Samantha and Rob’s Real Life Wedding
Samantha and Rob
06/05/2007 – Village Hotel in Liverpool
How and when did you meet?
We met on a website – makefriendsonline.co.uk That was in February 2006. I started chatting just as friends – or so we thought.
How old are you both?
38.
Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?
I was off sick from work – in July 2006 – and was sitting watching the television and chatting to Rob via email. I just had the urge to ask him to marry me there and then. I emailed him and asked him straight away and luckily he said yes.
Did you have hen and stag celebrations? If so, what did you do?
No we decided we didn’t want any hen or stag parties.
How did your groom help with the wedding planning?
He helped make the invitations and the “Our Wedding” booklets. He also helped in looking for ideas that I had and to see if we could get them off the internet instead. He found my tiara for me – what an angel. He also planned the honeymoon without me knowing where we where going.
Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?
I used confetti for some of our table decorations and the “Our wedding” templates.
Did you buy any confetti products for your wedding? If so, did you visit a store, buy online or by mail order?
We bought a few bits and pieces online through Confetti. We got some candles for part of our centrepieces along with silver tinsel centrepieces.
Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it.
My dress was a pink Justin Alexander inspired dress. I saw a picture of the dress in a bridal magazine and decided that that was the dress for me. I actually had it made in Thailand via a company called Beau Monde Bridal. It was a fraction of the price of the one in the magazine and I cried when I received it in the post and saw how gorgeous it was.
Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?
I had one bridesmaid. She was my 7 year old niece. Couldn’t have had anyone else really. She wore a gorgeous ivory dress from Debenhams which had pale pink flowers underneath the netting with a netted bow around her waist. Her tiara was from Claire’s Accessories and my friend created her bouquet for her.
Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?
Rob chose his best friend Lee to be his best man. They both wore suits from a company called Formally Yours. They where grey suits with pink cravat and handkerchief and cream waistcoat.
Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?
We had a civil ceremony.
Where did you hold your ceremony?
We held the ceremony at the Village Hotel in Liverpool which is part of the Devere Group of hotels.
Where did you hold your reception?
We held the reception at the same hotel. It was lovely.
Did you have any special wedding transport?
No as we where staying at the hotel both of us got ready at the hotel.
How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?
We had 53 guests for the day and no extra for the evening.
Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?
Our theme was silver, cream and pink which showed in everything from my dress to the cake to the mens accessories to the table decorations.
How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?
Our table had cream tablecloths and the table centrepieces were silver with candles around them with pink table confetti scattered around
Did you give your guests favours?
Yes, we gave our guests favours. We had little pink boxes filled with Jelly beans and dolly mixtures.
Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?
My bouquet was made up of calla lilies and delphinium and light foliage. It was made of cold porcelain by a wonderful company in Scotland. The company are called Perfect Petals – and they where – Rob’s buttonhole was made the same way.
What did you choose to have on your menu? Did you have an outside caterer or did your venue handle the catering?
When we went to book the venue we decided to have a buffet style wedding menu. The venue helped us decide on what we had on the menu. But we had no complaints.
What did you choose for your wedding cake, and who made it?
My friend Karen makes wedding cakes so she was the ideal person to make our cake for us. We sat down with her and told her what our colour scheme and flowers were – what we liked and what we disliked and then she made it – we never saw the cake until the moment when we went to cut it at the wedding reception.
Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?
We had background music on all day and during the evening – we wanted people to be able to sit and chat and get to know each other – it was just perfect.
Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?
We didn’t have a gift list – we asked for vouchers for either Debenhams or M&S.
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?
We spent our first night as man and wife at the hotel and then we started our honeymoon. Rob had organised the honeymoon so we started off our honeymoon officially on the Monday night at the Kilhey Court Hotel in Standish in a suite.
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
The most memorable moment of the day was when I walked down the aisle and saw Rob for the first time with both of us in our wedding outfits – it still makes me smile thinking of it.
Did you experience any ‘nightmare’ moments in the run up to your wedding or on the day?
No, not at all – we were very very lucky apart from the weather – it rained the whole day – but hey, if that is all that went wrong we were lucky.
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
Just relax on the day – step back every now and then and try and remember things – it goes so fast. And if it rains who cares – as long as you, your husband-to-be and the registrar or minister is there, what else matters.
