My big day
We got married in Rome..."..because Matt had proposed to me at the Splendide Royal on my birthday the year before' says Nikki. "We couldn't afford to eat in the hotel's Michelin-starred Mirabelle restaurant that night - so in the heat of the moment we decided we had to get married there instead and hold the wedding breakfast in the restaurant! Rome's a gorgeous city, and the hotel's views of the Vatican and Trevi Fountain were the perfect backdrop to our classical green and cream theme."
We wanted... "a relaxed and unfussy day. The civil ceremony was conducted by a jolly official who kept it short, simple and poignant, we didn't have hymns or readings, just a to wonderful string trio, organised by our wedding planners. They were great - they covered the paperwork, the legal side and provided a translator for the civil ceremony, as well as the flowers, confetti and Bentley!"
Our theme was... "influenced by Rome itself and by our green butterfly invitations . We had green foliage and cream roses and lilies in the floral arrangements, and the centrepieces were orchids with purple centres in stylish glass dishes. I wore a classic Styletheaisledress from Styletheaisle.co.uk."
Instead of a cheesy disco... "we piled our guests onto an open-topped bus and drove around all the famous sights of Rome for our photos, which was amazing. We both work in the music industry and felt we wouldn't be happy with a standard wedding dance so the bus had a real feel-good factor. We even had a guide who gave us a culture tour of the sights! Afterwards, we went on to a bar to carry on the party."
My favourite part of the day..."was walking around Rome after the ceremony. Everyone was clapping in the street and congratulating us - we felt so welcome and special. When we reached the Spanish Steps, where I threw my bouquet, there were people everywhere shouting 'baciarsi', which we later realised meant 'kiss'! We even got the locals involved in the photos, and a young Italian girl caught my bouquet. i felt like a Roman goddess!"
