Your East Midlands Wedding - Page number 23 - August/September 2021 (Issue 45)

K irsty and Ryan’s love story began at a friend’s New Year’s Eve party back in 2010. She says, “Ryan was sat across the table from me and as cheesy as it sounds, I just knew there and then that I wanted to be with him. We instantly clicked and have rarely been apart since that first meeting.” Three years later, Ryan proposed to Kirsty in front of their friends at another New Year’s Eve party. He put the ring in a champagne glass, which Kirsty nearly drank, and got on one knee as midnight hit. She says, “I knew he was going to propose as we’d been ring shopping a few months earlier, but I had no idea when he would be asking and it was a huge surprise.” SETTING THE SCENE Situated in Lincolnshire, The Dower House Hotel provides couples with an elegant and intimate backdrop to their wedding. With plenty of charm and character, what venue could be better for Kirsty and Ryan’s special day? Kirsty says, “This was the only venue we visited and we fell in love with the romantic and relaxing spaces instantly – especially the outdoor area.” She adds, “Our aim for the wedding was for a fun-filled day with love and laughter, which it certainly had.” The couple added beautiful touches to the reception space; each table featured rose-gold table runners and 80cm silver candelabra with wreaths of flowers and hanging candle lanterns. Gold vinyls were used for place names and guests could find their seats using the large gold mirror decorated with stunning blooms. Each adult was given little jars with strawberry and cream pips for favours while the children had Maltesers. The Dower House created all the food for the wedding breakfast. Kirsty comments, “Everything tasted amazing and left all of our guests in a food coma for a good hour. We chose the ham hock terrine for starter, the roast sirloin of beef for main and the strawberry and lime cheesecake for dessert. The chefs were amazing and catered for guests with dietary requirements.” The venue served the cake created by The Little Cupcakery Horncastle during the evening. The bride says, “We had a hoop stand that had ivy and pink roses, white wisteria and floating glass lanterns – it was my favourite decoration.” The pink and white treat matched the colour scheme and happened to be the couple’s favourite cake ever! REAL WEDDINGS 23