Your Sussex Wedding - Dec/Jan 2019 (Issue 82)

REAL WEDDINGS 37  “M aria asked her friend about me the moment she first saw me. Despite being told I wasn’t looking to date anyone at the time, she then went on to wager a crate of wine that she’d be able to charm me,” Jessica says of the pair’s initial encounter on a night out with mutual friends. We’re pleased to report that after several months Maria’s charms did indeed win Jessica over, “combined with her humour, intelligence, obvious beauty, and dance moves,” she recalls.  Fast forward to Maria’s 30 th  birthday, for which a big party had been organised at The Counting House in Eastbourne. Unbeknown to her, Jessica had also arranged a special treasure hunt as a daytime activity. Each clue led her to a location in the town that held special meaning for the couple and at each, they’d collect another friend or family member. The final clue led to Gildredge Park where the pair walk their dog, Saffy, and as Maria discovered their beloved pet she scooped her up giving her a big hug. A few anxious moments passed while they waited for her to notice the little bag attached to the canine’s collar containing the engagement ring! Jessica remembers, “After what seemed like an age, our friends shouted at me to get down on one knee, which I did as I tearfully asked Maria to marry me and she said ‘yes’!”  Read on as Jessica shares the story of their big day at Gildredge Manor on 25 th May, 2019… LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION Jessica and Maria are both huge fans of traditional listed buildings, so when they became engaged the first place they thought of that fit the bill as a venue, and already special to them was, of course, Gildredge Manor. Jessica explains, “We were completely blown away by it. The building is absolutely stunning and they’ve done an incredible renovation with fantastic attention to detail.” There was a sense of serendipity as they were presented with a recommended supplier list and it contained a number of their friends. “Everything seemed to slot into place,” Jessica says. SETTING THE SCENE The pair opted for a blue colour palette with an emphasis on navy. Their seasonal flowers were in mixed pastel shades including ice white, lilac, apricot, parchment and sky blue. The blooms of choice were dainty delphiniums, foxgloves, nigella, campanulas and lisianthuses, as well as beautifully scented varieties such as sweet peas, stocks and Margaret Merril English garden roses. The floral crown was created using white wax flowers and eucalyptus leaves with buttonholes including nigella, eryngium thistles and mixed greens. Flowers also formed the centrepieces but were otherwise kept simple with an empty wine bottle displaying each table name. The tables were also decorated with bottles of homemade elderflower gin and sloe gin labelled with a personalised sticker and coupled with a skeleton key bottle opener. An ornate mirror with twine stretched across its frame held the table plan and was illuminated with twinkling fairylights. Each table was named after one of the couple’s favourite red wines. Further atmospheric lighting came from Jessica and Maria chose a venue that meant to world to them, and enjoyed a wedding day packed with fun and laughter Images courtesy of Sarah Carmody Photography