the gardens, then the reception in the Old Library in college – a sit-down meal for 50. We said exactly what food we wanted and ended up using the wedding cake as dessert. We brought our own wine and champagne from France and paid corkage. We made place settings ourselves.

Thinking back to the ‘big day’ what things did you especially enjoy?
The best bit was having all our friends all in one place for the first time ever – we only had about 60 guests and most of them were friends rather than family. Plus everyone got on really well. Most people stayed for two nights (Friday and Saturday), so the whole thing felt like it lasted the whole weekend rather than just a few hours.

Is there anything you’d change, with hindsight?
Double-check bookings a couple of days before for peace of mind to make sure they’ve got your order EXACTLY right – i.e. florists, caterers, vicar etc.

What advice would you give to couples currently planning their wedding?
Have the wedding YOU want – we were really lucky that we didn’t have any mothers trying to tell us what we should do / who to invite and that made things a lot easier. And don’t worry about whether people are going to get on with each other and enjoy themselves – everyone is so happy that they will have a great time regardless of what happens. Plus – make a comprehensive to-do list (Confetti can help with this) so that you know exactly what’s left to do at each stage.