You give me butterflies

Posted by Kelly Andrews on 20 March 2023

Kayleigh and Haden met while working as prison officers.Together, they built a strong friendship, then further down the line this naturally blossomed into a relationship.

Haden proposed at home one day. He came into their bedroom, where Kayleigh was sitting at the time, with her daughters – Immi, three,and Leila, five. Her youngest gave Kayleigh a ring box and asked, "Will you marry Haden?" Kayleigh remembers, "It was a massive surprise and completely perfect to involve the children."

Love heart The couple chose to tie the knot at All Saints the Old Chapel in Eastbourne. "It just took our breath away as soon as we walked in. Its high ceilings, stained-glass windows and beautiful garden were just so romantic and utterly perfect for our ceremony," Kayleigh explains.

After they set the date they discovered it would be Airbourne that weekend, and knew they needed to find a reception venue that'd give them a view of the seafront and the planes! The Royal Eastbourne Golf Club was just the place.

Read on as the bride tells us more about the big day – 19th August, 2022...

Haden was staring at me during the vows and totally forgot what he was meant to be saying! It made everyone laugh when the registrar had to repeat it.

An amazing harpist played during ceremony, she gave it such a romantic vibe. Haden even convinced her to play Eye Of The Tiger as as our exit music!

Bride's Dress I found my dream dress by Allure Bridals and felt like a princess all day! Haden bought me a beautiful Vera Wang necklace to wear with it and I wore my hair up to show off the neckline and back detail of my gown.

I also had Sophia Webster Chiara heels – the most comfortable I've ever worn!

Haden wore a light grey jacket and waistcoat with black trousers. The groomsmen wore the same suits but with pink waistcoats.

We weren't worried about everyone matching completely, but they all tied in together nicely.

My bridesmaids wore grey multiway dresses. I wanted to go for something they might be able to wear again.

The flowergirls wore white and grey dresses, which they all said made them feel like princesses.

My mum and Haden booked a horse and carriage as a surprise for me. I'm a massive horse lover and it totally made my day. They we beautiful and so calm, even when our guests were making a fuss of them.

Tracey and the team at Ambers Florist are amazing! I told her I wanted roses and eucalyptus and they made the most perfect bouquets and buttonholes.

Our favours were mirrored butterflies with our names and wedding date on them, and a mini pack of personalised Love Heart sweets both in a little butterfly-shaped box.

For our centrepieces we had Martini glasses filled with roses, which sat on mirrors.

Speech The Royal Eastbourne Golf Club served a beautiful two-course meal for our wedding breakfast and we had a hog roast in the evening.

Cuckoo Cakes made three different flavoured tiers for our wedding cake and gave it a beautiful ombre effect. Everyone loved it.

Our DJ played plenty of cheesy songs that got everyone dancing. We also had a magic mirror photo booth, which everyone loved. The evening was full of relaxed fun.

Air show It was amazing to see the Red Arrows fly over and getting to watch the air show during our reception was so unique.

We went to the Ambre Hotel in Mauritius on honeymoon for a week.

Haden planned and booked the entire thing and it was absolutely incredible.

We saw grey whales, swam with wild dolphins, did a walk under the sea and went parasailing.

My top planning tip? Let the groom do it! Haden planned the majority of our wedding and it was amazing.

As long as you're happily married to the person you can't spend your life without by the end of the day, then you've done what you set out to do. Everything else is a bonus.

On a bench I can honestly say, I married my best friend. I look at the photos and in most of them I have that silly smile that you only get when you're truly happy. Blending our families officially was perfect. I knew it was right because there isn't anyone else I'd want to spend the rest of my life with.