Your Wedding. Your Rules.
Who decided that every wedding has to be the same?
Who says your evening buffet has to be bacon rolls?
Who says you have to have a three course wedding breakfast?
Who says your first dance has to be before the party starts?
Who makes these rules?
The truth is... nobody.
Somewhere along the way, weddings became about ticking boxes instead of celebrating two people.
I don't think that's right.
Your wedding should be about the two of you and everything that makes you... you.
Recently we hosted a wedding where, instead of the traditional late night buffet, the couple wanted McDonald's cheeseburgers.
So that's exactly what we did.
Did guests love it?
Absolutely.
Was it different?
Definitely.
Will everyone remember it?
Without a doubt.
That's what weddings should be about.
Not doing what everyone else expects.
Doing what makes you smile.
Maybe your dream is wood fired pizzas in the evening.
Maybe it's fish and chips.
Maybe it's cocktails instead of champagne.
Maybe it's a live saxophonist, a casino table, garden games or your dog carrying the rings.
Maybe you want a blessing instead of a legal ceremony because you've done the paperwork another day.
Whatever it is, it should feel like your wedding, not somebody else's.
When couples come to look around The Dukes, one of the first things I ask is, "What have you always imagined?"
Because that's where the exciting conversations begin.
I don't want to tell you how your wedding should look.
I want to hear how you've always pictured it.
Of course there are practical things to work around sometimes, but I'd much rather start with your ideas than hand you a brochure and ask you to pick from three packages.
The best weddings I've ever been part of all have one thing in common.
They didn't follow a formula.
They reflected the couple.
Years later, nobody talks about the chair covers or whether the starter was soup or pâté.
They talk about the little touches.
The cheeseburgers.
The surprise cocktails.
The laughter.
The atmosphere.
The moments that could only have happened at that wedding.
That's exactly what I'd want for mine.
And it's exactly what I want for yours too.
Got an idea that's a little different? I'd love to hear it. Some of our favourite weddings have started with the words, "This might sound a bit crazy, but..."
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