English and Australian traditions meet for this travel-themed big day…
The proposal
“We’d gone to Australia to visit Mike’s family and were coming towards the end of our trip,” remembers Laura. “Mike lives really near to a gorgeous beach, so I wasn’t that surprised when he suggested we go at sunset to toast the end of our stay. We were curled up together, on a secluded beach, watching the sun go down, when he asked me to close my eyes. When I opened them he was on one knee, and after telling me how much he loved me, he popped the question. Ironically, our flight home was then cancelled due to the volcanic ash cloud – so we got two extra weeks to celebrate with his family!”
“Even Skippy the kangaroo made an appearance at our wedding!”
The bride’s outfit
“I’d made an appointment at silk brides as a special treat for my birthday, not really thinking I’d find my dress so quickly. The boutique is just down the road from me, and I’d always admired the dresses in the window. I knew my Jenny Packham ‘Delphine’ gown was ‘the one’ before the assistant had finished doing up the zip!” smiles Laura
The groom’s outfit
“We originally wanted to buy Mike a suit, but with him being so tall (6”7) we decided to hire instead. We were recommended formal affair by a friend and were very impressed with their service and choice,” recalls Laura
The bridesmaids
“I organised a girly shopping trip with my bridesmaids to look at dresses, and struck gold when we looked in monsoon. I found a gorgeous mink-coloured, halterneck dress with amazing silver detail around the bust that perfectly matched my dress,” says Laura
The ceremony
“Even though we had decided to have the wedding in the UK, we wanted a laid back Aussie theme, which included an outdoor ceremony,” explains Laura
The reception
Floral arrangements were provided by tiaras and flowers. “For our travel theme, we had passport invitations, an old suitcase for cards and luggage name tags. Even Skippy the kangaroo made an appearance! We were also very lucky that Moxhull Hall was such a beautiful venue – other than the flowers, it didn’t need much decorating,” remembers Laura
“We gave each of our guests mini bottles of jacob’s creek WINE – rosÉ for the women, red for the guys.”
The honeymoon
“Mike is captain of Tamworth cricket club so time off in the summer is a no go!” laughs Laura. “Instead we went to Croatia for four nights, staying in a five-star hotel.”
