Eloise and Dan decided to tie the knot at the gorgeous St Swithun’s Church in the centre of East Grinstead and then it was on to the Gatwick Manor Hotel to enjoy their reception.
However, the day started at Eloise’s parent’s home where everyone was getting ready. There was a lot of girliness about and some very sparkly shoes which her mum had added the stones to individually by hand. Talk about a labour of love but they looked fantastic! Soon enough it was time for the big reveal for the bride and I had all the bridesmaids assemble and cover their eyes until I said to look so I could catch their first reactions – just love the emotion on their faces as they see their friend / sister as a bride for the first time! Then the family and bridesmaids hopped into two Rolls Royce stretch limos and it was off to the church for the main event of the day.
The ceremony was perfect with just the right amount of happy tears and time for photos outside the beautiful arched doorway. Obviously there was a lot of confetti to thrown so we made a whole walkway for the bride and groom so everybody got a turn to get them good and confetti’d!
Gatwick Manor Hotel is a venue that I’ve visited a lot over the years as it’s very local to me and I’m always impressed with the amount of places there are for photos – both for large and small groups as well as for just the bride and groom. Anyway, there was time for photos, kisses, group hugs, posing and other general silliness (including a close up of some coffin cufflinks – he is a funeral director, it wasn’t a comment on his new marriage) and then it was time to say goodbye and leave them to their party.
