Sara and Luke met in 2012 on Twitter. "Following our online friendship, we started writing letters to each other, and one day, we decided to meet up," says Sara. "We didn't live near each other, so we never thought anything of our relationship other than a friendship. However, once we met, we were inseparable, and Luke asked me to be his girlfriend. From 2012 until 2018, we had a long-distance relationship whilst we completed our studies. We would travel by train to see each other, spending our weekends and school holidays together. Once we started our careers, we moved in with my parents while we saved for our house, which we bought in 2019. Over the years, we have grown together as a couple and become a team. A lot has changed in the past 10 years, but our friendship and love for each other has been consistent and grown stronger."
Luke proposed in April 2020. "It was a spontaneous moment," shares the bride. "He said that he had been thinking about it for a while, and one day he just went for it. He proposed during the first national lockdown at home. We were in bed, and he just randomly asked me. I was shocked, and it was a complete surprise! We had a Zoom party that evening with our family, and we shared the news with them and celebrated virtually. Because of COVID-19, we were reluctant to start wedding plans, however, in May 2021, we started the search and booked our wedding for later in the year."
"The Lake District has always been Luke's favourite place to visit," explains Sara. "We wanted a venue where we could celebrate with our closest family and friends. We came across Broadoaks Country House and saw that we could hire the space exclusively. We travelled up to Cumbria to visit and booked it immediately after the viewing. It was the only place we saw, and we instantly fell in love with it. It has a private and intimate atmosphere, and they were able to accommodate the whole wedding party overnight, which was important to us."
Sara and Luke made their favours which doubled up as place names. "I filled small mason jars with chocolates and stuck personalised vinyl stickers on them," recalls the bride. "We hand-tied ribbon to each one to tie in with our colour scheme."
"We wanted a more casual seating arrangement and weren't keen on a top table, so we decided to have a U-shaped table, which meant we could see everyone and chat throughout the wedding breakfast," adds Sara. "For the centrepieces, we had a mixture of candles and lanterns. I added lantern toppers which I made from greenery and red berries."
Moss and Bloom provided the couple's flowers. "I wanted something which I could keep and was sustainable," reveals the bride. "They used a mixture of dried and faux blooms, and to create a rustic look, we incorporated cabernet colours."The happy couple chose a semi-naked cake with gold leaf printing and flowers from Love At First Bite by Amber.
"I wore a Stella York gown called 7169 from Burr Bridal," says Sara. "I didn't have a clue what I would wear, and I didn't think I'd go for an actual wedding dress, but when I tried it on, it felt perfect. I'd convinced Luke I was wearing a red dress, and one of the first things he said to me at the aisle was 'that's a funny red dress', which made us both smile."
Luke opted for a tweed waistcoat and blazer from Slater Menswear, a knitted wine-coloured bow tie and Dr Martens.The bridesmaids chose maxi dresses with a heavy lace bodice and high neckline from JJ's House.
Luke opted for a tweed waistcoat and blazer from Slater Menswear, a knitted wine-coloured bow tie and Dr Martens.The bridesmaids chose maxi dresses with a heavy lace bodice and high neckline from JJ's House.
"On the day of the wedding, I was super excited and the happiest I've ever felt in my entire life," explains Sara. "I'd had a lot of nerves in the run-up to the wedding, and by the time it arrived, I felt so ready. Luke was incredibly nervous in the morning, and his best man recalls that he didn't talk for the whole car journey. We relished the service, exchanging our vows and making lifelong promises to each other. After the ceremony, everything felt so surreal. We couldn't believe that we were once teenagers dating, and now we're a married couple ready for the rest of our lives together."
Sara's father nearly didn't make the wedding ceremony. "He was caught in traffic from road works," recalls the bride. "Storm Arwen had caused lots of issues for us over that weekend. The whole morning, I was completely unaware that he almost didn't make it. I went down for my pre-ceremony interview with the registrar, and my dad walked through the door with five minutes to spare. It wasn't until he arrived that I realised he was so late!"
"One of the funniest things from our wedding day was hearing what our five-year-old nephew said to our photographer," adds Sara. "While taking photos of our guests, our cheeky nephew said: 'uncle Luke's camera is bigger than yours!' Luke had taken up wildlife photography the year before and invested in some large lenses for that particular type of photography."
The lovebirds had support from their suppliers. "Our wedding coordinator, Mel from Broadoaks Country House, was truly amazing," reveals the bride. "The night before the wedding, she had a last-minute meeting with me to run through the day to ease my nerves. Our photographer, Adam from AJ Photography, was fantastic from start to finish. He was great at settling our nerves, and he transported the rings from the bridal suite to the best man, ready for the ceremony. We felt comfortable and relaxed around him, and everyone made lovely comments about his professionalism."
"After the wedding, we'd booked to stay in Edenborough for a few nights as a minimoon," says Sara. "We had one lovely night there and then realised we missed being in the Lake District, so we cancelled our plans and returned to Cumbria. We wanted a more chilled experience rather than a busy city. We had a lovely few days, walking, eating out in country pubs and relaxing."
