A nice chat about your wedding

We married in July 1965 in one of the "Last of the Summer Wine" village churches. I was 21 and he was 22. My dress was made by a work colleague's Mum, and the two bridesmaids had their dresses made too. My sister and brother-in-law made our three-tier cake as a wedding present and my other sister did the flowers. I had gold roses and the men had a white rose buttonhole (being in Yorkshire).

We had a reception in a moorland pub - chicken salad and sherry trifle and by 3pm my brother was taking us to York station to catch a train to Edinburgh where we had a week's honeymoon. We came home with £5 between us to last the two weeks till payday!.

I can't say I enjoyed my wedding day. I was too tired from doing up our run-down 2-up 2-down old cottage and family disputes broke out between one of my sisters and Mum. I wish we had eloped!

I met my second husband on the internet, I was already in an unfulfilling marriage with 3 children. He was in Canada I was in England. I visited him in Canada and didn't come back to England for a year. By then I had divorced but we had absolutely NO money on returning to England. We lived with my brother until I found work. Our love was strong and we had a registry office wedding with a few guests. We wanted to commit to each other, (not put on an expensive wedding for the benefit of other people) we had both previously had extravagant weddings. At 43 we were "expecting" and now have a 12 year old son and have been very happily married for 14 years.

We were married in 1967 at a horrible, ugly redbrick church in an ugly street. I had been baptised and attended the beautiful Arts and crafts cathedral of the north but the vicar would not marry us as we lived outside of the parish.
The weather was horrible, poured down and the black and white photos were taken by an amateur whose work left a lot to be desired.
We will be celebrating fifty years next year. We were 21 and 22 and waited until we qualified in our respective careers also I did not want to give my mother the satisfaction of having to ask her to sign the consent form.
The wedding reception cost £72 and my father paid half and we paid the other half. My dress was white velvet and was made by my bridesmaid's mother but it had to be taken in a few days before the wedding when I lost quite a lot of weight in the run up to the big day, I went from 7.5 stone to 7 stone

We met when DH was just about to go to university and I had just done my O Levels. We were married some years later when I had finished uni, but DH still had a couple of years to go.
We married in a London registry office and had the reception at my mother's home. My MIL had an account at Harrod's food hall, so that's where we got the wedding cake from! When they delivered it, in the green and gold van, a man came into the house to construct the tiers! I was very impressed.
My father attended, although he and my mother had not met since they divorced 14 years earlier. Fortunately, my prayers were answered and their was no animosity.

We have been married 42 happy years.

We wanted a very quiet wedding; me, him and two witnesses. Quite typically that went out of the window. We were living and working in London at the time; my family were in Yorkshire and his family were in Wales so we chose to get married at Marylebone Registry Office. DH's sister lived in Battersea at the time so his parents, two younger brothers and heavily pregnant sister stayed with her. My parents chose to come down on the day. It all started to go wrong when DH went to the station to pick up my parents and they weren't there. Unbeknown to him, they had decided to catch The Master Cutler - dad's favourite train - which was much earlier, and then, because they had some time in hand and mother had never been to London before, he dragged her off to watch the changing of the guard (I swear to you every word of this is true!). DH had to abandon the station and came in a hired car to pick me up from his best man's house, only to find that he had come down with the flu and was in no fit state to carry out his duties, so DH's brother in law had to stand in. We got to the registry office - still no sign of my parents. Then came the "hope you remembered the ring, Henry! Ha ha ha!" Yes you guessed it. The only lady able to remove her ring was my mother in law to be, so I had to get married with her ring while mine languished in a kitchen cupboard! Just as we had finished signing the register, who should turn up but my mum and dad. She was furious, he was chastened, and yes, the changing of the guard was wonderful!! To add insult to injury, I started my period during the reception which was held at our friend's house, and a good time was had by all. Hand on a stack of bibles - you couldn't make it up. Despite that inauspicious beginning, we have been married fifty years.

Organised our wedding in late 1969, 48 guests for the church wedding and reception and total cost of reception bill £52.There was no worry or stress for anybody, it was easily organised and there were no wedding favours (a US thing that all worry about now) on the tables.After cake cutting and a couple of short speeches, the guests all chatted while we escaped off on honeymoon (Scotland).Bought my wedding dress in JL on Oxford Street, but as I was a tiny size ( not now!) I got a bargain.

We got married in 1973. I was nearly 22, he was nearly 21. His parents were furious that we were getting married and his DM accused me of forcing him to get married, which wasn't true at all, as he was more keen than I was.
I made a white velvet hooded dress. The fabric and pattern cost £15 from John Lewis. I made my sister's dress too as she was bridesmaid, and we both carried muffs instead of flowers as it was December.
It was in the three day week and we could only have an hour of heating in the church as they were saving their heating allowance for the Carol Service the next day.
The reception was next door in the church hall and there were about 60 people in total. The buffet was rubbish, but don't tell my mother!
We are still together. I am amazed that we made such a massive decision at that age, and I can see why my in-laws were worried.

How lovely to hear about the love filled, modest happiness, when I fear now that weddings are spoilt by the costs and ostentatious preparations.

Missed out on the white wedding thing totally. I was pregnant the first time and my family were horrified, this was 67. We almost made 25 years and have two lovely daughters. The second wedding was just us and two friends in the registry office prior to moving to France. Have had a very happy 11 years so far.
I asked the question about loved and lost of my daughter who was widowed very young. She said even if she knew what would happen she would still have married and they had two fantastic children.

We were living together, and one evening just decided that we'd get married.
The following morning, during my tea break I phoned the Registry Office, booked the date and time, and booked a week's leave from work.
The following evening, we both left work early and went to book a wedding car with the local Funeral Directors (I hate white wedding cars), and visited and booked the Hotel for the reception.
The next day I went into Chester and bought my dress, long, white, but very plain, I also bought my shoes.
A woman I worked with offered to do the flowers, my head dress and a topknot for the cake, which was made by a friend who was a professional cake decorator.
Everything was arranged within one week, my best friend was my Matron of Honour, DH's best friend was his Best Man.
We're both from very small families, so there were only 30 people to cater for, and it was a lovely relaxed day, the sun shone, it was all just lovely.
My uncle 'R' who attended, was a 'bigwig' in Government and had attended quite a few very posh 'society' weddings, but he always maintained that ours was the best wedding he'd ever been to, as it was all so 'easy going'!
That was nearly 32 years ago and we're still going strong so........

We married in 1958, he was 22 and I was 21.
It was very simple as weddings were then. A very typical 2:30pm ceremony followed by a ham salad and sherry trifle meal and a honeymoon in Newquay. We were so young and naive that I wonder now how we survived, but survive we did and clocked up 58 years in August.

We married in 1970 and were both still students, so money was tight. We had a very small wedding which my parents paid for, but all our friends were very poor students, so we had a lot of egg cups as presents. We married in church, as my future MIL would have been horrified if we had done anything else. We had my OH's brother as best man - again at the insistence of MIL, but he and my OH had ever got on, so it was not his choice, which was a bit of a pity.

At that time there was not a lot of choosing the music in the way there is now and I (as a music buff) was appalled to here Moonlight and Roses on an electric organ ringing out as we signed the register - not what I would have chosen!

My dress was made by my Mum from a piece of cotton material that cost 30 shillings - I was very thin so not much needed! It was very plain with no train or any tatfilalls. My head gear was borrowed from a friend.

The reception was a quiet one in a seafront hotel and in my OH's speech he said "I didn't realise you got presents at weddings; I will have to do this again!" We are still married!

I've been married 3 times - 1st wedding - White Wedding (Catholic Church as his family were Catholics), Reception & Evening "do" at village pub. Hadn't wanted to get married & I was right, it didn't last

2nd Wedding - small affair at Registry Office (both of us Divorced) followed by lovely Church Blessing, small gathering at home then a meal out for family & close friends at local Hotel, we stayed 2 nights, DM had our 4 year old DD - he walked out on us 15 months later, we were together 11 years in total

3rd Wedding - best of all. Registry Office with family & 4 close friends, back home to our lovely house, Buffet laid on in afternoon & plenty of seating in our large garden for about 60 of us - August, weather was perfect. Best Wedding & best Marriage - we were together nearly 23 years, Married for nearly 21 very happy years until he died after a short illness.

Think I'll remain single now - not that I rule out having a man in my life but no more Weddings - don't want to lose my very unusual surname

My husband and I got married in Sri Lanka. It was second time around for both of us, and so we decided that it would just be the two of us making vows to each other to confirm our love and hopes for a long and happy future together. The ceremony was very different to a ceremony here, and instead of it just being the two of us, we had an audience of about 100 people - all the guests at the hotel had turned out to watch. One guest even climbed a tree to take photos of us, although we did have an 'official' photographer, and afterward we went for a walk on the beach in our wedding togs, where again a complete stranger took a photo for us, it turned out to be the best one of the lot.

We then took a 'tuk tuk' to a lovely restaurant which my husband had booked a couple of days earlier. The ambience was fabulous, they had decorated the table with flower petals, and the whole setting was very romantic, but we could have done without the group of table singers who sang the now traditional 'Congratulations', albeit a very accented version ! However, it was a nice gesture.

All in all a fabulous day. My only regret is that my elderly Mum didn't get to go with us, we felt that she would struggle with the heat and the long journey. So just to show us, three weeks after our return she booked herself on a long haul trip to .......... AUSTRALIA, lol.

This really is a lovely thread. Thank you for starting it Flossieturner .

Reading some of the happy but sad stories makes me wonder about the phrase "is it better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all?"

We married in 73
Told our parents it was a small do and not to come. Registry office and 2 witnesses. Lunch afterwards then he a d I went to cinema to see woody aliens everything you wanted to know about sex but didn't like to ask! Not the there was much we didn't know as we had lived together for nearly 2 years. I wasn't pregnant just hate big celebrations. Don't think my mum ever forgave me but I told .y own daughter I wouldn't mind if she did the same.

We met on holiday in Italy, had long distance relationship for a year then he moved to be near me ❤
We married in the local church where I was Christened. I had his sister and mine as bridesmaids in purple dresses made by my mum they wore white floppy hats (very '70s) . I had the long white dress with train bought by mum and a veil and flowered headdress borrowed from his older sister. I arrived at the church in a Daimler hired from the local funeral directors We had a sit down three course meal at the Conservative Club followed by a disco where I danced the night away with my mates. The cake was three tier and made by a local baker. It was all paid for by mum n dad. Two of H's aunts got drunk and were sick and then went back to the booze
We didn't have a honeymoon as we had put all our money into buying and decorating our first two up two down house.
It was a reasonably modest affair compared to some these days but back then I would have said it was a "nice" (sorry to use the word) wedding. We've been married 41 yrs.

Alf and I got engaged when I was 18, he had only just started a new job with Customs & Excise and came home a few weeks later with the news that his job was going to be moved to Southend (we lived in Liverpool). Alf said that married couples would be given assistance to move but single officers would be expected to fund the move themselves so he asked me about arranging a wedding date. Next morning we went to the Register Office and Alf asked for the next available date. The Registrar checked and mentioned a 09:30 slot was available. Alf (jokingly) remarked that he'd still be in bed then and asked for a later time. The Registrar muttered something under his breath and then said 11:00 1st February. Alf replied 'That will do' and that was that. I bought my dress and jacket from Littlewoods Mail Order where I was working, a colleague ordered it as she got 25% staff discount (I was only entitled to 10%), I borrowed the bridesmaid dress from a friend who had married recently and she also loaned me her cake pillars. I made flowered skull caps for myself and my bridesmaid and my bouquet and her posy. I baked my own wedding cake and made all the buttonholes too. My sister loaned us her house for our reception and I paid for a buffet from Sayers. Alf paid for the taxi to take me to the Register Office, the drinks for the reception and our week in Blackpool (I had booked a self catering flat that a friend had been to on her honeymoon a few months before). I think we worked out we spent about £150 in total, Alf's new suit was bought by his parents as a wedding gift. We were together for 23 years until he sadly passed away.

Tingly is good?

Some truly heartwarming stories here. I feel all tingly.

There is a programme not TV where the children arrange the parents wedding. The 9 year old daughter of friends wanted to go on the programme, but the parents refused. They did however tell her she could plan the wedding provided it was low-key. No dancing, no presents and no speeches, as they are both painfully shy. She sent them off to the Registar Office with the Grandparents only, for the ceremony. The husband is a Forest Ranger and with the help of all of their friends and family, the daughter had decorated the Forest around their home with fairy lights, photos and garlands. Every guest bought something to eat or drink instead of a present.

When they returned a barbecue was set up in the garden, tables laden with food and drink and trestles set up In the forest. They were so overwhelmed they even managed to make a speech.

I've worked in the wedding industry for over 45 years ,weddings aren't about getting married anymore they're about putting on a bigger more expensive show then any of your friends,the add ons ,like photo booths ,ice cream carts ,seat covers,table "diamonds,popcorn cones for guests to eat DURING the service have become more and more ridiculous.We met in july 74 got married in july 75,in a church because my parents said a registry office was like a dog license ...lol.My abiding memory is my lovely dad in the car on the way to church saying,"if you have any doubts we'll get the driver to turn round and go home and we'll never mention it again" He and my mum had been friends from they were 12 and married when they were in their 20's so a year seemingly wasn't long enough to be sure.We've been married AND worked together every day now for 41 years ...no regrets

I asked for the word 'obey' to be left out of the vows - it was optional in the 1960s.
However, the vicar included the dreaded word!
I didn't know whether to stop the service or just carry on.

I carried on, said the offending word but have ignored it ever since.

I was ill and had been in hospital for six weeks, getting out about 10 days before the wedding. We had a registry office wedding. My husband-to-be had had terrible rows with his parents all the time we were dating, because he is Indian and I'm white. They were absolutely opposed to our relationship. So he didn't tell anyone he was getting married - just put on his best suit, picked up his camera and walked out of the house. They didn't find out till we returned from our (very brief but lovely) honeymoon 3 days later.

I had a very simple white dress and a bouquet of roses made by my mum and my auntie. We invited about 30 of our closest friends and family, and the reception was at the (extremely grotty) house we'd just bought. My sister ran a small catering company and did us a fantastic buffet as her gift to us. It was a lovely, relaxed atmosphere with no formality. We didn't have any speeches except a short one made by me, thanking everyone for coming and thanking my mum most of all. (She had supported us through everything, and given us the deposit for our house. My dad had died 2 years earlier.) Then Mum and I both burst into tears...

But it was a wonderful day and I still remember it happily, as we approach our Ruby Wedding next year.

Forgot to mention the photo of my little 4yr old pageboy peeping underneath my dress as we walked up the aisle. The beautiful wedding cake was made by the RAF Chef, our wedding reception being held in the Mess; and also that as I had hired my gown my sister took that back to the shop, plus the veil and head dress I had bought myself as a keepsake. They never owned up and I never saw them again. My flowers were sent to the wrong address, but they knew who we were so they made them re-deliver to my Mum and Dad's house. Half a century later we are still together and enjoying life with our 3 sons and 5 grandchildren. We feel so lucky.