.
.
.
Oh my goodness. I don’t know if I’m just feeling hormonal, but I was welling up within the first 15 seconds of this gorgeous wedding video from Marry Me Films. Literally – I went back and timed it. A man in uniform always gets to me – if you know what I mean – but I think its the love, excitement and happiness evident in this little film of Sarah and Jonathan’s big day that tugged at this wedding blogger’s numb* old heart strings! Press play and enjoy.
.
In the meantime, it’s over to the bride to tell you a bit more about her big day. With photographs by family friend Christian Ollier.
.
.
.
.
Sarah says: We got engaged on New Year’s day 2010, and married on 5th August 2011 at Capesthorne Hall, Macclesfield. We had looked around only two venues before we settled on Capesthorne Hall. Our parents told us not to rush into the decision, but there was no question in our minds that this was where we wanted our big day to be. Capesthorne Hall is a beautiful stately home, but not in a flashy sense. I personally was drawn to the building due to its black shading, the drawn curtains and the charcoal colouring around the eaves of the house: the building had a true gothic quality. It reminded me of Jane Eyre, Beauty and the Beast, and I felt it had a quality we had not seen in the other places we viewed. We were sold, it was the one.
.
.
.
.
The fact that Jon is an officer in the Royal Marines was an obvious theme throughout the day. The military men in attendance acted as ushers and as you might expect, were diligent in their role and no one argued – not with swords in hands! The guard of honour was amazing, a fairy tale element and an aspect which we will always remember.
.
When deciding on a theme for our tables, we thought about continuing the military theme, but decided to go for something closer to our hearts. We chose our favourite places from our time together: Bagdale Hall, Whitby; Casa Best, Malaga/The Lakes; Constance Ephelia, Seychelles; Lebua State Tower, Bangkok; The Four Seasons Hotel, Thailand; The Castle Hotel, Taunton and Oreston Manour House, Torquay. During Jon’s speech, he took each in turn and talked about why each one was of such importance. It was the story of us, built around our special places. It was a fantastic touch of Jon’s, I have to give him the credit there!
.
.
.
.
Our wedding colour scheme was green. I love green! I am obsessed by all varieties of the colour and knew that no matter what month we got married in, green would be the colour that won.
.
In the end we went for a spring green as we decided on an August wedding. The colour was perfect and when the sun shone on the bridesmaid dresses, the girls looked stunning. The colour suited each of them, light skinned or dark, and everyone commented on its beauty. The bouquets for both the bridesmaids and I were dominated by green foliage, giving them a natural feel. This colour was then replicated on the chair ties, a perfect match, I don’t know how Sue (Chapman Holmes) did it, but it pulled the whole room together beautifully. Green envelopes were used as place names. Green corsages were made for all the male family members.
.
.
.
.
* I wish! I cry at most wedding submissions actually. We should have shares in Kleenex.
.
Keep reading!
.
.
.
.
.
My dress was Lavina Royale by Maggie Sottero. She is the most exquisite item I own and even now when I catch a glimpse of her in the wardrobe in the spare room, I can’t believe I own and wore such a beautiful gown. The detailing on the front, back and the clusters of diamonds on the skirt made it shimmer, but not too much and I was therefore able to wear a cathedral length veil. She was big but understated, and she was perfect.
.
.
.
.
My bridesmaids all wore strapless, floor length spring green dresses with a silk underlay and chiffon overlay. Each dress was then tied with a white ribbon around the middle, creating a Grecian style dress. I had five bridesmaids in total, a huge number but it was impossible not to have them all! As five individual women, it was important that I found dresses that suited each size and shape, a dress that fitted them to perfection. I had them made to measure, by a fantastic couple of designers based in Afflex Palace in Manchester: Bayliss and Knight. The finished product was unreal, so perfect was each dress for that bridesmaid. I couldn’t have asked for more.
.
.
.
.
I carried a bouquet of white lilies and Singapore orchids with green foliage. The bridesmaids carried something similar, but a smaller version, each with a white ribbon.
.
.
.
.
We wanted to have a mixture of traditional and new touches to our wedding. For my something old and borrowed, I had two very special things. Around my ankle on the day, I wore my Grandpa’s signet ring as unfortunately he is no longer with us. It was a great honour. I also wore twp garters on our wedding day; a beautiful blue laced garter from the girls, and my mam’s old garter! It was a very ‘traditional’ 1960’s’ garter, complete with plastic horse shoe and rose buds! But I loved it and felt very special wearing it, and it made my dad laugh a lot when he saw it!
.
Other special touches included all the guests having a hand written green envelope for the wedding favour, complete with lottery ticket. Jon and I wrote each message personally, hoping to make everyone feel they had been specially considered in the big day. Needless to say my bridesmaids were all given a present for doing such an amazing job on the day: a green Swarovski crystal necklace to match their dresses. And no military wedding would be complete without the best man having to drink a copious amount of rum!
.
Lieutenant Mike Rivington was given the gift of a Royal Marine quake, inscribed with his name and ‘the Best Man for the job’. Mike loved it, though i’m not sure his speech didn’t slur when it was his big moment!
.
Having our friends as an integral part of the day made it really special to us. Our parents helped make the cards, two of my bridesmaids made the table plan, our friend Christian took our beautiful photos, our other friend Jonny B was good enough to play the best tunes ever at the disco in the evening. However, the biggest touch was brought by our super talented friend, Jon Baldwin. Jon and I have known each other since University and I was overwhelmed when he said he would do me the honour of singing during the service. The song which epitomises our day is ‘One Day Like This’ by Elbow. Jon sang it so beautifully during the service, he is so talented, and accompanied by the string quartet, it was just perfect. It was the only time that I almost lost all control, but luckily I held it together! Very special though, for us both and all our friends, especially as we had only stood at Glastonbury a few weeks before and listened to it in the sun. A perfect song for perfect moments.
.
.
.
.
We spent a long time deliberating over the entertainment, and knew that music was the most integral part of the day to entertain our guests. As mentioned above the string quartet and Jon kicked off the day with their fantastic rendition of One Day Like This, and they also played during the ceremony. We found the most unlikely element of entertainment during our blessing in the Chapel, when the whole congregation became very excited during the rendition of “Jerusalem”, (carried serenely on by the military contingent of course!) Jonny B then played out the night with a fantastic mixture of old and new before finishing with a heady combination of Take That’s “Never Forget” and Arcade Fire’s “Ready to Start”, a 2011 wedding if ever there was one.
.
.
.
.
My favourite part of the day was waking up in the morning with a complete sense of calm. Everything was ready, everything was perfect and I was completely sure of everything I was about to do. I woke up next to my mam and big sister and we were like three giggling schoolgirls, joined by another four as the bridesmaids arrived and then the champagne was flowing and the day was ready. The sun came out -in Manchester, the sun shone – it was unbelievable, and it was the best start to the greatest day
.
.
.
.
After the wedding, we honeymooned in the Seychelles. It was perfect, eleven days of complete bliss after a manic few days. It was the holiday of a lifetime, the break we had saved up for eighteen months. The Seychelles is a beautiful place, perfect for honeymoons.
.
.
.
.
My top tip for other Brides Up North would be to get your friends and family involved as much as possible. Our wedding wasn’t just a celebration of us; it was about everyone who loves us, supports us and who will be there with us in the future. It was having all their involvement that made our wedding feel so special to us, and made it the best day of our lives (so far!).
.
.
Are you a newlywed reader? Join in the fun and send me your Real Wedding memories to share on the wedding blog. Get in touch.
.
.
Brides Up North UK Wedding Blog – Images © 2011 , Video © 2011 Marry Me Films
This is not a sponsored post
Contact Brides Up North to submit your business as a Featured Supplier
.
.
