Blog – One of our Own: Iain & Nina Healey

When was your wedding?
30th Nov 2019

So how did it happen? Tell us your engagement story
We got engaged on Nina’s birthday in York. We went to the top of York minster, and Iain proposed before any of the rest of the tour got there so it was just us. It was so romantic as the views are so nice from the top.

Why did you choose the Hospitium for your special day?
The building and the grounds are just so beautiful all year round, that the Hospitium was a clear choice. We looked in Manchester and Leeds (where we’re from and where we live) as well as York and nothing compared. A bonus is that the reception and ceremony can be held at the same venue, and it’s very central in York. We saw good reviews about the venue and the team, and they were so right – Claire helped us every step of the way and no question was too silly. On the day, we were all well looked after, and everything ran so smoothly.

Did you pick a theme or have a vision for your day?
As it was a winter wedding, we decided to have a navy and silver/white wedding theme.

Onto the flowers! Who did your flowers and what style did you go for?
We decided to go for fake flowers. They worked out to be more affordable and as we were getting married around midday, we were worried about how real flowers would hold up all day. We went with the Bride’s Bouquet, who did a lovely job. They took a while to arrive as they are handmade, but they have a huge range of colours to pick from and you can make sure that all the bouquets, centrepieces, and wedding party flowers match perfectly. They looked great in the photos.

Tell us about the dress!
I never wanted a floor length dress as I’m quite short, and I was afraid it would make me look stumpy! I had found the perfect dress from Wed2B, which is very affordable. Unfortunately, they were discontinuing it and my size was out of stock across the country. Luckily, I found the exact dress, in my size and with the underskirt on StillWhite, a website for people who want to buy and sell wedding dresses. It had never been worn as the seller changed her mind and bought a new dress. For the dress, underskirt and shipping I paid £349, which is a fraction of what the average costs. The risk of this was whether it would fit correctly, as wedding dresses can be funny sizes, but a lot of dresses usually need altering anyway, but it was worth the risk to get my dream dress.

What did the groomsmen wear?
The groom and groomsmen went to Slaters for their suits and shoes. They had a wide range available and were happy to help with lots of advice. They were also affordable and meant that you could get everything worked out easily on the day.

What were your wedding rings like?
We had our wedding rings done at a jeweller run by a family friend. As the engagement ring is a unique shape, it was scanned, and they used CAD to design a wedding band to fit perfectly around it. It was very exciting getting them done and had to resist trying them on before the wedding day.

Who did your hair and makeup?
Hannah at 3D Hair and Beauty in York. She did an amazing job and I couldn’t recommend her enough. Hannah did my hair and makeup as well as 3 other people in the wedding party. My makeup was better than what I had hoped for and my hair held up perfectly all day. It was like magic the way it was pinned back and held its style, and I got lots of lovely comments on it.

Did you have favours on the day? If so, what did you go for?
We had little paper bags that we had filled with sweets and a little bottle of bubbles in the shape of a wedding cake. We used the bubbles for our first dance, so the photos had us dancing amongst the bubbles.

Who was your photographer and why did you choose them?
We went with Jon and Mary at Stories of I Do and they were amazing. They’re a husband and wife team who both work your wedding, which means there’s more scope to cover everything from all angles. They were really easy to work with and understood what kind of shots we wanted to get. We received a huge selection of photos which covered the wedding from getting ready to the first dance (7 hours overall), which were excellently shot and edited. Combined with the naturally beautiful grounds, our portrait photos are perfect. We couldn’t rate them enough.

How was the run-up to the big day? Any nerves?
The run up as very stressful on top of work and uni as well, and it was hard to sleep the night before, but the morning was fine. We figured that if nothing was in place by then, then it was too late to worry about it anyway! We had confirmations from all the suppliers, and we knew the guests had arrived, so we knew that everything should be fine.

Tell us about the ceremony and reception décor…
York Ambience did our wedding styling, and they did a great job of adding extra style to the venues. The ceremony room is naturally lovely, but with the addition of the foliage and candles, as well as the blossom trees over us as we got married, it really brought the room to life. They set everything up and took it all down so there was no effort for us, and it looked better than we had imagined.

Who can forget the food, tell us what you went for?
The food from Bradshaws was delicious, we went with a selection of canapes for after the ceremony, and a hog roast for the evening as well as the main meal as we were worried about people being hungry since it was such a long day. We didn’t have to worry in the end as the portion sizes were very fair, and everyone ate it all. The highlight was definitely dessert – we went with mars bar cheesecake and it was beyond delicious.

We had lots of allergen requirements, but they worked around this seamlessly and we were told the alternative options they provided were just as tasty and thought out as the menu we had picked out.

Did you have a standout moment?
The ceremony itself was the best moment. Everyone tells you how fast it goes but it really does feel like it goes in no time. It’s an amazing moment and such a romantic and emotional time.

Supplier Details
Brides Dress - Wed2B
Brides shoes - JJ’s House
Grooms formal wear - Slaters
Makeup Artist - Hannah at 3D Hair and Beauty
Florist - The Wedding Bouquet (fake flowers)
Cake - Angela at Amayesing Cakes
Entertainment - NightOwls (DJ) and Harry Robson (magician)