After being in a relationship with her now-husband for 12 years and planning her wedding for 2 and a half, Laura had plenty of expectations for her big day. Luckily, our stylist worked her Eleganza magic and picked out Laura's dream gown as the first gown she had ever tried on! And it was only up from there...
How would you describe your Eleganza Experience?
Dreamy. My trip to your shop was a surprise organised by my mum after a difficult couple of weeks. It was supposed to be some fun and to get me in the wedding mood and I ended up finding my dress! It was the first one I tried on. My stylist, Lisa, was amazing! She took time to understand my personality, my vision and my wedding and she selected the most beautiful Suzanne Neville gown named Alaia. It was the most amazing experience from start to finish.
Let’s go back to the start - what was your engagement like?
My now-husband surprised me with a trip to New York for my 30th birthday. He arranged a day trip to Central Park where he took me out on the rowboats and proposed in the middle of the lake. I was so shocked, I didn't see it coming at all. It was the most romantic moment of my life and the perfect setting.
Tell us all about your Suzanne Neville gown.
My gorgeous gown was not only the first wedding dress I had tried on in your store but the first wedding dress I had tried on ever. Lisa picked it out and put me in it and as she opened the curtains to show my mum, the whole shop just stopped and looked! It was very surreal, my mum burst into tears! I was taken through to the large mirror in the front area of the store. I felt something was slightly missing, it needed sparkle! I asked if we could add a belt so Lisa found the most beautiful one and I could feel the butterflies starting to kick in. She then picked the most stunning cathedral length, lace-trimmed veil I had ever seen and put it in my hair. I've watched enough Say Yes to the Dress episodes to realise what was happening! When she finally handed me a bouquet of flowers, fluffed the veil and train and told me to look in the mirror, I just fell to pieces. I was so overcome with emotion at just how beautiful I looked and I just knew that was the one.
Did you follow a specific theme or colour palette for your wedding decor?
I love flowers and candles and everything pink and rose gold, so I always knew that would be the theme for our wedding. I wanted the aisle lined with thick flowers, twinkly lights and lanterns to create a really romantic feel for our special day.
Tell us more about your wedding day!
I know every bride says it but it really was the most amazing day of my life. I was so calm all morning, even when the weather was that bad that the main road to the hotel was closed! Our children, Isla and Jude, were amazing and looked so cute! It all hit me moments before I walked down the aisle. The realisation of having been together 12 years, planned our day for 2 and a half years and this was finally it! Our ceremony was the best part of our whole day. We had the most amazing humanist, Lesley Anderson, who made our whole ceremony so personal and funny! All of our guests still to this day say how fantastic it was. We had a saxophone player surprised everyone by sax-ing us back up the aisle to a really upbeat Ibiza song. It was fantastic! Chris and I were taken into our reception room to see how it all looked before our guests and I was so blown away that I burst into tears. It was so beautiful and the vision that myself and Suzanne at Purple Willow Weddings had spent years discussing had come to life in front of my eyes. Our speeches were fantastic, our meal was beautiful and the whole day went without a glitch! Our evening reception was brilliant. Deck and Dance were outstanding and my dancefloor was never empty whilst Chris and I danced the whole night away with all our family and friends. Our first dance was Wings by Birdie and it was perfect. My daughter wanted to dance with me and she picked the song Mom by Meghan Trainor and it was such a special moment. I woke up on the 23rd of February and said I would do every single second all over again and would not change one single thing, and that’s exactly how I wanted to feel.
What was the most memorable moment?
Walking in the doors to our ceremony room, seeing all my loved ones, and most importantly walking down the aisle to marry the love of my life.
Do you have a favourite picture from your wedding day? Why is this image so special to you?
There is a black and white picture of Chris and me outside. I’m laughing at how cold I was and he is looking at me with pure love in his eyes. Not being the most romantic of men, I feel more loved than ever when I look at it.
Finally, what would you say to a bride about to visit Eleganza Sposa for the first time?
Look forward to it! You will enjoy every second of your experience
Photographer: Mark Timm Photography Florist: The Quirky Florist Venue: Gleddoch House Hotel and Spa Makeup: Helen Matthews MUA Hair: Lisa Ivone Bridal Hair Shoes: Steve Madden Cake: Kim Gordon Cakes Music: Deck and Dance, Hardie Sax Decor: Purple Willow Weddings
If you wore your dream dress from Eleganza Sposa on your big day and would like to feature on our Bridal Blog, please send us an email to marketing@eleganza.co.uk