A stunning real wedding at The Morritt Arms, Greta Bridge, Durham filled with pink and purple. Ashley and Richard got married in July 2008
The proposal
Richard proposed on Christmas Day, 2006. Ashley’s presents that year included a Lord of the Rings DVD and a packet of onion-ring crisps – meant as clues to the bigger ring to come! Ashley says: “I had no idea and thought Richard’s last-minute shopping-style had really got desperate! He then gave me a shoe box and inside was the ring box with a tag saying: ‘Hoping you will say yes?'”
The bride’s real wedding outfit
Ashley’s dress was from Exclusively Yours by Tara in Wingate, County Durham. The dress cost £1,150 and was made of Ivory Godvari silk by Benjamin Roberts. “I also wore a crystal necklace and earrings by Swarovski, which were a gift from my parents,” says Ashley
“We gave our six nephews James Bond books to remember the day and match their obsessions!”
The groom’s outfit
Richard hired his real wedding outfit from Bakers Tailoring in Stockton on Tees – a chocolate-brown Prince Edward-style suit. “With three best men, an usher, six page boys and three dads (and the groom), we had to get them right!” Ashley says
The bridesmaids
Ashley’s sister, Anne, was her bridesmaid and looked beautiful in a chiffon dress in latte with a chocolate-brown bow/sash from Wedding Day Fashions in Darlington. Ashley’s niece, Erin, was flowergirl and wore an ivory dress with latte-coloured embroidery and bow from Debenhams and ivory, sparkly, ballet shoes
The flowers
The flowers were all by Claire Metcalfe in Darlington Claire Metcalfe. “I thought orange or cerise would look really nice with the chocolate-brown suits and the two colours together added a really vibrant edge,” says Ashley
The ceremony
On the arm of her dad, Ashley walked up the aisle accommpanied by a string quartet playing Trumpet Voluntary by Jeremiah Clarke. “This sounded absolutely beautiful and made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up,” Ashley remembers
The cake
For their real wedding, the couple chose a stunning cake made by Chris Burnett, decorated with dark Belgian chocolate and finished with handmade milk chocolate roses
“having live music during the ceremony added something that a Cd player could never get close to…”
The details
The stationery was from a company called Roses Around the Door. For favours, Ashley gave the ladies a personalised lip balm with the couple’s names and date on them
The reception
“One of my lasting memories was watching people dancing at 1am – everyone still on their feet! No one was ready to go home and that was a fantastic feeling!” says Ashley
The honeymoon
Instead of a gift list, Ashley and Richard asked guests to contribute to an unforgettable honeymoon – ten days in Sri Lanka and a week in the Maldives.
