TWO’S COMPANY Laura couldn’t decide on one wedding dress – so went for two! “My first gown was the Courtney design by Pronovias, which I teamed with a cathedral-length veil and floral hair pins that matched the detailing in the back of the dress,” says the bride. “After the wedding breakfast I changed into a second gown, the Alanis from the Enzoani Love collection. This was a sexy version of the ceremony dress, if ever there was one! My hair and make-up artist stayed on site until after I had changed, and was able to glam up my make-up for a more evening party feel. I also changed my hairstyle to a more relaxed Hollywood curl ’do, with a Swarovski clip to one side. I completed my look with an aquamarine single stone necklace and bracelet from Tiffany’s, and had a ring made to wear on my right hand which encapsulated some fur from our late dog, in a sapphire blue resin as my something blue.” Laura had long dreamt of being able to say, ‘I Choo’, having looked at a pair of Jimmy Choos online for months. “They were aptly called Josefine, similar to our daughter’s name, so it felt like fate,” continues the bride. “The only problem was that they were permanently out of stock in my size! In the end I bought two pairs of shoes from Dune, with a heeled style for the day and a flat version for the evening. Mike, however, being the true gentleman that I’d met four years earlier, was not going to let me have our big day without my shoes, presenting me one evening with the very last pair of Josefines in the country, which he’d sourced from Jimmy Choo in Manchester. The only condition was that I wore them solely for our ceremony, and that they were to then be put away to hand down to our daughter, Josephine, one day.” ALL DRESSED UP The rest of the wedding party looked equally as stunning, with Laura’s older bridesmaids in pale blue Finley gowns from Tiffanys. “The dresses had a knee-length split and small spaghetti straps with additional Bardot sleeves and sweetheart necklines with diamanté waistband,” says Laura. “A more age-appropriate junior version of the dress was made for our junior bridesmaid, and I also had my daughter and niece as flower girls. As they were both only eight months old, they wore custom-made ivory dresses with satin top, lace bottom and large bow to the back, with floral hair bands.” Mike, meanwhile, went to Savile Row for his bespoke three-piece suit. “Pale blue in colour, it had a personalised lining as well as matching monograms on the cuffs of his shirt. His tie and pocket square were also custom-made, monogrammed in Wedgewood blue by Mrs Bow Tie; while his tie clip displayed the date of our wedding in Roman numerals. He even had sterling silver collar stiffeners with each of our children’s names on, all of which was complemented with a brown pair of Christian Louboutin Greggos, plus matching belt.” The couple’s son, Mikey, stood in as best man, wearing a bespoke suit to match his dad’s. “Both of our fathers and Mike’s best friend, Martin, were groomsmen, wearing plain navy blue suits with matching Wedgwood blue ties. They stood in to make the speech on behalf of our son – which saved our guests hearing how many cars Mikey had seen! Martin’s speech was fantastic, capturing moments we’ve had in Mikey’s lifetime, but told through our little boy’s eyes. It was so fitting for the cheeky little monster sat next to his dad at the top table!” EAT, DRINK & BE MERRY Ensuring their guests’ glasses were topped up was important to Laura and Mike’s day. “Gosfield Hall boasts a well-equipped bar for both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, while we also selected red, white and rose wine to be served throughout the wedding breakfast,” says Laura. “We also had a plentiful supply of our favourite Champagne for toasts and speeches, which was then set up after the ceremony as a Champagne serving station, for guests to go and get a top-up as they liked. Being a summer wedding, and with most guests enjoying the outside space, this was later changed into a tea, coffee and hot chocolate station, to warm everyone up.” At the bottom of the stairs stood the couple’s wedding cake, a four-tier creation covered in Wedgwood blue icing and decorated with intricate gold vine, along with sugar crafted leaves and ivory sugar flowers. 39 REAL WEDDINGS
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