Jackie & Warren were married at Beeston Manor, in Hoghton near Preston, a beautiful exclusive-use venue. Jackie has kindly shared her day with Little White Books:
Where did Warren propose?
He proposed in the Cayman Islands, whilst we were on a Caribbean cruise with my family – he proposed on the beach. I had no idea and he even had the ring as well!
Where you did you get your wedding dress, and why did you fall in love with it?
It was one of the first dresses that caught my eye. It was quite simple, with a band of lace and a bow, and I bought it from Dreamcatcher in Kirkham.
What made you choose Beeston Manor as your venue? What was special about it?
I looked at a few venues but when we visited Beeston Manor I knew it was the right choice straight away. I immediately fell in love with the views at the back. The venue has a simple barn feel to it, but modern and luxurious at the same time. Everyone commented on how beautiful the place is. We had a string quartet (Bridgewater String Quartet) who played songs from some of our favourite bands, such as Oasis – and this fitted in perfectly with the style of venue.
How did you find your perfect suppliers? Did you visit wedding fairs and did you find them useful?
Yes, we visited a Little White Books wedding fair at Beeston Manor. Here we met our venue dresser, Creative Cover Hire, and our cake supplier, Cat’s Whiskers Cake Design. Helen, from Cat’s Whiskers, did an amazing job of the cake. We had a five-tier cake; one top tier and four tiers of little miniature wedding cakes. There were 60 beautiful miniature cakes in total so each guest could take one away with them – Helen also provided little cake bags!
We also ordered cupcakes to go with our evening buffet. These came in all kinds of flavours – raspberry ripple, chocolate orange, sticky ginger. The top tier of the wedding cake was a chocolate cake which we froze and ate upon our return from the Maldives.
How did you get ready on your day?
We got ready at my mum’s with my two bridesmaids. We used Vicky from No 77 Creative Hair in Leyland and Jo Coole was our make up artist – I would highly recommend both of them.
Who went the extra mile for you on the day? And how?
Jo from Ab Fab Florist in Leyland did a great job, she was really accommodating and understood my ideas. She was very patient too as I did change my mind quite a lot! Jules Fortune our photographer also did a fabulous job, she captured some great natural shots, as well as the posing shots, and made us feel really comfortable.
How would you describe the atmosphere of your day?
Very relaxed, the day just flowed perfectly – it was clear everyone was having a great time.
When you think back to your day now, which specific events really stick in your mind?
The speeches. My dad’s speech and the best man’s speech were great – both very funny!
What was ‘your song’?
Kings of Leon – ‘Use somebody’, was our first dance, and the dance floor was packed all night.
Where did you spend your honeymoon?
Twelve amazing nights in the Maldives and two nights in Dubai.
What do you think your family and friends especially enjoyed about the day?
The day was just so relaxed and laid back, nothing was too formal and everything was absolutely perfect.
What was it like having your wedding at Beeston Manor?
It was great, the staff did an amazing job to ensure it ran smoothly. The guests commented on how good the food was, in particular the starter of smoked haddock fish cakes. Both the function rooms, where we had our ceremony and held our wedding breakfast, looked beautiful.
What is your most vivid memory of the day?
Being in the car with my dad on the way to Beeston Manor, feeling slightly nervous. We hired a 1952 Ivory Bentley from Vintage & Modern. I also threw one of my bridesmaid bouquets as mine was too heavy! One of my friends caught it ‘one handed’.
Finally, if you could offer any advice to other brides-to-be, what would it be?
Enjoy every minute as the day will go so fast, I could not believe how quick the day went. Try not to get too stressed, and when planning, try to arrange one thing per month!
List of contacts:
Beeston Manor 01254 851996 beestonmanor.com
Cake – catswhiskerscakedesign.co.uk
Dress – dreamcatcherbridal.co.uk
Flowers – abfabflorist.co.uk
Hair – no77creativehair.co.uk
Makeup – jocoolemakeup.com
Photography – julesfortunephotography.com
Venue Dresser – creativecoverhire.co.uk
If you want to check out Beeston Manor yourself, there’s a Little White Books wedding fair being held there this Sunday! Click here for more details.