Beth + Dan | October 2024
“Sarah immediately made us feel at ease and like we were really special from our first meeting with her.”
I always understand nerves on someone’s wedding morning - of course you might feel jittery, it’s such an enormous life moment. Of course you might feel some residual stress, you’ve been up a height, moonlighting as an event planner for the past year. But when a bride (or groom) is supernaturally calm - and just ready to commit to their favourite person - it’s very magical. Beth was one such bride: as cool and calm as the autumnal day dawning outside.
Arriving at Jesmond Dene House for Beth and Dan’s wedding felt incredibly special. As a new (twin) mum six years ago, living in Jesmond at the time, I would walk through the beautiful, shadowy Dene pretty much every day, manhandling my double buggy along the river path, observing the grand building up the bank, half-hidden. I was a full-time stay-at-home-mum and I’m not sure I even knew what a celebrant was. It wasn’t on my radar. And I’m also not sure I’d have believed you, or understood, if you’d pointed at that grand house in the Dene and said “there’ll be a day one October, years in the future, where you’ll work inside that place. And you’ll LOVE what you do”.
On Beth and Dan’s wedding day to be inside the hotel, and In An Official Capacity, felt a bit dizzying. In the best possible way.
Photography by Never Ending Stories
I also love an autumnal wedding; I was married in September and it’s far and away my favourite, cosy season. Jesmond Dene House, in among the trees with their obediently-falling patchwork leaves, was the perfect location for the season and Beth and Dan leant into the fabulous, rusty colour scheme. I even spotted blackberries in the bridal bouquet by Floral Quarter - how stunning!
Beth was accompanied down the aisle - in the magnificent oak-panelled, double-height Great Hall - by her brothers. And if you’ve seen the picture (above) I’m here to inform you that those guys are not twins; “it’s just like Spot the Difference!” said my six-year old daughter, looking over my shoulder.
It was a moving ceremony for us all, seeing these two sweethearts marry, and that includes me. I’ve been really moved by Dan and Beth’s gentle, selfless, consistent love for each other. It’s been so evident in every conversation and interaction we’ve had, from cosy pub drinks to reading their answers to my couple’s quiz.
But that’s not to say we weren’t laughing in the ceremony too. I think I’ve yet to do a wedding where the couple didn’t want some lighter moments, and for Beth and Dan one such story was how when she started a new job and spotted Dan, by lunchtime she had found his Facebook, screenshotted his profile picture and sent it to her friends!
What a shot
The secluded, leafy location was so atmospheric and, as you can see, the team - photographer Sarah and videographer duo Charlotte & Craig - didn’t pass up the opportunity to whip the couple off for shots in the Dene itself.
Beth and Dan processed out of the ceremony to Natalie Cole’s iconic This Will Be [An Everlasting Love]…
Loving you
Is some kind of wonderful
Because you've shown me
Just how much you care
And they did show us all just how much they care for each other - in their vows, in each look, in every story from their time together. And it truly was some kind of wonderful.
“She was so helpful on our wedding day - it was like having another friend there with us! We loved our ceremony and had loads of compliments on it from guests.”