Cam and I went to college together but didn’t really chat much. Years later, we were both working in London and matched on Tinder – like all modern-day love stories!
Cam proposed while we were in South Africa. His family moved to the UK when he was young, but kept up their tradition of visiting The Kruger Park whenever they went home. On one of my visits, we were all having drinks at Olifants camp restaurant one evening – apart from Cam, who claimed he was starting the braai. About an hour later, he came to ask for my help with the food. When we neared the rondavel, I could see it lit up beautifully with hundreds of candles, fairy lights and flowers.
He'd got down on one knee before I could really process what was happening. My engagement ring is an eternity band with a mix of opal and diamonds from Cry for The Moon, an antique jewellers in Guildford, Surrey. His parents and sister then joined us for celebratory drinks and a braai.
My family home is right next to a beautiful church, the grounds of which are maintained by a 'churchyard working party' headed by my parents. When I was a young girl, they would often say, "One day, when you're older, you'll get married at that church and then walk down to the house for marmite sandwiches."
Luckily, my family home means a lot to Cam too, we both lived there for a while whilst we saved up to buy our home. It's not just sentimental, my parents’ home and garden is gorgeous – it's over 600 years old and still has its original features.
My Mum grew 90% of the flowers for our big day, from the table arrangements to the groom’s party pinholes and bouquets for myself and my bridal party. We added greenery foraged (with permission) from a nearby farm. Arrangements and bouquets were assembled by Mum and close friends in the village. Yet more friends and neighbours started drying confetti the summer of our engagement.
Everyone's clicking on...
We had the reception at a local barn. It was a complete dry hire and we borrowed everything from the local village hall. The tables and chairs were delivered via cattle truck, by a farming family from the village who I've known my whole life. I transported everything else in my trusty Skoda, driving at 3mph to prevent breakages.
Myself and my bridesmaids spent the day before dressing the venue. We stayed the night at my parents' house, eating pizza and drinking champagne in the garden as well as hastily writing up a table plan at 9pm after realising I’d completely forgotten to do one. At 6am the next morning, we were back in ‘set up mode’ checking the flowers had enough water in the 30-degree heat.
I didn't go wedding dress shopping as I didn't want the anxiety-evoking experience of finding 'the one'. From my years working in fashion, I had a contact I knew would do a brilliant job creating a custom design. Frankie, founder of Franks London, was so fantastic to work with. I sent her photos of dresses I liked and we met a total of three times to discuss fabric and design, get my measurements and then to pick up my finished dress. It was perfect, just as I knew it would be.
Planning your own wedding is very full on and I became a bit of an afterthought as I wanted to create the best day for everyone else. Frankie made me feel like a priority which was so special.
My wedding shoes were Prada slingback pumps. They were so comfortable, I wore them from 12pm to 4am! I wore my hair off my face in a low bun. I didn’t want a veil but did want some sort of 'fuss' so I bought an oversized scrunchie from ASOS two days before the wedding.
My earrings were from Rosie Fortescue Jewellery and were the main character with my hair scraped back. My bag was from Mae Cassidy, a gorgeous brand owned by my friend Georgina. She kindly gave me the bag as a wedding gift. I felt so lucky to wear both a bag and dress designed by my friends. My make-up was done by my friend, Doey Drummond, who I went to nursery with.
Once we were all ready, we had drinks and photos outside in the garden, seeing guests walking up to the church through gaps in the hedge. The service was very special and the church bells rang as we walked out a married couple and were pelted with confetti.
Just like my parents had always said, everyone went to their house for drinks, a grazing board and a speech from my siblings. My Dad's bandmate Rob played the piano whilst we chatted, had pictures and enjoyed the weather.
I organised minibuses to transport everyone to the venue, with a G&T in a can for journey juice. Cam and I arrived in a white Rolls Royce Ghost driven by my brother. He had AI-generated a song which told mine and Cam's love story that he played on the drive there. It was the best car ride ever!
We arrived at the barn to canapes, games on the lawn and more bubbles. There were more speeches, followed by a hog roast with all the trimmings. Family members made salads and one of my bridesmaids made our wedding cake. Another bridesmaid’s parents built us a bar from their old wardrobes which became the centre of the party.
Our band was led by two of my friends, Liv and Sonny – a singer and bassist. I didn’t leave the dancefloor all night, save for a quick change into a white Maje number.
Most of our friends camped overnight on the farm, including my father-in-law who hilariously cooked breakfast for us the next day fully suited. Hiring everything had saved us a lot of money, however washing up the crockery the day after was quite the crash back to reality.
Everyone had so much fun and all of the hard work really paid off.
Vendors
Photos: Victoria Adamson and Daniel Lewis
Wedding dress: Franks London
Bridal bag: Mae Cassidy
Bridal earrings: Rosie Fortescue Jewellery
Hair: Sadie Lauder
Makeup: Doey Drummond
Bridesmaids makeup: Doey Drummond and Lauren Phelan
Bridesmaid dresses: Omnes
Alexandria Dale is the Digital Fashion Writer at Cosmopolitan UK. Covering everything from the celebrity style moments worth knowing about to the latest fashion news, there’s nothing she loves more than finding a high street dupe of a must-have designer item. As well as discovering new brands, she’s passionate about sustainable fashion and establishing the trends that are actually worth investing in. Having worked in fashion journalism for six years, she has experience at both digital and print publications including Glamour and Ok!
