Relaxed Countryside Wedding

Before my next appointment, I had found out that I had just had a miscarriage so other than being completely distraught by the news, I was also a bit apprehensive as I wasn't sure if I would still feel the same way about the wedding, the dress etc. Suffice to say Catherine was so amazingly wonderful about the whole thing and actually having her make my wedding dress was the one of the few things that kept my spirits up at a sad time. Catherine treats you not only like a human being but also like a friend and caring relative. You feel completely at ease with her and trust her from the first time you meet her. You might think that that's not so important when choosing your wedding dress but I can't stress enough how much anxiety it relieves from you and the entire process when you know you're in good hands. For example, when I went to the designer boutiques, there was always the sense of a false happiness and generally as pleasant as the staff appeared to be, when it came down to your thoughts and needed advice on how the dress would look after adjustments etc or any advice on what size to order when you were expecting a baby, the service really was just OK because that's all it can ever be when you're buying a dress that just needs altering. The motivation of the staff is different and also unless there is an in-house seamstress who is amazing, it's difficult for the sales staff to provide any additional advice/ideas. With Catherine, any doubts you had or uncertainties, she would explain things in a way that was easy to understand because she knows how every dress is made from scratch and therefore has the confidence in saying 'that shape would suit your shorter torso or those lines will complement your frame or adding a bit of bone structure here will create x/y or z'. In short whatever you're not sure of or can't imagine, Catherine will help you 'see it' without actually seeing it made infront of you.

Anyway, the second appointment was lots of fun. Catherine has drawn up some sketches based on the first visit and I chose the one I liked and the laces I had previously selected were all draped across a dummy. Catherine fitted me with a plain toile and marked out all the various lines and each step took a step back and made sure the lines worked with my body. She then started pinning bits of lace in various places to get the shaping of the bodice exactly right on my frame. I can only describe it as black magic how she starts off with a plan piece of fabric and within an hour you can already see the outline of the dress and what it could look like.

The next appointment was trying on the dress which still had several pins etc on as Catherine needed to make sure the placement of the Appliqués were exactly right once I wore the dress. Adjustments were made to the sleeves too as I preferred the sleeves a little bit over my shoulders and Catherine tried a variety of other things including adding Appliques over the sleeves which worked beautifully. Catherine also tried adding a final touch to the appliqué on the body which again I preferred so that was done too.

The final fitting was wonderful. I tried on the dress and I was blown away with just how perfect it was. My dreaded 'back fat' was on existent and everything was just right............ I know it sounds silly because you're getting a custom made dress but there's one thing saying it and there's another thing actually seeing it! Every detail was there on purpose, I could walk easily in the dress without worrying about dancing it, it was light, airy, delicate and very feminine. It was exactly what I wanted :-)

We picked the Perch because we had a few of our initial first dates there and it was always very laid back and rustic. Also it has a load of willow trees which I've always loved ever since I watched Pocahontas as a little girl :-) everything was super relaxed, which is exactly what we wanted. We didn't have a head table and took turns in sitting at each table during the meals so we got to interact with everybody. Loads of people mentioned how much fun it was and how relaxing it was being so informal compared to a lot of weddings they had been to. We used all the existing decor in the marquee (simple fairy lights and rustic table runners) and that was it! It didn't need much else because the food was a country feast which meant there was a load of food on every table which meant there was really much space for anything else! We had "I-spy" games on each table with a disposable camera where each table had to take certain snaps........ my two nieces ended up taking most of the photos and there were lots of great candid shots. The food at the Perch was really good, only thing was that there was way too much food so quite a bit ended up wasted, but other than that, it was the perfect venue. We had a live band for the evening reception and that really made a difference with the number of people up on the dance floor. Our first dance wasn't really a dance haha we both just held each other in each other's arms and swayed whilst I tipsily sang to Sam the words of our first dance song "let's stay together" by Al Green. everybody found it amusing and it made Sam relax as he had been nervous about the first dance. We had an open bar with a limit which actually lasted a lot longer than expected which everybody appreciated and just meant everybody could have a good time without worrying about spending an arm and a leg which can easily happen at a wedding. My new mum had a pair of white flip flops made for me which had "Mrs Lucas" studded into them which I thought was very sweet. However I didn't get to use them on the night as I wore the comfiest wedges in the world (even though they were over 6inches....... I'm only 4ft 9 so I needed the height). I found them in the Kurt Geiger store in Heathrow by chance as I had been looking for shoes for a long time. Definitely recommend wearing wedges especially if there's grass at the wedding or reception. We had evening nibbles provided by the Perch as well (burgers and bacon baps) and we also ordered individual cake slices from Pattiserie Valerie which went down really well as it meant there was something for everyone (in the end I think there were 10 or so varieties for everybody to choose from). Overall it was a wonderful day and we both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and so did all the guests too. Every time we think back about the day, we can't help but smile every single time.