When and how did you and your partner meet?
“My husband and I met when I was 17 and he was 19 through a friend at a house party. Not romantic at all, I asked for some of his takeaway and 12 years later we’re married with a baby!” Girls, you know what to do. Get on the phone and order that take away!
What was the proposal like?
Rhiannon’s proposal, truly sounds like a scene from a movie .“James proposed in New York in 2018. It was super early in the morning; we had just gone for a morning coffee then for a walk around Central Park. It started to snow, and as we were stood looking out at the lake by Bethesda Fountain, he got down on one knee and proposed. It was so beautifully quiet at that time in the morning, and the proposal felt so intimate which is crazy to say, being in the middle of New York. The proposal was at the beginning of the trip, so the whole time we were just buzzing.” We love the idea of having a proposal at the begging of a trip, for that very reason.
Did you have an inspiration for the theme of your wedding? If so, what was that?
“Once we started talking about what our dream wedding would look like, we just could not imagine getting married in the UK. Once we decided we wanted to get married abroad, we wanted it to also be legal and not a blessing which then cancelled out a few countries / islands. We decided on Santorini, Greece after a little ‘wedding research trip’ away to the beautiful island.” We love the ‘wedding research’ that comes with destination weddings! Nearer to the time we decided we loved the idea of neutral colours, pampas, less is more sort of vibe. We did not want to take away from the beautiful backdrop of the ocean and our wedding planners were amazing in helping us put together our dream wedding.”
What was your biggest challenge, planning a destination wedding?
“Take COVID out of the picture, there were no challenges at all with a destination wedding. Once you choose your wedding planners, they take care of all the small ‘stressful’ details and you can just concentrate on enjoying the wedding planning process. We loved our facetime calls with the planners, choosing our flowers and all the exciting parts of a wedding. With this in mind, I would highly recommend a destination wedding. As a direct result from COVID, our wedding party was reduced by around 80% due to travel restrictions at the time, and we had to cancel our original venue 2 weeks before our wedding. However, our wedding planners were amazing and managed to sort a new venue out within 24 hours which we loved even more.” We can’t imagine what that might have felt like, just two weeks before but we hope this shows future brides how your dream day can still happen no matter what you may face.
What advice would you give future brides when looking for their dress?
“Always go with your gut. I saw my dress online on the designer’s website and fell in love with it. I eventually found Minster Bridal, which at the time only had a boutique in Dorset, so my Mum and I made the trip in-between lockdowns. By this point, I had tried on around 50 dresses in Hampshire with no luck at all. All the dresses in Minster Bridal were out of this world, and the girls were so amazing and professional. It was such a beautiful experience, and one I will always remember. Try not to bring too many people dress shopping with you, what is perfect for you isn’t always what’s perfect for other people and too many opinions can become very overwhelming.”
What advice would you give future brides planning a destination wedding?
“Just enjoy the process and trust your wedding planners. They do this all the time, and they know the country / island that you are getting married on, so they will know which vendors to put your trust in to. Have an idea of what you would like, however be open minded because they will know what works in that climate and what doesn’t. It was 37 degrees on our wedding day, my husband was in a 3-piece suit and he was hot however the photos look insane, and it cooled down in the evening, so don’t let the temperature sway you from what you really want.” A very good bit of information to keep in mind.
“Make it into a wedding holiday! For some of your guests, it may be their only holiday that year so plan another activity around your wedding, and be flexible on accommodation for them to stay in because not all your guests will have the same budget to spend. With this being said, we felt an open bar was crucial on the wedding day so everyone could just relax and enjoy themselves… Eat, drink and be merry! Also, we found flying with British Airways the best, if you upgrade your flight, you get greater baggage allowance. Lastly, having wedding insurance is an absolute must!” Rhiannon, have you ever considered a career as a wedding planner?! Ladies, please take notes, this is all incredible advise and tips to bring with you on your journey.
Did you have a favourite element of your dress?
“I loved that my dress was champagne/ivory, which really made the design stand out. It was perfect for our colour scheme and location of our wedding. The dress itself was incredibly comfortable which really surprised me, and it travelled very well.”
What was your routine / plan the night before?
“We arranged for everyone to meet up for cocktails at Tango Bar in Santorini the night before. I then went back to my hotel, my mum stayed with me, and I skin prepped for the next day. It felt so surreal that I was getting married in the morning, and it was so lovely to spend that night away with my mum.”
What was your highlight of the special day?
“When we sat down for dinner with our guests around us, and we were all so happy that we made it and that we were finally married. It was such a beautiful moment, and we were so grateful to our guests who were able to travel for our wedding, as we understood they had to isolate for 10 days when they arrived home, and the stress of organising the COVID swabs to go abroad was something else! My husband and I were so determined to get married on 26.06.2021, there was no way COVID was getting in the way of it, so to be married and surrounded by loved ones, was a feeling I will always treasure.”
What was your favourite part / job to do planning your wedding day?
“I loved the researching stages, scrolling through Instagram for ideas and looking through vendors pages, and discussing options with our wedding planners. We both absolutely loved the whole planning process. Always remember the end goal, you are doing this because you love each other and want to get married. Don’t sweat the small stuff, you won’t remember it in years to come. What you will remember is the love you felt round you, and how much everyone enjoyed themselves. It is such a privilege to be able to plan your dream wedding, remembering that will keep you grounded.”
We have adored listening to your wedding process and we really; y hope to any future brides reading this that this has filled you with reassurance, excitement and love for your own special day.
What was your first dance song?
You to me are everything by The Real Thing. There was no kidding anyone, we cannot dance so it had to be an upbeat song!
