THIS is the wedding that got me connected to amazing wedding photographer Andrea Ellison back in October, to which birthed the fantastic Marry Me Ink promotional shoot with three other fantastical ladies in Manchester.. Remember it??

Anyway! Back to the wedding! I love the feel of these pictures – so fresh, crisp and natural. I love how relaxed the whole day looked for Dave & Tracy (Whose sleeve is awesome!).

I’m going to hand straight over to Tracy and let her share a bit about her tattoos with you!

“Ooow how exciting! I love this ’cause I rarely get the opportunity to talk tattoos, so forgive me if I ramble! 

Well I’ve always loved all styles of tattoos, I just love the idea that your body can become a canvas for amazing art. When you think about it its crazy! Any piece of art from oil paintings to photography can be put under your skin with superb detail to the original and become a part of who you are till the day you die. All forms of art create an emotional response in us but to me the art of tattooing is just that little bit more special, you commit to that piece of art for life.

“I love the Japanese style tattoo’s so I knew that’s what I wanted and I really liked the idea that the dragon and tiger represent yin and yang, so these are prominent in my sleeve. The yin and yang theory is something I try to live by, we all need balance, I just think it runs through the fabric of life.

So really my tattoo represents life in all its parts good and bad.

“I did think about my wedding day when I got my sleeve, but it wasn’t something that worried me, it was just a question I asked myself to make sure I wanted my tattoo, along with the question ‘Will i still like it when i’m 70 and my bingo wings are hailing buses for me?’ the answer was always the same, ‘yeah, because this is who I am.‘ It may not be the classic bride look but what is that anyway?

“People are individuals, you’ve got to look like you on your wedding day.”

I’ve always wanted a traditional wedding, basically what my mum and dad had. Beautiful church, confetti, lots of family and celebrations. But I added a slight vintage look with our vintage rose flowers and my 1940’s inspired side tiara. It was important to us to keep the wedding laid back, comfortable and fun. Because basically that’s us, so the groom and ushers wore nice but comfortable suits and my bridesmaids wore flattering dresses I made sure they were comfortable in.

“I probably subconsciously got my inspiration for my wedding dress off my mum. As a child I loved looking at their wedding album, my mum wore an a-line lace dress with a veil – She looked stunning! It also just wasn’t my style for a big princess dress, I wanted to be able to dance the night away! When I saw my Benjamin Roberts dress in Cheshire brides in Frodsham, I just new it was the one. The most beautiful lace under soft tulle, I had straps added with pearls and crystals on because I felt more comfortable that way. Topped off with my side tiara from Bellissima Weddings and my veil from Ebay! 

“I love the fact that my tattoo’s are shown in all our wedding photo’s and so does my family, as long as you get the right tattoo for you, you’ll be happy to be a tattooed bride!”

Doesn’t Tracy look amazing! The dress is beautiful and that tiara is just gorgeous!

Do leave Dave & Tracy some love in the comments below and huge thanks to Andrea for letting me blog this wedding!