Our Big Day

Bright & Beautiful

Returning to the spot they fell in love, Bina and Daniel McKennan celebrated their union, on Brighton beach.

By fashion_admin | Posted Fri 17 June 2011

THE PROPOSAL

When the man of your dreams is perfect in every way you may find yourself in eager anticipation of hearing those four fabulous words. And for Bina McKennan, they couldn’t have come any sooner as she reveals, ‘Daniel proposed after a night out  at our local pub. I didn't have any make-up on and was tired from work. We played pool and Daniel won as usual. As we strolled home, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I was taken by surprise, but it was so romantic, to be honest I would have said yes if he’d proposed on the day we met!’

SETTING THE TONE

With a fairy godmother’s touch a fairytale wedding is easy and Bina’s best friend Krupali filled those shoes with ease, as Bina explains,  ‘I wouldn't have enjoyed planning the wedding half as much if it wasn't for Krupali - she was always by my side. I was also very lucky that I found my  photographer, make-up artist and decorators all in the same day - it was meant to be!’

Family were also on hand to help plan the two weddings, a traditional large Hindi ceremony followed by a more intimate registry service. Bina admits, ‘My dad as well as a couple of his friends were invaluable when it came to the layout of the room and negotiation with the hotel and food. While mum was amazing, with her beautiful, creative ideas for the mendhi and wedding day itself.’

THE VENUE

Daniel and Bina met in Brighton in 2004 at university where they spent three happy years swimming in the sea and walking arm in arm along the beach, so getting married in the coastal town where they fell in love was a natural decision. Marrying on the beach itself isn’t legal but they found the perfect solution; Blanch House, a lovely little boutique hotel for an intimate registry with just 38 special guests, just a stone’s throw away from the sea.

In contrast the Hindu ceremony was held inside a beautiful country hotel and hosted 600 guests. The wedding took place inside a neutral coloured suite with cream walls so it was the perfect blank canvas to transform, remembers Bina, ‘I love orange, it's such a prominent colour in Hinduism so I wanted it to influence the main scheme for the decor. I chose a gorgeous wooden carved mandap, and had our decor company Rivaaj Weddings embellish the roof with pretty orange and cream flowers. The whole look was elegant.’

THE LOOK

‘Daniel and I are both fans of vintage 1940s style -  I love the dresses, hair and make-up from that era - its so classic and timeless’, enthuses Bina who recreated her own forties look for the registry. ‘My corset and skirt were handmade raw silk from a boutique in Manchester called Corset Couture; it was love at first sight, I knew it was the one even if it was the first outfit I saw! Daniel wanted to get married in full tweed regalia. His green tweed suit was tailor-made and he looked every bit the country gentleman.’

To suit the natural outdoor setting, Bina settled for a neutral look for her make up, inspired by her husband, ‘Daniel always tells me I look great without make-up, so I applied it myself for our wedding day. I went for forties-style light coverage with a slick of red lipstick to set off the dress. We are thrilled with the photos, they reflect us perfectly - a tweed lover and a forties girl courting on the beach!,’ she chuckles.

 For the indoor Hindu ceremony, colour was the key, down to the choice of wedding bouquet, says Bina, ‘A wonderful florist called Gunns made my bridal bouquet of red roses, rose buttonholes for Daniel and an orchid for my mum’s hair. Fresh red rose petals were laid along the aisles with candles around the room to set the mood.’

THE DETAILS