These lovebirds worked at the same company for a few years before noticing each other and becoming a couple. Ross used to leave Gem tea and toast on her desk before she got to work – making tea is his love language! After being together for several years and having a daughter in 2020, the couple decided to marry. Ross suggested ring shopping one Saturday in October, and they set off to the Jewellery Quarter in Birmingham to shop at Hockley Jewellers. Gem says, “It was the best day! I thoroughly recommend picking your own ring ladies! I went for an emerald-cut diamond on a slim gold band. We also got our wedding rings from the same jeweller.” SETTING THE SCENE The couple knew they didn’t want a big wedding but a small and intimate celebration where they could spend time with loved ones while incorporating their love of food! Their priorities were to create a fun and stress-free wedding, not sticking to traditional wedding rules they didn’t feel represented them in favour of a more relaxed, unstructured event. This included the first dance before dinner, no gifts and they expressly asked for no speeches, although they were ignored. Gem says, “We just wanted everyone to have a good time, and no one had a job to do. We wanted to thank everyone for supporting and being there for us as a couple. Planning a smaller wedding meant spending the budget on our favourite people having fun! Plus, it helped as we only had five months to plan the wedding.” Nottingham Council House is such a wonderful landmark; it’s no wonder the couple fell in love with the spaces for their ceremony, especially the beautiful stairs and ceilings. Gem comments, “Not wanting a traditional wedding venue made finding a civil ceremony setting that was beautiful and architectural tricky, but also a no-brainer when we viewed the stunning building. So, we centred the day around Nottingham. We first looked at restaurants in the city we loved but found it difficult to cater to everyone, including children we knew would want to run around and play. I first found Regency Gardens, a Regency townhouse near the city centre, on Airbnb and quickly made contact with Eliot. It was spectacularly beautiful and felt more flexible, a home away from home where we could have a fun-filled and family-friendly day. It also meant we redistributed the hotel budget to the venue, which housed 13 of us. I knew the staircase and the beautiful window would make a wonderful backdrop to the photos!” The couple had planned to set up tables for dinner in the living room, a huge panelled space with parquet flooring, but they realised fabulous weather was on the way as the day approached and set up in the beautiful garden instead. The bride came across Canva in her work and has been using it ever since for personal projects. So, she designed the stationery herself and printed it at Vistaprint. This included the table plan, invitations, save-the-dates and, of course, the cocktail menus! Everything was designed to create a cohesive look while matching the colour scheme. The flowers, including the centrepieces, were from a local florist in Loughborough – Fleurs en Fleur. The owner, Lisa, is excellent and brought Gem’s various Pinterest posts to life with peach, blue and pink blooms paired with olive sprigs for greenery and plenty of peonies. The day was so hot and humid that the poor peonies were struggling, but Lisa sent some fantastic fluffy roses as well, just in case they didn’t hold up. Luckily, the house had a very cool cellar where the pair could store the flowers overnight, and they looked beautiful. Gem added a vintage blue velvet ribbon to the bouquet to tie some of the colours together. Ross had a peachy rose buttonhole with olive sprigs to represent the eldest daughter, Olivia. The couple bought vases, wine glasses, champagne flutes, glasses, jugs, candle sticks, placemats, napkins and kids’ activity packs for the reception. They also hired tables and chairs from a local business in Leicester. A lovely touch was the wine corks place names made from bottles the lovebirds had drank over the last eight years. As avid MasterChef fans, Louisa Ellis was the pair’s first choice for catering and they booked her as quickly as possible. She provided a personalised menu of fine dining for 26 people, and the meal was just as amazing as the newlyweds thought it would be. The bride says, “Louisa just worked around the wedding day chaos, people grabbing drinks and bypassing the kitchen while presenting flawless and delicious food. She kindly left some leftover puddings in the fridge for us to snack on later! You might recognise Louisa, as she was recently on Great British Menu on BBC2 representing the East Midlands.” The pair ordered alcohol from Majestic Wine & Beer. The company will buy back full bottles that are overordered, an excellent option for those having weddings at home or in event houses. The alcohol was delivered the day before and stashed in the house’s 120-bottle wine fridge! LOOKING THE PART The bride didn’t want a traditional wedding gown and opted for two short dresses for a 39 REAL WEDDINGS
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