Katie O’Connell & Steven Francis

Hampton Court House, Richmond, Surrey
Saturday, 3rd January, 2009

Katie and Steve met eight years ago; they worked for the same firm but in different offices. Steve had to find lots of excuses to go and check her out! Steve tells the story of the proposal: “Katie and I were on holiday in Turkey. I’d already formally spoken to Katie’s dad and they were expecting a call anytime soon! During the holiday I became quite ill, spoiling any chance of a romantic proposal. Each time Katie phoned home I was hoping her mum wouldn’t spill the beans. One evening, we were planning what to do the next day and I said we should go ring shopping. Katie looked at me blankly before I asked her to be my wife. She cried for a little before making the call home.”

The dress…

Katie wore a dress by Ronald Joyce (ronaldjoyce.com) from The Wedding Service (theweddingservice.uk.com). “I thought I’d try on this huge dress for the fun of it but as I looked at it in more detail, I thought to myself, this is a true princess dress. I remember shutting my eyes as the lady placed it over my head and as I opened them, I couldn’t quite believe it was me! Just as the curtain was drawn back, I had these butterflies of sheer excitement in my stomach — I knew my mum and sister (who were with me) would love it. They took one look at me and their eyes welled up. We were then all crying and giggling because it felt so surreal but such a precious moment, which I’ll cherish forever.”

The bridesmaids…

Katie’s maids wore gowns by Alfred Angelo (alfredangelounitedkingdom.com) made from iridescent taffeta in a cinnamon colour. The princess line dresses had a lace-up back and a sweeping train. My three flower girls wore ivory dresses from John Lewis (johnlewis.com) in a light ivory colour, with layers of tulle and sparkly sequins on the bodice.”

The groom…

“The men wore dark brown tailcoats and ivory shirts hired from Richard Mark in Sutton, (richardmark.co.uk), with cinnamon cravats in the same material as the bridesmaids’ dresses. Steve’s cravat was ivory to match my dress.”  

The flowers…

The bride carried a small and dainty traditional white shower bouquet of calla lilies, roses, snow berries, dendrobium, stephanotis and light green foliage with a similar shower for the bridesmaids.

The reception…

The couple held their reception in Hampton Court House (richmond.gov.uk); the winter wedding theme was snowflakes and the colour scheme bronze and gold. Katie decorated the venue with a large Christmas tree covered in snowflakes.
Katie’s mum and aunt made the table decorations: a gold wreath of dried bronze flowers, gold sprayed twigs and sparkling ribbons with a gold candle in the middle. White vases with white twig fairy lights and tea lights in snowflake candle holders created atmosphere. Gold covered chocolates in bronze coloured net were favours.

To see more photographs from this wedding, buy a back issue of Perfect Wedding
issue 37— just click here!

Photographer: John Rahim, johnrahim.com