See how other couples celebrated their big day with wedding stories and ideas from County Wedding Magazines' Real Weddings features.
Daisy and Alex met when they were introduced by a friend. " "We both lived a few hours apart but regularly made time to spend with each other and the rest is history!"
The couple became engaged during a holiday in Canada. "Alex asked me to marry him at the top of Sulphur Mountain as we exited the gondola," Daisy says. "It was a beautiful day and a wonderful surprise."
David and Marie-Anthea first met online and decided to meet in person on London Bridge – the perfect location for a north and south Londoner to come together. Marie-Anthea says, "Dave almost cancelled because the Northern Line was down, but thankfully he persevered." She adds, "We realised we shared a lot in common, including a love for the gym, ballet, good steak, red wine and good-quality peanut butter." Early in their relationship, the couple had realised that they'd found the one. Marie-Anthea comments, "Dave offered to come to my office at lunchtime on a Monday to bring me a brownie because I was hungover, and that's when I realised he was a keeper."
Laura met Mike in the oh-so modern way – online. While he was attracted to her genuine and down-to-earth personality, Laura says, "I fell in love with Mike's beautiful blue eyes and I'm not going to lie, the picture of him in his TA uniform was definitely a plus. I've always liked a man in uniform... who doesn't?!"
When Mike proposed in 2015 it wasn't a surprise as he'd asked Laura to go ring shopping the week before. "It was so much fun as I got to personally choose my engagement ring," Laura remembers. When the time came to pop the question, Mike took Laura on a romantic walk to Reculver, the beautiful church ruins on a cliff face, wine and glasses in hand. Despite being nervous he asked Laura to be his wife in the traditional way – on one knee – albeit in a puddle.
Stacey and Jake met through an online dating app. "As our first date, Jake took me for breakfast after one of my night shifts which was a real treat," Stacey tells us. "We became engaged during the week that we went into the first lockdown! It was very romantic because we were at home and Jake had asked my mum to call me as a distraction while he decorated our home with candles and flowers. He had Tale As Old As Time from Beauty And The Beast playing, which is my favourite Disney movie that ended up being the song I walked down the aisle to because we hired a string trio who played a beautiful arrangement for us."
Sam and Michaela first met on Plenty of Fish, a popular dating app, and set off for their first date after messaging back and forth. Michaela says, "The conversation flowed effortlessly, and I was instantly attracted to his looks, ambition and selflessness."
The pair realised they'd found the one at a three-day horse show, which Michaela was competing in. After the first two days of the event, she had fallen off twice and felt upset about her performance. But Sam inspired her to stay for the qualifying round, and she ended up winning thanks to his support. From that moment on, the pair knew they'd met their perfect match.
Alexandra and Darryl met when they were children. "I was friends with his sister," says Alexandra. "We then met later at a mutual friend's engagement party. We share a love of Formula 1 and have lots of mutual interests."
Darryl popped the question on Christmas Day. "He wrote it on a card and woke me up early as he was so impatient," shares the bride. "He thoughtfully sought the permission of my dad before proposing, and it was wonderful being able to share the day with family. It was definitely a surprise, and I didn't even believe him when I read it!"
Caroline and George Rispin met at work in York back in 2014. Caroline tells us, "I loved George's energy and humour – he made me laugh like nobody else and I remember one afternoon we were working together and were so engrossed in conversation that we just didn't answer the phones! Everybody loves George when they meet him, he's so fun to be around and he's incredibly caring."
"We're both very ambitious and are attracted to each other's independent drive. We have such a strong bond because we share the same values – our relationship has been built upon trust, honesty, transparency, and an unwavering love and respect for one another." Just like their high expectations in life they also had the same expectations in another area as Caroline jokes! "We were also looking for a partner with height! I'm 5ft 11, so I needed a tall man and he's 6ft 5 – so I'll be forever looking up to him!"
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