SMALL WEDDING IN RYE

 

 

 

 

How did you two meet and get engaged?

Ian and I met at work in 2007. I’d liked him for a while, and had it on good authority that he liked me too. In the end I thought, what have I got to lose, so I ended up asking him out. Having a family was more of a priority for us than getting married, and has been a long standing family joke since Ian announced in 2010, ‘If The Stone Roses ever get back together, we’ll get married’. Following their acrimonious split in 1996, The Stone Roses officially reformed on the 18th October 2011. Ten years, two children, two mortgages and a Stone Roses comeback tour since we first met, Ian proposed on Christmas Day 2017. It was a very relaxed affair as is Ian’s style, but was utterly perfect and a complete surprise.

The dress and the look

Both of us really like the fashion and music of the 1960s so we wanted to subtly weave a bit of that era into our wedding look. 

I’d seen a wedding photo of Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg and loved the simplicity of her classic all over lace/crochet dress. Having two young children, comfort and simplicity was an important consideration for me. I wanted to be able to cuddle and hold them on my wedding day without being restricted by my dress. 

Indiebride London was the second boutique I’d visited but I knew as soon as I walked in that I’d find my dress that day. I tried on around five dresses on the day but Cecile was the front runner from the start. The detailing, feel and flow of the dress was so gorgeous and everything I’d hoped for in my wedding dress. What made Cecile even more special was that the lace was made in Nottingham, where Ian is from, and the dress is designed and made in London where I was born and grew up. 

From the first visit to delivery of my dress, Miina made it a dream and I loved the entire process. The first visit was like Christmas as there were so many beautiful dresses to try on, but the fittings were very focused, with Miina offering lots of good advice on the fit and length of the dress. Despite all of my fittings happening throughout the pandemic everything was so relaxed and easy. My bridesmaid Ellie came with me each time and we loved chatting with Miina about the provenance of the fabrics, the dress designs and inspirations and of course the wedding plans. 

It was very important for both Ellie and I to have natural hair and make up as we wanted to look like us on the day. The very talented Helen Lee did our make up and Kerry at The Knott Hair & Beauty did our hair. I wore the Sofia tiara from Howling Moon and Ellie wore the matching hair comb. I wore white leather block heeled court shoes from Other Stories in keeping with the Sixties look.

 

The groom's outfit

Ian chose a brown/grey harris tweed suit from House of Cavani and Crockett & Jones tan brogues. To keep with the colour scheme he wore a claret silk tie from Hawes & Curtis.

Venue

We held our ceremony at Rye Town Hall, followed by a family meal at The Mermaid Inn which was a short walk away. When you get married at Rye Town Hall you have the option to have the Town Crier attend. Due to Covid-19 restrictions he was not allowed to ‘cry’ on the day but he did accompany us and our guests on the walk to The Mermaid Inn, ringing his bell. It was a magical
experience and we felt like film stars as people cheered and clapped as we passed. We chose Rye as the location for our wedding as it was one of the first places Ian and I went on holiday together, and we just love the town, it’s history and quirkiness.

Decor

We didn’t have a specific theme to our wedding, I wanted it to be all about the flowers and colours. I wanted the flowers to have a dramatic autumnal feel to reflect the time of year, and also to reflect Ian and I as a couple; to be quirky yet natural, and to incorporate scented roses and rosemary so that we would take the scent away as a memory of our wedding day. We chose Caroline at Wild Rubus for the flowers whose style embodied everything I wanted for the
flowers and who I trusted emphatically.

Food and cake

Due to Covid-19 restrictions we scaled back our reception and had an intimate and relaxed family meal at The Mermaid Inn after the ceremony. Accompanied by plenty of the local sparkling wine.

Entertainment

Talking and laughing, with early Elton John tunes playing in the background (until my brother commandeered Ian’s speaker).

Photography and videography

We chose Matilda Delves as our wedding photographer for her natural, documentary style. Ian and I do not like the camera at the best of times but Matilda captured our day perfectly. We both remember smiling and laughing constantly throughout the day and Matilda has captured that perfectly in our photos. We just can’t stop looking at them and remembering how great the day
was, and how special it was to spend time with our family, some of whom we hadn’t seen for almost a year due to Covid-19.

Was there anything that went wrong and how did you deal with it?

Ian and I had always planned to have an intimate ceremony at Rye Town Hall with only our immediate family and close friends attending, 12 guests in total. This would be immediately followed by a big party at the Gallivant in Camber for close to 100 family and friends. 

Covid-19 scuppered the party, but we saw no reason not to go ahead with the ceremony as planned. It was of course very upsetting at the time when we realised we were not going to have the wedding we’d planned for. There were plenty of tears and frantic emails and phone calls to suppliers, but once that was all dealt with we realised that what was most important to us was getting married, not the party. Having always felt that marriage was not a priority, now it meant more to us than we could ever have thought. Our suppliers were so supportive, attentive and encouraging of us going ahead, that it made the lead up to our special day very easy, and allowed us to truly get excited despite being in the middle of a global pandemic. 

The day was more than we could have ever imagined or hoped for. For one day, we stepped out of reality and entered the most magical and unique moment with our family and close friends.

Apart from saying "yes" to your husband, what was your favourite part of your wedding?

The next most special moment was when I was sitting at the front of the ceremony room with Ian waiting for our guests to enter. Our two young sons walked in, sat down and looked at me, their faces in awe. They had of course never seen me looking as I did that day. They both couldn’t stop grinning and sat impeccably throughout the service. My heart was bursting with love and pride for them.

What advice would you give to brides who are still planning their wedding?

Obviously it is down to personal choice, but for those teetering on whether they should go ahead with an intimate ceremony now and party large later due to Covid-19, I would say go for it. Our wedding day was a very unique and special experience. It became solely about our union. Our suppliers were incredibly flexible, supportive and creative which made our process quite straightforward. I think most suppliers have to work this way now and they honestly want you to have the best day ever. 

 

- Laura -