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Morning all!  Is it Thursday already?!  This week is going by in an absolute flash for me! We are super busy here at Brides Up North HQ putting the finishing touches on our bridal shows for Autumn 2012.  Do you have these dates in your diaries ladies?

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YORKSHIRE Nostell Priory, Wakefield – Sunday 2nd September 2012 (Wedding Exclusive)

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NORTH EAST Ramside Hall Hotel, Durham – Sunday 9th September 2012 (Super Showcase)

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YORKSHIRE Allerton Castle, North Yorkshire – Sunday 16th September 2012 (Wedding Exclusive)
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YORKSHIRE The Mansion, Roundhay, Leeds – Sunday 7th October 2012 (Wedding Exclusive)

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YORKSHIRE Rise Hall, Rise, East Yorkshire – Sunday 21st October 2012 (Wedding Exclusive)

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(North West, I’m working on it!)

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You can contact me now to pre-register for a VIP Bride-to-be goody bag and speedy entry to the events.  Even better, goody bag sponsor Clarins Skin Spa has just confirmed that they will be giving away a luxury hamper of Clarins products to one of our visiting brides.  That’ll surely get your wedding preparations off to a beautiful start!  Don’t delay, make sure that you are on our VIP guest list.

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As well as being knee deep in event planning, I have also been hitting more freelance press deadlines (you can see some of my recent features by clicking here), been out and about meeting with new Brides Up North venues (details of new shows for 2013 coming soon!) and interviewing some really fabulous Featured Suppliers for these blog pages.  I am more committed than ever to shouting about Northern talent and am really working hard behind the scenes to raise editorial quality levels here on the wedding blog. No wonder time is flying by!

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One thing’s for certain though, things are looking no less beautiful on these pages, and today we share Brides Up North reader and real bride Melanie’s Ibiza inspired Real Wedding in the Ribble Valley, with images supplied by Classic Wedding Photography.  Who needs the Balearics when we’ve got Lancashire, eh?

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Melanie says: We got engaged on 26^th March 2011 in our favourite restaurant San Carlo.  It was such a shock as we were in Manchester just celebrating our 10 year anniversary.  Jimmy had managed to secretly hand over the ring to Dario the restaurant manager for safe keeping whilst we were in there enjoying a few afternoon drinks with family. As we said our goodbyes, everyone apart from me knew that Jimmy would propose that evening!

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We arrived at the restaurant and shown to one of the best tables, I was blissfully unaware of what was going to happen. Jimmy’s sister had even hidden herself round the corner with friends waiting for him to pop the question!

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After our meal a very nice bottle of champagne arrived at the table and then Jimmy got down on one knee!

The whole of San Carlo erupted in applause!  It was such an emotional moment; I cried so much my false eyelashes came off!

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We got married at 12 noon on 29^th April 2012 at Mitton Hall in the Ribble Valley.  I had been to a few venues around the area on trips out with my Mum and Aunties but none stood out as much as Mitton Hall.

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I just loved the smell of the log fires, feeling warm and cosy as soon as you entered the building.  There were huge chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and it had so much character. It also had that old rustic feel to it but with very modern décor at the same time.  I also loved how the décor fitted my colour theme perfectly!

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To top it all off, the staff were wonderful and very attentive.  Dave the Master of Ceremonies ran the day with military precision and everything was perfect. A massive thank you to Dave!

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We had an Ibiza theme to our wedding, with an ivory and deep purple colour scheme. 

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Jimmy’s very good friend helped us design and create the Ibiza vibe, starting with our club flyer style wedding invitations.  They looked amazing! His ideas flowed throughout the day. The same layout was copied for the wedding breakfast menus and our table names were all our favourite Ibiza venues!

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My Maggie Sottero dress came from Bliss Bridal Centre in Bolton.  What made my dress shopping experience so special was that as soon as I walked in I was greeted by a lovely smile, one I recognised from years ago! It was one of my old friends Anisa.  It was great to catch up with her as I made my way through the many beautiful dresses in her shop!  She was lovely, helpful and also very patient as after only trying on three dresses I thought I’d made my mind up, only to be back in the shop a week later trying another fifteen!  Girls you’ve got to get the right one!

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My bridesmaids wore floor length aubergine purple dresses by Alfred Angelo also from Bliss Bridal Centre in Bolton.

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Jimmy and the guys wore suits from a local suit shop, John Francis in Harwood, Bolton. They all looked so smart and handsome!

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The fantastic beauty team consisted of Debra Schofield (makeup) and Cassie (hair): they transformed me into a beautiful bride.

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The ceremony was my favourite part of the day as it was our special time with each other and surrounded by the people we love and cherish.

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I carried a beautiful arrangement of pale pink pacific blue, akito and cerce roses with purple hyacinth, veronica purple and salal tips by Lesley Thomas Flowers.  I had so many fabulous comments about my bouquet and I cant thank Lesley enough!

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The bridesmaids carried akito roses and eucalyptus leaves edged with salal tips.

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North West award winning photographers Dave and Jane from Classic Photography became more like our new best friends, we had a fab afternoon doing an engagement shoot and chose a picture from the shoot to be mounted and put in a frame.  All our guests signed it on the day.   They worked their magic on the day too by giving us these stunning shots and I cannot recommend them enough!

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Mike Roberts our videographer filmed our amazing day and now we can re-live our memories forever.

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We had very simple candelabra on the tables with classy ivory chair covers and matching linen provided by Mitton Hall.  I chose to have name tags attached to purple ribbon instead of name plates as the purple ribbon matched the bridesmaids dresses.  These were made by a local stationary shop in Horwich, Ivy Cottage Cards who also did a beautiful post-box for all our wedding cards decorated with the same colour ribbon and diamantes.

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Our cake was a gift off my Grandma, making it extra special! It was delicious! 

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The room was decorated with hearts as it’s a theme I love and is shared by all the female members of my family!  Mum and Dad have the hearts that dangled from the candelabra on their wardrobe door handles.

Hearts that were on the top table are hanging proud in the homes of all my Aunties and Grandma so it’s lovely to go round and see a part of my wedding still alive in their houses!

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We had a craft evening where my Mum, Grandma and Aunties helped fold, stick and fill favour boxes. I loved having all my family involved with wedding planning; they were just as excited as I was!

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We kept our guests entertained after the ceremony with Tony the magician from Towards Magic.

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In the evening we had a band called Psycho Slinkys who they played a great range of popular music to suit all our guests. Our good friend Stuart DJ’d late on into the night playing all our Ibiza classics, we couldn’t have been happier!

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We honeymooned at The Royal in Cancun Mexico. It was out of this world!

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My top tip for other Brides Up North would be to take a few days off before the wedding for relaxing, pampering and finalising arrangements before the big day.  My family and I chose to stay in a beautiful barn conversion near to Mitton Hall called Brown Hills Cottages a few days before the wedding. It was nice to be around my whole family. The views were stunning and it was totally memorable.

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Congratulations Melanie & Jimmy!

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Are you a newlywed?  Contact Brides Up North to share your Real Wedding with us here on the wedding blog.

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Brides Up North UK Wedding Blog – Images © 2012 Classic Photography

This is not a sponsored post

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