Romance on the Riverbanks

Celia and Leroi's friendship turned into a greater love, culminating in a simply stylish wedding by the Thames.

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Early days…

Celia and Leroi were just good friends before their feelings turned into love. "We met in 2001 whilst working together at a music PR agency in Shoreditch," says Celia. "We were best friends for three years before becoming a couple." Leroi says he fell in love with Celia after recognising in her all the qualities he had been seeking in a partner.

The proposal…

Celia proposed on January 25th - Leroi's birthday, the couple's anniversary and St Dwynwen's Day - the Welsh equivalent to St Valentine's Day which the couple celebrate every year for Welsh-born Leroi. "To celebrate I bought us two first class tickets on Eurostar and a night in Paris," recalls Celia. "We went to a restaurant in the evening where I asked him over our meal. Although he was surprised to my relief he said 'yes'."

Hen and stag parties…

Celia began her hen party celebrations with a trip to Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes in Russell Square, where she bowled with 14 friends before hiring a karaoke room.

For Leroi, a trip to Ireland marked the end of his single status. "We had a long weekend in Belfast staying in lovely apartments," he recalls. "Before each night out my best man, my uncle Lenny, cooked us each a steak before we hit the Belfast club scene."

The venues…

Living in Wapping, Celia and Leroi?s home has views of the Thames and the couple wanted to make use of such sights on their wedding day. "We were keen to have a venue that showed off the river and the city to our guests," says Celia. The couple chose the nearby Guoman Tower Hotel for their venue. "Being a hotel, it also meant we could have everything under one roof - the ceremony, reception, our first night together and breakfast with our guests in the morning."

The dress…

Celia wore a white silk empire line Jovani evening gown. "It was inspired by the Marchesa gown Felicity Huffman (Lynette in Desperate Housewives) wore to the Golden Globes a couple of years ago,"says Celia. "t had a ruched bust and straps that went into a V-shape at the back, covered in individually sewn diamanté stones."

The decorative touches…

The wedding venue was decorated with white roses, in clear round vases and small tea-lights. For favours, the couple gave each guest an edible treat: "We had small fairy cakes with white icing and our initials in silver letters on the top," says Celia. For the wedding cake, the couple maintained their cool, simple wedding style with a three-tier sponge cake, covered in white icing and decorated with white sugar paste roses.

The best bits…

For their guests, Celia says one thing stood out - a photo booth hired for the reception. "Similar to the booths used to take passport photos in stations, guests went into the booth and had four photos taken," says Celia. "These were printed out twice - one set for the guest to take away with them and the other for them to stick in a guest book. They wrote a message next to their print and the entire book was given to us at the end of the night.
"The booth came with dressing up props so it was funny to see people in all their wedding finery sticking on feather boas and cowboy hats. Even Leroi's grandparents gave it a go!"

Top tips…

Celia's advice to other couples preparing for their big day is to eliminate stress: "If it?s well planned you'll feel more in control. Rather than use Excel spreadsheets I spent £20 on software called Perfect Table Plan. I used it to manage my guests' details, RSVPs, meal choices and assigning seats and arranging the room's layout."

The honeymoon…

Leroi and Celia spent two weeks in Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar. "We spent a week on safari in Tanzania and saw so many animals - lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and buffalo," recalls Celia. To relax afterwards, the pair unwound during their second week. "We spent it at the five-star Breezes Beach Club and Spa being pampered."

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