Princess for the Day

Within a year of dating, Andy had asked Natalie to marry him

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Early days…

Twenty-five-year-old Natalie and Andy, 34, met whilst on a night out clubbing in London seven years ago. "I used to go clubbing with friends most weekends and I was introduced to Andy by a DJ friend of mine," Natalie explains. "Andy was also a DJ and I thought he was amazing. I fancied him so much, but didn't think for one minute that he would be interested in me," laughs Natalie.
"One weekend I was dancing and Andy approached me and started dancing with me. I didn't know him very well at that stage, but we got on like we'd known each other for ages, and we talked pretty much all night long."
The evening of chatting sealed the deal for Andy as well. As he says: "Having spoken to Nat for such a long time that evening I knew that we were right for each other. Every time I saw her after that I knew she was the one for me."
The only stumbling block the couple came across was their proximity to one another. "At the time we met, I was living in Kent and Andy in London so we didn't get to see each other very much." Eventually, Natalie couldn't bear it any longer and moved to the big smoke to be with the man she loved.

The proposal…

Within a year Andy had proposed, something that came as a shock to Natalie if not her friends and family. "I proposed to Nat on Christmas day when we were in bed opening our Christmas presents. I had wrapped Nat's ring in a box, then put it in a bigger box with some packaging to disguise the surprise. When Nat got to the ring box I took it off her and said 'I'd better take over'. The next sentence was the proposal."
"I burst into tears when Andy asked me to marry him," says Natalie. "I was so shocked. I thought it was chocolates in the box and could not believe it! I phoned everyone that day and told them what had happened, but unfortunately they knew already as Andy hadn't been able to keep it a secret."

Hen and stag parties…

"I had two hen parties as I wanted to have one with family and work colleagues as well as friends, and then a small night out with my closest girlies," says Natalie. "For the the big one with everyone, we went to Downtown in Maidstone. It was an all-inclusive night which cost £45 each and included dinner, drinks all night and a Dirty Dancing cabaret.
"The second hen night was arranged by my bridesmaids and best friends Sam Dickinson and Sam Thake. There were six of us and we got picked up by limo from Tunbridge Wells and taken to Brighton.
"We started at a cocktail bar and and ended up at the Honeyclub, a beach front club where Judge Jules was playing. We had a dance and lots more drink and then made our way back to Sam D's house in Brighton for chips."
For his part, Andy just had the one do. "Me and 11 friends went paintballing for my stag do. I hadn't done it before, but heard lots of stories about stags getting targeted at the end. The last 'event' was my stag run. I was stood in the middle of the field with both teams pointing their guns at me. The marshal had taken my gun and rested it about 20 yards away. He said that when he blew the whistle I was to run for my gun, but I would have both teams firing at me at the same time. The whistle blew, and I have never been in so much pain. After we got back we went into town for a few beers, but it wasn't a mad one as everyone was exhausted!"

The venues…

The couple held their wedding ceremony and reception at Hever Castle Golf Club, which they chose after attending a friend's wedding reception. "We did look at lots of other venues but it was our number one choice, mainly because of the outside area. It was so pretty. It had a lake with a bridge over it, and great scenery as it was on the edge of a golf course," Natalie explains. The couple held their ceremony outside in the gazebo before treating their guests to a sit-down feast including French onion soup, pan-fried breast of chicken and a raspberry and white chocolate tart all topped off perfectly with coffee and mints.

The attendants…

Natalie's three bridesmaids, her two friends and Andy's sister Caz, wore long purple satin dresses. To accessorise they each wore a silver Alice band and silver necklace.
Helping Andy on the day was his son Hayden who took on the role of page boy, while best friend Richard Mason stepped up to the best man job. Andy, Hayden and Richard each wore a morning suit, pinstripe trousers, cocktail shirt with lilac loose tie and silver cufflinks, lilac waistcoat and black tails.
Natalie's strapless dress had ivory beaded detail at the top and a really long train. She teamed with with a necklace from stepmum Sue, silver earrings from Andy, and a tiara from her mum.

The flowers…

The bridesmaids' bouquets comprised white Akito roses, purple lisianthus and white bouvardia. While offering the same pretty combination, Natalie's arrangement also included lilies and freesias. The tables were decorated with square glass vases containing white avalanche roses, lisianthus and freesias.

The decorative touches…

"We decorated the room ourselves. We hired chair covers and bows and swags and went to the venue a couple of days before the wedding to set it up. We had a few lilac and silver balloons which Andy and helpers blew up on the morning of the wedding," says Natalie.

The best bits…

"The whole day was absolutely amazing," enthuses Natalie. "It was all the best part! The service was fantastic. We had a great registrar who made it fun. Andy looked into my eyes the whole time he said his vows. I just about managed to get mine out without crying."

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