I have the most wonderful and heartwarming lockdown love story for you all today, and the beautiful, warm and family focused wedding of two Londoners in their hometown, strongly rooted in their Christian faith.
This is the wedding of Nicole, a photographer, and her love James who works in IT. They were married on the 21st March 2021 in London, with a ceremony at their church – which is also where they first met.
“We’ve known each other for a few years. Lockdown brought us closer together and COVID made us realise that certain situations can’t be guaranteed during these times, so we decided to get married after a 3 month engagement.”
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Bridal make-up and an elegant, face-framing chignon was styled by Jayne Ionica Make-up and Hair, and Nicole added a pair of pretty rose quartz drop earrings by Emilia Rae Bridal.
On her feet, Nicole wore strappy, transparent heels by Public Desire, and her final finishing touch was a glittering, two-tier bespoke veil by SALIMA.ALI.
Nicole’s ethereal dream of a dress, draped with tulle and a beautiful sweetheart bodice, was a bespoke creation by SALIMA.ALI, whose couture statement pieces are all made in London.
“Salima Ali designed my dress, making it extremely quickly and beautifully – within 6 weeks. She has such an eye for detail and her work is absolutely flawless.”
“I would highly recommend her to anyone wanting a bespoke wedding dress. I wanted to keep the dress modest yet beautiful – the dress made me feel so feminine.”
Nicole was accompanied down the aisle by her Dad, and the couple’s ceremony (in their home church) was conducted by their pastor of many years.
James and his groomsmen opted for timeless and stylish black tie from Moss Bros., and James also wore his late grandfather’s shoes and his Nonno’s watch.
Nicole’s bridesmaids wore matching dresses from Etsy [no seller details provided] in a gorgeous dusky coral shade, and family friend Selina Dick made the buttonholes and a classically beautiful bouquet of ivory roses for Nicole.
“We went with the white rose and eucalyptus bouquet because it’s such an elegant combination, and it complemented both the suit and the dress together.”
“We based most of our vows around our faith and around our experiences with God – how our lives have changed because of Him, and how those changes brought us together in matrimony.”
Due to COVID-19 restrictions in place at the time of Nicole and James’ wedding, they live streamed their ceremony for loved ones who were unable to attend.
“Our ceremony was held in a COVID secure manner and used a booking system to ensure that building capacity was kept to 10% or below with a one-way system to ensure social distancing.”
As Nicole and James made their vows and exchanged rings, these moments and many more charming details were captured gracefully and sensitively by Kingsley Ohuka, AKA Cr8 Moments London.
“We chose Kingsley because he is an extremely talented photographer who knows his trade like the back of his hand.”
“His use of lighting and camera angles creates the most beautiful images – he really knows how to take a good picture.”
“On top of that he delivered the pictures to us in record time, which just goes to show he is good at what he does and enjoys doing it!”
“I would definitely recommend him to any couple that want stunning, high quality images on their big day.”
Kingsley also captured some gorgeous post-ceremony shots outdoors as the newly married couple took time together to take everything in.
After this, there was a small family dinner with a lemon wedding cake baked by James’ sister Francesca to remind them of Italy.
Words of Wedded Wisdom
“Your joy and happiness on the day will outshine the best dish, the fanciest reception and the flashest cars. Make your day about your love rather worrying about the details that nobody will remember in 20 years!”
“Marriage isn’t just about the wedding day, it’s about two people joining together to journey through life’s challenges and highs as one.”
“For those putting it off just because of the restrictions on guest numbers due to COVID, my advice would be to just go for it – we did and it was still an incredible day. Besides you can always plan a big celebration once the pandemic enforced restrictions are over!”
Nicole and James, many congratulations and best wishes to you both, and huge thanks for sharing your day with us. What a delight it’s been. Many thanks to Kingsley at Cr8 Moments London for this wonderful collection of images, too.
With love,
Laura
Credits & Thanks
- Photography - Cr8 Moments London
- Nicole's Dress + Veil - SALIMA.ALI
- Earrings - Emilia Rae Bridal
- Shoes - Public Desire
- Hair + Make-up Artist - Jayne Ionica Make-up and Hair
- Bridesmaids' Dresses - Etsy
- James' Suit - Moss Bros
- Florist - Selina Dick [family friend]
- Cake - Francesca Buzzella [the Groom's sister]
Laura Callan View all Laura's articles
Laura is a freelance writer and content creator who loves telling stories. She has keen eye for photography and art, and lives with her husband, cats, and huge amounts of books.
