Sionedwyn and Dave
29/07/2006 – Gower Golf Club in Three Crosses, Swansea
How and when did you meet?
We were both living in Aberystwyth (I was a student and Dave was working) when we went to the cinema with mutual friends. We got on really well. I even shared my ice cream with him, then two weeks later we met up again and finally got together!
How old are you both?
I’m 24 and Dave is 28.
Where, when and how did he (or you!) propose?
I managed to get two proposals out of him! The first wasn’t romantic at all! He came back from shopping at Tesco, I was watching telly in my dressing gown and he just went down on one knee, produced this cheap Argos ring and asked! I, obviously, said yes, and then after we had chosen my engagement ring, he took me up to Castell Carreg Cennen, a local castle that’s a favourite place of mine, to propose once again – so I got the romantic proposal I wanted as well!
Did you have hen and stag celebrations? If so, what did you do?
Of course! We both went to Bath on separate weekends.
Dave went with around 18 of his mates and did nothing but sit in pubs all weekend! I went with 20 of my friends – we went to do some combat games (laser paint balling), then had a river boat cruise and then we went out – me dressed as snow white and the girls as my 20 dwarfs!
How did your groom help with the wedding planning?
Dave was brilliant with the planning. We made all the decisions together – although mostly it was me making the decision and him agreeing with me!
He’s really good with computer things as well so that helped massively when we were making the invitations/order of service/table plan!
Did you use confetti to plan your wedding? If so, how did the website help you?
I was on the message boards every day and the other girls’ advice was invaluable.I also read a lot of the articles and had a look at dresses.
Did you buy any confetti products for your wedding? If so, did you visit a store, buy online or by mail order?
I bought some bubbles online as there are no shops in my area unfortunately!
Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it
.
My dress was a Pronovias design called Adriatico. I loved, loved, loved it and knew straight away when I put it on that it was ‘The One’! I bought it from Allison Jayne in Swansea. My gorgeous veil came from Divine Brides. My hair pieces were made especially and my sparkly shoes were from Dune.
Did you have bridesmaids? If so, who did you choose and what did they wear?
I had four bridesmaids – my sister, my sister-in-law and my two best mates. They were all fab in the run-up and always willing to help! They wore 3/4 length hot pink dresses from Dessy, hair clips made by Rhapsody in Swansea and shoes from Dune.
Who did your groom choose for his best man and ushers, and what did they wear?
Dave’s best man was his best mate, and our ushers were his two brothers and my brother-in-law. They all wore Black Prince Edward suits with ivory waistcoats and cravats – Dave had a baby pink cravat to look different.
Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?
We had a civil ceremony, and this meant we could really personalise it. We wrote our own vows, we had two readings and a song and two family friends played guitar and flute when I walked in, during the signing of the register and for walking out.
Where did you hold your ceremony?
It was held in the same place as the reception.
Where did you hold your reception?
In the Gower Golf Club in Three Crosses, Swansea – a lovely place! The staff was so helpful and everything went brilliantly – no hitches at all!
Did you have any special wedding transport?
We hired a limo to take my parents, my bridesmaids and me from my parents’ house to the venue (an hours’ drive). It was great that we all shared a car because it was quite a long journey!
How many guests did you invite to your wedding, and did you have a separate evening guest list?
We had 80 guests in the day and another 50 came in the evening. It was a nice number. We managed to speak to everyone who came and it didn’t feel crowded at all.
Did your reception have a particular theme in terms of colour or style?
Our theme was ‘fun party’ and I think we managed it quite well! We also had a colour theme of hot pink, baby pink and lime – which worked fab as well!
How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?
We had bowls of sweets as table centres which had everyone mixing and swapping sweets! We used ribbon matching the colour scheme around the love spoon favours and used it on the table names as well.
Did you give your guests favours?
Yes – the women received a Welsh Love spoon and a Breast Cancer pin and the men received a fortune telling fish! We also made the place names out of stones from Aberystwyth beach which most people took home!
Describe your flowers (bouquets and table decorations). Who was your florist?
My bouquet was hand-held and made with pink gerberas, purple delphinium, lime pod chrysanthemum and lime berries with eucalyptus as foliage! The bridesmaids had corsages made from the same flowers and the men’s buttonholes were pink gerberas. The mothers had white orchid corsages on their handbags. We had two bay trees with gerbera heads at the top of the aisle (then moved to either side of the top table during reception) and two arrangements on the top table. We didn’t have any flowers on the tables.
What did you choose to have on your menu? Did you have an outside caterer or did your venue handle the catering?
The starter was either melon or a baked brie tart.Main was lamb with leek gravy or a mushroom tart and dessert was a brandy snap basket with strawberries and ice cream.
What did you choose for your wedding cake, and who made it?
Dave’s godmother made our fantastic cake which was 100 individual square cakes, with a larger cake on the top tier, which we are keeping as per the tradition. They were chocolate or vanilla sponge, iced white with pink/lime/purple dots on them to go with the colour scheme and the invitation design.
Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?
We had a disco in the evening by a family friend!
Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?
We set up our gift list with Debenhams who have been great!
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon? Who did you book your honeymoon with?
We spent our first night at the venue, our second night at the Morgans Hotel – a posh hotel in Swansea—and then jetted off to Kenya for a two week holiday, part safari, part beach holiday! It was amazing and an unforgettable experience!
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
Saying our personal vows to each other. We had spent so long writing them and it was definitely worth it. I cried during mine and they just meant so much to us. I’ll never forget that bit. But, the whole day was amazing – it just went too fast!
Did you experience any ‘nightmare’ moments in the run up to your wedding or on the day?
Not really! There were little hiccups, but nothing major – I think we were relatively lucky!
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
I wouldn’t change a thing about my day – except for our horrible registrar maybe!My advice is to enjoy it – it goes so fast so take it all in and don’t complain! Remember to smile all the time as well. You never know who’s taking a picture of you!
