Meet Mr & Mrs Vassallo, the stars of our latest Real Life Bride series…
The Groom – Michael Vassallo
Profession: Investment Director
The Bride – Samantha Vassallo (was Davidson)
Profession: Business Owner
Our story and our wedding:
How did you meet?
We met 10 years ago on a night out with friends and hit it off straight away. A week later we met for dinner and the rest is history!
Tell us about the proposal
Michael proposed on my birthday (September 2018) on the balcony of our favourite hotel in Tenerife. Although after 9 years, house and a dog, it was a complete surprise. When we arrived back home, we decided that we’d get married early the following year – why wait! We had 4 months to plan our big day (February 2019).
Why did you choose Seaham Hall?
Over the time we have been together we have spent many times at the hotel and spa especially at Christmas-time as a treat to us both. We always received a friendly welcome, the staff have constantly been attentive and helpful and the restaurants and spa have continuously been superb. When it came to choosing a venue, there was no other choice for us both for our special day – Seaham Hall had everything we were looking for, and more!
What was the theme?
We wanted a sophisticated and elegant theme to run through everything and in keeping with the venue. We chose a blush theme for the flowers and bridesmaids dresses and had cherry blossom tress in the ceremony room and on the tables in the dining room which looked great and really set off the theme – it looked magical. We also used a designer (F Couling Designs) to create an illustration of Seaham Hall which was used across the invitations and other printed materials on the day which looked stylish and elegant – and tied in the theme together.
Tell us about the dress?
I wanted an elegant and glamorous dress which sparkled but also represented my own personality. With it being a Winter wedding, I wanted a fur shrug to complete the dress. I decided on a blush colour which complimented the theme, but also added a bit more of my personality to the whole look. Pink has always been my favourite colour, so this was obviously no shock to the wedding party! Finally, I have always wanted a tiara on my wedding day, so this was the final piece that set my wedding look off – and made me feel truly special.
What is your favourite part of Seaham Hall?
If we had to pick one thing it would be the staff. Every time we go, we receive a warm and friendly welcome and they couldn’t do enough for us in planning for our wedding, particularly with the short timeframes – and made the whole day extra special.
Where did you choose to hold your ceremony?
Our ceremony was held in the atrium.
What did you like about your ceremony space?
We were lucky to have a beautiful sunny day for our wedding in February. The atrium was the perfect place as the glass roof brought the natural sunshine into the ceremony space. The whole ambience was perfect – from the set-up, decoration, light, space and layout to being able to have a pianist play throughout the whole ceremony. We wanted a modern wedding and the space was beautiful and gave us just that.
How did you feel?
Excited, happy and emotional. It was genuinely the happiest day of our lives seeing all of our friends and family there in such beautiful surroundings. It was magical.
What music did you walk down the aisle too; does it have a special meaning?
‘A thousand years’ by Christina Perri – from the movie Twilight. We had this played on the piano. The movie came out when we first met, and we loved the song. After the ceremony we walked out of the ceremony room to ‘Greatest Day’ by Take That – again this summed up the day and how we felt.
Suppliers:
Dress – Essence of Australia from Accent Original
Suits – Ted Baker
Maid of Honour and Bridesmaids dresses – Monsoon
Makeup – Emily Emmett Makeup Artist
Hair – Hair by Kayleigh
Flowers and decoration – Wild and Wonderful
Stationery and other materials – F Couling Designs
Photographer – Andy Hudson Photography
Pianist – Wedding Keys, Dave Smith
Acoustic vocalist – Glen Roughead
Band – Func on the Rocks, booked through AMV Music Management
Fireworks – Reaction
Cake – Red velvet chocolate cake from M&S and cake topper made by Artlocke Designs
