Seaham Hall - Steven & Derek
Steven and Derek chose to tie the knot at the lavish and elegant Seaham Hall in County Durham. Surrounded by family and friends, their day was relaxed and joyful. An event which combined style and red carpet glamour with celebration and love.
How did you meet? How did he propose? What is your story?
"As we work for the same company, we met on a flight from Shanghai China to London, Derek proposed on our hotel balcony at The Atlantis Dubai, both in our bathrobes with a bottle of champagne."
What was the inspiration behind your wedding?
"Classic, with a modern twist. Especially with our suits, we wanted more of a red carpet look than wedding attire."
What was the most memorable or your favourite part of your wedding day?
"We both loved spending the morning in the hotel spa with our closest friends and having best friends and family in the room whilst getting ready, the favourite part was when everybody was dancing the night away."
Why was photography important to you and why did you choose 2tone Photography ?:
"We looked across a lot of work by different companies but fell in love with the work you guys produced and also we loved how you work together as a couple."
Do you have any advice for brides and grooms who are currently in the planning process?
"Make memories of the whole process as once the day is over it’s nice to look back on how it all came together."
Venue: Seaham Hall
The men's suits: Dixon Anderson Tailoring
Wedding cake: Ivory Cake Company
Flowers: Fleur Couture
Hair and Make up: Amanda Bell Makeup Artist
Entertainment: WDC Entertainment
Wallworth Castle - Shonaegh and Conner
Shoneagh and Connor's wedding day last summer was fast paced and filled with energy. Everything, from singing waiters to bagpipes, owls escorting messages and even a first dance sung by the mother of the bride herself all made their way into their day, along with the most spectacular sunset that we had seen all year. Married in St Mary's church in Richmond, they went on to celebrate in style at Walworth Castle. Thank you to you both for your kind words, your warmth and your friendship.
Here are our favorite picks from their day...
How did you meet? How did he propose? What is your story?
'After working away overseas in Canada for over 4 months Conner booked us a 5* all inclusive get away in the sunshine leaving just days after his feet touched down in the UK. On the first night of our holiday he suggested a walk along the beach to have a better look at our new surroundings. We came to a pier which gave us a beautiful view of the evening landscape after I’d finished admiring I turned back around and there he was on one knee.'
What was the most memorable or your favorite part of your wedding day?
'I don’t think we could possibly choose, every single moment was filled with love, happiness and smiles (as cliche as it sounds), we loved that the room was filled with people that mean so much to us. There’s not one thing that we would change.'
Why was photography important to you and why did you choose 2tone Photography ?
'Photography was such an important thing for us because our photographs are the lasting memory of our day that can never fade. Also to be able to capture moments that we didn’t necessarily see during our special day was such a joy to look back on! We chose Nigel and Christina because the quality of their work cannot be compared to, their talent and passion for their work shines through to create simply beautiful photographs, they also made us feel so comfortable in the lead up to and on our special day which is exactly what you need when nerves are kicking in.'
What is your favorite part of being married now?
'Our favorite part of being married is most definitely living together, because of Conner’s work we only actually moved in together after our wedding day! We both love having someone to come home to after a long day, and sharing the workload in the house when we’re busy at different times.'
Venue: St Mary’s Church Richmond and Walworth Castle
The wedding dress: Blue Bow Bridal Boutique Durham
Wedding cake: Leonie Wilson
Hair and Make up: Amber Brooke Makeup
Wynyard Hall - Stephanie and Nathan
A beautiful setting for a beautiful couple. Stephanie, a nurse married software developer Nathan last summer at the stunning Wynyard Hall in the Tees Valley. They were married in the gold gilded mirror room, before sharing their first meal as husband and wife, with their family and friends in the hall's ballroom. After dinner, the clouds broke and the sun came out, giving us a perfect excuse to head up to the walled gardens for a leisurely stroll and a few pictures.
The Proposal
"December 25th 2014, Christmas Day. The ring was sitting on a new bauble on the Christmas tree (I love Christmas and decorating the tree so I was so impressed the bauble matched the colour scheme!) initially I just saw a pretty new bauble then I saw the ring on the top of it, Nathan got down on one knee and asked me to marry him, of course, I said yes! "
The Dress
"The dress was a Maggie Sottero. A fitted dress with sweetheart neckline and handstitched sheer lace over the top with tiny pearls bought from yap bridal in Newcastle (who were fantastic!)"
"Bridesmaids wore two birds dresses in colour putty"
THe Venue
"Our ceremony took place in the mirror room at Wynyard hall, followed by a drinks reception with canapés wedding breakfast in the ballroom then evening reception in the conservatory. We had a special remembrance table to honour my grandma and Nathan's great auntie who unfortunately are no longer with us and were a huge miss."
The cake
Our cake was from Burnett's 4 cakes. It was a 4 tier cake with place white icing and edible orchids for decoration, bottom tier chocolate orange, next tier madiera, next tier lemon cake then top tier red velvet."
THe photography
"We met Chrissy and Nigel at a wedding fair initially, the amazing work they had previously done at Wynyard hall made us choose them and their relaxed and approachable attitude. They did an amazing job while making us laugh and feel at ease."
The honeymoon
Dubai for 4 nights then Mauritius for 10 nights
The suppliers
Suits - slaters
Flowers - floral quarter
Hair and makeup - the face house
Le Petit Chateau - Corrin and David
We visited Le Petit Chateau in Otterburn, Northumberland for the first time for Corrin and David wedding last october. The cute and quirky setting of the chateau, along with the stunning natural colours of autumn supplied us with so many visual treats, along with a fabulously laid back couple who wanted nothing more than to spend their day relaxing with friends and family, and each other, enjoying their informal wedding celebrations. Tiny Tim was the host with the most. He joked, 'what was a Welsh man doing wearing a kilt in a French styled venue in Northumberland'! He kept the pace of the day fast and fun, and made sure that everyone, including us, was well cared for.
It was a fantastic day, with energy in abundance and for our first time at Le Petit Chateau, it will be a hard one to beat!
Healey Barn - Melissa and Glen
We have always enjoyed working at Healey Barn in Northumberland and as their recommended photographer, we are very lucky to visit regually. One such occasion was the wedding of Melissa and Glen.
How did you meet?
"We met through a mutual friend 8 years ago in a local bar whilst stood next to a lobster tank! This was our topic of conversation!"
How did he propose?
"Glen and I went on a weekend trip to Edinburgh to visit the Christmas Markets. We were having a look around and Glen was determined to go on the Big Wheel so we could have a better view of all the lights (I LOVE fairy lights ha). We went round the wheel two times and I was busy taking pictures of all the lights, when Glen got down on one knee!! I said YES!! November 27th 2015"
What was the inspiration behind your wedding?
"We absolutely loved Healey Barn the first time we saw it online. We knew before visiting it was where we wanted to get married. Myself and Glen wanted a summer wedding where the outdoor space was just as beautiful and important as the inside. Of course I fell in love with the fairy lights! I've always loved rustic themes and wanted it to have a rustic but modern touch."
What was the most memorable or your favorite part of your wedding day?
Glen - "For me it was watching Melissa walk down the aisle and the relaxed feel of the marriage ceremony."
Melissa - "For me it was walking down the aisle and seeing all my friends and family and of course seeing Glen waiting for me at the end. I remember just laughing from start to finish the whole day ( as you can see from the pictures)."
Why was photography important to you and why did you choose 2tone Photography ?
"Photography was so important to us as we wanted memories to be captured that told the story of our day. We met Nigel at Healey Barn and instantly felt comfortable. We loved all the example albums he had and the style was exactly what we were after. It was nice having both Nigel and Chrissie to give both a male and female touch to our photos. In the run up to the wedding they were extremely helpful and knew exactly what we were after. We are in love with our photos and notice new things we like each time we go back and look."
Do you have any advice for brides and grooms who are currently in the planning process?
"Just enjoy every minute as it will fly by. Everything will come together for the perfect day."
What is your favorite part of being married now?: Calling each other husband and wife.
Venue: Healey Barn
Venue styling: Melissa
The wedding dress: Wedding Dress Company
The men's suits: Moss Bros
Wedding cake: The Master Cakesmith
Flowers: Fleur Couture
Hair and Make up: Hair - Lisa Cameron Makeup - Kitty Kerry
Entertainment: Bride and Groove
Matfen Hall - Emma and Richard
Married at Matfen Hall last summer, Emma and Richard went all out to wow their guests with spectacular visual effects. Their elegant and minimalist day took on a different tone as we progressed into the evening. A dance floor filled with dry ice created a dreamlike setting for their first dance as husband and wife, and a crowd-stopping firework display ended the day with a bang. We were even treated to a red arrows fly past!
Here's a few words from Emma...
How did you meet? How did he propose? What is your story?
'We met at work (Cooper BMW Durham). 'Richard took me back to our first holiday location in Gran Canaria and proposed on a boat in the middle of the sea before we went parasailing.'
What was the inspiration behind your wedding?
'The inspiration for our wedding was minimalistic accessories with a modern look. We wanted the wow factor so we booked dry ice for our first dance and fireworks to end the night.'
What was the most memorable or your favourite part of your wedding day?
'I loved each and every bit of our wedding... I wish we could do it all again but if I had to pick my most memorable part that would have to be our first dance. Walking down that staircase with my husband onto a floor filled with dry ice! I will never forget that feeling and how happy I was at that moment in time with all of our family and friends around us.'
Why was photography important to you and why did you choose 2tone Photography?
'We chose 2tone photography because we liked the idea of having 2 photographers on the morning of the wedding. It was very important for us to have photographs of both myself and my now husband on the morning of the wedding. When we met up with Nigel and Chrissie we instantly knew that they were the photographers for us. We felt so welcome and you could see the quality of their work how passionate and enthusiastic there job was to them! We absolutely love the photographs that you took of our day; the album and photo frames are spectacular!'
Do you have any advice for brides and grooms who are currently in the planning process?
'Get a good wedding planning book and create a spreadsheet with amounts and dates things need to be paid. Just have fun! It might feel like there is loads to sort but try not to get stressed and enjoy every bit of it as your wedding date will come around so quick!'
Venue - Matfen Hall
Venue styling - The Finishing Touch Company
The wedding dress - YAP Bridal
The men's suits - Moss Bros
Wedding cake - The little elephant company
Flowers - The finishing touch company
Hair and Make up - Hair - Lisa Cameron Make Up - Gabby Walker
Entertainment - Luke Howell - magician
Fireworks - Spectrum - fireworks and dry ice