A long awaited wedding |A Mess In A Dress

(As I began writing this it became abundently clear that this was going to be the longest blog post ever!  So, I’ve split it into two parts for your viewing pleasure….)

Aargh – the world has gone crazy!  I’m so flipping busy at the moment, and the most annoying thing is that I have tons to blog about and I never seem to get the chance to write anything down.  If you could peek inside my head you’d see a stack of blog posts, complete with wit, sentimentality and beautiful photos.

As it is, I’ve barely written a sentence in the past couple of weeks.  Evidence of this is the fact that when I wrote my notes on this blog post (which will eventually get around to being about my Uncle’s wedding) it started “Last Saturday…”  That was nearly two weeks ago now.  Oops!

Still, if you follow me on Instagram (@staceybunny85) then you will probably already have seen a stack of photos of the happy day.  It was a very photogenic wedding, if you know what I mean.  But still, I always planned to write a detailed post about this special day and as they say, better late than never.

Which, ironically, would be a great title for this blog as my Uncle finally married his partner, Kenny, after a relationship spanning 20 years!  They’ve been a couple for almost as long as I can remember and to be honest, I’ve considered them married for many years but it was a pleasure to watch them finally have the chance to make it official.

The day started with the whole family (at least, the female side) converging on my sister’s salon to be pampered and preened ready the for the festivities.  I was being moody and couldn’t decide what to do with my hair so I decided to go for a classic, straight long bob as it seemed less fussy and more likely to keep for the whole day.

We got dressed at my mum’s house.  I went for a classic, vintage look with a gold dress from LindyBop, a black faux fur stole from Miss Selfridge and some fabulously glam black and gold glittery shoes from Debenhams. I was worried that I might look a little “drag queen”, but in the end I was really pleased with the result. The girls wore matching ivory dresses and cardigans.  The dresses were my absolute bargain of the century.  They looked so expensive when in fact they cost (drumroll, please) £20 from George at Asda.

The wedding took place at The Old Vicarage Boutique hotel in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, which was about as perfect a wedding venue as you could ask for.  It was big enough to cope with the demands of a wedding – the service, wedding breakfast and evening reception – while still being intimate enough that you didn’t feel you were miles from the action!

As you walked through the front door, you came into a reception room which had been filled with photographs of the happy couple and their families.  Dotted around the room were photos of other family weddings, including my grandparents and my parents, which I thought was a lovely personal touch.  We walked down a hall filled with beautiful flower arrangements, and arrived in the main reception room which had been set up to hold the ceremony.  Two large chandeliers glistened above the aisle, leading the way to the place where the happy couple would be married.

Moogle had been asked to be a ring bearer, which she was ridiculously excited about as she was escorted off to find her precious cargo and make her grand entrance.  We all took our places (in named seats, to avoid confusion) and the music started.  The wedding procession started with Moogle and one of Kenny’s nieces, each holding a little pillow and a ring, looking pleased as punch being the centre of attention.  When the registrar took the rings, Moogle curtsied, which is so typical of her that it still makes me laugh thinking about it now!

After a dramatic pause for effect, the grooms entered. Uncle Kevin was escorted by my Momma (his Mum) and Kenny was with his sister. They looked very dapper in their matching navy suits, and they were beaming from ear to ear as they walked down the aisle.

The ceremony was very emotional. Both grooms had prepared their own personal promises to each other, and they even managed to make the registrar well up, which was very amusing!

I had been honoured to be asked to do a reading during the ceremony. The reading was “Falling in Love is like owning a dog”, which is very appropriate for the marriage of two firm animal lovers. I was surprised at how nervous I felt when doing the reading, but I think I managed to muddle through it without making a complete fool of myself.

Rings were exchanged and then the ceremony was complete. The newlyweds signed the register and then danced down the aisle to begin the celebrations of their married life!

And that’s Part 1 for you. In Part 2 I’ll be showing you some of the lovely details that my uncle came up with for the special day and giving you a sneak peek into the evening party!