SOUL TO SOUL CITY CENTRE WEDDING

These Tyneside soulmates brought their friends and families together in the city for a wedding day that brought together one faith, two cultures and lots of love

REAL WEDDINGS

SOUL TO SOUL CITY CENTRE WEDDING

These Tyneside soulmates brought their friends and families together in the city for a wedding day that brought together one faith, two cultures and lots of love

DATE Jul, 07 2024

VENUE The Vermont

PHOTOGRAPHY DJM Photography

SPIRITUAL CONNECTION

When their eyes locked across the room at Hillsong Newcastle, lovebirds Jade and Henry felt drawn to each other immediately. “We became friends first, then began dating around a year later,” our bride explains. And on their two-year anniversary, Henry popped the question over dinner at ABOVE, the roof terrace bar at The Vermont Hotel, where he’d booked a celebratory stay. “He gave the most beautiful speech about our relationship and the future,” she adds, smiling, “despite the rain, he was down on one knee – it was the easiest ‘yes’ of my life.”

The planning process was similarly enjoyable, but with some stressful moments, as Jade outlines: “A difficult part was navigating two cultures and ensuring that both were incorporated fully into the wedding”. She elaborates: “Henry’s family are Nigerian, while mine are British, and so we celebrate marriage differently, and with different traditions”. The couple relished preparing for the event through working together on DIY venue props and styling and choosing their big-day attire with their bridal party and groomsmen.

THIS MUST BE THE PLACE

As Christians, the pair knew that they wanted to say their vows in church, and more specifically the exquisite St Nicholas Cathedral, with its dramatic gothic architecture and breathtaking stained-glass windows. And serendipitously, it lies just a short walk from the site of their romance-filled engagement. Although they were already keen to make The Vermont Hotel part of their special day, the venue’s elegant Ballroom’s sumptuous décor and ABOVE’s panoramic views of the iconic Newcastle skyline truly sealed the deal.

And The Vermont Hotel just kept delivering. Jade speaks fondly of the incredible service provided by an array of individual staff members that made the reception festivities truly unforgettable. “The wedding planning team are true experts – they made us feel like royalty from our first visit to checking out the next day,” she notes “and they even organised for Nigerian jollof rice to be available for the evening guests.” Head of weddings Tanya was calm, professional and extremely knowledgeable, ensuring that the logistics of the day were seamless, while hotel manager Marcus was just as dependable, carrying luggage, organising room upgrades and even offering Henry a nip of whisky for his nerves while he got ready with his groomsmen!

THE VIBES

BREATH-TAKING

WHOLESOME

CLASSIC

THE MOST FUN MOMENT OF THE EVENING RECEPTION WAS UNDOUBTEDLY WHEN WE DONNED TRADITIONAL NIGERIAN ATTIRE AND SURPRISED OUR GUESTS WITH SOME UNEXPECTED DANCE MOVES. IT WAS WONDERFUL TO PLAY HOMAGE TO HENRY’S CULTURE.

JADE, BRIDE

AMAZING LACE

From the venue styling to the flowers and their fashion choices, this chic pair kept their theme timeless, elegant and all white: bouquets of snowy roses and gypsophilia arranged by the bride herself, white and green wisteria blossom trees, silver candelabras and an arch woven with white roses, wisteria and white balloons ensured that the already grand high-ceilinged Ballroom was transformed into a sophisticated space for a celebratory soirée.

Not that anyone’s eyes could be taken off these photogenic lovers – Henry, looking dashing in his light-stone three-piece suit with black trousers, complemented with a gold chain and cufflinks, while his bride Jade was a vision in a high-necked floral sheer lace gown embellished with twinkling sequins, and complemented with shape-enhancing cut-out details, as well as an endless pooling train. After their first dance, the duo switched things up again, donning the emerald-green Nigerian dress that Henry’s mother had had tailored for them specially.

YOU AND ME, ALWAYS AND FOREVER

With nuptials that truly reflected their shared hopes and blended families, the newlyweds look back on the day with deep happiness. Jade reminisces on the way she felt walking down the aisle towards her future husband, “I felt a mix of love, happiness, nerves… I just remember locking eyes with Henry and feeling overjoyed that I was going to stand side by side with this handsome man and we’d vow to love one another forever and forever”.

BELLE LOVES

We would have loved to have drawn up a seat at the wedding breakfast, as The Vermont Hotel laid on a deliciously hearty three-course spread, with leek and potato soup with a cheese scone to start, a main of slow-cooked beef with all the trimmings – including a ‘colossal Yorkshire pudding’ – and a warm salted caramel brownie with a strawberry coulis and raspberry sorbet for dessert. And that’s before we dip into the yummy jollof rice…