Gamekeeper's Wedding - Naiomi & Chris

We're always delighted to host your weddings at The Gamekeeper's Inn and bring the perfect day you've always imagined to life. We caught up with some of our happy couples to reminisce about their special day with us, so we could share their story with you.

Please tell us your and your husband's names: Naiomi and Christopher

The date of your wedding with us? Friday 26th May 2023

How did you meet?
Back in October 2012, I had just got a new family puppy and Chris messaged me on Facebook about her. We hit it off from there!

How did he propose?
We had just got the keys to our first house and were looking forward to renovating it into our perfect family home. We had just finished moving all of our stuff in when I heard Chris say to our daughter, "go give that to mummy". He sent her in with a picture which said, "will you marry my daddy?" and the engagement ring. He followed and asked if I would marry him, and I said yes!

Tell us about your stag and hen celebrations!
Chris and his closest friends celebrated his stag in Milan.

I had two hen parties, firstly with all the girls in Manchester. We stayed overnight and enjoyed bottomless brunch and karaoke - they know me too well! Then I celebrated with my family with a full body massage, hot tub, afternoon tea and all my favourite picky bits, followed by a cocktail class in the evening and we can't forget karaoke again!

Why did you choose The Gamekeeper's Inn?
It's an amazing place. It's gorgeous, and when we both went to visit to look around, Angela made us feel right at home straight away. She explained everything, no question went unanswered and we both knew by the end of our appointment that The Gamekeeper's Inn was where we wanted to get married.

What was your wedding theme?
We went for a pure and clean wedding theme because we loved the simplicity. We chose baby blue as it seemed a lovely colour for that time of year, and it is one of Chris's favourite colours.

Tell us all about your wedding looks!
My dress is from the amazing team at Ava Rose Hamilton. The best service and company I could have asked for. I chose a fitted ivory dress with lace features, it was absolutely nothing like I had imagined, but everything I ever wanted and more. I wish I could wear it again! Alternations were made by the amazing Sew in Love, again a great company and service, nothing was too much.

My makeup was done by Olivia McCormack and my Hair was by Amy's.

Chris initially bought a grey suit from Moss Bros., but when I came with him to change his suit trousers, we spotted a different suit which we both LOVED, so he changed his mind and exchanged the suits!

Who were your bridesmaids and groomsmen?
I chose my two sisters Simonne and Teona, and my friends Katie and Alex to be my bridesmaids. Our daughter Cara was the flower girl.

Chris chose his friend Colin to be his best man while our son Benjamin was the page boy.

Tell us all about your flower arrangements!
The Flower Girls in Whalley were amazing suppliers, they took my theme of simplicity and brought it to life.

I chose gypsophila alone for the bridesmaids, while I had a mix of gypsophila, little blue flowers, some green leaves and white roses all tied together with baby blue ribbon. We had a star gypsophila wand for our little flower girl with baby blue ribbon around it.

How did you celebrate after the ceremony?
We got married at 1pm, with our reception meal at 3pm and evening celebrations started at 6:30pm. We thought it was the most perfect day as we had plenty of time to do everything we wanted. Our guests also agreed that the day ran really smoothly.

Mally's Crafts was our main supplier for our name tags, table plan and welcome sign. We ordered our table numbers from Etsy and I got our centrepieces from The Range and Matalan.

We chose scratch cards for our wedding favours. We loved seeing who won some money when it came to the speeches!

Tell us about your wedding cake!
We decided to have a doughnut cake! I ordered our cake topper from Etsy and our cake stand from Amazon, while my talented friend made the little cake on the top. Gypsophilas were placed throughout it to fit in with our theme, and she got our little girl to help out too!

What was your first dance song?
Our first dance was You're Still The One by Shania Twain. My friend Bethia sang it for us, it was one of the best moments of our lives.

What entertainment did you provide?
For the evening we hired DJ James Barrett - an amazing DJ with every song you could think of under the sun. He got everybody up on the dance floor.

What are your favourite memories of the day?
I don't think I can choose just one!

Firstly, seeing all my guests when I was walking down the aisle felt amazing. The speeches were all absolutely lovely moments. When the photographer took us away on our own to take some photos, it was great for us to have some time away from it all together. Probably my most favourite moment was the first dance, having all our friends and family gathered around, my friend's gorgeous voice singing, it makes me tear up just thinking about it.

Which is your favourite photo from your wedding day?

Again it's hard to choose, but I think I'd have to say it's the one where we are stood at the end of the aisle laughing, everyone in the background is laughing too, and I just love that.

If you could do it all over again, would you do anything differently?

Absolutely nothing!

Who was your photographer?
Our photographer was the amazing Erin Beck at That Wild Eye Photography.

Where did you go for your honeymoon?
We haven't been yet, but we are dreaming of going to Florence in a few years time when our children are older.

In the mean time, we're going on a mini moon to the Lake District in November.

Inspired by Naiomi & Christopher's wedding day? This could be you too!

If you’re looking for a romantic wedding venue in the Yorkshire Dales, make sure to register for our Wedding Showcase at The Gamekeeper’s Inn.

Join us on Saturday 21st October 2023 between 11am and 3pm to view the beautifully decorated Netherside Suite set up in both a ceremony style and a wedding breakfast style, so you can picture your perfect day. Meet with our team to discuss your requirements, or ask our experienced wedding coordinator about everything that goes into creating those important moments. Register now and download our wedding brochure.

From your first visit, through all your planning, right up to your wedding celebrations, our wedding planner Angela will be by your side. Angela has been organising weddings at The Gamekeeper's Inn since The Netherside Suite opened and has overseen countless happy couples tie the knot. She will answer any questions you might have and help you set out your perfect wedding.

So why not choose The Gamekeeper’s Inn as your perfect wedding venue? We have everything you need to plan your wedding and we’ll help you through every step. Please check out our Weddings page for more information, or get in touch with Angela directly to start discussing your special day today.

For more information email: events@gamekeeperinn.co.uk
Or call: 01756 752434

Naiomi & Christopher's Suppliers

WEDDING DRESS: Ava Rose Hamilton | 01535 653 331 | info@avarosehamilton.co.uk

ALTERATIONS: Sew In Love | 01282 220433 | sewinlovebyemilyjay@gmail.com

HAIR: Amy's | 01535 500731 |

MAKEUP: Olivia McCormack MUA | oliviamccormackmua@gmail.com

GROOM & GROOMSMEN'S SUITS: Moss Bros.

FLOWERS: The Flower Girls, Whalley | 07816 664951 | laura@flowergirlswhalley.co.uk

DECORATIONS: Creative Venue Styling | info@creativevenuestyling.co.uk | 01282 476592

TABLE SETTINGS: Mally's Crafts

ENTERTAINMENT: DJ James Barrett | 07822535991

PHOTOGRAPHER: Erin Beck - That Wild Eye | 07765 080608 | thatwildeye@gmail.com