Zoë and Jed celebrated their love with a gorgeous wedding at Tall John’s House
Zoë and Jed started talking to each other in October 2013 on Facebook. “We spoke for two months before we agreed to meet up,” says Zoë. “Jed didn’t have his driving license at the time, so I said I would pick him up from the train station. I arrived at the station, and Jed was nowhere to be seen! Turns out he’d got on the train and travelled 15 minutes closer to my home town. We both maintain we went to the correct place. Our first date was very standard, Frankie & Benny’s then to the cinema. The rest is, as they say, history.”
“The proposal was like something from one of my favourite rom-coms,” shares the bride. “We went to New York to celebrate our 5th anniversary and to see the Christmas decorations. We decided to get up early and have a walk in Central Park at sunrise. I truly had no idea what was coming at the time, but now it seems obvious! You see Jed is quite shy and doesn’t like to attract too much attention, so the idea of a proposal in New York City was impossible, or so I thought. However, on the morning of our anniversary, when we were on our walk, Jed got down on one knee. I instantly started to cry, and a dog came running up to us. It was perfect! There was nobody around, and it felt like the city belonged to us. The rest of the day was amazing. I was in charge of planning our anniversary lunch, so we went to a rooftop bar overlooking the Empire State Building, and Jed planned our anniversary dinner, a river cruise out to see the Statue of Liberty. My engagement ring also has a pretty special story behind it. In 2016 we went to Devon for the weekend, and whilst looking around, we saw a jewellery shop that sold a raw diamond ring, and I said I liked it. A few hours later, and the cookies on our phones showed us a company called Point No Point Studio, and I fell in love. That’s where Jed bought my ring nine months before he planned to propose, so it lived under our spare bed for ages, and I was clueless!”
Why more couples are letting the coast shape their wedding day
For couples planning a wedding, the setting is increasingly becoming more than a backdrop. Research from WeddingDates found that 78% of UK couples consider location an important factor when choosing a venue, with more than a third specifically influenced by the view. Rockwater, the UK coastal hospitality brand with beachfront venues in Hove and Branksome, says this is helping reshape how couples approach weddings by the water. Rather than simply choosing a coastal venue and then planning the celebration independently of it, couples are increasingly allowing the landscape, changing light and relationship between indoor and outdoor spaces to influence the day itself. Rockwater has identified four of the key considerations shaping modern coastal weddings.
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New app launches to simplify one of marriage’s biggest admin headaches
Changing your name after marriage can mean updating details with countless organisations, from banks and subscriptions to official documents and employers. New app Name Change Navigator aims to make the process easier, guiding newlyweds through each step from one platform. Founded by Rebecca Dainton, Head of Product at Flutter UK & Ireland, the app was created to reduce the stress and mental load associated with name changes. It supports a range of naming journeys, including traditional surname changes, double-barrelling, blended surnames and other choices following marriage, civil partnership, divorce or personal identity changes. The launch comes as younger generations increasingly rethink traditional naming conventions, with technology offering a more streamlined approach to this often-overlooked part of newlywed life.
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Something old, something gone: The British wedding traditions on borrowed time
New Aspall research reveals the wedding traditions that are being dropped - from the bouquet toss and choreographed first dances, to the father-of-the-bride speech - and the modern alternatives taking their place. Speeches given only by men (36%), a choreographed first dance (34%) and the formal receiving line (30%) are among the wedding traditions that couples are keenest to ditch, a new study reveals. Wearing a veil, the 15-minute father-of-the-bride speech with no speech from the bride, and the traditional tiered fruit cake are also increasingly falling out of favour as Brits tie the knot, researchers found.
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One4all Gift Cards unveils wedding gift trend for Welsh couples
New research from One4all Gift Cards reveals that, above all else, people from Wales believe wedding guests are expected to give what they can afford. Almost half (43%) say this is the most important expectation when attending a wedding. Against a backdrop of continued pressure on household budgets, findings suggest people in Wales are taking a more realistic approach to wedding gifting, with affordability now sitting at the heart of what many believe is expected of guests. More than a third (36%) of Welsh respondents say they're unsure what the right amount to give is, highlighting how unclear modern gifting expectations have become. Guests want to mark the occasion and give something thoughtful, but many are weighing up what feels appropriate, useful and genuinely affordable.
