Real Weddings

Real Wedding: Hatty and Henrik

Planning a wedding is a lot of fun, but a lot of hard work too. Now imagine doing it when you’re over 3,000 miles from your wedding venue and your guests are scattered across the globe. For Bermuda based Hatty and Henrik, using GettingMarried was a must to help them organise their beautiful wedding in the British countryside, and communicate with their guests near and far. We spoke to them about planning their big day and how GettingMarried helped.

How did you meet and get engaged?

Henrik and I met when I rented a flat from his family in Bermuda in October 2019 (that happened to be underneath his own house). I only found out the flat was for rent because my cousin is a friend of Henrik’s and he had been emailing friends and family to find a new tenant. We got engaged in January 2021 while my Mum was visiting us in Bermuda and we were just getting over Covid. I think Henrik wanted to ask me to marry him while my Mum was in Bermuda so he took me outside into the garden and asked me. We then had an impromptu dinner party with his parents – my Mum cooked moussaka which will forever be known as the engagement meal!

When it came to planning your big day, how did you organise and divide the ‘wedmin’?

Well…. due to us being abroad and wanting the wedding in my village in Bath where I grew up it started with my Mum, Henrik and I discussing ideas and once we had decided on the venues they were booked within a couple of days of being engaged.

Then I was sorting out the guest list, bridesmaid and groomsmen outfits, table plans and flowers. Mum took on the website, coming up with options for caterers and organising the marquee. My Dad was in charge of the band and transport for the guests and Henrik and his family were responsible for liaising with the caterer they chose and organising the drinks.

Some of the delegation was due to location (as Mum and Dad were living in the valley) and some due to Mum having contacts and expertise in the wedding business and her very kind offer to help organise our wedding!

What was the best bit about using GettingMarried?

Table planning feature was great! It meant I could swap people round and not leave any guests out. Easy to use and easily updated too as our guests RSVP’d, and the contact form on our website made it straightforward for guests to send us a message (especially for those who are a little less technology literate!). 

Tell us about your big day!

We had 156 guests (88 Bermuda side, 68 UK side). The wedding Ceremony was at St Mary’s Swainswick, a small Norman Church in the village I grew up in. Then the reception was a couple of miles away in a Marquee on the lawn at Hamswell House, Bath. My Uncle (who is a vicar) ran the ceremony and his daughter (who is a florist) grew and arranged the wild local seasonal flowers we had (mostly from her allotment in Bristol).

Our wedding day was 27th May 2023. British formal country wedding was the style – Eat5Star were the caterers and it was a 5 star 3 course meal with wines selected by Henrik’s Dad. We had local cider from Midford and local ale from Bath Ales courtesy of my Dad. Mum made 156 pots for all the guests in our wedding colour “blue” and these were the wedding favours on the table. My dress was made by Louise Selby and Henrik’s morning suit by Miripuri Bespoke. Makeup and hair by Maria Lucas, Photos and video by Storybox films. Cake by Bea at The Silver Cake. Our wedding cocktail was Rum Swizzle as a nod to Henrik’s Bermuda roots. 

What’s your one piece of advice to newly engaged couples?

Make sure you get your wedding venue booked as early as you can and then the rest will fall into place. Date and venue are the most important things to initially confirm. (Also the groomsmen’s tie colour does not really matter!).

Hatty & Henrik’s Suppliers:
Photographer-  Storybox Films / @storyboxfilmsuk
Videographer- Storybox Films / @storyboxfilmsuk
Ceremony Venue- St Mary’s Church Swainswick
Reception Venue- Hamswell House / @hamswellhouse
Hatty’s Dress- Louise Selby / @louiseselbybridal
Henrik’s Suit- Mirpuri Bespoke / @mirpuribespokelondon
Hair and Makeup- Maria Lucas / @marialucas_hmua
Wedding Website – GettingMarried / @gettingmarriedcouk
Stationery – Dotty About Paper via GettingMarried
Flowers- Flowers By Imogen / @flowersbyimogen