When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, lots of couples went back to basics, creating a day that looked nothing like their original plans, that was simple yet sensational! One such couple is Josh and Beanie from today's real wedding, a stylish duo from York who had to make lots of adjustments in order to officially tie the knot in September 2020, including moving venue and cutting their guest list down to just 30. The result is not only drop-dead gorgeous, but proof that a small, budget-friendly wedding can be just as magical as a huge party for 200! The team from Bethany and James Photography have kindly shared the images from Josh and Beanie's big day with us so we can swoon over them together!
Beanie and Josh tell us that they actually knew each other for many years before they got together. Beanie explains, "We had friends in common, but I never really saw Josh that way as he was a couple of years younger than me! We both started doing a bit of volunteer work together and realised we had a lot in common! It took him ages to catch on that I liked him though, he was too shy to ask. But then, after that, we were engaged in six months so, he got the message!"
It sounds like the couple had the loveliest New Year's Day engagement. "I suggested a walk by the river in York and some brunch, so I made it nice and easy for him by accident!" Beanie remembers. "He thought I knew it was coming because I’d painted my nails which I never do, but it was just a fluke, I was super surprised. He proposed by the river when no one was around, which was perfect as he knew I’d get embarrassed! It was lovely and I cried my eyes out!"
Beanie tells us she really lucked out when it came to her wedding dress. "It was an old season BHLDN gown, I saw it on Pinterest and fell in love. I was gutted when they didn’t make it anymore, but then I found someone selling it for £150 on Ebay! I nearly cried with happiness! A family friend took it up and in for me, as it wasn’t quite the right size."
Beanie tells us that the couple's top priority for their big day was finding a great photographer. "I planned our whole wedding initially and then we cancelled it all due to Covid, after that, I was just so happy to get married, I don’t even remember what our other priorities were! We just wanted to have the people closest to us there I think. In the end, not much else felt important!"
Josh and Beanie held both the ceremony and reception of their microwedding at Haxby Village Hall in York. They tell us, "It was cheap as chips as we only rented it for four hours - bargain!"
The couple had eight guests at the registry office, and 30 at their village hall reception. "We were very fortunate as the restrictions changed to 15 a week later," Beanie tells us.
The couple tell us that, although their venue wasn't what they had originally chosen, "it was perfect in the end. It was a lovely blank canvas and it had a nice garden for group shots."
We're loving the muted colour palette that Beanie used for her bridal party. "The bridesmaids picked out their own dresses for the most part," she says, "I just gave them a colour scheme and some ideas."
Beanie tells us that having a religious ceremony the day after their civil ceremony was really important to the couple. "We had a religious ceremony on the 26th as we couldn’t find a reception venue for the 25th! It’s a personal thing, but I would have felt like we weren’t married if we hadn’t had that!"
Asked to describe the feel of their wedding day, Beanie tells us, "It was intimate, warm (not weather-wise but you know what I mean!) and I’d like to say stylish but maybe I’m tooting my own horn!" Don't be so modest, Beanie!
Some of the couple's favourite moments of the day were from the speeches! "We didn’t know if we were bothered about them at first as I hate long, embarrassing speeches," Beanie says. "But we decided to have some short ones and my Dad’s made everyone cry. Josh didn’t even get two sentences into his before he cried, he didn’t even finish it! But I wouldn’t have had it any other way!"
Beanie's advice to engaged couples is simple, but hugely sensible! "Don’t sweat the details if it’s stressing you out," she says. "The best part is that feeling after you’re officially married and everything else is secondary."
For their wedding meal, the couple had authentic Neapolitan-style pizza by Cresci Pizzeria - what a brilliant choice for a laid-back wedding!
Thanks so much to Josh and Beanie for sharing their beautiful and budget-friendly wedding with us, and to Bethany and James Photography for providing the beautiful imagery! There are even more photographs to swoon over in the gallery below.
