Leah repeatedly referred to her wedding as a “fake wedding” because she and Mark skipped so many of the expected traditions that, apart from the legally binding bit, their day had very little interest in seeming like one. There was no aisle, personalised vows or first dance. There were six ceremony guests, several handmade outfits, competitive bingo and a table of temporary tattoos. It also happened to be on Leah’s 30th birthday! “I love my birthday but don’t love the idea of being centre of attention so thought what a good way to have a party, combine the two!” she said. “I got to spend the day with all my favourite people!”

The plan began with a mishmash of references, including retro Las Vegas weddings, bold colour and anything that felt fun. Rather than committing to a tightly controlled theme, Leah and Mark used that ides to connect each part of the day. The result was colourful, playful and relaxed, with handmade details running through the outfits, flowers, stationery and reception décor.

Leah knew that a conventional ceremony would make her anxious. Walking down an aisle while everybody watched wasn’t her idea of fun, so the chairs were arranged in a semicircle with no aisle at all. Everyone gathered in the room together, Leah and Mark was well, and then they just began. The couple chose the shortest ceremony option available and stuck to the words required to make the marriage legal. “You might be getting the theme by now but I hate being perceived,” Leah laughed. “I love to have fun but mingled in the crowd.”

Leah’s ceremony outfit combined a Rara Couture blazer and belt with a skirt handmade by her mum. For the reception, she changed into a second-hand Self-Portrait dress bought from another bride on Vinted for £100. Leah added her own embellishments, while her mum made the cape that went with it. Leah also made her bag and found a pair of Louis Vuitton shoes on Vestiaire Collective for £180! Mark wore a suit he already owned, followed by an evening shirt handmade by Leah.

That custom and DIY approach continued throughout the rest of the day. Leah made the bud vases, her mum created her bouquet and the larger floral pieces, and her sister made the wedding cake as her gift to the couple. Dried flowers allowed the family to work well ahead of the wedding instead of dealing with fresh arrangements during the final few days. Leah bought a Cricut machine which she used to produce the stationery, mirror decals and personalised details for pyjamas, cups and gift boxes.

This sheer amount of DIY saved money, although it was a serious amount of work. Leah calculated that paying herself minimum wage for the hours involved would have added more than £3,000 to the budget. Leah set up the ceremony space, and they hired Orange Tree Weddings to take charge of the reception.

“Even if you’re having a DIY wedding I can’t recommend having something do the set up enough”, Leah said. “Janie from Orange Tree Weddings was amazing! I booked her about two years out and she had to cope with my unhinged way over organised-ness! She was super supportive on all my DIYs and hyped me up via Instagram DMs when I was posting me crafting at 2am! She heard my vision and added so much to it. Guests were in awe of the reception venue and how gorge it was. The ceiling draping was 1000/10, the colour choice, the fabrics, just everything… so good!”

Live music was the couple’s biggest expense. They only wanted a band if they found one that suited the atmosphere, and their chosen musicians travelled from farther away to perform. The additional cost paid off, with guests still talking about the band afterwards. Leah and Mark found them through Entertainment Nation after discovering the company via Rock n Roll Bride.

Throughout the planning process, every decision came back to the same question: did it make them feel excited or nervous? Anything that produced the wrong kind of nerves disappeared from the schedule. “For the reception we wanted to have a fun vibe, it was super important to us that everyone had a great time and the energy was up, so we did Bingo! Everyone was soooo invested and everyone took it super seriously and got competitive! The prizes were silly but ended up being coveted! We skipped the first dance as again, didn’t like being centre of attention, and didn’t want to disrupt the night. Anything that the thought of it made us nervous we scrapped!”

Leah and Mark’s “fake wedding” gave them everything they wanted from a real one. They got legally married, spent the day with their favourite people and crafted a celebration around the things they genuinely enjoyed. “People WILL be confused you’re not doing traditional things, but often people say they wish they did that too!” Leah concluded. “So many people told me they wish they didn’t do a first dance but felt like they had to. My top tip is to tell people your plans with confidence, they seem to question less when you’re super excited and matter of fact about your decisions.”