Ellis in her Custom Jesus Peiro | Bridal Boutique Warwickshire

Well, what a whirlwind!

My now husband proposed in September 2019 – he took me back to the spot where we first met up and we reminisced. We actually ended up on a park bench next to the Thames in Putney with a couple of Corona’s (ironic) because the pubs shut early and we didn’t want the night to end there on the first “meet”. Thankfully on the night of the proposal we did end up in a pub with a bottle of champagne to celebrate afterwards!

20 months and a worldwide pandemic later, we got married!

Our wedding day was at the beautiful Bredenbury Court Barns; a fairly new venue that isn’t too well known just yet due to opening in 2019 and being shut for the majority of 2020 because of covid! The grounds are phenomenal, overlooking the Malvern Hills and the venue itself has a balance of elegance with a modern twist. It drizzled ALL morning which wasn’t ideal for our outdoor ceremony/reception plans and I was adamant not to move the day indoors due to there being restrictions of wearing masks. By some miracle, the rain cleared and sunshine appeared just in time for the ceremony and reception. As soon as we sat down indoors for our wedding breakfast the heavens opened… You really couldn’t make it up!

The feel of the day was incredible; everyone was just so happy to be able to come together after over a year of Covid restrictions! Our wedding day was three days after the wedding restrictions “eased” on 21st June, with guest limits increasing from 30 people to unlimited! To have 75 of our loved ones in the same place after a year of limited social interaction was indescribable! I think this had a huge impact on the ambience with everyone simply being happy to be in the company of others. Whilst it wasn’t a “normal” wedding and some restrictions were still in place, we wouldn’t have changed it for the world. It exceeded our expectations, especially after months of worry that it wouldn’t be the day we planned. Ben and I were blissfully happy all day and you can’t describe that feeling until you experience it!

Admittedly, I didn’t enjoy the dress shopping experience. I dreaded it from the beginning and it was made worse by mask wearing and not being able to share the experience with my bridal party! I think I’d been to SIX dress shops prior to The Bridal Boutique Warwickshire, not being able to find anything that was really “me”. It was a breath of fresh air meeting Madi and seeing her beautiful dresses. I fell in love with the Jesus Peiro range and without hesitation, made the order for my dress there and then. The crisp finish of the dress and the ability to design your own is such a refreshing twist on bridal gowns. My dress was so lightweight, even with the gorgeous train, and had the most amazing Dotty Taffeta fabric which I had requested. I was shocked by the style I had chosen as I never imagined I’d go for a high neckline! so relieved I found Madi – she was so personable compared to other bridal shops I’d been to and knowledgable about all of her gowns.

Our day was styled by the wonderful Lauradana at Wedding Creations UK. Ben and I told her our ideas and she bought it to life on the day. We had ceiling drapes, a personalised neon sign, the most beautiful cake and flowers, and a gorgeous horsebox bar outdoors!

We are grateful that our wedding date was our original date and was not postponed by the pandemic. Having said that, the stress and anxiety leading up to the announcement on 14th June is not an experience I’d wish for any bride or groom!

10 days before our wedding we were waiting to find out whether our day would go ahead, with rumours that “freedom day” was being delayed. Finally the government announced that although wedding restrictions would remain, we were able to have our full guest numbers; we felt that being able to have all of our guests far outweighed not being able to dance and so decided to go for it! We had a last minute scramble to hire trestle tables for our outdoor reception to meet the restrictions, with family having to trek to and from Melton Mowbray to collect them! The week before the wedding was panic stations because we had put off finalising certain elements in case we had to postpone!

All of our suppliers were AMAZING. To be so flexible for us with 10 days to play with must have been so difficult for them but they were so gracious and we couldn’t thank them enough!

Advice I would give to other brides and grooms would be to not get hung up on the little details! Decide what you absolutely can’t live without on the day and base your plans around that. It’s easy to lose sight of what’s important so just remind yourself often, why you’re planning the wedding in the first place!

We managed a lovely honeymoon in Mykonos after the wedding and I’m so glad we were able to get away and enjoy our wedding bubble a little longer. Normal life now resumes but as a happily married couple!