Smiling in the Snow – Rachel and Philip’s Wedding by Gillian Higgins

Remember those freezing few weeks in March when the North was covered in a thick blanket of snow? Imagine getting married in the middle of that! Well, today’s amazing couple did just that and instead of letting the snow get to them, together with their uber talented photographer Gillian Higgins, Rachel and Philip now have the most unique set of wedding photographs ever! Because of the severe weather, they made some last minute changes to their transport, and their locations for the photos.

This is a seriously jam packed real wedding, so grab a cuppa, relax and get ready for some quirky details, and amazing fun photo sessions.

Philip and I met at a barn party on St Patrick’s Day when I was 15; five days later we were going out! On the night we met Philip gave me the wrong number and he still insists this was an accident! I didn’t know anything about this until my sister came and told me all about the boy I met the night before- I hadn’t mentioned it to her!  Philip had been trying to source my number and it just so happened that his friend worked with my sister at the time and managed to get it. That was the icing on the cake, I was head over heels about the boy and who knew that seven years later we would be husband and wife!

Beautiful ‘hedgerow’ style bouquets. 

Philip and Rachel open their Christmas presents for each other at midnight on Christmas Eve – technically Christmas Day! On the Christmas Eve of 2011 Philip suggested they go for a drive and exchange presents, just for a change.

When we got in the car, he handed me a map that outlined where we were going and different stops along the way.  We stopped at places that meant something to us, places we loved to go and had fun memories of. At the end of the trail, we ended up at the top of Benbradagh mountain. Philip handed me a present and told me to open it and check out the front page. Philip then got out of the car but I just continued opening my gift! It was a lovely vintage photo album for our polaroids and on the front page he had written me a little message- “Here’s to our future!”.  That’s when my door of the car opened and Philip got down on one knee! I obviously said yes and Philip put the lovely ring that he chose himself on my finger… He picked well!

We love that Gillian’s second shooter got to capture the guys’ preparations that morning.

Philip sure know’s how to make an entrance! 

Philip and Rachel decided pretty quickly to get married on their seven year anniversary. With the date and location decided they took the rest of the planning in their stride and enjoyed the process rather than stressing out!

Although their was not a definite theme set for the day, both Rachel and Philip love fun vintage styling, which was reflected in their quirky choices. Rachel’s wedding dress was purchased from Ultimate Dresses, Dungiven and although she had a clear idea of what she wanted the dress she finally chose was the exact opposite! A vivid colourscheme of elegant navy blues and standout yellows were used throughout the day, cleverly picked out on all the little details.

The day was AMAZING – we loved every minute of it! From the day before, it was clear that the gale force winds and snow storms were going to be a BIG part of our day! This was when we realised we needed a back up for our photos and Philip came up with the genius idea of the Jet Centre, Coleraine. We totally LOVE our photos, the location was perfect, so as it turned out the weather was a blessing!

Highlight Of The Day

There were so many highlights! We both loved our marriage ceremony, the day just felt like a big celebration!  Going to the jet centre was also a total highlight- how many times do you get your own personal cinema?

We had to re-think our cars the night before too as we were planning on using a VW campervan for the full day. Fortunately, I got to arrive in the VW but we knew that there was no chance we would get to the reception in it with the snow so we got a last minute VW beetle! So many last minute changes but everything worked out better that we could hope! One minor detail was that I woke up to no electric in the morning!!