Stacey and Paul Real Life The Royal Hotel in Scunthorpe Wedding

When was your wedding?

11th July 2008

How and when did you meet?

We met at a mutual friends New Years Eve party in 2004. We saw each other across the room and knew we were meant to be together! That sounds cheesy and like such a cliché!

How old are you both?

I’m 22 and Paul is 28. I was 18 when we met and Paul was 24.

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

He proposed at his mum’s house in his bedroom, a week after Valentine’s Day in 2005! He did the traditional thing, got down on one knee, I said yes!

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

I went out in Leeds with some of my friends, we travelled in style in a limo bus, with champagne and everything! We had a Pink Ladies theme! Paul went to Cleethorpes with some of his friends. They went go-karting in the day-time then out drinking in the night-time! They also went out round our home town of Scunthorpe the night before the wedding!

How did your groom help with the wedding planning?

He did most of the ringing up and running around! I don’t think I’d let him do anything else! He took everything to the reception venue the day before the wedding.

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

I used it so much, you can see by my post count! I used the Bride & Groom forum a lot, the girls on there are so helpful! I also used the planning pages, and other tools such as the ‘to do list’.

Tell us about your outfit, and where you bought it

I bought my whole outfit, apart from my underwear, off ebay! I had 3 dresses before I chose my final one, about 3 weeks before the wedding! It was a long pink satin ballgown type dress, with a v-neck front and back, brand new from Next. My tiara and necklace were made up of diamante hearts, my bracelet was two rows of diamantes. My shoes were kept to the theme, ivory pointed toes with a small heel and diamante heart detail to them on the front.

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

I had 4 bridesmaids. One was my best friend of 18 years, one was one of my best school friends of 10 years, one was one of my best friends from Uni, and one was my younger step-sister. They all wore silver satin knee-length dresses by Nicholas Millington, with pleat detail. Their dresses actually cost more each than mine did! They also wore silver headbands with diamante heart detail, which matched my tiara, and diamante necklace and earrings, which were all a gift. They all wore their own silver shoes.

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

Paul chose his brother for his best man, and my younger step-brother for his mini-usher! They all wore black Prince Edward suits from Greenwoods. They all wore a pink waistcoat, Paul had a pink ruche and handkerchief, the best man and mini-usher had a silver ruche and handkerchief.

Did you have a civil or religious ceremony?

We had a civil ceremony, and it was beautiful, I will never forget it.

Where did you hold your ceremony?

It was held at Scunthorpe Register Office.

Where did you hold your reception?

We held our reception at The Royal Hotel in Scunthorpe, who made the rest of our day so perfect and unforgettable.

Did you have any special wedding transport?

We had a 1930’s Rolls Royce Wraith, which was absolutely gorgeous.

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

We had 36 guests during the day, so it was quite intimate. We invited an extra 70 or so to the evening, but not all those who had replied yes turned up! We still had a good night though!

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

Yes! The colour scheme was pink, silver and ivory/white. It also included lots of hearts and sparkle! It was very girly!

How did you incorporate this in to your table settings?

We had medium sized hurricane vases, with pink church style candles inside them and white decorative sand in the bottom. These were placed on small circular mirrors, which had 4 clear candle votives around them with white candles inside. We sprinkled small pink diamante crystals on the mirrors, and iridescent pink heart confetti on the tables.

Did you give your guests favours?

Yes. We gave the females miniature bottles of Baileys, with pink and white heart shaped chocolate dragees and a Cancer Research trolley token. These were all placed inside pink organza favour bags. We gave the males miniature bottles of Jack Daniels and mini Toblerones. These were placed inside silver organza favour bags.

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

We had artificial flowers, all of them roses. I carried a pink rose posy bouquet, with a diamante chain detail, which was absolutely gorgeous. My bridesmaids carried a smaller version of mine but made with ivory roses. The female corsages were one pink and one ivory rose, with a diamante in each and finished with silver ribbon. The male buttonholes were one ivory rose; the groom and best man’s had a diamante in them. Our top table display was made of pink and ivory roses with random diamantes in them, and greenery. We got all the flowers from Sarah’s Flowers.

What did you choose to have on your menu? Did you have an outside caterer or did your venue handle the catering?

Our venue handled the catering for us. We decided to go for the ‘Royal Carved Buffet’. The starter was Tomato and Fresh Coriander Soup. The main course consisted of Roast Sirloin of Beef, Honey Glazed Baked Ham, Whole Roast Turkey with Stuffing, and Poached and Dressed Salmon. These were served with a selection of potatoes, pasta, salads and rice and dressings. The dessert was Apple Lattice Dessert with pouring cream. We also had tea and coffee after the meal, as well as wine for the meal and toast.

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

Paul’s god-mother made two fruit cakes for us, and my mum made our cupcakes. We had a cupcake stand with a small fruitcake on top, a larger one on the bottom, and cupcakes in between. They were iced with white icing, the fruit cakes had pink ribbon around them, and the cupcakes had pink and white hearts on them. We had a pink heart cake topper on the top cake.

Did you have any entertainment during the day or evening?

We didn’t have any entertainment during the day, but during the evening we had a disco, karaoke and a sweet shop, which went down a treat! Excuse the pun.

Did you have a gift list? If so, who did you have your list with?

We had two gift lists, one with Argos and one with Amazon.

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

We spent our first night in our reception hotel, which was included as part of our wedding package. We went on a mini cruise to Bruges for our minimoon, which was booked with P & O Ferries.

What was your most memorable moment of the day?

All of it was memorable, but the best part was walking in the Register Office and seeing all my family there, and my hubby standing at the end of the aisle waiting for me.

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

Yes! The night before the wedding it was raining, and hubby was leaving for the final time, but he had forgotten the CD for the register office, so I went running out the door after him, slipped in the wet, and fell flat on my face! Luckily I didn’t break anything! Although I had a big scrape down my stomach and elbow and bruises all over! And I was ironing my dress the night before, and the iron leaked water all over it; my mum said just leave it to dry until the morning and it will be ok. In the morning, it had a big patch on it and you could clearly see it, so we were running around putting it in the washing machine on cool, drying it and ironing it! We were getting married at 12! Also, just before the car came to pick me and my dad up, I spilt a glass of water down my dress, so my dad was on his knees with the hairdryer, drying it!

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

I don’t think I would do anything differently, the whole day was the most perfect day and amazing. I’d say to other brides, don’t worry about the weather, there’s nothing you can do about it! It rained on us, but it was quite funny and we hardly even worried about it! Also, get your friends and family to rally round and help you, it will save a lot of stress and money!