Preparation stages and ideas
The first four months were deciding, designing, creating, arguing of all ideas. This page shows those ideas that came together and were included in the preparation of the wedding.
Invitation Cards
There were two types of invitation cards. One was the daytime guest card which invited named guests to the reception party including food, drink and speeches. The other invite card was for those attending in the evening after 7pm. We had 60 guests in total, 30 of them being daytime guests. We probably sent out 90 invitations. A short video of the ceremony invitation card is on the main wedding page.
Dad - Until We Meet Again sign
This was an idea from Michèle who had seen something similar at a wedding that she'd been too. It was a nice idea too. This let our guests know that we were remembering Dad and paying tribute.
The Letter Box
We needed a way of collecting any messages, thoughts, daft and small gifts so we provided envelopes, paper, pens and a letterbox to post them in. We didn't realise that so many people included their weddings gifts like gift vouchers and cards and even cash.
The Letter Box sign
This sign, positioned next to the Letterbox, gave a guide to our guests with what do with the paper and envelopes.
Hearts Jar
Some one else had given me the idea that in addition to the letterbox, it might be nice to collect these wooden hearts that our guests would leave cute, nice and daft messages on... and they did, in equal measure.
Heart Felt Wishes sign
This sign was placed next to the wooden hearts jar and was for guidance or instruction to our guests with what to do with the hearts.
Favours bags
Knowing that favours bags (gift bags for our guests) was going to be required, we decided early on the size of the bags and over the four months of preparation, occasionally had yet another idea of what to put in them.
Favours bags - Key fobs
I kept wanting personalised stuff for everyone but it was more than we could afford to have everything personalised per guest so the next best thing was creating personalised items related to our day, in order to make it their day too. These key fobs with photos of Jezz and I simply had a printed message on pink coloured paper, that they had been to the wedding of Jezz and Wayne and the date.
Favours bags - personalised gift pens
In seven different colours, we put a pen in each of the favours bags. The pens were engraved with Jezz & Wayne's Wedding and the website: jezzandwayne.com.
Favours bags - Wrapper personalised Love Hearts
Again, I couldn't stop myself from ordering these cute little packets of Love Hearts. Each one had Mr & Mr Alton printed on them as well as a message thanking our guests for coming to the wedding.
Favours bags - fridge magnet
This was the last item that I ordered online, as I was told to. It was the cases for my personal fridge magnet message. It included the wedding logo, a message, the website name and a QR code that takes you to the website, jezzandwayne.com.
Favours bags - a rainbow jar
Jezz's idea to put Skittles sweets in to the jar and I labelled them with the wedding logo. It was one of the first ideas for the favours bags.
Favours bags - Message in a bottle
The baby bottle with miniature corks were another item for the favours bags. The message inside read: "Thank you for coming to our wedding, Saturday 6 November 2021." Each scroll was tied with a piece of rainbow-coloured thread.
The Message in the Message in a bottle
And this was the message in each of the mini bottles. Photo taken by Vicki and beautifully modelled by Harrison.
PhotoFrame - and the journey begins...
The start of the revamping of the PhotoFrame. It starts with strengthening it and making it permanently stiff and firm. We bought some hard foam board from Hobbycraft but it certainly didn't end there.
PhotoFrame - complete, finally
This darn photo frame started out as a simple gift from Amanda for the party. The idea of everyone using it to take selfies and photos of each other throughout the evening. The frame, once out of the box need strengthening and once that was done, it needed to be jazzed up and so Jezz painted and glued glitter on to it. Then the personalisation of 2 rainbow letters, our initials and then the crazy idea (mine) of adding lights to the inside border. It took forever, costed £80 by the time it was finished and Jezz and I almost fell out. Hahaha!
Cross-stitch momento
Amanda kindly made 21 of these beautiful cross-stitch emblems featuring our initials, a rainbow and the wedding date. Couples had one to share and individuals had one of their own.
Button holes
And button holes to you, too, madam. In order to create a theme, we bought the artificial flowers from Hobbycraft and hand made each of the button holes for our guests who identify as male to wear.
The suits
The hire of the Ted Baker blue tails suits are ordered quite early on at Moss Bros. We forwarded the details onto Kelly and the boys wore matching suits, as did Andy, our best man.
The shirts
Undecided about where we were going to buy our shirts from, we settled for these from John Lewis and Partners.
Glitzy shoes
Jezz and I wore matching shoes. They were bought from ASOS and weren't expensive. They did catch the eye... well couldn't help but, really.
Glitter trainers
Jezz and I changed into matching trainers, similar to the wedding shoes... equally as glitzy. Jezz bought his first from ASOS and we couldn't get a pair in my size in time but thankfully, stumbled on these on eBay for £40... and they're Vans. Result!
Pink cravats and pocket squares
For the gentlemen in the ceremonial party, we asked them to wear the pink cravat and matching pocket square which we also wore, as grooms.
Pink socks
I wanted the men in the ceremonial party to wear pink socks so that meant Jezz and I, as grooms, the ring bearers and grandsons Ethan and Jake and best man, Andy.
Cufflinks - blue stone and initials
Unsure of which cufflinks both Jezz and I were going to be wearing, I started buying some. They were cheap enough and from Amazon. This was the first choice. Jezz decided to wear a pair of these on the day.
Cufflinks - silver and engraved
Two pairs of cufflinks again and each one has Mr Wayne Alton and Mr Jezz Alton, along with the wedding date, 6 Nov 2021. These weren't worn on the day.
Security kit - fake ear pieces
With my idea of the grandsons walking in to the ceremony room, ahead of the grooms and acting as security special agents and body guards, it was decided that we'd need dark sunglasses, security ID badges and these, fake ear pieces.
Security kit - ID lanyard badges
Hung from purple neck ties were these home made security ID badges in lanyards. They displayed clearly that Ethan and Jake meant business as special agents whilst they were security for half an hour of the service.
Engraving the rings
We'd bought the rings in Brighton, in the Lanes, back in May 2019. They turned out to be engagement rings and we decided then they if we ever got married, we'd come back and get them engraved, and we did. The engraving says: J & W 🖤 6 Nov 2021.
The rings are ready
Engraved and ready to go, here are the two rings in this ring box. Used for transporting them down to Brighton.
Richard the Rodeo
We were driving home from Brighton one day and suddenly had the craziest idea of hiring a bull rodeo but both of us knew we were going to go with a penis-shaped one. We made enquiries there and then and by the end of July, had paid the deposit and secured the hire.
The start of the sweets
Wanting a candy cart and being able to have one meant that we had to start buying the sweets. This was my attempt but shortly after, Amanda blew us away with a ton more from Costco.
Amanda's Cakes
We wanted to display a sign and a contact in recognition of Amanda's cakes so we made up an email and a description for her efforts in making the 6-tier rainbow gay wedding cake of the decade.
Jezz is 50 lightbox
I wanted everyone to be reminded that although it was in deed a wedding day, it was also my gift to Jezz, for his 50th birthday... the very same day.
Where you're shitting
A novel way to let our daytime guests know where they will be seated. It was a sign, placed at the entrance of the party room, alphabetically listing the names of our guests and letting them know which table they were on. Jezz went the extra mile by adding a Brighton seagull that had had an accident down the sign.
Place names
They started out as just the white cards with printed names on but I extended it to include lollipop guide signs for the serving staff. The idea was to let them know without having to ask each guest which meal they were having. I stuck the signs into rainbow decorated cork, intended to look like seaside rock. Anyway, brilliant idea that none of the waiting staff took any notice of. Lol.
Table number frames
We removed the standard signs with pieces of paper that had numbers on them for these frames. They were inexpensive and from Wilko's and I created the artwork that included caricatures of all of our day guests.
Jezz, hard at it in the factory
This was Jezz in the middle of making yet another corsage for the ladies. I say factory because our lounge looked like the back of a warehouse to a factory production line.
A finished corsage
And this was the result on hours of artificial flower arranging and tens of glue sticks later.
Jezz moves on to the sweetheart table centrepiece
Instructed by our wedding planner, it was important to have a feature on the sweetheart table (that's the table that Jezz and I would be sat at). Jezz made an amazing job of creating the centrepiece that included a set of lights... quite magical. Next image is the finished result.
Sweetheart table centrepiece - completed
Jezz finishes the table centrepiece that was placed both on the registrars table in the ceremony room and then brought downstairs in to the party room where it spent the rest of the day, on the sweethearts table.
Nikki's own corsage
Jezz said that he'd make Nik her own corsage with extra feathers as she was part of the ceremonial party.
Mr & Mr Alton
I ordered this from online - a plastic chrome effect table piece, It said Mr & Mr Alton with the wedding date included. It was put on our front table.
Ring cushion
There were two of these, of course. Initially held by Andy and Nikki and then passed to Ethan and Jake. They contained the wedding rings. Jezz decided on these when he first saw them in a boutique shop in the Lanes, in Brighton. The shop specialises in accessories made from vintage Japanese kimono obi silks.
Food tasting - Chicken and Chips with coleslaw
This was the nicest for me... fried chicken breast fillet in batter, with chips and a side serving of coleslaw.
Food tasting - traditional cod and chips
Wanting to keep with a Brighton theme, this was the main plate and most popular - battered cod with chips and side servings of mush peas and tartare sauce dip.
Food tasting - grilled fish and chips
For the more health conscious, and possible glutards, grilled and seasoned fish with chips and side servings of mush peas and tartare sauce dip.
Food tasting - vegetarian fritter and chips
This was tasty and I can only describe it as a sage and stuffing pattie fried in batter and served with chips, mushy peas and mayonnaise.
12 Bottles of Maschio Prosecco
We brought these with us for use with the speeches and toasting. We only used 4 though.
Rose Lemonade
23 bottles of Fentimans rose lemonade were purchased, ready for the non-alcoholic drink to go with the food.