From turquoise to tartan, oversized bows to overwhelming speeches this real wedding was stunning…
WHERE: St Nicholas Church, Prestwick, Ayrshire
WHEN: August 2009
PHOTOGRAPHER: Craig and Eva Sanders
The first meeting
“I was waiting in line to get a round of drinks in at the bar, when Niall asked if he could buy me a drink. I said I’d get him one because I was already in line,” remembers Jenna.
“Niall said he instantly knew I was a keeper; no other girl had ever offered to buy the drinks before!”
The proposal
“Niall always said he would propose when I’d least expect it, so I knew that birthdays, Christmases, Valentine’s Days and romantic strolls along a spectacular sunset beach were, sadly, destined to be off limits!” laughs Jenna. “He certainly did catch me off guard: I was doing the hoovering!”
The bride’s outfit
“I wanted a really unique look for my real wedding and this dress was it!” says Jenna. “I wore an Ian Stuart design called ‘Pasha’ in a silvery, azure-blue taffeta suede, with beaded French lace. I loved the fact that the dress wasn’t ivory or white – this made it stand out even more. Just for the day, I could have been a glamorous 1950s movie star. I went for the ‘big’ dress because I knew it was now or never…”
The accessories
Jenna’s custom-made birdcage veil and headpiece from The Lovely Hat Company added a unique touch of flair. “I wore a diamanté bow and pearl drop-earrings and necklace set from Butler & Wilson,” explains Jenna. “I wore the necklace as a bracelet – I thought it looked better!”
“The inspiration for the day? My fabulous dress of course! We even displayed a sketch of the dress on a canvas…”
The groomsmen
Each of the boys wore their own kilts in green, purple and red, which added an eclectic mix to their look, in keeping with the day’s colourful sense of fun. “I took a swatch of sample fabric from my dress to a dress maker and ordered ruched ties to give the look a co-ordinated edge,” explains Jenna. “Niall looked incredibly handsome!”
The bridesmaids
“I chose the girls’ dresses before I even chose my dress – I adored the unusual teal and turquoise colour. Everything worked really well around the colour of these dresses: really bright colours, vibrant purple and cerise etc. I definitely had ‘the one’ feeling about this look!” says Jenna. The three bridesmaids wore ballgown dresses in a cut and style that mirrored the bride’s own structured and strapless gown, bought from a bridal boutique in Chicago when Jenna was in the States for work.
The ceremony
“You just can’t imagine what it feels like to have all the people in the world you care about under one roof,” says Jenna or her real wedding. “We had harpist, Marnie Boyd, play as the guests arrived and as I walked down the aisle,” she adds.
The flowers
“I wanted really unusual flowers and Kirstie’s Flowers surpassed my expectations and produced the most beautiful arrangements I have ever seen,” says Jenna. The bridesmaids added yet more ‘zing’ to their turquoise dresses with an equally striking purple colour-block ‘posy handbag’
The reception
The couple continued their celebrations at Western House Hotel in Ayr. “Our venue supplied candelabras for each table, so we decided to decorate these with tulle bows, strings of pearls draped between each arm, and sparkling lights. the tables were dressed with teal and cerise-coloured diamanté crystals and glass tealight holders,” explains jenna
The cake
“Niall hates wedding cake and I knew he wouldn’t try any, so I looked into getting him a ‘cheese’ cake,” says Jenna. “My bargain buy has to be the selection of cheeses I bought at Morrisons! Their cheese counter is brilliant; they let me test everything and helped me create a ‘cake’.” Not forgetting her sweet-toothed guests, Jenna also bought a chocolate cake from Sugar and Spice, decorated with an oversized bow to complement her dress. Perfect for any real wedding!
“We served masks with the cocktails so guests could become Audrey or Charlie for the day”
The favours
The couple treated all the ladies to a ‘her glossiness’ lipgloss from Benefit.
The speeches
Jenna is a flight attendant and this proved to be the inspiration behind all of the speeches! “My dad hooked up a projector and took us all on ‘Jenna and Niall’s journey’. Even the bridesmaids did their own take on the airline safety demonstration!” she laughs.
The honeymoon
Hugging the spectacular New England coastline, the newlyweds took to the seas the only way one should – aboard a luxury cruise liner!
