This couple’s happy day included a delicious hog roast and plenty of dancing. Our WED2B Real Weddings Norwich feature reveals more:

Amy and Sam met each other at college when she was 17 and he was 18. “We met during our human biology lessons and were inseparable from then on,” says Amy. “For our first date we went to see a band at a local pub. We popped outside and Sam asked me to be his girlfriend and then we went back into the pub to enjoy the band!”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

The big question

Amy and Sam had been a couple for seven years when Sam popped the question. “He asked me on the morning of my birthday,” says Amy. “He was up extra early and went downstairs, which is unusual as I'm usually up first. Sam came back up with a bacon sandwich and left again. Then he returned with a cheeky grin and a ring and got down on one knee. I burst into tears! It wasn’t what I was expecting but it was still perfect!”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

An unplanned shopping trip

Amy found her dress in WED2B’s Norwich store completely unexpectedly, while shopping with her Mum. "I had such a great experience,” says Amy. “The sales assistant was so patient and made me feel completely at ease. At no point did I feel rushed into making a decision. I chose Bronwyn by Anna Sorrano. After trying on several other dresses I realised Bronwyn was my favourite. I loved the back of the dress and the lace detailing. It’s such a beautiful dress and it got so many compliments on the day. I also bought my hair grip from the Norwich store. I choose not to have a veil though, because the back of the dress was too gorgeous to hide.”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

A relaxed setting

The couple married in the barn at Park Hill Hotel in Oulton, Suffolk. “It was perfect and so relaxed, which is what we both wanted,” says Amy. “I loved the character and the grounds, which were great for photographs. We were also able to bring caterers in, so we chose to have a hog roast for the wedding breakfast and pizza for the evening.”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

The big day

The wedding date was 4th August 2018 and Amy walked down the aisle to Ed Sheeran’s ‘Thinking Out Loud’, played by her friend Rachel on the violin. “Rachel played throughout the ceremony and wedding breakfast,” says Amy. “I taught both of her children and it was lovely to have her at the wedding. She even surprised us by bringing her youngest son to sing during the signing of the register.”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

If music be the food of love...

"For the signing of the register we also had ‘A Million Dreams’ from the film The Greatest Showman, ‘All Of Me’ by John Legend and ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’ by James Arthur,” says Amy. “Ollie, one of Sam’s best men, read ‘I Wanna Be Yours’ by John Cooper Clarke. Ollie chose it himself, as he said it represented us as a couple. We left as a married couple to U2’s ‘Beautiful Day’. The best memory from the ceremony was walking down the aisle and seeing Sam’s reaction to me in my dress. Then taking a huge sigh of relief that I hadn’t fallen over!”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

Here comes the sun

After the ceremony the newlyweds went for a drive around Oulton Broad while their guests enjoyed drinks in the glorious sunshine. “We felt like royalty, waving at everyone,” says Amy. “We had a very relaxed wedding. Sam is in the Royal Marines, so we tried to weave little references into the wedding. We chose a lovely lady, Sarah, to decorate our venue using blush pink table runners and a gorgeous wall drape.”

 

Real Weddings Norwich: Amy and Sam’s relaxed and romantic wedding day - Bronwyn

 

A party to remember

Later guests enjoyed a delicious hog roast, which was followed by speeches and cake cutting. “Our cake was made by local cake maker Donna Cann,” says Amy. “We chose cupcakes decorated with iced pink roses in flavours of vanilla, salted caramel and white chocolate and lemon. We also had a sponge for our main cake with a cake topper featuring me, Sam in his uniform and our dog Thor.” Later the couple danced their first dance to Ed Sheeran’s ‘Perfect’ before a pizza van arrived at around 9pm to keep everyone going. “The dancing was the most fun bit,” says Amy. “I had the comfiest shoes and most of the guests danced all evening. We chose music from the 1980s to the early 2000s, so everyone loved the choices!”

 

Amy’s Dream Team:

Photographer: Hannah Betts (hannahbettsphotography.com)
Venue: Park Hill Hotel, Oulton (parkhillhotel.co.uk)
Florist: Irene’s House of Flowers (ireneshouseofflowers.co.uk)
Catering: Spitfire Hog Roasts (spitfirehogroasts.co.uk) and Baytree Pizza (baytreepizza.co.uk)
Cake: Donna Cann
Entertainment: DJ Paul Allen (djpaulallen-weddingservices.co.uk)
Transport: Silverline Limousines (silverlinelimousines.com)
Décor: Wedding Inspire (weddinginspire.co.uk)

Did your wedding have the wow factor like our Real Weddings Norwich feature? If you would like your big day to be one of our real wedding features send your favourite photo to info@wed2b.co.uk and we’ll be in touch!