My Very Own Real Wedding

I guess my story is almost one of a romantic fairytale, which actually sounds quite funny considering i am now in my 40's.  Like alot of women nowadays after two previous failed relationships I began to give up really on love. Then one day a friend of mine asked me to go online and check out a guy who she was about to meet off a dating site she was on. I agreed but in order to do this i would have to set up a profile. So i did, he checked out ok and i guess curiosity got the better of me so i must admit i did check out some of the guys profiles. Then one day i recieved a message from a lovely man in Australia, he was chatty and we found that he had links back here in the UK and we had a fair few things in common. Ok I thought here is a man who is far enough away to avoid anything complicated, after all he was in a different country completly over the other side of the world plus he was good company and we would pass away the day chatting for hours over nothing really lol. After about 3 months it was decided he would come over for a 3 month holiday to give us chance to get to know each other even better. Well he did, we had a great time,  I instantly realised that we had a real connection and well before long we realised we were soulmates. After hours of talking via internet and phone - gosh the bills! then me visiting him over in Australia we made plans to be together. As Sean was born in the UK there was no problem with him moving, We did discuss me moving to Australia but my daughter has an illness which meant really our options were a little restricted. So Sean moved over just over 3 years ago, we got married on 3rd July 2010 and the rest is history.

Our Venue

We both decided as this was not our first marriage we just wanted something personal, low key but had our personalities written all over it.
After spending 6 yrs in Kent prior to moving to North Yorkshire we decided that it would be the best place to hold our wedding. After all most of my friends were based down south, we had some guests flying over too so to be based not too far from the main airports was definatly a plus point. It did mean though that along with my parents we would have a 250 mile commute for our wedding. Still although it would be a challenge we knew it could work.

After looking around we found the most beautiful barn location called Ratsbury Barn

based in the Tenterden countryside it was peaceful, rustic and surrounded by fields and beautiful scenery. Perfect!! it was pretty much a blank canvass for us to put our own stamp on.

As we were on a pretty tight budget i decided to make my own menu's and save some money by making my own table decorations.

I decided as with all my flowers due to the distance we were travelling for our wedding that using real flowers would not be practical, so I decided to use foam roses and a butterfly or two to go with my theme.
The logistics of getting our home made wedding cake down to kent was interesting as it was chocolate and we were in the midst of a really hot summer. Still we got it there intact.
I was pretty lucky as i was still visiting kent for work on the odd occasion so it made talking to my chosen suppliers easier.

Theme

Our theme was pastels with pale pink, cream and lilac along with the odd butterfly here and there. To add a little of our personal touch to things I had a bouqet with some eucalyptus in and bought my husband and the best man Australian flag cufflinks so that there was an aussie touch to the day. Oh and not to mention the choice Australian music played by the DJ, such as Men at work and kylie lol.

I also put out a little sweet table, its amazing what glassware you can find in shops and charity shops, this proved a popular touch to our day

Food

To fit in with the rustic charm of the venue we opted for a kentish cream tea followed in the evening by a carvery in a roll, things went down a real treat

Bridesmaids

I had 4 bridesmaids, two of my best friends Hilary and Debbie and My neice Abi and My daughter Caitlin. The adult bridesmaids went for victorian lilac Alfred Angelo dresses and the two younger girls went for butterfly themed dresses from BHS.

The Ceremony

The Ceremony itself was beautiful, it was a kentish ceremony and we had already made pre-arranged changes to some of the vows and wordings just to make it more personal. We were joined by 40 of our closest family and friends. Unfortunatly Seans Mum had passed away prior to his move but she was with us on the day as i carried some of her worry beads in my bouquet, we knew she was pleased for us had given us her blessing.
we kept things informal mostly with just the formal touches such as the greeting line, speeches and first dance.

I cannot repeat some of the suggestions that were made about tying me to the anchor and dropping it in lake

I really enjoyed my wedding day, we did things our way, it was relaxed and we managed to get around and spend time with all our guests. If i could change anything it would be to add a bit more flair to my candy table and maybe have the cake made by someone nearer to my wedding destination as it was a very stressful affair for my mother who not only made it but transported it.

 On the whole our day was everything we hoped it would be.

My Tip

As we had alot of outdoor space we took along some garden games such as noughts and crosses and giant pick up sticks even outdoor chess is good fun. It gives guests something else to do and they are relativly inexpensive to purchase.
As our wedding was around the world cup we also took the opportunity to play football and we had some amazing shots of us all running around in our finery, even something that small made our day memorable.

Finally I must say that my day wouldnt have been what it was without the help and support of my wonderful family and friends.

My dad and his friend did a great job of the wedding photography and dvd for us, they did a really professional job.

flowers by www.sarahsflowers.co.uk

Venue : http://ratsbury.com/