Victoria and Rishi

We met on Bumble but weirdly soon found out we used to live opposite each other! The proposal on Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh. We love comedy and theatre and go to the Edinburgh Fringe every year so getting engaged there has made it even more special.

Vicky grew up in Horsham and used to come to South Lodge with her Mum and Nana for special occasions as a teenager.  It was always a bit of a dream for the three of them that one she might get married there. Sadly both her Mum and Nana have now passed but it was so special being able to have a little piece of them there involved in all the planning. Knowing how special this was to Vicky - Rishi actually reached out to the events team before he even proposed holding some dates in August just in case! 

For us combining the two cultures was essential, and we wanted that to be reflected throughout the weekend. Indian weddings are known for their fun and vibrancy, this was reflected through the flowers and music throughout the weekend. We also wanted it to feel like a summer camp with all our favourite people staying at the hotel for a whole weekend - so it really felt like people got to know each other. 

Our friends and family are so important to us and we wanted to ensure the atmosphere reflected our happiness and felt somewhat relaxed throughout.

It came to life with a lot of planning! Having two weddings in one day and a pre-wedding celebration too is no small feat! But Emily and her team along with all of our suppliers made the weekend go seamlessly.

Well there were two, haha!

When it came to the white dress I knew I wanted it to be the antithesis of the Indian Bridal Lehenga. Meaning no lace and simplicity with something which also felt quite structural. So mikado silk seemed the perfect option. I wanted something which still felt a bit unique but had a timeless elegance to it. When I saw this Pronovias a-line gown I knew it was the one, with its top feeling quite unique compare to other gowns I had seen.

The bridal lehenga was something slightly untraditional, having adornments in the traditional red rather than the lehenga being red itself - something I wanted so I could wear it again to other weddings! I didn't want two outfits I could never wear again!

Being so happy all day and having fun with those we loved the most. Our wedding day was long! With the first event starting at 10am and the after party finishing at 3am, but we had the best time celebrating with those we loved.

To be honest we tried to do this the whole weekend and focused a lot on the smaller details throughout. Starting with a sports day! We both love exercising and are very competitive, this combined with Rishi being a primary school teacher - we thought a sports day was the prefect way for people to mingle and get to know each other before the weekend.

Flowers - we wanted Indian colours in British florals as a concept to make it feel more us.

Hampers - we had little gift hampers in everyone's room. With snack and recovery packs to help our guests through the weekend, the bags were made by a charity close to Rishi's mum's heart - C.O.R.D and we even had a newspaper with all the weekends plan in it entitled - The Crumble Chronicles - named after our beloved dog! 

Enjoy it! Find vendors that feel like you, for me especially my HMUA was so important - they spend a huge amount of the day with you so you need to get on!

You only get to do it once. Wedding planning becomes quite stressful and can feel like it consumes your life. So make sure you have date nights where you don't discuss it and schedule out time where you are focusing on planning rather than letting it consume every evening.