NIGHT AWAY Rock the

Kate and Stuart opted for an alternative-themed wedding at Salford Lads Club and Buile Hill Park Hall

Photography

Kateand Stuart met through a mutual friend who organised charity gigs. “We had both recently become single, so our friend suggested that we meet for a coffee,” says Kate. “Our first date was in August 2015 in Manchester. We had similar interests and hit it off right away. Stuart lived in Nottingham at the time and moved to Manchester six months into our relationship to live with me.”

Stuart proposed during lockdown. “We had talked about getting married at some point, but the proposal came as a total surprise,” shares the bride. “He proposed with a Haribo ring, as no jewellery shops were open because of the pandemic.”

Setting The Scene

The happy couple chose to have their ceremony at Salford Lads Club. “We’re both fans of The Smiths and loved the iconic venue because of its rich history,” explains Kate. “For our reception, we booked Buile Hill Park Hall as it isn’t too far from Salford Lads Club, and it has a stage and a lovely outdoor space.”

Kate and Stuart gave their guests Haribo sweets as favours to represent Stuart’s proposal during lockdown.

“We want to keep the wedding quite casual, so instead of a traditional seating plan, we asked our guests to sit where they liked,” recalls the bride. “We decorated the tables with sugar skull luminaries from Craft Harmony. For the flowers, we opted for red roses as they’re my favourites and pale white and blue blooms for my nieces; the eldest is a Manchester City Women’s fan and would only carry flowers if they were the club’s colours.

“Our cake was made by our good friend Amy,” adds Kate. “We opted for a leopard print and black design with white chocolate sugar skulls on top and fondant icing roses. It was three-tiered with Victoria sponge on the bottom, chocolate in the middle and carrot cake on the top.”

For their food, the couple opted for a pizza van from Fratelli’s and an ice cream van provided by Lucia’s Ice Cream in the evening.

“We hired a vintage Fiat 500 to take me from our house to Salford Lads Club,” reveals Kate. “The car also took us from the ceremony to the reception venue. Our guests were picked up by a red, vintage double-decker bus from RM Buses Limited and transported to Buile Hill Park Hall.”

Dressed To Impress

“I wore an ivory 1950s-style dress from The Pretty Dress Company,” says the bride. “I chose it because I loved the style. I accessorised with leopard print shoes, red roses and rockabilly-style jewellery from Dolly Cool. I also had a leopard print pashmina in case it got cold and I used a vintage, ivory jewelled bag that I have had for years.”

Stuart opted for a red mod suit, Dr. Martens, a black and yellow striped tie, yellow tartan socks and a yellow pocket square from Mod Clothin Crown Jester.

“My bridesmaids chose navy blue gowns,” shares Kate. “My sisters wore cocktail-style dresses that they picked themselves and my nieces chose outfits that reflected their personalities. Ruby is very sporty and doesn’t like wearing dresses, so she opted for a navy jumpsuit and white trainers and Scarlett likes frilly dresses and accessories so she wanted a navy blue dress, silver sparkly shoes and a matching handbag.”

Time To Celebrate

“We hired a rockabilly band called El-camino,” explains Kate. “They are friends of ours and Glenn, the double bass player is also my tattoo artist. They went down well with guests of all ages and did covers. Stuart also created a Spotify playlist of all of our favourite songs, which we played using our tablet and through the PA system.”

Memorable Moments

“The day was perfect,” recalls the bride. “It reflected who we are as people and all of our suppliers were brilliant. Our pizza van stepped in at the last minute, as our original pizza van cancelled. We loved the fact that several of our suppliers were friends – the band, photographer, the person who made the cake. The staff at both venues were amazing and couldn’t do enough for us. The wedding planner at Salford Lads Club was brilliant. Some lads got on our vintage bus when it arrived and she soon told them to get off! There is a boxing gym at the venue which was a great place for photos, and one of our friends got rope burn on her hands after doing a somersault out of the boxing ring!

“Stuart and I have both been married before, so we wanted a chilled out day that reflected who we are as people and we felt that we had that,” adds Kate. “After I had had my hair and make-up done and got in my dress, Verna, my next-door neighbour brought me some chips round and there is a great photo of me eating chips in my wedding dress.”

Honeymoon

“We had a mini-moon straight after the wedding to Naples, which was amazing,” reveals the bride. “We went straight to the airport from Kimpton Clocktower Hotel where we stayed for two nights after the wedding.”

KATE AND STUART’S

Contacts

Ceremony venue, Salford Lads Club, www.salfordladsclub.org.uk | Reception venue, Buile Hill Park Hall, www.venuesinsalford.co.uk/venues/buile-hill-park-hall | Photographer, Richard Davis Photography, www.facebook.com/richarddavisphotos Bride’s dress, The Pretty Dress Company, www.theprettydresscompany.com | Bride’s accessories, Dolly Cool, www.dollycool.co.uk | Groom’s suit, Mod Clothin Crown Jester, www.modclothin.co.uk | Hair and make-up artist, Bethany Jane Davies Vintage Hair and Makeup Artist, www.bethanyjanedavies.com | Cake, Love Cake Manchester, www.facebook.com/lovecakemanchester | Flowers, Lily Blossom Florist, www.lilyblossomflorist.co.uk | Transport, Vintage Fiat 500, www.vintagefiat500.com and RM Buses Limited, www.rm-buses.co.uk | Catering, Fratelli’s, www.fratellibolton.co.uk | Ice cream, Lucia’s Ice Cream, www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069303903608 | Sugar skull luminaires, Craft Harmony, www.facebook.com/craftharmony | Entertainment, El-camino, www.facebook.com/elcaminorockabilly Accommodation, Kimpton Clocktower Hotel, www.kimptonclocktowerhotel.com