Fun was the name of the game for Leanne and Paul – they wanted a day as far from ‘vanilla’ as possible. So they combined their love of anime and summer fetes, and came up with a colourful day, packed with fun.

With an unusual theme, it was impossible to get any appropriate decorations, so the couple had to DIY it all! IKEA eBay and AliExpress became their best friends as they sourced items for their unique theme. They created a photocard game for the tables, hand painted all the signs are made the centrepieces and flower arch that stood behind the alter. The tables were named with both a colour and an anime, with a centrepiece to match, along with a table runner and chair bows. 

The first time they’d all been together in two years, the day was extra special as it had been postponed over the pandemic. Leanne lost her Nan and Grandma between their original date and the ‘rematch’, so they had memory chairs at the ceremony and a ribbon tied around her bouquet with their handwritten messages on. She told us, “We wanted to find a nice way of remembering them without it being too intrusive.”

Determined not to make their guests suffer through waiting around between the meal and the beginning of the evening celebration, Leanne and Paul had a cocktail hour, creating ‘his and hers’ cocktails and setting up fun fete sideshows – hook a duck, giant Jenga, bean bag toss, jungle shooter, tin can alley and a shooting range. They also had the classic ‘guess the number of sweets in a jar’, a guess the pirate’s name and a glitter bar and tattoo station. The stalls had fun prizes their guests could win, including the traditional goldfish (soap!)

With an enchanted labyrinth set up in the local shopping centre, Leanne and Paul were given exclusive access to it for some photos, adding another fun elemd ent to their day. With a magician, candy floss, sweet cart, popcorn, photobooth and a balloon modeller, they partied in true carnival style! Leanne told us her best piece of wedding advice would be, “Don’t spend too much time worrying about the big stuff.  Not everything was perfect, but guests have told me that it was the most fun they’ve had, and we had a ball. At the end of the day, it’s the memories that matter.”