This is one of those posts that’s going to have a lot of photographs (hello, burlesque Rock n Roll wedding – there’s no way I could leave any out!) When photographer Marianne Taylor showed me a sneak peek of Sophie & Jonny’s wedding a few weeks ago, I knew straight away that they were right up my street…you’ll see why!
The couple got engaged in Paris on Sophie’s Birthday. “It was a dream come true,” the bride told me “Jonny had booked us into a plush Moulin Rouge themed hotel. We sat on the steps of the Sacre Coeur and drank pink champagne and then he surprised me some more with tickets to the Moulin Rouge that night! I had no idea that he had not only secretly booked the trip but also tickets to The Moulin Rouge. My favourite film and as a burlesque fanatic, this was perfect. At the end of the show, on the red carpet, I was surprised with a box which I unwrapped to find a smaller box. Upon opening the small box and finding my Princess cut platinum ring (perfect!) he got down on one knee in front of everyone and asked me to marry him, to which I screamed and replied yes!”
The Paris proposal and Sophie’s love of all things 1940s and 50’s (she is a burlesque dancer herself) inspired the entire wedding which was a real DIY effort. She sourced the white ostrich feathers for a burlesque theme and the ‘Eiffel tower’ vases herself and set everything up for the reception. She also designed and made all the stationary and paper goods as well as helping out to make the cake. Instead of a guest book they dressed a vintage looking birdcage (found in a boutique shop) with feathers and pearls and had little black and white cards for people to write messages on and post them in the birdcage.
The ceremony took place at All Saint’s Church, Sawley, followed by a reception at Westgate Suite, Nottingham. As the guests arrived they were greeted with the couple’s signature cocktail, ‘The Dita Von Teese’.
Sophie wore a stunning Maggie Sottero dress to which she added the black sash and black corset ribbon up the back. On her feet she wore Christian Louboutin shoes. Her sleeve tattoo was also a labour of love to get completed before the wedding, “I sat for hours at a time each month to get the main of my sleeve tattoo completed before the wedding. I still have the background and a few other items I want added in to go yet” she explained.
As a final and perfect end to the evening, the entertainment was a burlesque dance from Scarlett Daggers. “We aimed to have the wedding our way for ourselves. I had the odd comment about the burlesque not being very wedding-like, but I didn’t care. It was what I wanted to see and thought would be an amazing bit of entertainment that we’d enjoy and was a referral back our Moulin Rouge engagement. Our engagement was so different and so us! And so was the wedding!” Sophie concluded.
Huge thanks to Sophie & Jonny and their photographer Marianne for sharing this incredible wedding with us today.
