SUCH A perfect day

from Your Kent Wedding - Issue 109 July/August 2023

WIN! A TRIP TO THAILAND

It was love at first sight for Jess and Sean when they found Westenhanger Castle

Images courtesy of Smiley Huseyin Photography

For a while at least, Jess and Sean shared an attraction from afar at work, until Jess was off sick one day.

“Sean decided it was time to play the romantic gentleman and ask if I was okay,” says Jess. A few messages led to a cosy winter walk and love blossomed. “I was attracted to everything about Jessica and still am,” Sean tells us.

Sean proposed in October 2021, while the couple were away visiting the Elan Valley. They’d been out walking all day and had decided to spend a night in, relaxing in their shepherd’s hut. So, Jess went for a shower and while she was in there Sean left a note telling her to put a dress on and meet him outside. She dutifully did as he was asking and found him nervously waiting – he gave a small speech before asking her to marry him.

When the pair began their venue search they quickly fell in love with Westenhanger Castle. “It’s simply beautiful,” Sean explains. “There’s so much character, from the boat in the grounds to the beauty of the dove cote inside. The choice of places to get married was amazing and we could just see ourselves tying the knot there.”

They wasted no time in booking their date: 20th October, 2022. Read on as the groom, Sean, tells us more...

Jess wore a Justin Alexander gown. It was the first dress she tried on and knew from that moment it was the one. She had it slightly adjusted and had a bow removed from the back, but it was timeless, and she was the most beautiful bride.

I forgot the bow ties and left them back home in Ashford! Thankfully, some of Jess’ friends were out shopping and managed to get some almost identical ones from different charity shops, so we still had something to wear!

I was very nervous before Jess walked down the aisle but relaxed as soon as I saw her and how beautiful she looked. I felt like the luckiest man alive.

Our cake from a local bakery, was orange drizzle flavour. It was the first cake Jess ate after she gave birth to Betsy and I got the same one for her 30th birthday.

We purchased our place names from MacMillan and they fitted the theme perfectly. They each had a small dragonfly pin attached. The dragonfly is important to Jess as it reminds her of her dad. Our favours were two small bags of our favourite sweets – cola bottles and fizzy watermelons.

We chose food that suited us, and it was all amazing. Everyone commented on how good it was, both the wedding breakfast and evening options.

We decided on several subtle touches that reflected us as a couple. We saved wine bottles over the previous months and placed them on a table asking guests to leave us messages in them to be opened on our anniversary.

We had two live singers who were excellent. We’d seen them perform previously at other family celebrations, so knew we were in for a treat.

It was such a busy day, but one of our highlights was when we managed to have 20 minutes to ourselves, relaxing on a bench, drinking champagne, and just having few moments to ourselves.

Don’t overdo it and worry about the tiny things that on the day really won’t matter. Focus on the important things and exactly how you want them.

Travelling is an important part of our lives, so we planned our honeymoon trip together. We went to Dubrovnik for five days, and it was amazing. They city is the most beautiful place, filled with gorgeous restaurants. There was so much to do from hiking to going on a boat tour to a further three islands.

THE W-DAY TEAM

Venue and catering, Westenhanger Castle, www.westenhangercastle.co.uk | Photographer, Smiley Huseyin Photography, www.smileyhuseyinphotography.com | Dress, Isabella Grace Bridal, www.isabellagracebridal.com | Make-up artist, Belle Envie, www.instagram.com/belle_envie | Hair stylist, Lottie Sloane at Coco Hair & Beauty, www.instagram.com/lottieatcocohairandbeauty Flowers, Serendipity, www.serendipityflower.co.uk | Cake, Kingsbury Coffee Lounge, www.instagram.com/kingsburycoffeelounge

Entertainment, Ebonie G and Myles from Black Bird Entertainment, www.black-bird-entertainment.com | Photo booth, OMG Entertainments, www.omg-entertainments.co.uk