Hannah & Dan

Sometimes I am lucky enough to work on weddings where I know the bride/groom and this is one of those occasions.

I have known Dan, the groom, for a long time as he is my brothers’ best friend and near enough a member of our family so when I heard he had popped the question to Hannah I was so excited for them and the journey they were about to embark on..

the one..

“I met Dan at work and our first date was one weekday night secretly after work to a local pub. Nobody at work knew about it for ages either! I knew Dan was the one I’d marry when he agreed to get a dog and we’ve been together now for 8 years. We got engaged on the waterfront in Boston, whilst we were on holiday in 2017.

to theme or not to theme

“The wedding was at Gate Street Barn which had lots of beautiful outside space and we chose the venue pretty much as soon as we saw it. We loved the relaxed feel and outside space and knew it would be perfect for us. There were lots of spaces for guests to go depending on if they wanted to be dancing, drinking or relaxing. Along with finding the venue I’d say our favourite part of the planning process was the wine tasting- we took that very seriously!

We didn’t have a theme but wanted everything to be relaxed and chose things we liked rather than picking based on colour and our tables were named after bands that we’ve seen together and it took us a long time to narrow down our top 10!

Overall we wanted our guests to remember the day as being relaxed, laid back but lots of fun with good food and good wine!”

quirky moments

“We had our dog at the wedding, so he could feature in some of our photos. You wouldn’t believe me when I say I literally searched high and low for a matching bow tie and he coordinated with the boys perfectly!

I also decided to do a speech during the wedding breakfast because I felt strongly that there should be some female speeches as it’s always down to the men to talk about the women and I wanted to change it up!I did leave it quite late to write it but I’d told too many people I was doing one s there was no backing out! On the day I thought I’d be nervous but I was actually quite excited to do it!”

choosing your bridal look

“I’ve known Claire for years and all I’ve ever heard is great things about her makeup skills, so there really was no one else I’d have chosen to do my makeup. I’d say my style was quite relaxed, I didn’t want anything too glam and definitely didn’t want anything sparkly, it’s just not me! I knew what I didn’t want but didn’t really have a clue what I did want and Claire took into consideration what I didn’t want and was great at suggesting ideas and helping finalise my look; she also gave me some great ideas on what products to buy for the day and skincare tips for the lead up to the big day.

On the day itself I really enjoyed the getting ready part, it was really fun and relaxed. I thought I’d be really stressed out but it was a really enjoyable morning. It was great having Claire involved all morning 7 was amazing at ensuring we were all ready on time & most importantly stress free!”

my advice

“Listen to your hairdresser and makeup artist in the morning; they’ve run a wedding morning more times than you so put your dress on when they tell you to and it will all run smoothly.

I was lucky to have Claire attending the wedding and she was always checking I looked my best at all times, making sure I had a little touch up before pictures. Now I know that’s not normal to have your makeup artist or hairstylist to hand all day, so I’d ask your maid of honour to keep hold of your powder/lippy/hair grips and ask her to give you a little nod when a quick touch up is needed.”

Final note

Spending the morning with Hannah and her bridesmaids was so special and I’m privileged to of not only done her makeup but to watch her marry Dan; I can most certainly say that the wedding was exactly as Hannah wanted it; laid back and fun with a lovely glass of wine.. or two!