Beth & Ryan
Beth & Ryan
Ceremony and reception venue: The riverside Bathing Hut and Castle Dining Room.
We met … through tinder! We joke that we closed down a Mexican restaurant on our first date as we stayed well past closing, and took an awfully long time to order as we were so enamoured in conversation with each other.
Your first impressions of each other:
Bethany on Ryan: the most welcoming smile, and very tall!
Ryan on Bethany: I still remember her bright lipstick, pink coat, and stunning smile.
How did your proposal happen (when and where)?
July of 2020 in a brief period where we were allowed out again! Ryan organised a picnic put together by his family with some of our favourite foods, and champagne. He proposed in a secluded spot on Dartmoor. It was beautiful and very us. Admittedly, Bethany did almost ruin a lot of it by making plans on that day, and questioning a lot of the set up before she knew what was going on!
Length of engagement:
Just over 2 years, it would have been less but neither of us were sure about booking anything sooner with COVID.
In three words, how did you imagine your wedding day?
Joyful
Fun
Loving
How did you choose your venue?
It came down to two for us; Pentillie and another. Both had similar sort of specifications but Pentillie allowed us to really make the venue and day our own. Also, a large part of it was the energy Chrissie (Pentillie’s Weddings Manager) brought. We felt like our wedding was the most important thing anytime we spoke to her, even though there were countless other couples she was working with.
Often the aspect that makes a wedding original to the couple is the detail/theme – tell us about the special details of the day and how you implemented them (colours, theme decorations, centre pieces, favours, photo booths, DIY etc).
Pentillie has such a rich history and a personality of its own. We wanted colours and a theme that not only fit us, but also worked with the venue to finish the whole day. We worked with Keeping it Vintage and picked some key pieces that fit in with the mood of Pentillie, such as gold ornate mirrors, candelabras and rich colours. And then, really just went mad with mood lighting so it still felt intimate! We got married in October and wanted to steer into the autumnal theme, so leaned into Pumpkins instead of flowers on the table, using tiny dried pumpkins sprayed gold, and mini fresh pumpkins on the head table.
Were you inspired by anyone on social media? Pinterest/Instagram etc?
Not really, I’ve seen bits on Pinterest, but find it hard to carry off in person without the same bits. More than anything, we let ourselves be inspired by each other and the things we love to do together.
Please give a brief account of your wedding planning story i.e., priorities, highs & lows, challenges etc…
It was difficult maintaining momentum with planning over our long engagement, things were very organised but at times it felt like a lot. I think the most challenging thing was managing other people’s expectations and priorities for the day, when what we really wanted was to be married and celebrate with our family and friends in a way that represented who we are and our relationship with those people. Ultimately worth all the hassle, it was a beautiful day with gorgeous people - and amazing food!!
What food did you choose for your day, wedding breakfast and evening buffet, and why?
We looked at a few caterers and weren’t really inspired. We’re both quite into cooking and eating out, and we wanted something special for such a special day. Then we found Pickle Shack, where we could pick some set meals, but could also pick some specific bits we wanted. We ended up replicating some of the food from our engagement picnic for the canapés, where we had pork and apricot sausage rolls, Romano pepper and chorizo arancini and Cajun spiced hummus with pitta bread. For the wedding breakfast, we had choices of the following for starters; cheddar and parsley croquette; rare roast beef with blue cheese and duck liver parfait - all of them were amazing and we both shared two different ones as we couldn’t choose! For mains, again, it was so difficult to pick from, we went for rolled haunch of venison with pumpkin purée and sprouts a verde; filo wrapped feta with honey and dukkah on a bed of spinach; and pork belly with gremolata in a mushroom sauce. All served with the most amazing garlic roasties and a gorgeous salad. For dessert, we had a lemon tart with raspberry. Even better, in the evening we had pizza! It was amazing, and I wish we could go back and relive eating the food!
What was the song for your first dance, and why?
Well, the song for our first dance wasn’t what we were expecting, it was the back-up to a song we had asked for, though it was beautifully delivered on the day by the band. We danced to Billy Joel’s “You’re My Home”, Ryan’s a big Billy Joel fan and the idea that we are eachothers homes really fit us.
What was your favourite part of the wedding?
The ceremony, it was beautiful. It went ever so quickly, but was just the most important and valuable moment. We chatted the whole way through apparently, we were very excited to see each other after the long morning apart!
What was the most important investment for you? For example, food, drink, clothes, honeymoon?
I think it was several things really; the venue, the food was important to us, and the general feel of the day being right to us.
What is your top tip for other couples?
Do what’s best for you as a couple. Enjoy the day!
“To Chrissie,
Thank you so much! You have been amazing - not only today, but in the very long lead up. Whilst we loved Pentillie, you were also a large part of us picking here to get married due to your sparkling personality.
With our gratitudes,
Beth and Ryan
x”
Suppliers:
Photographer: Nova Photography
Bridal Hair: Hair by Natasha
Bridal Make-Up: Kimberley Dewar
Brides Dress: Grace Loves Lace
Brides Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Grooms Outfit: Moss Bros and shoes Dune
Bridesmaid Dresses: All their own!
Groomsmen Outfits: Moss Bros
Flowers: Created our own flowers!
Venue décor: Out Of The Ordinary Event Hire
Stationery: Tankerville Press
Caterer: Pickle Shack
Cake: Made our own cake!
Music: The Horizons
Any others: Bride’s necklace and Groom’s cufflinks were handmade by Oggie and Co (@oggieandco on Instagram) - these were a custom project and so filled with meaning. We met her at a Cornish crafter market and spoke to her about it and then she made them for us.
Our Weddings Manager would be delighted to show you around Pentillie! To book a time to suit you, please click here, call 01579 350044 or email weddings@pentillie.co.uk.