Six weeks to success

Here in her own words she describes why she did it and how it worked out perfectly for her and groom Robert:

Rob and I started looking for wedding venues after getting engaged in February, to get an idea of prices and what was within our budget.

Wedding information packs started arriving through the letterbox, ranging from luxury hotels and castles to manor houses.

All of them promised the day of our lives - but at the cost of a small mortgage.

A colleague of mine mentioned that she'd had a fantastic time at a friend's wedding the previous year at The Valley Hotel, and how fantastic the food, staff, and hotel were.

So we contacted the Valley and spoke to their wedding organiser, Lisa.

We received the information promptly and then made arrangements to visit on May 28 to discuss dates and prices, and to see if we felt the Valley was the right venue for us.

Lisa was very helpful: we were shown around and instantly fell in love with the feel of the hotel and the beautiful grounds.

Lisa showed us the two venue rooms and although both were lovely, we felt the charm of the Chez Maw room was perfect.

We then discussed dates that were available - Rob and I wanted a 'one venue' civil ceremony, in late September and on a Sunday, thinking we wouldn't get a Saturday at late notice and giving us enough time to get everything organised.

Lisa returned with the diary and the date we had suggested was free, but then she asked that crucial question: "Would you be interested in the first of July? It's a Saturday, but it is only six weeks away," she said.

I looked at her as if she'd gone stark raving mad, but I could see that Rob was seriously considering it.

We said we needed 24 hours to think about it - and the next day we booked it.

We started compiling lists of things to do and prioritising the main items.

By the end of week one - and despite the fact that we both work full time - we had organised everything, and it was just the final details that needed some fine tuning.

We were really quite proud of ourselves.

Before we knew it July 1 had arrived - and it was a blazing hot summer's day.

When we arrived the hotel staff were busy preparing everything, for the 11.30am service. The room looked amazing and the ceremony went perfectly.

The photographs were taken in the grounds of the hotel and in Dale End Park next to the hotel, while guests soaked up the sunshine with a glass of

The wedding breakfast was fantastic, the food was out of this world and the service from the staff was unbeatable.

The hotel even laid on a room for the gents to watch the England World Cup match.

Then to finish off a perfect day we all danced the night away to the resident DJ while tucking into an amazing hog roast.

This just proves that with the help and assistance of the Valley Hotel staff, friends and family, a perfect wedding without any compromises, can be achieved in six weeks - and we would highly recommend it!