Your North East Wedding - Page number 21 - September/October 2021 (Issue 46)

B ethany and Adam’s exciting journey started online on a dating site. After messaging back and forth, the pair realised they shared many mutual friends and couldn’t believe they’d never met before. One Friday afternoon, Bethany and Adam decided to have drinks together in Newcastle and discovered that they shared a strong bond. Bethany says, “We were both single-parents and ended up visiting different soft plays with the boys, while getting to know each other better. After a few days out, the boys were inseparable and so were we!” At the start of January 2020, Adam decided to propose at Bamburgh Beach with Bamburgh Castle in the background. Bethany comments, “Adam managed to sneak a bottle of champagne inside his jacket onto the beach; he must have been quite confident I was going to say yes and of course I did!” SETTING THE SCENE When planning their wedding, the pair ensured the day would perfectly represent them both and be full of laughter. The original plan was to say “I do” a year after they got engaged, but Covid-19 restrictions meant that the date had to be changed twice and a new venue needed to be selected. Bethany says, “Our priorities changed from wanting to have this perfect wedding to just wanting to be married.” After booking Hexham House for the ceremony, the restrictions started to ease and allowed the couple to have a reception in the evening. Beaumont Hotel was the perfect option with a private dining room, The Sele View, which had just become available and the couple were over-the-moon. Bethany stayed in the apartments within Hexham House the night before the wedding with her bridesmaid, mum and youngest son. Adam travelled to the wedding in a relative’s Lamborghini, which was a dream come true! The bride’s bouquet looked incredible on the day and featured a mixture of burgundy and blush tones with proteas as the main feature, plus some eucalyptus and olive branches too. The florist, Laura at Peony & Gold Floral Design, did an excellent job and stayed in touch with the couple throughout the process while discussing different options. The bridesmaid had a matching but smaller bouquet, while the groom and best man had blush buttonholes to contrast with their suits. The couple were restricted to 30 guests and could only have two households per table for the reception. They ended up opting for a sweetheart table for themselves, two tables for both the bride and groom’s family and then a table for friends. Each guest could find their seat via wooden, laser-cut place names. Peony + Gold Floral Design created a table runner using foliage interspersed with flowers and it trailed beautifully off the end of the tables. There was also rose-gold candlesticks and tall-taper candles on each table, which created such a romantic atmosphere. Each adult guest received heart-shaped flower seed favours that said ‘let love grow’ while the little ones received activity packs filled with crayons, colouring books, glow sticks, sweet treats and a couple of small toys to keep them entertained throughout the wedding breakfast and speeches. A lovely touch on the day were two wooden signs purchased on Etsy saying, “We finally welcome you to our wedding.” When it came to the wedding cake, Bethany baked a three-tiered sponge and decorated it with blush butter-cream icing, rose-gold leaves, fresh flowers provided by the florist and a cake topper. The couple provided canapés as guests arrived at the reception to keep them from going hungry, followed by a main course and dessert for the wedding breakfast. In the evening, guests could dig into some bacon sandwiches and potato wedges. LOOKING THE PART When it came to finding a wedding dress, the bride knew she didn’t want a traditional-styled gown and discovered the perfect option on Monsoon’s website called Vera . Bethany says, “I loved the cape, the laid-back style, the satin fabric and the long-flowing train – I’d never seen a dress like it before.” After realising Monsoon stocked dresses in their stores, the bride-to-be and her REAL WEDDINGS 21