Sam and Matt first met online and after a few dates, everything started to fall into place. Sam says, “We had dinner at Matt’s before I drove us to the cinema to see the remake of the Star Wars franchise. A Madonna track came on in the car and Matt thought, ‘wow this guy has taste’.” Matt proposed while the pair was on holiday in Las Vegas. Initially, he wanted to pop the question on the first night while having dinner, but he hadn’t accounted for the jet lag, time difference and the seven glasses each of champagne. The next intimate opportunity was after a Cher concert. Sam comments, “I had got the event’s start time wrong, so the evening mood wasn’t great when we turned up and Cher was finishing the last few songs. While watching the performance, Matt had disappeared behind me and reappeared on one knee. He had to ask if I was okay as I cried a lot and if it was a yes or no – of course, I said yes!” SETTING THE SCENE When it came to creating their dream wedding, the couple wanted to enjoy the run-up to the day as much as possible. Sam says, “We were always told that the day is over in a flash, so we wanted the planning experience to be as fun and memorable as the big day. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and our wedding being postponed, it gave us another year of planning.” After searching around Hertfordshire for a venue, the couple couldn’t settle on one particular space. Sam says, “We found some properties to be restrictive and very centred around brides. When a family friend suggested using the grounds of her house for our day, we jumped at the opportunity to create a bespoke wedding from scratch. Two days before the big day, the couple set up the marquee and decorated the spaces – they couldn’t wait to show their loved ones! Sam says, “We bought apple crate boxes from a local garden centre and had our florist create amazing tall centrepieces, which allowed our guests to see each other easily.” Green and white foliage was featured throughout the wedding, including in the stationery and the pair’s buttonholes. Inside the marquee, the pair wanted the middle support pole to have a large round bar and a hanging wreath to create a real focal point. Guests were given hand sanitisers for favours and scratch cards, which they all did at the same time for some added fun. For the wedding breakfast, loved ones enjoyed a delicious roast dinner. A member of each table carved the meat, and people could help themselves to as little or as much as they liked. Sam says, “We had commemorative aprons made for those carving the meets to keep their outfits clean and to take home as a memento.” He adds, “We both love the canapés served during the drinks reception, there was lots of various dishes constantly flowing.” The couple wanted a showstopping dish for dessert and opted for a coquembouche for each table to enjoy. The couple served an elegant cake in the evening. Sam says, “We both wanted to keep the design visually classic, while focusing more on the flavours. Taking our parents to the cake tasting session was one of our most funniest moments throughout the planning experience; getting everyone’s opinion meant a lot to us.” LOOKING THE PART Every couple wants to look amazing on their wedding day and with a bit of help from the experts, Sam and Matt looked incredible. Sam comments, “We have a friend who styles people for award shows and red-carpet events. He kindly offered to help us find our suits, and we all went shopping together in London.” He adds, “Keeping it in mind that we wanted a classic look, we found our suits in Reiss and Matt got a waistcoat from Moss Bros.” Before the wedding, the grooms-to-be found a new aftershave to wear on the special day. They could wear this in the future to remind them of such a special occasion. REAL WEDDING 25
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