Lucy and Dan swiped right on Tinder and haven’t looked back. Finding their perfect match, they embraced their inner ‘pastel nerd’, planning a wedding around their first wedding purchase – Lucy’s rainbow Dr Marten boots!
With a focus on creating a vegan and eco-conscious wedding, the couple ensured they used recyclable or reusable products where possible, and asked guests to bring food bank donations instead of gifts. Lucy also took on the task of DIY-ing as much as they could.
They explained, “I essentially classed the whole wedding as a DIY project! I designed the invites, seating plan, place cards, welcome sign, donation sign, menu signs, recycling bin signs, karaoke slips, and every other sheet of paper with print on at the wedding. I also built and hand painted the cake Warhammer toppers to look like us and our cats.”
With so much to plan and remember, the couple opted for the register office to choose the music, focusing on their personal vows instead with a lot of inside jokes thrown in. Lucy told us, “It was special to have so many family and friends with us. The room was full of love and support. Dan’s favourite part was getting to call me his wife for the first time. My favourite part was getting to see Dan’s face when he saw me for the first time that day. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look so happy before!”
Having recently been diagnosed with ADHD, It was important for Lucy and Dan to consider that whilst planning. Dan told us, “We opted for a venue near a park so Lucy could go on the swings to self-regulate during the day.”
However, as with any plans, there are always things that, in retrospect, could have been planned differently. Lucy explained, “It was a brilliant day, but in retrospect we would have done a private first dance. The first dance felt very awkward and stressful as everyone was watching and neither of us dance. It would have been nice to both have headphones playing the same song, and have our first dance in a field with just the photographers there!”
Wedding budgets can quickly disappear, so with £10,000 to spend, they were keen to make it stretch as far as possible. Lucy told us, “Getting married a registry office and hiring a village hall meant the base cost was low for our wedding gave us more to spend on food and décor. Doing my own make-up also saved money, and is something I wanted to do anyway as it meant I could make sure I looked like myself on the day. I opted for a prom dress rather than a wedding dress too as they are cheaper and also a lot lighter in weight which is convenient for someone with sensory issues (and it means my dress had pockets!!) Doing our own stationery also reduced our costs.”
Thinking back to their planning, Lucy advised engaged couples, “Take your time and space out the planning to avoid too much stress. Remember it is okay to ask for help! Also, remember that the day is about both of you not anyone else ultimately. So, do not sacrifice what you want for others.”
