Welcome to Monday, lovely people! Yesterday myself and my husband Nick celebrated our first wedding anniversary, so today I decided to look back on our wedding days and share it with you all. That’s not a typo, we did in fact have two weddings - go big or go home right?

How do you choose an engagement ring for a jewellery designer?

It all started with a ring… now usually when it comes to picking out the perfect engagement ring the pressure is on, however, in Nick’s case that pressure was multiplied by 10. How do you find the right ring to propose to a jewellery designer? 

Nick knew that when he proposed I would need to have a hand (*cough* full control) in designing my own ring. So he got down on one knee and proposed with the only ring that would guarantee a yes from me...a Haribo dummy ring presented in a beautiful box he purchased on Amazon.

Making the custom engagement and wedding rings

Designing my own wedding jewellery planted the seeds for my upcoming Wedding collection. I decided to create two unique rings for myself and Nick. I have always disagreed with the stereotype that only women should be given engagement rings. Nick and I are equal partners in our relationship and I wanted him to have an engagement ring of his own. However, Nick didn’t really fancy wearing a big diamond so I created a Split Signet Ring with a small diamond inside that would connect the two halves.

I decided that I would also like a signet ring, but I wanted a big rock! I gave myself the best of both worlds combining a crescent shaped signet ring that slots into a platinum engagement ring with a bezel setting.

The Big Day(s): From London to the West of Ireland

Wedding number one: London calling

Due to me being a lapsed Catholic and Nick being a nothing, our first wedding took us to Wandsworth Registry Office in London, this was our legal wedding which was witnessed by two of our closest friends. 

Although my legal wedding didn’t take place Ireland, I did bring a piece of my heritage with me. I wore a vintage summer dress which had once belonged to my great aunt.

Following the ceremony we were joined by my friends and a few family members in a local pub to celebrate, including my amazing hair and makeup artist for both weddings: Ben Dniprowskij. In short, I was spoiled rotten! 

Wedding number two: Prepping for a wedding on the Emerald Isle

A week later it was time for wedding number two, the main attraction. Back on Irish soil, I prepared for the Irish wedding in the best way possible with a proper Irish feast - Tayto sandwiches, the only way to go!

Handmade golden halo with beaded detailing

Inspired by the Met Gala’s 2018 theme ‘Heavenly Bodies’ and knowing there was no other appropriate time I could dress as the Virgin Mary, or some sort of religious regal figure, this was my time to shine and I wanted my own halo to complete my regal aesthetic. I got in contact with Ani Stafford Townsend, an accomplished milliner from Bristol and explained my vision. This was her creation. 

Giving a gift to my bridesmaids - custom bridesmaid jewellery

Why does wedding jewellery have to end with the bride? I really made my wedding my own by finding a unique way to thank my incredible bridesmaids. I gave each of them a necklace - and if you’ve read this far, I’m sure you can guess that they also had to be custom!

Taking inspiration from my signature curb chain pearl necklace from the Ballz collection, I handmade a more lightweight, half pearl half curb chain necklace with a T-Bar clasp for each of my bridesmaids.

Giving a Gift to the Groom.

Since I was kitting the rest of the wedding party out with custom bling, I knew I couldn’t leave the man of the hour out.

Everyone knows it’s bad luck for the groom and bride to see each other before the wedding, so I had this special gift delivered to Nick by a friend while he was getting ready. I made him a Lapel Chain, onto which I engraved his initials and the date of our wedding. Did I get anything in return? No… he’s never going to live that one down!

A Lakeside Wedding to Remember.

Blessed by a rare spell of beautiful sunshine, the wedding took place on the edge of Lough Derg, in an area where I spent so much of my childhood on holidays: Killaloe, County Clare. 

We were surrounded by all of our family and friends on a small beach as we said our vows in a ceremony which was drafted and written by Nick and led by one of our formidably funny friends, Thomas Dee.

The Wedding Cake - Taking Customisation to New Places

Let them eat cake! For my wedding cake, I worked closely with a small Irish business named Request a Cake. My dream cake was covered in a white pattern which imitated the reeds in the lake. 

The cake was topped off with a mini version of myself and Nick which I had 3D printed. If you can’t have yourself 3D scanned in the middle of a roasting English summer, in a shop off Oxford Circus in your wedding dress 3 weeks before the day… and then be printed out and stuck on top of a cake -  when can you do it? 

After the show is…the after party

We celebrated our wedding the best way possible, with a delicious meal, cake, sweets, a constant stream of drinks and partying with our friends until the sun came up. Of course there were the obligatory speeches, toasts, singing and dodgy dance moves.

Where are we now?

It’s hard to believe it’s been a whole year since I said “I do”. One year later I can happily say that being married is still pretty ok. Not planning Wedding number three quite yet. Fingers crossed for many more years that will be just like this one!

Would you like to have your own SAM HAM Wedding jewellery?

The entire SAM HAM Wedding Collection will be launched online in Mid-October. If you would like to create your own bespoke wedding jewellery, similar to the pieces shown in this blog post, but made to your own specification, then don’t hesitate to contact me!

All photo credits to my incredible photographer: David Mc Clelland.