A BEAUTIFUL DAY

A beautiful DAY Sonja and Robbie had a rustic celebration in Lancashire

Images courtesy of Fish 2 Photography

Sonja and Robbie met at a mutual friend’s birthday party. “We ended up sitting together and talked the whole time,” says Sonja. “Robbie popped the question on top of Summerhouse Hill. This was the first walk we did together when we started dating. I had no idea he was going to propose and was so shocked that I didn’t say ‘yes’ straight away.”

Here she shares some of her favourite moments from their big day...

We chose to get married at Borwick and Priest Hutton Memorial Hall as it meant we could do everything ourselves and plan the day exactly how we wanted. For our favours, we gave our guests wildflower seeds that said ‘let love grow’.

Our flowers were peach and white roses, lisianthus, gypsophila, eucalyptus, thistles and Thlaspi. The cake was a three-tiered design made up of coffee and walnut, lemon and Victoria sponge from Flowers and Cakes by Sophie.

Robbie and I decorated the space with wellies filled with flowers, greenery, fairylights and draping white fabric. Lottie’s Kitchen provided the food. We had a sharing platter with homemade bread to start, lamb, chicken or stuffed butternut squash for the main and banoffee pie, sticky toffee pudding and crumble for dessert. We also hired La Petite Crepe as our evening caterer.

I chose an Essense of Australia A-line dress with 3D floral details. I accessorised with a veil, pearl earrings, a necklace and a bracelet. Robbie wore a Marc Darcy navy contrast three-piece suit with a doublebreasted waistcoat and Bugatti Prague shoes.

We chose several dresses for the bridesmaids from H&M, ASOS and Dorothy Perkins. Our guests were given a Polaroid camera, and we asked them to hang pictures on a frame we’d created. We also provided garden games, and the band, Price Of My Pig, performed in the evening.

We felt amazing on the day. We were so happy and relaxed. One of my favourite moments was when we walked up Summerhouse Hill with all our guests and had champagne at the top. It was unusual for a wedding but worked brilliantly! Our guests loved it, and it felt so special to walk with so many people.

Robbie’s family arranged traditional German games as my mum is German. This included racing to cut out a love heart – tradition says that the winner wears the trousers (I won). The other challenge was cutting up a piece of wood with a double-edged sword. Our wedding ceremony was very personal – the youth worker we used to volunteer with did a message and our sisters performed. We also played a video which was made last year of our guests singing a hymn. We had planned to get married then with reduced numbers, but unfortunately, we had to postpone due to restrictions.

We had our honeymoon in Wales. We stayed in a beautiful Sheppard’s hut with a private hot tub. It was wonderful!

SONJA AND ROBBIE’S CONTACTS

Venue, Borwick and Priest Hutton Memorial Hall, www.priesthutton.co.uk/memorial-village-hall | Photographer, Fish 2 Photography, www.fish2.co.uk | Bride’s jewellery, Banks Lyon, www.bankslyon.co.uk | Groom’s suit, Marc Darcy | Bridesmaids’ dresses, H&M, ASOS and Dorothy Perkins | Hair stylist, Hair by Amy Almond, www.facebook.com/hair-by-amy-almond-361261351141839 | Make-up artist, Blusch Make-up Artistry & Beauty Therapy, www.myblusch.co | Cake, Flowers and Cakes by Sophie, www.instagram.com/flowersandcakes_by_sophie Stationery, Elle Alpin Art, www.facebook.com/ellealpinart | Stationery printing, Carnforth Print & Design Ltd, www.carnforthprint.co.uk Catering, Lottie’s Kitchen, www.lottieskitchen.co.uk | Evening catering, La Petite Crepe, 07465 286 068 | Entertainment, Price Of My Pig, www.priceofmypig.co.uk