“Nothing will ever make me forget that moment!”
We asked our lovely bride Libby if she wouldn’t mind sharing with you, her experience of planning her wedding. With a global pandemic, missing family members and a surprise guest among the numbers, here is how she created the most memorable day for her family and friends.
Tell us all about your fiance and the proposal
Seb Kelly and I met 15 years ago at the tender age of 15. We were at a friends house and I went to bed after a party and he followed me. I wasn’t that keen so I moved onto the floor taking the duvet with me, Seb then followed. After some more persistence from Seb we ended up kissing and the rest is history. He proposed in the garden, told me there was a hole in the side of the house and then got down on one knee, it was very cute. He had however told me that he was taking me for a secret suprise lunch that day, something which he hasn’t done in 15 years therefore, I did have a funny feeling that something weird was going on! How not to make a proposal obvious boys!
Where was your venue and what was the feel for the day?
We fell in love with Silchester Farm from the day we walked in. It had such a relaxed feel to it and felt like a home away from home. It had decor unlike some venues that are just dry hire and it felt a bit like Soho Farmhouse. Being a family run venue that was still evolving, we felt like we wanted to support Al and Carla. It was a really chilled day, we wanted everyone to feel relaxed and so we opted for sharing style food, buckets of drinks on the tables etc.
Which other suppliers made your day extra special?
Photographer - Kirsty, This and That photography. Super photographer that has a knack of capturing the fun at weddings, smiles laughter and love. She’s also a bit of a character herself!
Makeup and hair - Bridesmaid Artistry - Caitlin and Leanne come as a pair and did an amazing job getting us all ready in time.
Flowers - Catherine Zafar Events Floristry - We actually found Catherine on LinkedIn as a freelance florist. We were a bit nervous at the beginning because she didn’t have much of an Instagram at the time but she was absolutely amazing! She listened to exactly what we wanted and made the flowers perfectly, tweaking along the way with my changing choices.
Dress - Boo Bridal - Emma was there for me every step of the way! When I visited back in December it was in the short time shops were open before going back into lockdown. Emma said it was now or never to get a dress. The problem was, I was trying for a baby, so I told Emma that and she was the first person to know out of all friends and family. So we found a dress, whilst Emma was inconspicuously telling my mum the slinky number was not a good option and I looked better in the a line! The other thing was that the dress had some horrible sleeves and lace on it, but Emma listened to what I wanted and said she could take those bits off and change it to my liking. My fiancé at the time and I got lucky with the pregnancy and every dress fitting I was growing and growing - 6 months pregnant on the wedding day. It was touch and go if the dress would even fit and Emma had to put extra panels in it to accommodate the growing baby boy! But it was perfect and Emma made it all so easy and stress free for me.
Band - Damien Nolan created a band for us with Roo Saville who has sung as a backing singer for Florence and the Machine and her partner Rick Ahir who is a guitarist for James Arthur. They were awesome and really recommend speaking to Damien if you want something bespoke for your wedding!
What 3 tips would you give to other brides planning their day?
Relax and enjoy it, take it easy and do little bits at a time.
Don’t go overboard on numbers, we had a 30 person Saturday wedding (with a 30 person friend celebration on the Friday and a 30 person party with family on the Sunday) and it was perfect to see everyone.
Find suppliers that you gel with as it makes the planning a whole lot easier!
What was your favourite part of the planning process?
It all being over and seeing it come to life haha!
What was your most memorable moment of the day?
Walking down the aisle with my dad and seeing Seb for the first time. Everyone was crying and the registrar said it was the most emotional ceremony they have ever been to haha! We have been together such a long time so nothing will ever make me forget that moment. It was pure joy.
What did you enjoy the most about shopping for your dress?
I liked the fact Emma was so chilled despite my growing bump. It was fun having Emma there to see me at the different stages of my pregnancy and also so special our baby boy has been there on our wedding day!
What other moments made your day memorable?
COVID really ruined our hen and stag plans so we had a Sten in the garden instead. That was amazing with all our friends and family there, really recommend that to any couples that have the same friendship group, it was such a social occasion.
We had people travelling from all over, but quite a few of our guests from Dubai, Hong Kong (Seb’s brother which was really gutting) and Boston couldn’t make it because of COVID restrictions. Luckily my brother could make it from Spain’s and Seb’s best man was flying in from the US. It was amazing to have them there.
Who was your most Most Valuable Person on the day?
Most valuable person was my mum, I actually had a disaster on the morning of the wedding day because a stitch came out of the dress but my mum managed to pin it back together. I did end up being 20 mins fashionably late to the ceremony!!!
Thank you so much Libby & Seb for sharing your magical 3 day celebration with us. We wish you both every happiness for your future and cannot wait to hear news of your adorable baby boy … your VIP plus one xxx
Libby’s Blue book
Photographer - https://www.instagram.com/thisandthatphotography/
Venue - https://www.instagram.com/silchesterfarm/
Makeup & hair - https://www.instagram.com/bridesmadeartistry/
Flowers - https://www.instagram.com/catherinezafar_eventsfloristry/