DANIELLE AND BOBBY: Real Elizabeth Kate Bride Wearing Rebecca Ingram Jamie Wedding Dress

How did you meet?

Tinder – we matched on 28/10/2019.

What about the proposal? How did it go?

Bobby proposed in our living room on my 36th birthday in January 2023. We always decorate for each other’s birthdays, so he had gone downstairs before me and said he would let me know when to come down. I walked into the living room still in my pj’s, there were fairy lights, birthday cake and flowers on the coffee table. Then everything went in slow mo… I realised Bobby was stood up & beaming at me, he was wearing a suit, one of our favourite songs, “Stand by Me” by Florence and the Machine, was playing in the background. Then I saw the big heart on the floor done out in tealights, and in the centre, spelt out in flower petals, were the words “Marry Me”. Everything after that is a bit of a blur, there was a lot of happy crying and hyperventilating! Then we had a weekend in Manchester for my birthday, stayed at a lovely hotel, went to the theatre and went out for a meal. It was perfect!

Tell us about your venue.

We got married at Bert’s Barrow in Hillam, North Yorkshire, a rustic barn wedding venue.

What was your wedding style/inspo?

We knew we wanted an autumn wedding, somewhere really relaxed, that felt warm and magical, but where we could also have a good party! There were fairy lights and bunting, haybale “sofas” and a mirror ball! Our theme was autumnal, we decorated everything with pumpkins, autumn leaves and lots of tealights and bottle lights to make everything glow, and our colour scheme was reflected in our bridesmaids’ dresses… dark greens, burgundy reds, burnt orange, cinnamon rose and champagne gold.

Tell us about your dress!

I knew I wanted quite a “simple” dress in terms of material… no lace or diamante. In my head I was going to have an ethereal, white, floaty style dress with long sleeves. But I chose “Jamie”, an ivory, Rebecca Ingram ballgown dress with spaghetti straps. I remember feeling like my skin and eyes popped when I put it on. We added a little pear belt to make it my own. The ballgown shape and all the layers to the underskirt definitely made it feel playful and a like a once in a lifetime dress. And the best of all… it had POCKETS!

What was your favourite part of your wedding day?

How to pick just one! Walking back down the aisle hand-in-hand to “Let’s Get Married” by Bleachers with everyone cheering for us. And the party, from start to finish. I never stopped dancing. We had so much fun, there were espresso martinis, confetti cannons, and me & one of my best friends had a dance off to Proud Mary whilst everyone stood around us cheering us on. It was the party of my life! I’ve never felt so much joy in one place.

Any changes? (Things you wish you’d done or wish you hadn’t!)

Honestly, there isn’t a single thing I’d change. I was so completely in love with my new husband, and all my family and friends. I’d have done it all again the next day if I could have. My only regret is that I didn’t get my evening hot dog because I was too busy tearing up the dance floor!

Any tips for brides to be?

• From speaking to other brides, I realised one of the most common regrets was not having a videographer, so my advice would be to hire both a photographer and videographer if you can, or have just some way of capturing your day in a way that is possible for you. I’m so glad we have those memories.

• You also don’t have to spend a fortune on flowers/guest entertainment if it’s not a high priority for you. We had professionally made bouquets/buttonholes, but all our table flowers were bought from the local supermarket the day before, and we decorated our venue ourselves.

• I also wanted a selfie station, but didn’t want to spend hundreds of pounds, so I made one myself. I already had a tripod ring light, we set it up in a corner, put up a fun bunting, some balloons and loaded it with silly props… our guests could just use their own phones on the ring light, and they loved it!

Share the love - List your fave suppliers

• Photographers - @truestory.photos

• MUA - @hayleyparkermakeup

• Hair - Jemma Hoggarth

• Charlotte & Jason @berts_barrow

• Bouquets/button holes - @michellesflowersltd.

• DJ - Mark Ridgeway @yourpartydj

• Confetti - @flutterdarlings

• Videographer - @amorephotographywakefield

• And of course, Elizabeth Kate Bridal!