A Vibrant May Wedding Celebration

So... How Did You Meet?

The modern love story – Bumble. We swiped right at the end of January 2018 and I messaged him about wanting to name my future cat Neil so if we dated he might have to share his name. That worked for him and we went on a first date to a tiny cosy bar in Bristol called To The Moon, which turned into dinner at Burger Theory.

Tell Us How He Popped The Question!

In June 2022 we went on holiday in Italy, starting in Venice and ending in Sicily. I had an inkling he was going to propose this trip so was ready at every romantic spot. On the second to last day, we were hiking up Mt. Etna while it was active. I later found out he was planning to propose at the top of the volcano which would have been epic. Unfortunately, it was 38 degrees at the base, and we were up high on volcanic rock with no cover, with a few other people around. I was so sweaty and verging on miserable from the heat, and he also knew I wanted the proposal to be a private moment. He decided not to propose then. Later that night we went to a beach called Isola Bella with a bottle of wine we had bought from a vineyard the day before for our holiday tradition of stargazing on the beach at least once, and that’s where he proposed. There was no one there, it was a beautiful night, it was perfect.

Why Elmore Court?

Neil and I have always loved a mixture of old and new. Our house we bought is a 1700s barn with all its original beams and other wonky quirks, but some gorgeous modern aspects. We loved the character that the main house at Elmore had, while the gillyflower is this sleek, sexy, modern place to party. We loved that Elmore did everything it could to source locally and sustainably, it’s something so important to us. It just felt right and very ‘us’.

Where Did Your Wedding Inspiration Come From?

Neil being from Aberdeen, and me having grown up in Somerset, and us getting engaged in Italy, we wanted to find a way to meld all 3. Our flowers picked out some of the colours (or contrasted) the colours on Neil’s tartan while still being a bit wild and colourful. The candles added that bit of romance and moodiness we wanted and we incorporated lots of lemons and had hand-painted olive branches on our cake to pay homage to getting engaged in Sicily. We had a Scottish piper to greet the guests at our wedding but moved to a string quartet as we both love classical music for the drinks reception.

How Did You Find The Planning?

We started planning almost 2 years before the wedding, we had Elmore booked by the end of July 2022 and all our main other vendors by the end of October 2022. In all honesty we found it pretty easy because we started so far in advance. It meant that we weren’t trying to pick flowers at the same time as designing our cake at the same time as choosing our setlist. We started with what was most important to us and worked our way from there.

We Loved Your Gown! How Did You Pick It?

I knew I wanted an off-the-shoulder or strapless dress, as I thought it really suited me. I looked at some dress shops near me and looked at what designers they stocked and had a list of dresses I liked. I emailed the shops and asked them if they stocked those specific styles and just did one big try-on day between two shops in Cardiff. I was actually choosing between two different off the shoulder Milla Nova dresses, but the one I chose I just loved the exposed boning and the draped off the shoulder, it is called ‘Beata’ from Laura May Bridal – who were excellent throughout the whole process. I just felt confident and beautiful the whole day.

How Did You Feel On The Morning?

SO nervous. I hadn’t slept much the night before, although I don’t think anyone does, which made me a bit tired which I think heightened all the feelings. I was so excited about the whole day but that moment when the doors open and everyone is looking at you was very anxiety-inducing for me. I think I asked Alice our wedding planner if she had a mild sedative at one point. Neil was nervous too, you can see in some photos him pacing and looking a bit frazzled. He was busy trying to get all the stuff we’d bought to our stylist and making sure everyone had things they needed so had lots to do.

Tell Us About The Ceremony!

It was perfect. That moment when we locked eyes it all fell into place and all the nerves fell away to just pure joy. Neil had a small tear (luckily his mum handed him a tissue!) and I was grinning like a Cheshire cat while I walked down the aisle. We just had one reading from my childhood friend which was gorgeous, and we opted out of promises and just did ring vows. It wasn’t too long but felt long enough to feel like very a big moment. We also had no children during the ceremony and had nannies to care for them, so that the ceremony could carry out uninterrupted which we were all so glad about in the end.

Talk Us Through The Drinks Reception

After the ceremony and the confetti toss our piper piped all the guests round the side of the house for the drinks and we had a spritz bar! To incorporate us and as an homage to Italy, we had Aperol and Hugo Spritz’s, both our summertime drinks of choice. We had lawn games provided by our wedding stylist which was a huge hit with the kids and the adults.

What Was Your Food Of Choice?

We had an amazing selection of canapes, including specially made by Elmore haggis bon bons at our request which were amazing. For the main meal, we had arancini or beef ragu to start, duck and sausage and bean cassoulet or a potato with barbecued asparagus and whipped ricotta for the main, and the lemon posset for dessert. We had so many compliments on the food, it was absolutely delicious and the portion sizes were so generous! For evening food we had dirty fries from Soul Fries come in and set up which definitely helped soak up some of the alcohol. Our cake was spiced apple, pistachio and honey, and white chocolate and raspberry and we had maybe 4 slices left, people kept going up for more!

What Was Your Reaction To The Gillyflower?

It was absolutely beautiful. We opted for the long tables and we knew it was the right choice when we saw everyone sat down especially, and it really suited the room. We reused our florals from the ceremony too which really suited the gillyflower and added lots of brass candlesticks and cut lemons to give it a more romantic woodsy vibe. It just looked so stunning and special and like nothing we’d seen before. It felt very surreal seeing it all come together we were so happy.

First Dance?

Like real people do by Hozier. We had a playlist of songs to choose from but that one just clicked for us. We practised dancing at home from YouTube videos for about a month just to make sure we didn’t just stand and sway!

What Were Your Wedding Highlights?

I think for just really being in the moment, it was when we were tucked away just us two after the ceremony and before the confetti toss where we just started giggling. We were so overjoyed and just couldn’t believe we had just got married! After that the dancing towards the end of the night. We went for Ibiza 2016 style music and all our friends and family danced all night and towards the end, people were pulling out big moves. It was so much fun.

And Finally! Who Helped Bring Your Magical Day To Life?

Photographer – Albert Palmer

Videographer – Mooncast films

Flowers – Wild Thoughts Floristry

Styling – Little wedding helper

Hair and makeup – Evie Smith

Nannies – pitch up and play

Cake – Posh and cake

Evening food – soul fries

String quartet – Fleur quartet

DJ – Luke Nukem

Photobooth – Belle studio

Signage – Lovestruck stationery

Wedding rings – Nicholas Wylde

Wedding dress – Milla Nova @ Laura May Bridal

Veil – Jasmine veils

Kilt – Gordon Nicolson

Bridesmaids dresses – Rewritten

Wow! It's fair to say... that was one FABULOUS wedding! The hints of Italian style mixed in with the Scottish heritage is incredible and we're here for it! 

We send all our love to Alice & Neil and thank them for letting us be a part of such a magical day! If you're looking to celebrate your day here at The Court then get in touch! We'd love to hear all about your plans.

Much Love,

Team E xx