Debbie & Darran
Venue: Ashfield House, Standish 1st May 2016
You
don’t get much more low-key than a bloke in his undies saying, “So are you going
to marry me or not!?” Low key was the initial thought process for Debbie and
Darran, with the wish to have an understated, small wedding… but that did not
last long!
Debbie’s
imagination was awakened upon meeting a multitude of creative, inspirational and
talented suppliers. Low key became a
distant memory as Debbie and Darran
did an almighty u-turn and decided that the best day of their lives was going to be one to remember.
Choosing
great suppliers seemed to come naturally to these guys and the venue and
photographer were the first things they booked. Katie at Ashfield House made
them feel special from the moment they walked in, with Debbie recalling, “We
just stumbled upon Ashfield House and fell in love, we didn’t entertain
anywhere else after our visit, it was just stunning.” Jonny Draper’s
breathtaking photographs, coupled with his reassuring manner captivated the
couple and they knew they wanted him for their wedding.
With
14 months to plan the wedding, more and more ideas were brought to the couple’s
attention via social media, magazines and word-of-mouth. Debbie said, “Along
the way it became apparent that you get what you pay for, our plans got bigger,
so we decided to increase our budget.”
The
ever-growing budget did spark a rather hilarious drastic course of action.
“After I’d acquired four new bridesmaids, a flower girl and two huge blossom
trees, Darran kind of threw his toys out of the pram.” At this point, Debbie
drew up a wedding contract which she made
Darran sign. With both serious and jokey elements to the contract,
including the promise of a pair of Jimmy
Choo shoes, Darran reluctantly agreed and signed. He said, “Deep down, I
knew Debbie’s ideas would be amazing on the day, but I needed to at least
pretend I was reining her in.”
Debbie got her
wedding ideas from social platforms including Pinterest and open evenings at
Ashfield House. She said, “I went to every one. I loved the new ideas and
inspiration, but I also became totally at home there – on the day I knew all
the staff, the familiarity was so comforting.”
Getting to know
suppliers well and creating a cohesive team was the key to this couples’
success as photographer, Jonny Draper, knows only too well. Describing the
incredible confetti cannon shot he says “Don’t think that you’re ticking
individual suppliers off a list – understand the benefit of bringing those
individuals together to create a team that will do everything you’ve booked
them for and more. I could not have made this shot happen without help from
Katie from Ashfield House, makeup artist Kerry Baker, Steve from DFC and Sam
Fitton. In fact the amazing supplier team brought together at Debbie and
Darran’s wedding were all so much fun to work with.”
The venue
dressing was a high priority for this couple; Red Floral, The Rose Boutique,
Brides Little Helper and The Word is Love worked together to transform the
venue into Debbie’s dream ‘spectacular extravaganza’, prompting her Dad to
liken it to a celebrity wedding.
What’s so lovely about Debbie and Darran’s wedding is the way they
really brought their personality into it – a
wardrobe full of bespoke vodkas went down a storm with their guests and
the ‘Debbie and Darran’ signs dotted about the venue made it feel all the more personal. They didn’t want a traditional sit down
wedding breakfast, so they opted for bowl food during the afternoon. “A big fear of ours was having hungry
guests, but the bowl food was perfect; more than just canapés, but still
chilled out and informal. Our guests still talk about the food weeks after the
wedding.”
Debbie and
Darran also wanted to ensure that all guests felt completely immersed in their
special day, opting for a wedding where social media was off limits until the
evening. “We wanted to prolong the excitement for all our guests, especially
those only coming at night so we decided to go ‘unplugged’ until the evening reception
was well underway and it worked brilliantly – nobody knew what they were
walking into!”
When asked what
her favourite moments of the day were, Debbie says, “Getting ready in the
bridal sitting room at Ashfield House was brilliant, so spacious and relaxing.
We didn’t feel rushed at all and we loved the regular updates from Katie on
progress downstairs. Also walking down the aisle seeing the twinkly lights, the
room setup and all my friends and family was amazing,
I recommend other brides to take your time, look around and take it all
in.”
Debbie and
Darran were undecided on a videographer for many months as Darran was worried
about being filmed all day “I’m so relieved
we did it, I don’t know what I was so worried about.” (To view their wedding video by Appleyard Productions, click here https://vimeo.com/169225619 )
Debbie and
Darren exchanged special vows at their wedding, which really sums up the exact
sentiment behind this extravagant big day;
a girl marrying her best friend and a bloke marrying his number one fan
– absolutely nothing understated about that.
Thanks to our suppliers:
Venue – Ashfield House www.ashfieldhousehotel.co.uk
Photographer – Jonny Draper www.jonnydraper.co.uk
Venue Styling – Red Floral Architecture www.redfloral.co.uk
Bouquets – The Rose Boutique www.theroseboutique.co.uk
Blossom Trees – Brides Little Helper www.brideslittlehelper.co.uk
Make Up Artist – Kerry Baker MUA www.kerrybakermakeup.co.uk
LOVE Letters – The Word is Love www.thewordislove.co.uk
DJ – DFC www.dancefloorcouture.co.uk
Dress – Creation Weddings www.creationweddings.co.uk
Singer – Steve Charles
Wedding Singer/Pianist – Mark Hendry www.thelivepianoexperience.com
Magician – Sam Fitton www.samfitton.com
Videography – Appleyard Productions www.appleyardproductions.com
Second Photographer –
Kate McCarthy Photography
www.katemccarthyphotography.co.uk
