electra films blog

David & Diana - one year after the wedding

posted by: Karrie on 1 October 2008

I was thrilled to hear from Diana the other day and even more thrilled when she said she would write a post about life after the wedding with her tips for the wedding day ...

Diana with her soulmate husband David

Guest Post from Diana Croucher-Jones

Well, it’s incredible to believe but it really has been a whole year since our wonderful fairytale wedding and although we have long shaken the confetti out of our clothes, David and I can still recall every moment as clearly as if it happened only yesterday.

In the run up to the Wedding Day, my main memory is that we had been dreading what would happen with the weather. In Staffordshire where we live (although David is a Surrey Boy, he has settled here ‘up north’ with his Staffs Wife, even opening a Head Office here for his Business Consultancy), there was the worst flooding for years - in June! - and the road from our Wedding Venue to the Reception Venue was under water a few days before our July 1st marriage. I remember people ringing me and saying I seemed strangely calm, not panicky at all. Now I realise it was a mixture of shocked disbelief and hysteria! Which is why my main pointer for soon-to-be Brides (and Grooms too for that matter) is do try to cultivate a sense of humour. It saves many a crazy / potentially dreadful situation, and is literally a priceless asset.

As for the weather ... it behaved itself quite nicely in the end, and the overnight downpour actually enhanced our photographs, making everything look like it had been sprayed with a fresh coat of paint. So don’t let the forecast worry you; the photographers and Film Makers (I refuse to call them mere Videographers) at Electra are so totally expert and professional that they will overcome any weather, or other issues for you.

I could bore you for hours with all the little worries and dramas, but promise I will only mention a very few ... I stayed overnight at our Reception Venue (Weston Hall where all the staff were wonderful, and looked after me beautifully - before, during and after the Wedding itself), thinking it would make things easier. BUT I left my shoes at home and had to wear the reserve 2nd choice pair I’d packed in case either I, or my adult bridesmaids broke a heel. My dress had been altered to fit my short five foot frame, but was still a few inches too long for the ‘spare’ shoes so I kept tripping over it. The little loop attachment on the back of the dress hadn’t been sewn in the right place so I couldn’t secure the train for our dance routine (which we’d practised for weeks) ... which, together with shoes that were a little too big meant I couldn’t do the dance. The Bridesmaids got left behind at the Wedding Venue, by mistake, and had to be rescued and transported by our friendly photographer, the lovely Dave Wadley and Chris, one of our guests (four little angels in a 4x4!!!). Our lovely Best Man John had forgotten his speech (Bless!) The Celebrant read the wrong Verse at the ceremony (On the DVD (define) you can see my face-frozen fixed smile while my head was screeching: ‘What the...??’) And, most poignantly of all, my late Father wasn’t there to give me away because, like David’s Parents, he had passed away (Mom did the job instead, and was amazing!)

And you know what? None of it mattered one little bit! Whenever we get our fantastic DVD out and play it, we are transported back to fairy land. A golden, beautiful, magical day where everyone still tells us, ‘You could just feel the love in the air’.

Our day was so special; David and I have both had a few hurdles to overcome in previous years, but that day made it all OK somehow. It was like we were both reborn into a new, wonderful life together, as one. Sloppy I know, but true, so I make no apologies.I am loving being a Wife and I am so proud to be David’s! It has changed everything. Priorities are different now, and we really do think in terms of ‘us’ not ‘me’ We always loved one another, but since we got married, it is on a whole new level. And it just keeps on growing every day.

I also want to assure you that Karrie and Jon are not at all like I had expected them to be. I had been to other people’s weddings, where the videographer had hassled the couple and their guests, putting them on edge, giving orders, directing events. Well, not Electra Films! They are so reassuring, and they both help and at the same time inspire confidence. I am not the most photogenic of women, but Karrie just made everything flow so smoothly, I even forgot there were any cameras around. She was also very helpful, in the way a friend is; she helped me detach my veil, put my dress straight, helped me organise myself and so much more. A real personal touch!

A year later, on our Wedding Anniversary, David booked a romantic break, in an amazing hotel, with a stunning lakeside location. Picture if you will, the scene .... it’s the morning of our first Wedding Anniversary, I am sitting up in bed in our room, overlooking a glorious view ... which I am totally oblivious of, because David, the best Husband in the whole World has secretly packed our Wedding DVD and has put it on to play while we breakfast ... and I am back in fairyland again! Love you always and forever David xxx And THANKS FOREVER KARRIE AND JON!!!

Note from Karrie: if you’d like to see their wedding video you can watch it here.