Tim & Francesca’s Hythe Imperial Wedding Day
Hey Folks! Today on the blog is Tim & Francesca’s Wedding Day. This lovely couple tied the knot at St Leonards Church in Hythe, and then went on to their reception in the Ballroom at The Hythe Imperial Hotel.
How did you decide on your venue? The church was the first place we thought after we got engaged, and just fell in love with the Ballroom when we looked around. We decided really early on in the planning that we wanted an Afternoon Tea reception, but also that we wanted to get married by the sea. Both St Leonards and The Ballroom just seemed like the perfect options, giving us the mix of tradition and elegance that we wanted. The colour scheme was a mix of pinks, greys and white, which was all based around the cake!
Which flowers did you choose? I had a simple bouquet of white hydrangeas. I had initially thought I wanted something completely different, but as soon as my florist, Jaynie from True Flower Design, showed me a photo of a hydrangea bouquet I just fell in love with it! The bridesmaids, including our eldest flower girl, had pink rose posies, and the three youngest flower girls each had a rabbit teddy with roses around their necks – another wonderful suggestion of Jaynie’s! The Groom and Groomsmen’s buttonholes were Earl Grey roses (in keeping with the Afternoon Tea!), and the table centrepieces were a mix of white and pink Hydrangeas, white and Earl Grey Roses and Lisianthus.
Tell us about the dress? My dress was a blush pink coloured strapless ball gown, with an ivory lace overlay top for during the day. It was the total opposite of what I originally thought I wanted, and almost exactly what I told the lady in the shop I didn’t want! It was the last dress I tried on in the shop, and as soon as I put it on I just knew it was the one – I couldn’t stop spinning round and playing with the skirt! I felt like a little girl playing fancy dress! I also had a cathedral length veil with Swarovski detailing – I didn’t want any sparkle on the dress, so it was nice to have a little bit on the veil.
I think my favourite thing about the dress was quite traditional and princessy, but with a bit of a modern twist. It was so different from everything else I had tried on, which I think made me like it even more. From the day I got my dress, my Mum and I had a running joke with Tim that it was pink… I’m not sure he ever actually expected we were telling the truth! It was also really fun having a different look for the evening without having to have a totally different dress.
How did you have your hair/make up? I had originally planned to have my hair in a straight, sleek half up/half down style, but had a sudden change of heart on the morning of the wedding and went for the total opposite, ending up with a loose curly up do! Luckily my hair stylist, Alex from Make Me Sparkle, was amazing and the end result was perfect, despite having not had a trial of that particular style! I think I just thought the curly up do would be a bit more relaxed than what I had originally wanted – and would cope better with the coastal breeze!
Again, my make up artist, Emma Sands, was fabulous! I didn’t want anything too over the top, so she suggested going for a slightly ‘more than natural’ look. I wanted to look like me, but obviously a bit more special than normal!
Which colour did the Groomsmen/Bridesmaids wear? The Groomsmen wore navy tails with grey cravats and pocket squares. The Bridesmaids both wore beautiful structured skater style dresses which had cut out backs and a detailed neck line. Our four little flower girls all wore ivory dresses with a pink waistband to match the bridesmaids.
How did you feel that the day went as a whole? I know it sounds clichéd but it genuinely was the most perfect day we could have imagined! After the ceremony we were both so overwhelmed, we almost forgot half of the stuff we had planned! I remember arriving at the Imperial and seeing our light up letters, and hearing the pianist, having totally forgotten it had all been arranged! It was so nice to see all our closest friends and family enjoying the day and having them all there to celebrate with us. There were so many special parts of the day, from the morning preparations, to the actual ceremony, and even just standing on the Sun Deck with a Pimms overlooking the sea taking everything in! My mum and step-dad arranged for fireworks to go off on the beach in the evening as a surprise – that was just amazing and not anything we had ever dreamt would happen! It was the perfect end to our special day.
Enjoy!