Katie and Ben met via an online dating app. “I was attracted to Katie’s eyes and smile,” Ben tells us. “After our first date, it was love at first sight for me!” Katie was attracted to Ben and found him an interesting person to talk to. “I was excited to see where our relationship would go,” she says. The couple became engaged when Ben proposed to Katie on 4th April 2021. “It was at Carn Marth,” Katie tells us. “Ben suggested going for a walk there and said he was going to take his wetsuit and enjoy for a swim. We found a spot to sit with our two-month-old son and Ben asked me whether I thought he could touch the bottom of the lake before taking a dip. When he reached the middle of the lake, he dived under the water. When he came back up, he told me that he had found something and swam over to the side where I was sitting. He got out of the water with something in his hand and before I could see what it was, he was down on one knee with an engagement ring! I burst into tears and said ‘yes’ and it turns out that Ben had sneaked the ring into the water on his baby finger and nervously swam with it, hoping it wouldn’t fall off!” Ben adds, “I was a bit embarrassed when Katie started crying and screaming at the side of the water when other people were quietly fishing!” SETTING THE SCENE Katie and Ben loved the Kehelland Trust in Cornwall because it offered a mostly outdoor venue, surrounded by nature that would give their wedding a wild and authentic atmosphere. “We liked the fact that it was a blank canvas that we could make our own, but it didn’t need too much styling because it was already naturally beautiful,” the couple tell us. “It supports a local trust providing social and therapeutic horticulture tasks for adults with learning and physical disabilities which was a positive factor.” On the day, Katie, her dad and her bridesmaids arrived at the venue in a VW Campervan called Lola. The couple’s ceremony was a memorable moment for both of them. “Watching Katie walk up the aisle in the apple orchard with her dad was an amazing moment,” Ben says. “There was a buzzard circling overhead at that point and I had the feeling that this was exactly where I was meant to be.” Katie adds, “Watching our two sons Mawgan, aged nine and Jory, aged one coming up the aisle together was something I’ll never forget. Mawgan pulled Jory along in a wooden cart which we made from reclaimed wood.” The couple’s summer wedding enjoyed a laid-back vibe with no formal sit-down meal and was decorated with a pretty pastel theme. “We enjoyed a buffet during the day and Cornish pasties in the evening and our guests were invited to bring their own alcohol,” Katie explains. “We strung bunting everywhere and had a crisp wall made by my mum, Julie, which went down a storm! All of our signage was handmade by myself and Ben using recycled wood from a pallet. Our guest board was handmade by Ben and is an amazing keepsake instead of a traditional guest book - we also made the photo booth out of recycled pallets.” The couple chose wildflower seeds wrapped in individual brown envelopes with their own stamp on them as favours. “We placed them in a wooden wheelbarrow with a sign that said take one and watch love grow. We chose wildflowers in pink, green and purple as our flower 39 REAL WEDDINGS
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