The homemade bits.

Other than the pew ends in the Church, I hadn't seen any of the homemade features of the wedding yet as they were mainly part of the reception and so in the marquee.

The pew ends.

The Master of Ceremonies came and got me and Kieran first to have a look in the marquee before the guests and I am so glad he did as the tables hadn't been set up right! The heart tealight holders were randomly placed on the edge of the tables rather than in the middle of the flowers so there was a quick rush round to put them all where they should be!

The room with the chairs we hired.

The table plan was finally finished!

We designed the cake ourselves and the cake lady did a brilliant job making it come to life. Our super talented friend also made us an amazing topper but it was too big for the cake as I got the measurements wrong! We loved it anyway and it was great to include the dogs (again) and have a nod towards Kieran's love of Aston Villa. I had bought some letters from Hobbycraft and painted them to match the bridemaids. We finished the table off with a table runner made by Kieran's mum.

The amazing topper!

Since we are big fans of The Smiths and were also becoming The Smiths, we decided to name our tables after Smiths songs. Most of them went down well although I am not sure how my work colleagues felt about sitting on 'Bigmouth Strikes Again'!

The centrepieces.

The heart place names.

The guestbook/gift table.

The menu.

The favours.

The tables.

Overall, I was really pleased with how all of the homemade decorations turned out. I received so many compliments and was so pleased to see that everyone took home their favours (Cath Kidston mirrors for the girls and betting slips for the boys). They also took home the names from the chairs and the centrepieces were in demand too!

The drinks reception.

So after the ceremony, when everyone else was happily making their way to the reception, Kieran and I made a little de-tour into the village. It's a really pretty, old-fashioned village filled with thatch roofs and quirky old shops.

We knew our guests wouldn't miss us much as they swigged down some Pimms and tucked into their bite-size burgers and BLTs and we wanted to capture some shots of just us (with most of the village looking on).

Lisa, our photographer, had a great eye for some cool shots (which is why we picked her) so we were really pleased with how they turned out.

A thatched bus stop!

Love this one!

Head to head.

We then headed back to the venue to meet up with all our guests. It was at this point that our most important guests of all would be arriving. A very good friend from work had kindly agreed to pick up Beau and Lola for us and meet us at the venue. I don't know who was more pleased to see who! Their little tails started wagging as soon as they saw us. Luckily, it was a lovely sunny day and so there was no risk of muddy paws on a my white dress (always a risk with Lola!)

Going for a casual walk.

Family shot!

Unfortunately, the dogs couldn't stay for long but it was nice to be able to include them in part of the day.

It was great to see our guests enjoying the drinks and canapes on the terrace. I had kept my fingers crossed for sunshine so they could all be outside and it looked lovely.

Grandma getting the last drops!

Enjoying a Pimms.

 Catching up with the ushers.

Beautiful weather on the terrace.

We didn't get much of a look in on the treats as we were busy being whisked off for a few photos with the guys and girls in the beautiful grounds. We wanted them to be quite laid back and relaxed with a real sense of fun and Lisa really managed to capture that.

The girls.

 'Natural' posing!

On the run.

The photographer took a fall in the mud for this shot!

Chatting away.

The bride and groom.







The ceremony.

The drive to the Church seemed to take ages – I was so desperate just to get there. However, it was nice just to sit in the car with my Dad and look at everyone looking at us. I always try and spot the bride when I see a wedding car go past so it felt so strange to be the ‘spotted’ one. Our driver was great – so friendly but not intrusive (and thanks to him I remembered my flowers were left lying on the dining table!) Just before we got to the Church, he stopped to take the top down on the car ready for the big arrival! 

With my dad in the car

 It's harder than it looks getting out of the car in a big dress!

There was a small gathering of well-wishers gathered outside the Church and some friendly faces from work had also come along. It really got my nerves going to see people I knew and I was eager to get into the Church.

Beautiful church on a beautiful day.

The girls waiting.

Getting ready to go in.

I was greeted by my slightly nervous looking bridesmaids and we co-ordinated ourselves ready to go into the Church. We had decided on the little ones leading the way, then the bridesmaids two by two and then me and my Dad. 

Leading the way.

The two sisters and my two friends.

Finally, it was my turn to begin walking down the aisle. I tried to look around for as many people as I could but really all I was focusing on with Kieran. He turned around but I’m not sure he saw me looking at him. I wasn’t aware of any music playing – it was all a bit of a blur really until I finally got to the top of the long aisle. We were so relieved to see each other we couldn’t help but naturally give each other a kiss and hug – until the Priest told Kieran off for being impatient and got the guests laughing.

The long walk down the aisle.

Seeing each other for the first time.

Getting into trouble with the priest!

The service was lovely and Father Phillip really made it personal. He made reference to the design of the order of service being a luggage tag representing a journey and the pegs representing me being a housewife! I do hope he was joking!

We sang the hymns – my flower girls stealing the limelight as they knew all the words from school and sung their hearts out, readings were read and then we exchanged our vows.

 Singing away to Lord of the Dance.

My bridesmaid reading from Corinthians.

The vows were a worry as I had got so emotional in the rehearsal that I was determined to hold it together. I took my time and managed to not cry. Kieran however, was in floods as the words and the meaning of the day really became real. At one point I gave him a little nudge as he forgot to repeat after the priest and was just staring at me!

Exchanging vows.

Exchanging rings.

Before I knew it, the readings were over (read wonderfully by our friends) and the vows were exchanged, we'd kissed and the register was signed. We were married! 

Married!

The first kiss.

Signing on the line - or at least pretending to!

The wedding party. 

I remember the organ playing and the bells ringing as we walked back down the aisle together with the biggest grins on our faces.

So happy to be married.

One of my fave photos.

 It was so nice to get outside and see all the guests properly too. I didn’t want to leave Kieran’s side but there were so many people to chat to. 

 Discussing shoes!

 Kieran and my Mum.

 Can't stop smiling.

All too much for my nephew. 

We posed for some photos outside the Church but we wanted to keep these to a minimum as we prefer the more natural style. However, they look so lovely and are such a nice reminder of the day (and make great presents for our families too). We then got pelted with confetti by all of our guests (I emptied a box full out of my dress when I took it off!) 

Beautiful guests.

Me and my Mum.

The parents.

The boys.

Confetti!!

Then it was off in the car to the reception. It was such a nice drive and I will remember it so well. The roof was down, the sun was shining, we were holding hands and taking it all in. People were beeping their horns and we waved at a group waiting for the bus. It was so surreal but so amazing to finally be married.