Your Cheshire & Merseyside Wedding - Sep/Oct 2019 (Issue 47)

REAL WEDDINGS 33 S ophie and Jordan were just teenagers when they met working for a high street retailer. Sophie says, “Jordan was one of the first people I spoke to. He was constantly making me laugh as well as being friendly and very handsome!” Jordan remembers, “I was immediately attracted to Soph, she was just so beautiful! I asked to take her on a date, which couldn’t have gone any better. The rest is history.” For their sixth anniversary Jordan surprised Sophie with a once- in-a-lifetime trip to Italy, visiting Milan, Lake Garda and Venice. On a balcony overlooking the lake in Malcesine, Jordan dropped to one knee and recited a heartfelt speech he’d prepared before asking Sophie to marry him. “I cried for hours,” she remembers, “I was so surprised! I fell completely in love with my beautiful ring and the proposal was more than I could ever have wished for.” The couple came across Colshaw Hall online when searching for an exclusive-use venue. Sophie explains, “Being a 45 minute journey from Liverpool, we were concerned it might be too far for our friends and family to travel, but as soon as we saw it, we fell in love. The staff are lovely, the grounds are stunning and the house is out of this world! Plus, the fact that our nearest and dearest could stay with us on-site was amazing. We didn’t see anywhere else after that we just went ahead and booked!” Here, the bride shares more memories about their wonderful wedding day… SETTING THE SCENE As Jordan has Chinese heritage the pair wanted to give a nod to his roots in their styling. Sophie says, “We decided to opt for custom fortune cookies with a thank you message inside from Mr & Mrs Woo. We placed them in mini takeaway boxes and our guests loved them.” The gorgeous table plan by Paper Doll had a white lace background layered with black and white card, and faux flowers. The company also produced the couple’s stationery including table names, welcome board and the beautiful invitations. Sophie is a big lover of candles so the centrepieces were an easy choice. Candelabra adorned with blooms decorated some tables while glass vases and domes of flowers sat on others. The bride says, “White blossom trees were dressed with hanging candles, which we used to drape over the top table to create a canopy. It was very much a romantic theme.” Also bringing the reception space to life were illuminated initials, a fitting background for the first dance photos, and a gorgeous flower wall for some selfie snaps. Flowers were a crucial part of the day. Sophie explains, “I’m obsessed with fresh flowers, they’re something I always have in the house, so they were going to be an important part of the décor for me.” They decided on white blooms, using hydrangeas, avalanche and spray roses, antirrhinum, dill, double veronica, double lisanthus and eucalyptus in various combinations to create the centrepieces, bouquets and buttonholes. “Jordan’s buttonhole had all the elements of my bouquet, which I loved,” Sophie says. The big-day bake was an impressive four tiers with a different flavour for each: lemon, raspberry and white chocolate, salted caramel, and a vegan cherry bakewell tier for the bride. It was decorated with the couple’s initials and the Chinese symbol for double happiness, traditional at weddings. Keen to do something different for the table names, as an act 