A winters tale

Beatrice and Andrew met on the dating app Bumble and enjoyed their first date in Cheltenham. "We instantly got along and felt very comfortable with each other," Beatrice tells us. "I could tell that he was a cheerful person which attracted me to him and Andrew tells me that he loved my smile and sense of humour."

The couple became engaged on 24th August 2020. "We had been out for dinner at Gallimores Kitchen in Cheltenham and decided to go for a wander around the Imperial Gardens which is where we had enjoyed our second date," Beatrice tells us. "Andrew got down on one knee and surprised me with a beautiful ring and those four words!"

End of the aisle The couple chose to have their ceremony at St Peter & St Paul Blockley followed by a reception at Cotswold House Hotel & Spa in Chipping Campden. "I have always wanted to get married in this church because I used to sing in the choir there when I was younger," Beatrice tells us. Having the choir sing and the organist, Doreen, play at our wedding was like having extended family present. We also knew The Very Reverend Canon Dana Delap well and wanted her to marry us. We giggled throughout the entire ceremony because we were so incredibly happy!"

Beatrice arrived at the church, and she and Andrew left as newlyweds, in a 1952 gold and black Bentley Mark VI. "The driver made us a personalised number plate with our wedding date on it which was special," Beatrice says.

For the reception, the couple were only able to invite 15 guests due to the covid restrictions in place at the time. "We needed somewhere that had a small and intimate space," Beatrice explains. The Fig Room at the hotel was perfect.

Tableplan Beatrice and Andrew styled their winter wedding with a red and dark-blue colour theme with hints of pink and white. "We chose red, white and pink flowers teamed with gypsophila and green eucalyptus for our bouquets and centrepieces," Beatrice tells us. "We had a multi-picture frame as our table plan that displayed some photos from our engagement shoot (that was also taken by our wedding photographer, Jade) and we named the tables after Australian places with unusual names which proved very entertaining listening to everybody trying to pronounce them correctly! I made white heart-shaped Christmas tree decorations as our place names that featured our new married name and wedding date on the back. Our favours were small boxes filled with Australian sweets, a single red rose and a small bottle of hand sanitiser with a label saying spread love, not germs."

On the menu were a choice of canapés including crayfish tails with caviar Marie rose sauce, peppered duck breast with apple compote and thinly sliced pork fillet with basil pesto. The starter was smoked duck breast, fennel carpaccio and pickled radishes with truffled brioche snippets while the main course was a rib eye of beef served with sweet potato fondant, creamed spinach and celeriac with a burgundy jus.

"We enjoyed raspberry mousse, burnt meringue and macaroons for dessert," Beatrice says. "I made a classic three-tier cake with my mother. I created a gluten-free lemon and orange drizzle cake as the middle tier and she made the fruit cakes for the top and bottom tiers that all tasted delicious."

Father of the bride speech Looking the part

Beatrice chose her dress because she felt like a bride when she first tried it on. “I knew that I wanted it to have detailed embroidery on the bodice which cascaded down the skirt,” she tells us. “I loved the design on my dress that looked like eucalyptus leaves - I instantly fell in love with it. Donna, the owner of Posy & Pearl Bridal Boutique where I bought it makes bespoke hair accessories so I was able to design my own piece with her. I decided on a long hair vine with a cluster of pearl flowers and a couple of small pins for each of my bridesmaids which looked so pretty. Donna also gifted me a beautiful blue ribbon garter for my something blue.”

Flowers Beatrice teamed her dress with a pearl, white gold and diamond drop pendant necklace and earrings. "I also borrowed a silver and moonstone bracelet from my mother and my father put a silver sixpence in my shoe!"

Groom and bride under veil Andrew chose a blue herringbone check suit teamed with a tan-coloured check waistcoat featuring a burgundy paisley pattern on the back to match the colour of the bridesmaids' dresses and a pair of chestnut-brown brogues. "His suit was a lighter shade of blue than the best man and my father's so that he stood out but they all wore matching waistcoats," Beatrice says. Our bridesmaids looked stunning in their burgundy Bardot-style midi dresses which they teamed with a tan faux-fur bolero shawl to keep warm."

The couple wanted to hire a band but as they weren’t able to have a large reception, they’re saving that until a reception party in 2022. “We entertained our guests with a game of wedding speech bingo with boxes of chocolates as the prizes!” Beatrice tells us. “Andrew’s parents Megan and Ron, his best friend Danny in Australia (who would’ve been our best man) and my sister Vanessa and her family in Sweden all recorded video speeches which we played during the reception. Although they couldn’t be there in person, it was so special to have them as part of the day.

Couple pose in church We also enjoyed the first dance to Stand by Me by Ben E. King, a song that we had danced to on our very first date. My friend's mum is a choreographer who gave us a socially distanced lesson in the garden two days before! Needless to say the lack of space, the size of my dress and Andrew's lack of coordination did not bode well but it was a beautiful moment for us and we didn't care!"