See how other couples celebrated their big day with wedding stories and ideas from County Wedding Magazines' Real Weddings features.
Being best friends with Andrew's sister, Tiffany had known him for years. Butit wasn't until the time of the pandemic that they found themselves spendingmore time together and realised how similar they were and how much they hadin common. "We definitely bonded over our love of food," Tiffany says. "I wasdrawn to his kind heart, humour, strong family values and his amazing smile. Hetells me he was attracted to my fun and energetic personality, my natural beautyand my incredible culinary skills!"
Ceri and Gareth have worked at Rowton Castle for many years and met within the extraordinary setting in 2007. Fast forward time, they've been together for more than 10 years. Gareth proposed on the 19th of September 2022 at an altitude of 3,842 metres. They had just stepped into the Aiguille du Midi Skywalk (the glass room at Mont Blanc) when Gareth got down on one knee. Ceri recalls that it was quite possibly the best distraction from the terrifying height they were at. The proposal had been nearly a year in the planning, with their entire holiday to Lake Annecy revolving around this day trip to Chamonix. Ceri had no idea and was shocked!
These lovebirds met at a vocational university focused on backstage theatre, where they essentially worked for free. Jess was a Scenic Artist, and Jay took on the role of Stage Manager, which often meant that Jay would tell Jess what to do, and Jess would playfully ignore the instructions. Their connection blossomed through mutual friends, who would end up being their bridesmaids six years later. Fast forward time, the pair had a heartfelt conversation about how they felt about each other and their dreams for the future, which led to Jay catching a bus to the nearest Pandora store to purchase some rings. Meanwhile, Jess found herself in a bit of a panic while Jay was gone. By the time Jay returned, it was dinner time, and Jess whipped up some ham sandwiches. They shared a cup of tea, and then, in the cosy kitchen of their student digs, Jay proposed. In a sweet twist, Jess accepted with the ring and proposed back. Just thirty minutes later, they attended a university event and excitedly shared the news with everyone
In true modern style, Emma and Becky met on social media platform TikTok. "At the time, we weren't looking for a relationship but got chatting after Becky commented on my video (which is something she normally wouldn't do)," recalls Emma. "We exchanged numbers and spoke every day. We realised how much we had in common and knew we had something special. We fi rst met in Norwich and went for a meal and some drinks. As soon as we saw each other the attraction was there, and we just hit it off!"
Becky and John met while working at the same school, John being a tennis coach and Becky taking students to the courts for tennis lessons; these courtside meetings led them to talking at the staff barbecue one summer.
Hayley and Craig's story began 21 years ago when they crossed paths as holiday reps in Majorca. They got engaged and were all set to tie the knot in 2006, but they were both a bit too young and didn't fully appreciate what they had, leading them to part ways. However, fate had other plans, and their paths intertwined once again a few years ago, rekindling their love.
Ryan and Kay met in 2019 on a random Friday evening at their local social club where Ryan was playing darts for his team. "I'd arranged to meet a friend there for a catch up, and after a few vodkas, I'd mentioned to my friend that I liked the look of Ryan," recalls Kay. "Whilst I nipped to the ladies, unbeknown to me, my friend told Ryan exactly what I'd said. Whilst exiting the ladies, Ryan was stood there confi dently and said, 'Your mate told me what you said about me'. I wanted to die inside, I knew then that I had to play it cool, 'Did she?' I answered, and with that Ryan said 'Yeah, I'll see you later then', and with that he left the club. I went back in and spoke to my friend and before Ryan had even got to the exit, I'd sent him a friend request on Facebook. We met up again that night and have never gone a day without speaking since. Neither of us were looking for a relationship, I'd not long left an unhappy marriage, and Ryan was in his prime on Tinder!"
Amy and David met in modern fashion online through a dating app in 2019. "Chatting to him was instantly easy," recalls Amy. "He was funny, and conversation flowed immediately. When I first met him, I thought he had a gorgeous smile and beautiful, kind, bright blue eyes. It wasn't love at first sight, but I definitely got tummy tingles. He was very apologetic that he was late to our first date though!"
Cassie and Xander met in modern fashion on a dating app in 2021 and it was love at fi rst sight! "We moved very quickly because when you know you know!" shares Cassie. "Our fi rst date was at a chicken wing shop, outside in the freezing cold (we were just coming out of lockdown). It wasn't the most romantic start but we chatted and laughed all evening; we have a love of musical theatre in common and just clicked right away!"
Emily and Alex met on a dating app when they were both living in Fulham, West London. Emily tells us their beginning, "Alex and I found we had similar values and life goals and constantly discovered our connections to similar places and interests, for example, I have family connections and spent several childhood holidays in Norfolk where Alex grew up and we now live! We also both have an interest in sailing and spending time on the water, we now spend our summers together on Alex's family boat on the Norfolk Broads."
Jade and James had crossed paths as teenagers through mutual friends, but it wasn't until years later that they matched on Tinder. Despite the time apart, the early stages of their relationship felt incredibly natural; they weren't strangers at all. At that time, both were working unsociable hours, which made it challenging to see each other as often as they'd have liked. However, this only meant they cherished the quality moments they did have together even more. James always made Jade feel like a priority, making her realise he was the one for her.
These two lovebirds met when we were 19 through mutual friends! They got on straight away and were great friends from the word go. After being together more than seven years and previously discussing marriage, they viewed a Harry Potter-related venue as they're huge fans of the franchise. They fell in love while looking around the spaces and decided to go for it and get married! Coming home having booked a wedding venue was a surprise for them both. The bride's engagement ring was her mother's, which is extremely special as she died when Elizabeth was only 10. So, this detail meant the world to Elizabeth.
Jessie and Joe met via the dating app Tinder at the beginning of 2018. "I was attracted to Joe because he was funny and kind," Jessie tells us. "I was attracted to Jessie because of her gorgeous blue eyes and willingness to laugh at my jokes!" Joe adds.
Nicole and Andy were introduced by a mutual friend during the summer of 2019 and met up on a date at a local pub soon after. "From our first date, it was clear that we got along well," they tell us. "We both have a good sense of humour, are family-orientated and enjoy countryside walks and pubs!"
Charlotte and Josh met at work 13 years ago and became good friends. "Five years later, a good friendship developed into dinner dates and we realised we didn't want to be apart," Charlotte tells us. "We moved in together shortly after and have spent the last eight years laughing, travelling and eating our way through life!"
Charlie and Luke met at the yearly Bampton Charter Fair hosted in the village where they live. "Luke asked me out on a date and 12 years later, with two children, we decided to finally tie the knot!" Charlie tells us.
Helena and Sam met through a mutual friend who arranged for the group to get together for drinks. Although neither of them was actively dating at the time, they hit it off immediately and began a relationship. Their similar personalities made it easy for them to connect, and they quickly became inseparable. Seven years later, Sam proposed at Harlyn Bay in Cornwall; a place that held a special signifi cance for Helena since she spent her summer holidays there as a child. Sam had planned the entire trip as a surprise, and when he popped the question, it felt like the perfect culmination of their journey together, making it an unforgettable moment.
It started as just another typical day, a quick bus ride home from the university on the U2B, but today turned out to be anything but ordinary! Janice was laughing with her friends when she noticed Anton, who was recovering from a visit to A&E with his arm in a full cast. "Oh, hi!" she said. "What happened? Are you okay?" Just like that, a beautiful journey began! Fast forward three months, and they hadn't crossed paths since that day until they found themselves at the student bar on a Tuesday night. Their eyes locked once more, and Anton leaned closer to ask, "Care to dance?" From that instant, they were enveloped in each other's warmth, united by their kind spirits, a shared love for adventure, strong family values, and, of course, their undeniable charm! Then came the unforgettable moment on May 17th 2022, on the breathtaking Caribbean island of Saint Lucia.
These lovebirds met on a night out. Sophie spotted Ed from across the pub, surrounded by his friends, but soon, most of them decided to head to another bar. A couple of Ed's friends stayed behind, and Sophie found herself chatting with them. In a moment of honesty, she confided in one of their girlfriends that she thought Ed was good-looking. That little admission led them to the pub where Ed had gone. To avoid looking like a stranger following him, they crafted a backstory that made it seem like she knew the girlfriend. However, things took a humorous turn when one of Ed's friends approached him and blurted out that a girl had followed him in because she fancied him. They started talking before Ed asked her on a date.
Emily and James begun their relationship at work. "Even though we were in different departments, we got chatting one day and realised we both grew up close by to each other and had plenty in common," Emily tells us.
Qusai and Robyn met via mutual connections at work and started messaging via Instagram. "I was attracted to Robyn's carefree attitude," Qusai tells us while she was attracted to my kind eyes and smile. I knew how to make her laugh and be serious when needed!"
Charlie and Alice met on Hinge during lockdown and had their fi rst date the day the pubs reopened. What a day that was! Charlie was attracted to Alice's sense of humour, smile and love of sport. Alice was attracted to Charlie's handsome smile and the fact he also happened to be a Chelsea FC fan. Post lockdown, the pair moved to New York and worked and breathed city life there for 13 months.
Through the power of social media, Louise and Paul found each other. Louise remembers, "We both felt really comfortable in each other's company from day one. The proposal was a complete surprise as when I met him, he was very anti marriage due to his past experience."
Vadim was the keyboard player of the worldwide metal band Dragonforce, famous for fast heavy music and featured in Guitar Hero III and the Despicable Me 4 movie - Natalie was a fan of the band. The couple met at a Dragonforce concert where Natalie was photographing the show, and Vadim noticed her in the crowd and thought she was naturally beautiful and stood out. After meeting at the end of the show, they fell in love very fast and had the, 'when you know, you know' feeling. Natalie was already a fan and had posters of the band on her wall as a teenager, so she was really surprised that her crush noticed her and was interested in her.
Danielle and Aaron met online in 2021 and spent their fi rst date in Liverpool where they visited Roxy Ballroom and played beer pong. "I think we were attracted to each other because of our common interests. We're both Harry Potter geeks, and like Disney, quizzes and travel. We're also close to our families and share similar values," Danielle says.
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