Tacos and tequila

Posted by Sarah Gallivan on 2 August 2022

Becky and Rob met at university at the age of 18. “We did the same drama course and one day Rob asked me out for lunch. We had a sandwich together on the sports field and have been together ever since,” says Becky.

Around 13 years later, they decided to tie the knot. “We both travel a lot for work and hadn’t seen each other for about six weeks so while we were away in different parts of the world, we arranged to meet up mid-trip in New York,” recalls Becky. “One night we were drinking tequila and eating burritos when we decided to get married,” she says. “Rob didn’t have the ring with him so instead he bought me an I love tacos t-shirt from a shop above the bar we were in, which was quite funny.” What Becky didn’t know was that Rob was already planning to propose when he got back to the UK. “When we returned we made tacos in our little flat. Rob had already bought a ring and he hid it in one of the shells and then officially asked me to marry him again,” she says. “It was a double surprise as I didn’t know he’d already been planning it.”

The duo originally planned their wedding to be in the New Forest where Becky’s from, however due to Covid, plans changed. “We eventually decided that we wanted a venue in central London and the surroundings at Carlton House Terrace were stunning. We loved the beautiful high ceilings and décor,” she says. “We have such fond memories of walking down the aisle and entering the reception area to cheers from all our friends after we’d had our photos taken.”

Bride's dress Becky hit the bridal boutiques with her mum and future mother-in-law and after trying on around five different designs she found the one. "I went back to the first design. It was a Jesus Piero A-line dress with intricate lace detailing to the back, I loved it," she says. "I don't like anything too bold and I'm not very tall so I didn't want something that would swamp me." Becky bought the dress but then with the wedding being rescheduled it was a while before she could wear it. In the meantime, she found out that she was going to be 12-weeks pregnant on their big day. "I got the dress altered and added extra paneling to make sure it'd still fit but I was so poorly in the early stages of pregnancy that I ended up having it made smaller again as I'd lost weight! When I eventually went for my final fitting, I felt amazing in it – the best I'd felt in a long time, so I knew I'd made the right choice." Becky accessorised with a lace-trimmed veil, Jimmy Choo platform stiletto sandals and pretty Porcelain earrings.

Rob, his groomsmen and both his and Becky’s fathers all wore matching morning suits. “He was happy keeping his look quite casual, but his best man wanted to go all out and wear morning suits so that’s what they ended up with,” says Becky. “I didn’t mind what they wore but I’m glad they went with that choice in the end because it suited the venue perfectly,” Becky says.

For their favours, Rob chose a shot of limoncello, and Becky chose a small box of chocolates. “With me being pregnant I couldn’t drink but both options went down a storm with our guests,” Becky recalls. “My dad can write in calligraphy, so he created the place names and labels for our favours, they looked fabulous,” she says.

Cupcake table The duo opted for a mouthwatering display of cakes. "I'm not a fan of one big block of cake so the cupcakes were perfect," she says. They had a variety of flavours including red velvet, chocolate, rainbow sprinkles and there were vegan and gluten free options too. "Our wedding planner made such a great job of the display and with so many designs, it really added a pop of colour to the cake table," Becky recalls.

Aisle seats The music that Becky walked down to the aisle to was extra special. "My brother's a musician in the RAF and he'd transposed one of my favourite piano concertos by Ludovico Einaudi, to guitar, which is a very difficult thing to do. He even wrote his own intro piece and played the acoustic version as I walked down aisle. It gave me goosebumps before I even entered the room," she says.

Bride and groom walking down road They walked back down aisle as husband and wife to their favourite song, Revival by Gregory Porter and throughout the afternoon, classic jazz favourites were played to create a relaxed ambience.

Band "During the evening we had a live band, Mostmodern Palace. We always knew we wanted something funky rather than a DJ and the band fitted well with the venue. They played a selection of modern pop songs but all in a funk-sole style. They really got the party going and all our guests commented at how amazing they were," she says.

Couple dancing After the ceremony, Becky and Rob took a stroll together, which resulted in some fabulous photos. "It was lovely to have some time out together away from everyone and with it being such a hot day it was a great chance to get outside," Becky says. "As we were walking, we came across an ice cream van that said mind that child on the back, which made for a great photo opp! Some of our friends and family already knew I was pregnant, but we used that photo to let others know the happy news," she says.

First dance "Even though our original wedding plans were put on hold, and I was so poorly with my pregnancy leading up to the day, it all came together perfectly. I felt amazing and it was truly the best day of our lives."