city wedding

daisy do: lillian west for a city wedding in manchester – sarah & roy

Aislinn Thompson

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (33)

The daisy motif that runs through today’s real wedding between Sarah and Roy was a chance decision, inspired solely by a hand-drawing of intertwined daisies. From there, Sarah and Roy chose to run with the classic white wedding and weave yellow elements into the design, from the cake with its charming daisy decoration to the flowers, a delicate and frothy bouquet bursting with marguerite daisies. Hints of gypsophila add a romantic, traditional edge and are perfectly in keeping with the white wedding theme.

Choosing an intimate gathering for the ceremony and wedding breakfast meant Sarah and Roy could go to town with their choices, serving good-quality wines and offering several choices for the meal, which was eaten around one large table for a personal feel.

Sarah wears a glorious Lillian West A-line gown with a floaty chiffon skirt and an illusion V-neckline in delicate lace applique, the style of dress contrasting beautifully with the industrial and rather quirky venue.

Beautiful bride Sarah also chose a signature scent for the wedding – lime and bay – using candles to emit the fragrance. This is a lovely idea as, every time Sarah and Roy light a candle of that scent – or catch the aroma on the air when they’re out and about – they’ll be instantly transported back to their wedding day. Tell us more, Sarah …

With images by Priti Shikotra Wedding Photography.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (16)

sarah says

: We got engaged on a weekend in Prague. Roy spent all weekend trying to engineer the perfect moment. He remembers, “I had visions of taking a carriage ride around the city, with blankets on our knees, and popping the question with flutters of snow falling. Sarah wouldn’t take a carriage ride though because she felt it was too expensive. In the end, we were in a club and she said, ‘You know, people have been saying you’ve brought me away to ask me to get married’ and the game was up – I went down on one knee”.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (14)

We got married on 30th March 2018, which was Good Friday. It was the last of the cheapest winter dates in all honesty. It also gave everyone a full weekend to relax and recover afterwards. Roy also thought he was being clever and wouldn’t forget future anniversaries, until it was pointed out to him that Good Friday is on a different day each year.

We got married and had our reception at Great John Street Hotel, Manchester. It seemed the perfect size for what we wanted: ideal for the small gathering of immediate family for the wedding itself but large enough to easily accommodate the party of friends and family we invited for the evening. The rooftop garden and ‘playground’ is a great space that, even with the hit and miss weather we get in Manchester, allows for being outside in comfort and warmth should you want to.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (35)

We would definitely recommend the venue to other couples; there’s a really nice feel to Great John Street and rooftop in particular is a great setting. The staff were polite and attentive and the team looking after wedding bookings was great at working with us to understand our needs and budgets. Throughout the day, they were efficient and discreet, and everything followed the plans we had provided them with.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (27)

When it came to a theme, we wanted a very simple, small wedding and everything pretty much stemmed from an invitation I initially found with two hand-drawn, intertwined daisies. The simplicity of rustic, handmade decorations appealed to us, but we didn’t necessarily set a theme.

We didn’t have a colour scheme in mind but it naturally followed with the daisy theme that a classic ‘white’ wedding was perfect, with a hint of yellow in the flowers for a touch of colour. The bridesmaid dress was chosen to complement the wearer’s complexion. The guests wore shades of blue, ranging from cobalt to navy, which was neither co-ordinated nor intentional and it amazes us to this day how that happened.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (13)

My dress was by Lillian West and I bought it from Dream Dress Bridal, Stockport. I wanted a simple but elegant style and lace is timeless. Being petite, something full and ‘big’ was out of the question. I also wanted long sleeves. I had seen the dress online and then sourced the retailer, purchasing the dress upon my first appointment. My hair and makeup was by Sarah Meredith.

Roy wore a Moss Bros sharkskin blue three-piece suit with a navy Paisley pocket square and tie. He finished the outfit with a tan belt and brogue shoes from Next.

The bridesmaid dress was a Mark Lesley design, also from Dream Dress Bridal, and the best man wore the same as Roy.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (19)

Our photographer was Priti Shikotra Wedding Photography. Priti was professional, personable, friendly and took time to genuinely get to know us and what we wanted. She was brilliant on the day and got loads of candid shots alongside the requested formal shots without being intrusive. We’ve never been particularly keen on formal wedding photos and the length of time group shots can take, and Priti understood that and kept those to a minimum for us. Where Priti really shines is with her eye for the slightly unusual and some of the photos we love most are not your conventional wedding backdrops at all. The final photos were delivered in a beautifully presented gift box that’s a really special keepsake for the future. We’d have no hesitation in recommending Priti to anyone looking for a photographer for their wedding.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (32)

The flowers were created by Melissa Jordan. I held a simple, rustic bouquet of gypsophila and marguerite daisies. Melissa also provided hessian and lace jam jars with gypsophila and white gerberas for the reception. We had lots of tea lights, with The White Company’s lime and bay being the fragrance throughout the room.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (36)

For the favours, we gave the men Prostate Cancer UK pin badges and miniature bottles of spirits. We gave the women a White Company lime and bay signature candle.

Our cake was made by Kirsty Fenton at Kirsty Wirsty Cake Emporium. We chose a two-tiered traditional cake with cupcakes.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (40)

For the wedding breakfast, because we were such a small group, we were able to offer people a choice over three courses. We handpicked some wines we knew people would enjoy: a Châteauneuf-du-Pape for red and a rose and white Sancerre. In the evening, we opted for a barbecue-style buffet because we wanted people to feel relaxed and the evening to feel casual and friendly.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (24)

For our entertainment, we chose the Live Lounge Duo. We’d seen Danny and Gary at other weddings and had always planned to have them play at ours. The cover versions they do are fantastic and we knew all our friends would love the type of music they play.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (41)

I loved the entire day from start to finish! Given the time again, I wouldn’t change a thing. Roy says his favourite part of the wedding was seeing me walk in and the smile on my face.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (49)

For our honeymoon, we went to Madeira, which was nice. We’re calling it a mini-moon because we plan to go somewhere later in the year, too, for some better weather. We chose it because we knew it would be quiet (it definitely was) and that the temperature would be reasonable at least for the time of year. The island has stunning scenery and is fantastic for those who like walking.

A City Wedding in Manchester (c) Priti Shikotra (50)

My top tip for other Brides Up North is, as everyone else says, just do it the way you want to, just like we did. After years of putting it off and not really understanding what each of us wanted from a wedding, over time we got to understand what each of us wanted. The starting point for the actual planning for us was agreeing between us how much we both felt comfortable spending.

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