brownies, blondies, cookies and muffins, “All the good things that you need when you get the midnight munchies!” adds Amy. “We still had a six-inch top tier (which we forgot to cut as we took straight to the dancefloor), that was made of white chocolate and raspberry sponge with buttercream icing. David and I were lucky to get a slice as it all went. Gorgeous Gem’s Bakery was amazing to work with, Gemma sent out tasters to David and I and also made vegan-friendly cakes for our guests. “We can honestly say that Nutfield Priory Hotel & Spa served the best food we’ve had at any wedding,” shares Amy. “We chose a sit-down, three-course dinner which started with Thai fishcakes, followed by pork with dauphinoise potatoes for mains, and a most beautiful lemon tart with lavender panna cotta for dessert – the vegetarian and vegan options were also delicious!” LOOKING THE PART Amy’s wedding dress was from a boutique called Lumi Bridal, in Hitchin. “The owner, Helen made my wedding dress experience one I will never forget,” remembers Amy. “I tried on many dresses from her shop, all different styles as I wasn’t quite sure which style I wanted to go for; but when I tried on the final dress, which had a mermaid-style skirt and lace applique bodice, I knew it was the one!” David wore a green velvet dinner jacket and white shirt with his initials stitched on the cuff, both custom-made by Jack Bunneys, “They even showed David how to tie a bowtie properly so that he could do it on the day,” adds Amy. “This was just one of those extra touches where they went above and beyond for David.” The best man, father-of-the-bride and -groom, and pageboy all wore black tuxedos hired from Jack Bunneys too. The bridesmaids complemented the colour scheme with their attire, maid-of-honour Bev wore a stunning, off-the-shoulder sage-green satin dress, while the flowergirl wore a beautiful white dress, which was almost a miniature version of the bride’s, “Everyone looked gorgeous, and all our guests had the same reaction – wow!” MAKING MEMORIES Understandably, a wedding day can feel quite surreal for a couple, “To have organised everything in less than nine months, it almost didn’t feel real,” shares Amy. “I wasn’t nervous until I started to get dressed – a few glasses of bubbles seemed to help! David felt the same but kept busy with making sure that everything was set up just as we wanted. I think he was also nervous about reading his vows as we’d decided to write our own!” David said that seeing Amy was what stood out the most on the day, “and the dogs also stole the show!” adds Amy, “they were beautifully groomed, wearing personalised sage-green bow ties and leads. They are both Pudelpointers and are also brothers; Bello is ours and Jupiter is David’s brother Paul’s dog. One of the funniest things during the ceremony, was Bello trying to sign the marriage certificate with David and me as he felt left out!” Two close friends did readings during the ceremony, David’s best friend, Callum, wrote something bespoke and heartfelt to the newlyweds, while Amy’s best friend, Danielle, did a reading called Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton. For the evening celebrations, the couple opted for a live band and DJ, “David and I had seen the band when skiing in Tignes the winter before. For music we wanted to go for an apres-ski/live gig-vibe as that’s our style. They were called UpTones and they were incredible. From the first to the last song, everyone was on the dancefloor. They did a mixture of songs from different eras and genres that we both like. “But the best part of the evening reception was when the best man (Paul, David’s brother) got up on stage and sang Park Life, by Blur. It was a complete surprise to everyone that we’d organised with the band, which they were happy to do. Paul is renown in the family for singing it, as he would sing it when he was a Seasonair in the French alps!” The DJ played into the early hours with classic dance hits. “You know it’s a good night when even the mother-of-the-bride takes her shoes off to dance!” shares Amy. REAL WEDDINGS 47
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