Rachel & Steff The Wellbeing Farm 03/08/21
Tell us your love story
We met while we were both living in Cardiff. On our first date, Steff lent me a book to read so I just had to see him again for a second date. Our second date ended up being us getting ice cream and watching the Sound of Music, one of my favourite films. After this I knew he was perfect for me. However, I was about to live abroad for a year as part of my degree so we only had a few months together before I moved.
Being apart for a year at the start of our relationship was tough but we made it through. When I returned, we spent a year living in Wales, Steff in Pembrokeshire and me in Cardiff, before we moved to Bolton so I could complete teacher training. The rest is history!
How were the final weeks of planning?
Quite easy and fun to be honest! Our venue was great so we didn't really need to organise decorations. Everything else was easy as we gave ourselves plenty of time, about 18 months, to plan everything. I also found planning checklists online to make sure we didn't forget anything. I used to work as a waitress at a wedding venue so I already had an idea of what I wanted the day to look like which also made things easier. I really enjoyed looking into suppliers and getting ideas for venue decor, the cake and menu tasting were by far the best parts!
The only part we found stressful was trying to plan around covid and the uncertainty of whether our wedding could go ahead as planned. We had to postpone our wedding from April to August and luckily that's all we had to do as restrictions had been lifted in time for our August date.
What did you do the night before?
The night before our wedding day was very uneventful! During the day our families all came round to our house for a get together as Steff's family all travelled from around the country to come to the wedding. After that I went to my mum and dad's house to stay the night and Steff's best man came to stay with him. We both really tired and had early nights haha
Tell us about your wedding morning
I woke up early and ended up just reading while waiting for my bridesmaids to arrive. I was really relaxed and no stressed about anything! My bridesmaids arrived and we had a breakfast of croissants and fruit. Natalie and Laura from Nala and Knot then arrived and we all started to get ready. The whole morning carried on being really relaxed and calm which was really nice. Once we were all ready, we had some photos taken in the garden before the cars arrived to take us to the venue.
Favourite part of the day
We honestly can't pick. It sounds really cheesy but the whole day was amazing. After covid it was just so great to have all our friends and family celebrating in the same place.
What was your First Dance
Running by James Bay. I listened to James Bay's album a lot while I was living abroad and this song stood out as it is about always coming home to the person you love.
What other music did you have?
I'm a huge Disney fan so as our guests were being seated for the ceremony we had a playlist of Disney songs played on piano. I also entered the ceremony to the soundtrack from the Disney film Up. Steff is a big Muse fan so we entered our wedding breakfast to the song Starlight. For our evening reception our band was amazing and played lots of classic wedding party songs that everyone loved dancing to.
At the end of the night, while everyone was waiting for taxis, Steff's friend jumped on the piano at the venue and started an impromptu sing along to Don't Stop Believin', Bohemian Rhapsody and finished with a very drunk rendition of the Welsh national anthem!
Who did speeches and did you love them?
My dad, Steff's dad, Steff and his best man Elliott all did speeches.
They were all great and really heartfelt. They also had lots of laughs in them too. Steff's dad's speech included an impression of Steff watching football that had everyone crying with laughter!
How was the Reception?
The evening reception was really fun, we spent the whole time dancing with all our friends and family!
If you did it again what would you change?
I don't think we would change anything. Our day was so relaxed and fun, all our guests commented after about how relaxed the whole day was. Not everything went 100% to plan but it was the best day ever
One tip for a bride currently planning her wedding
Don't stress on the day if things aren't going 100% as you planned them, just go with the flow and you will still have the most perfect day.
Also, try and find some time during the day to spend some time with your partner on your own. The day ends up being really busy and it's nice to have a moment alone away from everyone.
Anything else you want to share...
The day itself followed a typical wedding schedule but we made it special to us in a few ways. Llamas and donkeys came out for pictures during the drinks reception after the ceremony and the venue had lots of outdoor games our guests had lots of fun with. We had a huge selection of our favourite pick and mix sweets. Our mum's got together and made boards filled with photos of us from our childhoods as a surprise for us. As a big Disney fan I had to have a few Disney references included, we had Disney music in the ceremony and our guest book was Disney themed. We had our photographs taken away from the venue, at Turton Tower as my Nana used to live there as a girl.
The day was so perfect for us, full of fun and love.
The Dream Team:
Venue: The Wellbeing Farm Photographer: Creative Camera Dress: Ronald Joyce - Dionisia (bought from Because I Love You!) Glam: Nala and Knot Suits: Next Bridesmaids: Monsoon Florals: Flowersmiths (Horwich) Cake: GG Bakes DJ/Entertainment: The Cave
