Real Weddings

Chrizzie and Luke.

We don’t want to pile on the pressure if you’re planning to pop the question, so be warned: Luke’s proposal to Chrizzie raises the bar stratospherically high. 

Did we say proposal, singular? Make that proposals, plural.

“We actually had two,” says Chrizzie. “The first one was on holiday in Bali. We were on the beach, the sun just setting, when Luke surprised me with the first part of my engagement ring; unknown to me, the second one was still being made in the UK.

“We used to live in Tokyo. A while after the Bali proposal, he booked us a table at one of our favourite restaurants: Andaz Tokyo. I didn’t want to go, out as we were both pretty jet lagged from returning from the UK. Instead we ended up staying in, and he cooked us our favourite Filipino dish.” 

Yes, girls; Luke cooks, too. 

“After the meal he proposed again, with the ring he’d designed to go with my first one. I really wasn’t expecting a second ring or proposal, but Luke outdid himself. As I’d ruined his dinner plans, we ended up going out for dessert at the Andaz, and we celebrated again!” 

Luke is originally from Cornwall, and the couple settled on Boconnoc House for their wedding.

“We wanted a small intimate wedding for 75 guests; somewhere that could be just for us with our loved ones. We looked at several locations, but none of them ticked all the boxes. Then we saw Boconnoc, and instantly fell in love with every aspect of it. Being able to get married outside was something we really wanted and the grounds that they have were just perfect. 

“We wanted our wedding to be a small retreat for everyone, so a weekend getaway was perfect. We had friends and family coming from all over the world, and didn’t want anyone to worry about where they’d be staying. We loved having our friends and family onsite; it meant that everyone was able to enjoy the full day without worrying about getting home. We also had a post-wedding breakfast and garden games the next day, which everyone enjoyed. 

“There were so many memorable moments, but two really stick out,” says Chrizzie. “One was walking down the aisle while my sister played the guitar and sang our favourite song, Latch by Disclosure. The other was reading our vows to each other. The weather in Cornwall is very unpredictable, but at that moment the sun came out, and the weather remained perfect throughout the ceremony. We were so happy that our photographer at Storyboxfilms managed to capture these moments.” 

Good organisation is key, says Chrizzie. “Think of all the small details. I also made sure to involve Luke in all the decision making, from the flavours of our cake to the entertainment and food.  

“Another tip is to reuse. We decided to use the same flowers that we had from our ceremony in the garden for our table arrangement; our florist, George McKay, was amazingly helpful in making this happen. Afterwards we gave the flowers to our guests to take home, so that none of the blooms were wasted.”

Images supplied thanks to Storybox Wedding and Film Photography