Anna is a Lincolnshire girl and Simone was born and bred in London to Italian parents.  They met in 2001 at the ad agency where they both worked.  After lingering glances across their iMacs they got together in February 2002.

The Proposal

Anna and Simone got engaged in July 2008, in the middle of the sea in Portovenere, a stunning place on the Italian Ligurian coast.  Simone called Anna over and popped the question, and he maintains he was on bended knee at the time!

A year later they returned to Portovenere and Anna lost her engagement ring in the sea, three weeks before the wedding!

The Bride’s Outfit

Anna wore a long ivory dress by Essence, from Wellbet Bridal in Swinderby.  After shopping with her mum she found her dress in the third place they visited.  Although drawn to a particular style of dress she did not rule out trying anything on.

The dress was long satin, strapless with ruching around the bodice area, falling into a straight train.  Corseted at the back, it also had tiny diamantes along the train.

The Groom’s Outfit

Simone wore a navy blue three piece tailored suit by Andrew J Musson of Lincoln with a pale blue tie bought from Pisa Airport.

The Bridal Party

Anna and Simone had two bridesmaids, a best man and several ushers.  The bridesmaids were aged 4 and 12 and wore sage green dresses in different styles.  The ushers all had matching sage green ties and the best man wore a blue tie.

Transport

Anna arrived at the ceremony in a deep red 1948 Rover driven by Dean of final-touch-cars.co.uk.  Simone arrived in a Ford Galaxy driven by Anna’s brother!  They went from the ceremony to the reception in the Rover, sipping Champagne in the back.

Flowers

Anna and Simone chose a mixture of white and cream wedding flowers throughout.  Anna had a flowing bouquet and her bridesmaids had smaller, slightly different versions.  Single cream roses were used for the buttonholes and corsages, and a couple of people, Anna’s mum included, wore a wrist corsage.

On the tables they had long thin vases with a few flowers at the top, and the stems and other details forming a display along the length of the vase.

The flowers were designed by Rob from Flowers by Suzanne in Lincoln.  Anna and Simone were chuffed to bits with the wonderful job he did on the designs for the bouquets and tables.

The Ceremony & Reception

The ceremony was held in Anna’s village church with both a vicar and a Catholic priest.  Father Bill, a family friend of Simone’s family very kindly travelled up from Bath where he is University Chaplain to assist with the ceremony.

The Reception was held at Petwood Hotel, Woodhall Spa with 80 guests in attendance.  The venue was chosen for the fabulous grounds, reception room and food.  It also has historical significance as it was home to the Dambusters during the Second World War.

The Rings

Anna and Simone both have Niessong white gold rings, bought from ECone in London, with the date of their wedding engraved in them.

The Cake

The cake was a three tier sponge cake from Horncastle Cake Art, with a model of Anna and Simone and their two cats on the top.  They cut the cake after dessert and had it with coffee.

The Photographer

Anna and Simone used Ian Bursill after he was recommended to them.  They met him, saw his work and chose him instantly.  Anna finds it hard to pick a favourite picture as there are too many fabulous ones to choose from.

Details

The reception room was simply decorated with white table cloths and chair covers, the chairs also had a green sash.  The tables were named after different places Anna and Simone had been to in Italy on holiday, with the top table named after the place they got engaged.

Anna and her mum made the favours together, putting penny sweets such as shrimps and frumps into little bags and tying them together with sage ribbon, and the invites and stationery were designed by Anna and Simone.  The invites were in Italian on one side and English on the other to reflect the spirit of the wedding.

The Honeymoon

Immediately after the wedding Anna and Simone went to Crete for a week, but they have been saving up this year to go on a ‘proper’ honeymoon, visiting Hong Kong and Bangkok and then travelling on the Orient Express to Singapore.

Memories

Anna and Simone remember the whole experience, not just the day itself.  From the day before when they said “see you in church tomorrow”, to spending the evening with their respective families, to getting ready in the morning.

Anna particularly remembers the arrival of the car sending her nerves into overdrive, standing outside the church with her dad and seeing her friends inside.

Tips and Ideas

“Keep a note of what everything costs and what you have paid so you know where you are financially.  Also, start saving now, everything is expensive.”

Bride’s Top Tips

“Enjoy yourself.  What's done is done, if something goes wrong, let it happen - in fact most people probably won't even notice.  I got a bit of muck on my dress getting into the car on the way to the church.  No one noticed but me.”

“Try to spend a few moments with your husband away from everything to try and take it all in as the day whizzes by in a flash.”

Groom’s Top Tips

“Turn up.”

“Don’t forget your thank yous – even if you don’t write your speech down, write your thank yous.”

Best Buy

Anna’s shoes - £55 gold strappy sandals from Faith.  “They went perfectly with my dress and I can wear them again.”

Photography: Ian Bursill Photography

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