Emma & Zed
Shortly after we had taken over the guesthouse in Whitby that my late father ran, Zed took me out for a drink. On the way back, beside the cliffs on the seafront, he got down on one knee and proposed! He had to get down on one knee twice because the first time the gold solitaire ring was in the pocket of the leg he was kneeling on! Little did I know that our friends and family were waiting back at the guesthouse for an engagement party afterwards!
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My ‘Jolie’ dress by Rosetta Nicolini came from Berketex Bride in Newcastle. It was a strapless, ivory, tulle fishtail gown with appliqués and diamantes on the bodice and skirt. I felt like an actual princess when I put it on. I knew my dad would have been so proud if he could have seen me at that moment in time.
My ‘something borrowed’ was my sister’s veil, which I teamed with a tiara. My husband and I are the same height and I wanted to be comfortable, so flat lace shoes from JJ’s House were the perfect choice.
Zed and his groomsmen wore grey suits purchased from Greenwoods Menswear in Scarborough. Zed added a waistcoat so that he would stand out. As I was about to walk down the aisle, he had our toddler over his shoulder to keep him entertained – I felt like the luckiest lady alive!
I had three bridesmaids and one bridesman! Rob wore the same suits as the groomsmen while the girls wore Ronald Joyce dresses, purchased at Brides Dream.
I chose them because they were perfect for our destination wedding, with ruched knot detail on the bodice, light and floaty chiffon fabric and a beautifully bright colour, perfect for our coral wedding. Our two-year-old son was our ring bearer and pageboy, wearing a grey Paisley of London outfit from Roco Clothing.
The Eleonas Waterfalls at Aphrodite Hills Sensatori Hotel in Paphos, Cyprus, was the location for our civil ceremony. We held it outdoors in the glorious sunshine. Our chair ties were bright coral, which looked stunning in the light, and we added an aisle runner made for us by Margaret Ruaux of Wedding Aisle Runners.
My mum walked me down the aisle and did a fantastic job. I attached a badge of my late father’s photo to my shoe so that he could walk with us still. Zed and I then said our vows beneath an archway of flowers, surrounded by lanterns, candles and coral petals. Our little boy was so cute! He tried to collect up the petals to go back in the basket as they were scattered thinking it was a mistake! I would really recommend that you walk down the aisle three times slower than you’d normally walk – you’ll automatically walk faster because of the adrenalin, but you’re only going to walk it once so make the most of it!
The best man’s speech was a comical poem covering every guest present. I loved Rob’s speech so much that it’s now framed, too. My mum was the last to get up, choosing to play the song ‘You’re Every Mother’s Dream’ by Teresa James on her and my late father’s behalves – there wasn’t a dry eye in the house!
Grab your own coral chair bows, just like these, right here to recreate this couple’s style!
A bright coral wedding was our main colour scheme – I wanted to keep things fun, contemporary and summery!
Our florist decorated our Secret Garden reception venue with fairy lights and lanterns filled with candles and petals around the water fountain.
She also sourced the ceremony chair ties and organza table runners to bring out our coral wedding theme. Our flowers also fit with the theme, featuring mainly orange and coral roses with ivory blooms and greenery. We also hired giant LOVE lights from Nick Wild Photography that made the reception look even more magical! (For similar style on a smaller scale, try these light up LOVE letters instead).
Jo from Love Island Cakes created our two-tier cutting cake and all the cupcakes to go with it. She kept to our coral wedding colour scheme, adding lace decorations inspired by my dress as well as handmade roses. It was topped with a custom cake topper of Zed, our son and I. We purchased the topper from Cake Figures.
I can’t speak highly enough of our stationery designer, Natalie Spencer. She designs everything from scratch to the couple’s specifications – for us that was having fun portraits of us drawn! As you opened the card, a knot tied in a playful nod to us tying the knot. We had so many comments about them! We also turned to Natalie for our favours. She created a portrait of each guest, framed with our wedding date and initials. It was a fabulous keepsake for everyone. We also included British Heart Foundation and Cancer Research badges in memory of my dad and Zed’s mum.
From the moment we first talked about getting married, we knew we wanted ‘From This Moment On’ by Shania Twain for our first dance. We meant every last one of the lyrics to each other on our wedding day.
Rather than jetting off to another destination for our honeymoon, we stayed on in Cyprus. While we were there, we planted an olive tree with our names and wedding date tagged onto it. We plan to go back and find it on our anniversaries.
SUPPLIERS
VENUE Aphrodite Hills Sensatori Hotel, Paphos, Cyprus
DRESS Rosetta Nicolini at Berketex Bride, Newcastle
BRIDESMAID DRESSES Ronald Joyce at Brides Dream, Newcastle upon Tyne
GROOM Greenwoods Menswear, Scarborough
ACCESSORIES Wedding Belles and Beaus, York
STATIONERY Natalie Spencer
CAKE Love Island Cakes
CAKE TOPPER Cake Figures
LIGHTS Nick Wild Photography
PHOTOGRAPHER Lee Gannon, Ideal Photos
