A Outdoor Wedding Featuring A Tattooed Vera Wang Bride – Laura & Lee

Today I get to share with you the beautifully tattooed Laura and husband Lee’s outdoor ceremony at Eshott Hall Boutique Hotel in Northumberland from Helen Russell Photography. Laura told me that her and Lee have matching tattoos which they got early on in their relationship..

Lee already had a full back piece and his arms covered and I already had a few. I was kind of testing the waters and joking and said “Ha, we should get matching tattoos!”. To which Lee responded, “Okay, what do you want to get?” I was a little shocked but totally up for it, we were in Edinburgh on a spur of the moment weekend away and we googled the closest tattoo shop, walked in and came out with matching rose tattoos! Good job we are married now!

We had known of each other for quite some time but neither of us had the courage to take the plunge and ask. Eventually, we decided to have a first date. We skipped all of the awkwardness and just decided this day would be the first date! It was a day that ended up being special for other reasons. My Mam, who has now passed, never got to meet Lee but I remember sitting on her hospital bed with her and telling her about him.. We spent that evening in the hospital giggling about boys and browsing ASOS trying to find me a dress for this date! She picked out “THE” dress and shoes. So even though she never got to meet Lee, Lee always says if it wasn’t for the dress (which he refers to as the “Slamming Black Dress”), he isn’t sure there would have been a second date.

We fought against all of the odds to have our wedding outside , come rain or shine, we were determined. I think that was a huge aspect of it but it was also how informal and fun the evening was.. All of the people that attended are all very special who we love with all our hearts, so the guests very much represent who we are as couple too.

We tried to do a lot ourselves as some things you just can’t buy! Because we live in the Middle East, it was difficult! So, we recruited some family members and friends until we got home. My cousin and her partner were “Project Wedding” for months before hand which included wrapping bottles in twine, creating unique and bespoke elements like our guest book and a wedding bench, making bunting and name tags. The most fun was creating our wedding website which we made ourselves. At this point it was all becoming very real and we really enjoyed creating our very own page with pictures and stories. This is also how we sent our invitations out with our own domain and email address.

At first I was considering buying a dress with long sleeves to cover my tattoos as my Grandma isn’t a huge fan of them. After a while, I felt as though I was being untrue to myself.. On our wedding day I should be able to be myself and my tattoos tell part of that story.

When I found the dress of my dreams it didn’t matter what anyone else thought or if they disapproved of my tattoos showing, because I felt amazing!

I would say my advice when planning your wedding is to be yourself and let your individuality shine through. The day is about the two of you and everyone will be happy if you are happy. Showing your tattoos off on your wedding day is a personal choice but we are both in favour of embracing your ink!

How amazing is Laura and Lee’s wedding at Eshott Hall? I’m so glad that Laura decided to show off all her tattoos on their wedding. Thank you to them both and to Helen Russell Photography for sharing with Marry Me Ink today! See their full list of suppliers at the end of the feature.