Mr and Mrs Hill got married on the 30th of June 2018 at Catthorpe Manor for a simply elegant wedding with hints of travel. Sammie got the pleasure of spending the morning with Liz getting her all ready for the big day by doing her make-up and dressing her! You may recognise Liz’s beautiful face as she is often seen rocking our frocks on the catwalk. We got to know Liz so well during her appointment and she was just so much fun we had to recruit her for our catwalk shows – she loves wedding dresses so much you may catch her taking your bridal appointment in the shop some Saturdays! This time tho it was not for show this was the real thing. We had so much fun on the morning of Liz’s wedding by 10am it was already scorching hot luckily enough we opted for airbrush makeup so it did not slide off!
Let’s get Elizabeth’s perspective of her wedding day…
The Dress…
My experience with
Sammie Lou was second to none! From the minute I arrived, being welcomed in to a beautiful dressing room, Sammie getting to know me and about our day before even trying a dress on. I had no idea what I was looking for in a wedding dress before walking in to Sammie Lou but with Sammie’s amazing experience and knowledge, by the end of my appointment I left with, what turned out to be, my dream dress. I went for Shivani by San Patrick, a beautiful A-line, ivory, royal satin gown with a diamond-shaped keyhole back. Whilst the dress could be personalised with a bolero or sparkly belt I opted to stick with it the way the designer meant it to be, simple, stylish and elegant.
The Love Story…
Michael and I met when I was 17 and he was 18, back in the summer of 2008. Of course we were ‘just friends’ if anybody asked but we soon made it official. We booked our first holiday together for June 2009 and ever since then we have travelled pretty much every year since, making it our mission to explore and see the world as much as possible. We have been lucky enough to see some beautiful places, eat delicious food and make the most amazing memories which is why we wanted to incorporate this in to our day.
We then bought our first house together in December 2010.
Michael proposed to me on a holiday to Italy back on the 21st May 2017. He has always wound me up and joked that he would only propose once we had been together for 10 years but he did it year early. We had just arrived to our hotel and he had arranged for our room to be filled with candles & rose petals with some champagne on ice. We had been up since 3am travelling, suitcases still in tow, I walked in to the room and thought the hotel were just being really nice with all the decorations to then turn around and he was on one knee. I cried….A LOT! On no level did I even expect it. We decided to wait until the following day to tell our friends and family so we could just enjoy all of the emotions of the day together, in the sunshine, in a beautiful hotel and drinking a lot of champagne.
My ring is more special to me that I could ever imagine. My Grandma passed away in August 2016 and I inherited her original engagement ring. A beautiful trilogy ring with a beautiful story, both of which I treasure so much. Michael decided to use my Grandma’s ring as a guide to what he wanted to get for me which was a platinum set, princess cut, trilogy ring. 3 is also my luck number and ‘everything happens in 3’s’. To me it’s just perfect.
Most Memorable…
There are so many wonderful memories that we have from our wedding day, trying to choose just one is so difficult.
The most emotional memory we have would have to be the reading given by a grandparent during the ceremony. It was a reading of ‘Love Monkey’ by Edward Monkton:
”Take your hearts with you wherever you go” said their teacher. “Nurture them as a mother nurtures her new-born baby. For when you want to give of yourself fully, your heart is the only true gift you will have”
The funniest memory would have to be coming back to the manor after some bride/groom photos at dusk by the lake, looking down at my dress to a huge smear of bird p**! No stress was needed though, I found some baby wipes (neat trick learned from Sammie) and had a few of my girls (inc my 3 year old goddaughter) lightly rubbing the stain away. A few seconds later and it was as if it was ever there, even on a satin dress!
Our whole day was filled with happiness, we were surrounded by everyone that we loved, the sun was shining, people were smiling, hugging and just having a nice relaxed day. That is more than we ever could have wished for.
Hair: Stones Hair & Beauty – Ellis Black
Photographers – Amara Grace Wedding Photography
Cake – Amy Vickerman (Friend)
Makeup – Sammie Lewis MUA (Lashes by The Lash Lady)
Florist – Annita’s Floral Design
Décor – Chair Covers – Prestidge Events
Any others to credit:
Alterations – The Fitting Room & Sue Sew
Suits – Albie & Lonnies Formal Wear