Now this real wedding is special to me for a number of reasons. Firstly Penny the stunning bride was the first person I ever “met” on a wedding forum almost a year ago where I remarked on her drop dead gorgeous Monique Lhuiller gown. Secondly it turned out Penny was getting married the exact same weekend as I was and thirdly we both appeared in the same edition of Cosmopolitan Bride magazine…..

Fate eh?

Oh and not to mention of course the fact Penny’s wedding was undeniably beautiful and the images were captured by the uber talented and super cool photographer Julia Boggio. All in all I am totally and utterly made up to be posting Penny and Ben’s Big Day here on Rock My Wedding.

Be prepared for ultimate eye candy ladies – this one’s a corker.

A Fairytale Castle

Our wedding was on the 30th May 2009 – lucky for us one of the hottest days of 2009.  Our venue was Lulworth Castle in West Dorset was gutted by a fire in 1929. Although it has been re-built in parts, its largely just a stone shell which is why we fell in love with it, because it was so unique and beautiful.
    

How I Love Thee Monique Lhullier

My dress was by Monique Lhuillier, I saw her designs in Browns Bride in London and then eventually found a stockist in Dubai.I knew I wanted something very plain but classic, I was determined not to have a strapless dress for some reason, even though I knew strapless was by far the best choice for me. But as soon as I put it on, I knew it was mine! I wanted something very understated and eligant and it seemed to tick all of the boxes.

Make Mine A Manolo

My shoes were champagne coloured, by Manolo Blahnik, I got them in Saks 5th Avenue Dubai in the sale (about a year before the wedding haha.) they were quite a bargin so couldn’t leave them there – plus they matched the sash on my dress perfectly. They were made to be mine!!

I wore a pearl bracelet, which was a present from my mum, and diamond stud earrings, which were a present from the groom! My only other accessory was a wired gerbera which my amazing florist Nicky Lewellyn made for me. I ummed and ahhed for ages about whether or not to wear a veil but decided it wasn’t “me”

My make up and hair was done by Kit Hall at Slap - she did a fantastic job, I decided that i wanted my hair to be elegant and classic to match my dress so i went for a side bun which was finished off by a fresh gerberra. My make – up was just simple and natural, i wanted to make sure that i still looked like me. Kit did a great job, i was thrilled!

Gerberas and Peonies

Nicky Llewellyn did our flowers and we were absolutely thrilled with them and her! We really had to trust Nicky and her creative flare, as we didn’t have time to meet her in person so I sent her a heap of pictures and a mood board and hoped for the best! Because the castle was a complete blank canvas of stone walls we really wanted the flowers to stand out. So we went for big arrangements as table centres and 2 huge arrangements in the ceremony room.

I absolutely love peonies so was very pleased that they were bang on season and what i had in my bouquet, I wanted something very understated and simple and Nicky matched my brief perfectly.
The BM’s had Tulips, which are one of my all time favourite flowers, I think they are so artistic and simple. I was worried that we wouldn’t be able to get them as it was a little late in the season but Nicky pulled out all the stops. We also had lilies, hydrangeas, and cream gerberas.

Pink And Grey Matters

The groomsmen all wore their own grey suits and we provided them each with a Thomas Pink tie to match Ben’s. I wasn’t overly worried that they did all match exactly. Ben wore a mid grey, tailor made suit which he got made in Dubai from Savile Row www.savilerow.ae and a light grey tie from Thomas Pink. I got him some silver cufflinks from Tiffany as a present for the wedding day. 

Love Love LOVE it!

And Julia Boggio loved capturing it all too – here is what she said about Penny and Ben’s big day and a little hint as to what to expect tomorrow….

Ben and Penny were an absolute joy to work with. I knew from the moment I started photographing them on their pre-wedding shoot that we would get on very well and that the images we created together at their wedding would be stunning. On the day, the locations were breathtaking, from Hotel du Vin in Poole to Lulworth Castle. The light in the castle was a photographer’s dream. I also loved that I got Ben and Penny to do one of my favourite things, which I call “cake smooshing” (where the bride and groom feed each other wedding cake). I didn’t have to suggest it twice! They were completely up for it!

Ha Ha it’s worth the wait!

Big Pretty Perfection Love

Charlotte xxx

• Previous Entry: Get Pin-Up Sexy!
• Next Entry: Get Sexy Getaways…