Michelle (nee Dee) & Kevin Mountford’s wedding took place in Italy.
Here we interview Michelle to find out more about how they went about arranging it.
7th June 2006 @ 5pm
How did Kevin propose?Although he knew what type of engagement ring I liked he effectively sourced himself and once acquired he was keen to present it to me. He had been trying to organise a weekend away or cook me a grand dinner at home but for whatever reason, I was not interested at the time – just appreciated time at home with Kevin & my dog, Billie.
With this in mind Kevin put on some good music, opened a bottle of champagne and popped the question at home – we had a great night and invited my Dad around to share in the celebration.
A small, old town hall, situated in the historic town of Ravello, which is on the Amalfi coast in Italy.
Having had a formal engagement party in the UK with friends and family we had always intended to get married abroad. Wanting to avoid the production line beach type ceremonies we were either going to do tacky in Las Vegas or romantic in Italy. I fell in love with a hotel called the Palazzo Sasso which was in Ravello and everything after this just came together.
Originally we had intended to take a couple of close friends and their respective partners who could act as ‘witnesses’ however in the months leading up to the wedding others asked if they could come along and in the end there were 12 of us in total.
Except for the fact that documents needed to be sent to Italy in advance almost everything was organised ‘on-line’ and therefore in total it did not take a long time but recommend that to secure the right dates, venue etc you try and plan 6–12 months in advance.
As with everything it’s down to research and Kevin actually took care of most of this. Having located a number of agencies specialise in Italian weddings we opted for a company called Matrimoniando.
Yes, as per above and we liaised with the proprietor, Barbara Aronica, although she used agents local to Ravello
I guess there are concerns in booking something as important not only overseas but via e-mail or phone and therefore not actually meeting. With this in mind look for references or referrals wherever possible. Also there is a different attitude to business and a belief that you can freely hand-over deposits etc without fear of being ‘ripped-off’.
We had a small intimate service with 10 guests.
Bridal House in Chester
Purdies in Chester.
I had a bouquet of 4 big white daisy type flowers. I wanted something simple.
It was simple, sophisticated and totally relaxed, exactly what I wanted!
Having spent a couple of nights in Ravello Kevin and I left our friends behind and travelled to Sorrento for a week. We stayed in the Excelsior which gain was another fantastic hotel.
Think about how you are going to get your dress abroad……Most short- haul airlines do not have wardrobes on board!