electra films blog

One year after the wedding - Amber tells all ...

posted by: Karrie on 11 August 2008

This is the first of what will hopefully become a regular feature, but who else would I ask to do the first other than Amber - star of Wedding TV and affectionately known as 'Amber Super-Bride'!

Harry and Amber Dancey one year on and looking great!

One Year On …. guest post by Amber Dancey

The run up to mine, and no doubt any bride’s wedding is THE most exciting time. I am a self confessed wedding junkie, even one year on. I have nearly given my lovely husband whiplash at the sight of a vintage car outside a church. (Come on - you’ve all done it the minute that sparkler goes on the third finger of your left hand!) Not a day goes by when I don’t say “Do you remember the wedding?!” Like he’ll ever forget!
I was meticulous, no, OBSESSIVE in my planning! I knew Harry was the man I wanted to be with forever. I wanted a perfect day for both of us.

I started planning my wedding almost 3 years in advance. (I know…) I had the pink file, swatches, phone numbers, magazines. I know it sounds dreadful but believe me, all the best suppliers get booked up early. Don’t feel daft asking to book dates that far in advance. Your suppliers know what a bride to be is like. They have big diaries!

It can be overwhelming at the beginning to know where to start but I found that ‘thinking big’ helped. I booked the church and reception venue very early on as I was limited to dates I could have. All the good ones go quickly so be prepared to act fast.
You put your heart and soul into your planning and you want something to show for it! I then looked at photographers and videographers. I already knew the photographer I wanted but finding a good videographer was a different story. I met Karrie at a local wedding fayre and she and Jon were leagues ahead of any videographer I had seen. But if you’re reading this, I know I’m preaching to the converted!

Money is always a biggie. We allowed ourselves a lot of time to save, but we were very lucky that mum and dad helped us out. We had a pound coin tin which we used to put the spare pounds we had in. This really helped out and in a relatively short amount of time, we had a nice pot of money to spend. One of the best money saving tips I can offer is to use the skills of your friends and family. I was blessed with an aunty who is an amateur florist and a lovely friend who makes wedding cakes.  It’s so nice to have your family and friends involved as they’ll want the best for you so it’s one less thing to worry about.

I think being organised really saved me a lot of stress. I had monthly and weekly planners. I know how over the top it sounds but it really did help! It was nice to plan all my weekends to do wedding things, but there was no mad rush at the end, because everything had been thought through. When I look back at the wedding I only really have one or two little regrets. (Which I’ll tell you about later) I think that’s because I had planned it all out.

One thing I wasn’t prepared for was how emotional I would feel in the week before the wedding! The night before the wedding I cried like a baby! Even though I hadn’t lived at home for almost 3 years, my Daddy coming to pick me up to take me home for my ‘last night’ was just too much! If you are emotional I think it’s best if you say all the things you want to say and give out all your cards and gifts to your parents the day before! I honestly felt much calmer on the day for doing this.

If you can stretch to it and would like your hair and make up to be done at home go for it. We were all so relaxed before we went to the church as we didn’t have to run around like mad things! I really enjoyed the morning of my wedding. I had a few nerves but they vanished once my bridesmaids arrived and the bottles opened!  Once you step out of the door there’s nothing more for you to do or that you can do, so try not to be too nervous. Your day will be brilliant, even if things do go wrong it will only make it more memorable.

I loved ever second of my wedding. I only really have two regrets. The first being Harry and I didn’t just stop for half an hour and just sit down and look around. I wish that we would have done that and just taken everything in. You are tempted to run around and say hello to everyone but I think if you could squeeze it in you’d have so many more lovely memories. Also, I wish I would have planned a barbeque or a meal out the day after the wedding. It was a real anticlimax! All we wanted to do was talk about the wedding and see everyone’s pictures. Trust me, do this you’ll be on such a high and you’ll be able to stretch your day out a little bit longer!

I cannot believe that a year has passed since our wedding! The year has flown. I was worried that I’d have post wedding blues but I haven’t really. Not having a wedding to plan for leaves a big gap and you need to fill it. We were lucky as we moved house and had that to keep us occupied. I’d definitely make plans for something whether it be a holiday, a new baby or a house move!

One of my friends told me my wedding day would REALLY be the best day of my life, it would fly and marriage would change me. I didn’t really believe her. (or the second and third one!) But it’s true!  The wedding was the most amazing and quickest day of my life! Marriage does change you for the better. Your relationship is stronger and you’re no longer an ‘I’ but a ‘we’. As twee as it sounds I love Harry more now we are married. Our wedding day was lovely but being married is just fab!

You are so lucky - you’ve got so much to look forward to. Enjoy every minute of your planning! - Amber