Image © westlondonphotography : Hurlingham Club wedding photographs Eira and Greg
Eira and Greg's real life wedding at The Hurlingham Club, London
The exclusive Hurlingham Club was the perfect choice for Councillor Greg Smith and tax advisor Eira Jones, following their Church wedding at All Saints Church, Fulham..
'We met on a street corner in Fulham! It was my first time volunteering for the Conservative party and Greg was running a canvassing group. It wasn’t quite love at first sight as he thought I was a Labour Party mole!', explains Eira.
A romantic proposal in Wales
Greg proposed on August Bank Holiday 2008 at the Celtic Manor Resort in South Wales. It’s our favourite Welsh hotel – we used to always have to stay in hotels when we went to visit my parents because Greg was allergic to our cat!
We had a gorgeous meal in the 2010 clubhouse, and over coffee Greg asked me to marry him. We rang our parents, my sister and Greg’s grandparents straight away and then sank a bottle of champagne. We had a celebratory meal with our parents the next night and told everyone when we got back to London.
Eira's Wedding Dress
My wedding dress was a couture dress made and designed by Emma Hunt. As soon as I saw her dresses in the back of a magazine I knew she was the person I wanted to make my dress.
I wanted something timeless, elegant and unfussy, and that’s exactly what it was. It was made out of ivory duchesse satin with a skirt and a train.
My bridesmaids were my Sister Sian, and my two best friends from school, Rebecca and Ceri. They wore dresses in deep raspberry silk dupion made and designed by Naomi Neoh. They were totally stunning.
And what did Greg choose to wear?
Greg had a suit made for him at our local tailors, Walker Slater, and so did his Best Man, Daniel Lowe (a friend from school) and some of his ushers Paul, Jonathan C and Jonathan I.
He had tailor-made ties made by Favourbrook in Saville Row and Ivory shirts from Thomas Pink. We gave the shirts and ties to everyone as a gift.
Who did the wedding planning?
I did most of the planning and organising but Greg basically executed all of the plans, and then on the day we made damn sure we enjoyed the fruits of our labours!
Wonderful wedding music
We had a beautiful service at All Saints Church, Fulham, full of music, sung by professional singers and conducted by the great Martin Neary, formerly of Westminster Abbey. We were incredibly lucky to have such wonderful musical talent, and we’ll never forget our wedding service as a result.
And why did you choose The Hurlingham Club?
It’s the nearest venue to All Saints, but it’s also the best! It has a dedicated events space which is separate from the members club, with a glass ceiling, a wonderful circular bar, and it’s set in beautiful grounds. That meant that for the drinks reception, we had the warmth of being inside, with the light of being outside.
The catering is run by Searcy’s 1847 and their food is simply delicious and the Hurlingham Club are so brilliant at running events. They were totally professional and helpful.
We had 120 people who were with us all day and night! We had a swing band – “Schwing” play classics and more modern tunes during the evening. I took my shoes off and spent the whole time on the dance floor!
Who were your wedding photographers?
Susan and Godfrey Johnson of West London Photography were our wedding photographers.
They were fantastic. They understood exactly what we wanted (not loads of group photos but the essence of the day captured) and were not intrusive at all.
We love the shots of us just by the altar because it gave us time to quietly reflect on the enormity of what we’d just done.
I’d left everything to the last minute in terms of getting ready and we didn’t have a chance to do any pictures of me in my dress before going to the church. Susan reminded me of this and said we should do some after the ceremony and I’m so glad she did otherwise I’d have none!
It was great she had thought of exactly the sort of shots I’d want to have.
We were so pleased with the results and so grateful that unlike some weddings we’d been to, the photography didn’t hold up people from enjoying themselves.
What was your menu for your wedding breakfast ?
We had a parma ham French bean and shallot salad, confit duck with sesame pak choi and crushed potatoes, and an apple and frangipane tart with cinnamon ice cream and toffee sauce. All washed down with red and white wine.
What did you choose for your wedding cake, and who made it? It looked fantastic!
It was a M&S wedding cake, topped with flowers by he brilliant Jayne Copperwaite, our florist. our florist. Our flowers were ivory, blush and pink roses, simple but co-ordinated.
Your favourite moment of the day?
Walking up the aisle to the music from the choir and seeing each other for the first time.
Where did you spend your first night and honeymoon?
First night was in the Wyndham Grand hotel, and then we were off to the Baros resort in the Maldives for 2 weeks. We booked our holiday through Turquoise Holidays.
Is there anything you would do differently, or any advice you would give to other brides?
Nothing at all. We loved our wedding and we enjoyed every second of it. The reason we were able to is because all of our suppliers were consummate professionals who we absolutely trusted to deliver for us. They all did brilliantly.
The only advice we’d give is that if you focus on 3 things – great food, plenty of booze and great entertainment then you can’t go wrong as far as your guests are concerned.
A year on people still tell us they had a fabulous time and even remember aspects of the day that we’d forgotten!