Tying the Knot During COVID19

Saturday 6th June at 3pm as the sun started it's decent in the sky, ten of Kate and Alex's closest friends and family gathered for their pending nuptials. Definitely our most intimate wedding to date at Hanworth House and despite it's small guest list the wedding certainly wasn't low key.

Kate and Alex were engaged on a holiday to Bruges in Belgium for their 6th anniversary, Kate told us "Alex popped the question while we were there! It was all very romantic", and despite being unable to host as many of their loved ones as they would have liked to, Kate created an incredibly romantic wedding day to match the beautiful proposal!

With an army of amazing vendors, we did our best to create the magical day Kate (and Alex too) were dreaming of and I think.. we succeeded! Just see for yourself.

After the celebration, I caught up with the happy couple (and their brand new puppy Murphy) to see how the day went from their perspective.

Was it a hard decision to reduce you numbers or postpone your wedding/ how did you make the decision? Kate: It was a difficult decision to reduce guest numbers, but it was definitely the right choice for us. We originally cancelled our wedding due to COVID-19, but then, a few weeks before our original wedding date, the government eased restrictions and we discovered that we could have 10 guests instead of just 2 witnesses. We have many family and friends interstate and overseas, and seeing as we had no idea how long it would take for borders to open, we decided the best course of action was just to get on with it. I basically re-planned our entire wedding in the three weeks before the big day! We used the vendors we’d already paid deposits to but changed venues and scaled back what we had originally planned. For us, the prospect of delaying getting married was far more stressful than just having a small celebration. We’ve already been together for almost a decade; we didn’t want to wait another year (and I especially did not want to spend another 12 months planning one day!). Was it a hard decision to reduce you numbers or postpone your wedding/ how did you make the decision? Kate: It was a difficult decision to reduce guest numbers, but it was definitely the right choice for us. We originally cancelled our wedding due to COVID-19, but then, a few weeks before our original wedding date, the government eased restrictions and we discovered that we could have 10 guests instead of just 2 witnesses. We have many family and friends interstate and overseas, and seeing as we had no idea how long it would take for borders to open, we decided the best course of action was just to get on with it. I basically re-planned our entire wedding in the three weeks before the big day! We used the vendors we’d already paid deposits to but scaled back what we had originally planned. We also changed venues to the absolutely stunning Hanworth House as it is local to us. For us, the prospect of delaying getting married was far more stressful than just having a small celebration. We’ve already been together for almost a decade; we didn’t want to wait another year (and I especially did not want to spend another 12 months planning one day!). Alex: I think it was a little easier for me than Kate as my brother and a lot of my friends are overseas or interstate. With no way to be sure when or how we'd manage to get everyone together, it just made sense to me to go ahead with a smaller wedding, especially after Kate had put so much effort into getting everything right. It was stressful, but I definitely think it was the right choice. What was the hardest thing about getting married during a pandemic? Kate: Not being able to have all of our loved ones share in our day Alex: Probably not being able to have my brother or his partner attend, as he lives in Glasgow. How was the week prior to the wedding? Kate: Busy!!! Alex: Really crazy! I've been working from home since March so trying to split my focus between helping Kate and staying productive was a real challenge. What was your favourite moment about Saturday? Kate: Definitely our ceremony. Seeing Alex waiting for me at the end of the aisle was such an emotional moment. Our celebrant, Jo (from Big Love Ceremonies), did an amazing job at creating a heartfelt and memorable ceremony, and hearing Alex’s personalised vows was so special to me. The day itself was a whirlwind and definitely went by too quickly, but during the ceremony we got to stop and just be present together, which made for a really intimate moment that I won’t ever forget. Alex: When Kate got to the end of the aisle and we had a little moment to check in prior to the proper ceremony starting. I was so nervous standing up there in front of everyone, but once she was there everything else just faded away. The dinner came in second. The setting at Hanworth House was beautiful and made our small wedding feel even more warm and intimate. What advice would you give to someone who is considering postponing their wedding? Kate: It’s so difficult to know what to do - there’s no pandemic rule book. My advice would be to sit down with your partner, re-group, and discuss what is important to you both. Decide on Plan B together, and then go from there. Just make sure you do what is right for you! Alex: It really depends on what you want from your wedding. If you need to have everyone there, you definitely should. But, if you really want to get married ASAP, there'll always be time to celebrate with distant friends and family later. Also, don't be afraid to tell people you've had to trim numbers dramatically and are going ahead anyway. I was really nervous about letting people know we were still going for our original date in case they felt left out, but everyone was really understanding and supportive!

I have to say I have seen a fair share of weddings and Kate and Alex will definitely be one I don't soon forget. It's easy to see how much these two love it other and I feel so privileged to have been able to assist and witness this incredibly special day.

Hanworth House will continue to share in the magical moments and it's already looking like 2021 will be an incredibly busy year of nuptials, so keep you eyes open on this spot for a year of love!

Love Tilly xx