The first step of our wedding planning journey was to book the registrar to attend our church ceremony. This involved a phone call to our local registry office and providing both of our details and we paid the priority service to secure someone for our chosen date. I didn't want the anxiety of waiting a few more months, having planned everything else and then finding out nobody was available to make our day legal! The registry office have asked us to physically visit them in December 2021 to give legal "Notice of Marriage" which involves providing documents and proof our both our British identities and a few questions about each other so that the registrar feels we are not being coerced into marriage.
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I approached my local parish priest in December 2020 as Jay and I have chosen to be married in the Catholic Church, the faith I was brought up in. For Catholic weddings you can pretty much get married anytime in the year except certain solemnities such as Holy Week or busy Church Feast days such as Christmas. We chose February partly because it makes the overall wedding budget much cheaper than the peak summer months but also because I thought wearing a wedding dress in the heat would be incredibly uncomfortable!
The Catholic Church does not charge a fee for officiating weddings because the Church considers marriage to be a sacramental gift from God. Donations to the parish and/or priest are welcome. Another aspect of getting married in the Catholic Church is to undergo a marriage preparation course. These can either be informal sessions with the local priest or through a formal organisation. We chose to go for the course offered by Marriage Care.
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After that we needed to find a reception venue for our wonderful guests. We contacted five venues and went to visit two. For those interested, we contacted the following venues:
Eriviat Hall near Denbigh. This was initially one of our favourites . It looks gorgeous on their website although when I contacted the owner to visit, he wasn't very helpful and didn't follow up with me so we didn't entertain it any further.
White House, Rhuallt. This venue has some sentimental value as my parents had their wedding reception here in 1979. I contacted them to inquire but sadly never received a reply.
Wigfair Hall, St Asaph. I contacted the owner asking about a potential visit. She was very welcoming and helpful but unfortunately our guest numbers could only be accommodated with a marquee which is not something we wanted.
Pentre Mawr in Llandyrnog. We went to visit this grand country house. It was a lovely setting but a little to "DIY" and not traditional enough for us. The set up was very flexible but we thought getting all our own vendors in would prove too expensive and stressful. It is lovely though and the owners were very kind and accommodating but overall the cost exceeded our budget.
Ruthin Castle. We visited here as it is most local to us. I already had a good idea of what was on offer as I have attended a wedding here before and it was great. It has changed management hands a few times over the years but I am hopeful they will be able to provide the service we expect. We decided to book this venue as it met all our needs and was within our budget.
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A good tip before you start visiting anywhere or contacting venues is to make a rough list of the style or theme you want for your wedding and what you would want from. your reception. Questions to consider include:
Are you having your ceremony and reception in the same venue? If so, ask about capacity as some receptions have smaller rooms for the ceremonies so perhaps not all your guests will fit.
Do you want a formal seated meal or a buffet?
What about evening entertainment? Does the venue have a prior arrangement with a DJ or band, or would you like to source your own?
Consider the time of year you want to get married. We're getting married in February so an indoor venue was much more preferable to a marquee.
Do you want in house catering or is there a particular style you would like to hire separately?
What about decorations? Do you want to do your own or do you want a venue who provides an in house dresser? Ask about when and how the rooms will be set up. For instance, we can go the night before to set up and make sure the room is to our liking.
How far do you expect your guests to travel? Is the location easy to find? Is there ample parking?
Are there particular arrangements you need to consider? One thing which was vital for us is accessibility because we have a few family members who require disability access, so long winding hills and thousands of stairs was not a realistic option.
Most importantly: does the venue seem welcoming, accommodating and transparent with what they offer and about their pricing? This is important as some venues have hidden costs. Make sure to ask about these as they're often only written in the small print of contracts. Don't get caught out!
The venue is likely to be the biggest chunk out of your wedding budget so make sure its right for both of you and it caters to your needs!
Love,
Stephanie, (The Bride to Be!)
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