15 September 2023 at Hampden House, Buckinghamshire
How did you meet?
We were part of the same friendship group for a few years before we started dating. Some of our friends take full credit for us getting together and eventually getting married.
Who proposed?
Lloyd proposed alongside a beautiful and peaceful canal in Venice in November 2021. It was magical.
Did you have a theme for the wedding and why?
My Grandad is Italian, so Italy has always had a special place in my heart. We’ve holidayed there a lot and it became even more significant when we got engaged in Venice. We originally wanted to get married in Italy but due to logistics we opted for an Italian themed wedding close to home.
Did you already know the style of dress you wanted?
I always wanted a princess dress and long veil with a bit of drama. If you can’t go all out on your wedding day when can you?!
Where did you find your chosen outfits?
I went to White Lace and Butterflies bridal boutique and was absolutely spoilt for choice with so many stunning dresses. Everyone cried when I tried on this dress so I just knew it was the one! We came across Healy and Son at a wedding fair and Lloyd instantly loved the velvet teal dinner jacket.
Who was in your wedding party?
We had my maid of honour, Lloyd’s best man, three bridesmaids and six groomsmen.
And, who created the floral arrangements?
Our family friend Hilary created our gorgeous flowers and was also a guest on the day. The only flowers we requested to be included were roses, otherwise we let Hilary choose seasonal flowers that fit with our colour scheme.
Tell us about your ceremony.
We kept our ceremony quite simple and short, but it was beautiful. Unity String Quartet played classical versions of modern songs throughout the ceremony and drinks reception – think Bridgerton vibes – which fit so well with the venue.
Where did the reception take place?
Both the ceremony and reception were held at Hampden House, a stunning country house in the Chiltern Hills. We got married in the great hall, had our drinks reception on the terrace and our wedding breakfast in the gorgeous dining room. In the evening they have a separate bar and room for the DJ and dancefloor.
How did you decorate the space?
Our tables were named after places we’ve been to together in Italy, with Venice of course being the top table. We then chose to have wine charms with our guest names on as an alternative to name places and guests could take these home.
What was the menu?
Running with the Italian theme, our fantastic caterer, Rachel’s Event Catering, created an amazing antipasti grazing table for guests during the drinks reception, accompanied by limoncello spritz, prosecco and Peroni, of course. Our main course was carve-at-the-table porchetta, with the designated carvers at each table being given an apron for some added theatre. This was followed by a dessert table with lots of mini desserts so guests could try a few – we could never have decided on one anyway. In the evening we had a pizza van serving traditional Neapolitan pizzas that went down a treat!
Tell us about your cake and who created it.
My Gran made our amazing wedding cake, including the sugar-craft roses which was so special.
Did you have wedding favours?
As well as the wine charms, we had traditional Italian bonbonnieres with sugared almonds in white cut-out boxes and burgundy ribbon to tie in with the colour scheme,.
What music and entertainment did you have – and what was your first dance?
Rob Lawes Entertainment was our DJ, and we were able to add the songs requested by our guests on their RSVPs. Our first dance was Classic by MKTO; we wanted something more light-hearted and fun that we could really dance along to.
We had giant foam glowsticks and heart shaped sunglasses given out to our guests just before the first dance, which were so fun on the dancefloor and looked fab in the photos. Our photographer Marcus even made us an amazing reel with the sunglasses photos.
Where did you spend your wedding night?
At the Crazy Bear in Beaconsfield.
Where did you go for your honeymoon?
We went to Bora Bora which was the most incredible place we’ve ever been; a once in a lifetime trip and the perfect honeymoon destination.
Do you have any tips other brides and grooms-to-be?
It’s your day. Don’t stress about what would please your guests. Tailor it to what you want, not what you think your friends and family will like.
If we could do it all again, we’d…
End it later! The day absolutely flies by, so we wish we’d had more time on the dancefloor at the end of the night.
Suppliers:
- Venue – Hampden House Weddings hampdenweddings.com
- Photographer – Marcus Charter Weddings marcuscharterphotography.co.uk
- Catering – Rachel’s Event Catering rachelseventcatering.co.uk
- Dress Boutique – White Lace and Butterflies whitelaceandbutterflies.co.uk
- Dress Designer – House of Savin houseofsavin.com
- Dress Alterations – The Modiste themodiste.co.uk
- Hair – Wedlock Hair wedlockhair.co.uk
- Makeup – Laura Carroll Makeup Artistry laurcacarroll.co.uk
- Suits – Healy and Son healyandson.com
- Evening Food – Knead Pizza knead.pizza
- Music – Unity String Quartet unitystringquartet.co.uk
- DJ – Rob Lawes Entertainment roblawesentertainments.com
- Rings – Lover’s Rock Diamonds loversrockdiamonds.co.uk
