One of our favourite couples by far this year! WeddingDates reader Charlotte and her beau Rob totally rocked their tattoos at their fabulously daring wedding on the 5th of May at the Dimple Well Lodge Hotel. Everything about the day was simply spectacular from their Rockabilly 50’s theme to the groom’s dapper suit, a hilarious card from a certain Royal couple and a visit from Satan’s Slaves Motorcycle Club! All the tender moments between Charlotte and Rob with their adorable kiddies Lexi and Charlie were captured by Zoe Illingworth.
Stay at home mum and part time hairdresser Charlotte met the love of her life Rob 10 years ago in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. “We both love tattoos and everything to do with the culture so our tattoos played a big part in choosing our wedding theme.”
“I always fancied Rob but at the time I was too young for him as there’s a seven year age difference between us. Over four years ago we decided to go for a catch up drink at a local pub and that was that, we’ve never had a day apart since. We very quickly moved in together and decided to start a family and now we have two gorgeous children! My favourite thing about Rob is his easygoing attitude, he keeps me chilled as I’m definitely the worrier in the relationship.”
While Rob gushed about his beautiful bride “physically – it’s her eyes. Every time.”
Rob popped the big question in front of Exeter Cathedral which is one of Charlotte’s favourite places in England. Exchanging vows was a very special moment for Charlotte as it meant that she “finally got to have the same surname as my partner and also my children. When Rob saw me after I’d got up the aisle and his eyes welled up – he’s not an overly emotional sort of guy so for him to let me in just for that moment, that was really special for me.”
We loved Charlotte and Rob’s Rockabilly 50’s theme, her red hair which popped in every picture and the extravagant Ronald Joyce princess dress. The groom, best man and ushers wore stylish check shirts and blue braces with matching bow ties. While the gals wore 1950’s style red dresses with petty coats from Lindybob and leopard print heels. The brideal bouquets were made from artificial red roses with some blue swallow embellishments. “They were made at Crystal Wedding Boutique in Australia, it’s my mother-in-law’s business. We also had a few of the Satan’s Slaves Motorcycle Club North Yorkshire Chapter there with the bikes and that was awesome!! I felt like a real “old lady” – if anyone reading watches Sons of Anarchy they will know the term!!”
After planning for four years, the pair officially booked their wedding and said I do within three months after The Dimple Well Lodge Hotel blew them away! “The honeymoon suite! Oh my days, it’s amazing. It’s like its own little cottage on the side of the hotel with a kitchen, four-poster bedroom, a proper living room and even a jacuzzi bath tub that has two seats in it! It’s not a huge hotel at all, perfect for intimate weddings. The garden is so lovely, they have this gorgeous tree that’s grown in such a way you can sit on it for pictures and also an old-fashioned red telephone box too, which matched our colour scheme perfectly!”
“Our photographer Zoe was fantastic, she kind of blended in to the back ground and we didn’t really notice she was there. In the morning while getting ready, I remember saying to her “do you mind getting some photos of the girls getting their hair done” and little did I know she’d already been doing it! She caught some truly amazing moments for us, the pictures were outstanding, I’m so glad we had her there.”
“Our wedding fell the week after Princess Charlotte’s birth. So my dad had bought a congratulations card for the end of his speech. In the card it read -Congratulations on your wedding but you’ve taken the limelight away from us! Love Wills and Kate – so typical of my dad!”
The thrifty lovebirds chose a midweek affair to save a ton of money on their brilliant wedding package. And Charlotte has some great tips for other brides who may be on a budget: “Don’t over spend. We were on a strict budget and because we only had a few months to plan it allowed us not to go buying silly extras that we didn’t need! All my table favours were bought off of eBay. I bought love hearts sweets and red and black organza bags and some quirky thank you tags. It was less than £1 per favour!”
A huge thank you to Charlotte & Rob for sharing their special day with us and to Zoe Illingworth for agreeing to showcase her stunning photography. You can see more of her work on her website www.ziphotography.co.uk.
