Planning a wedding, a la Little Miss Luxe

Well, finally I can say it. I, LML have been proposed to. And I have, of course, accepted. I’ve been with my partner for almost four years now and suspected a proposal was on the cards after an increased interest in flowers, ring sizes and general fawning over details at other couples’ nuptials.

What I didn’t know however, was that my forthcoming fiancé has become a mastermind in planning and also a devious blogging sensation over on the men’s wedding website, Staggered (under the moniker Stag Test Dummy). My rather romantic other half has been blogging about his proposal plans for over a month and engaged the majority of my friends in his grand plan; which thankfully came to fruition a week or so ago.

So where did it all begin?

The plan started way back in August when my beloved stalked most of my nearest and dearest via Facebook. He sent them a very heartfelt message about the fact that he has a large family but I have no siblings so once we were engaged I’d end up calling them all up and sharing the news with them. Oh, and I may just use Facebook as well to tell the world (what did we do before social media?!). He wanted all my friends to be there on the big P Day (as the day of the proposal became known) and he wanted to involve some of my friends who live far away (by that I mean Australia), or who I’ve not seen for some time. With the exception of a handful he managed to reach everyone and reduced a few of them to tears as well. After discussing the plans in detail on FB, including doing a ‘dry run’ when I thought he was out drinking with a friend, and talking through the ring design with them, he had a plan put in place. Whilst all these conversations were underway I was meeting with the very same friends and talking weddings, the fact that he probably won’t propose until 2011, etc. Oh how they rejoiced in laughing at me when we spoke at the weekend! There was even a dinner with two friends in early September which involved one kicking the other repeatedly under the table when she kept on bringing up the subject of weddings!

What was his grand plan for P Day I hear you ask? Well, it all started with breakfast in bed (smoked salmon and scrambled eggs on chunky toast if you’re keen to know ALL the details!), and then we proceeded to catch the train into central London. I was pretty hungover from some drinks the night before (thank you Mrs R and the ladies at Rock My Wedding!) and was dawdling like I never have before… Somehow he managed to get me out of the house as planned – at the time he was blasé about us getting the next train, but I found out that afternoon he was in a panic we’d end up running late. Late for what? Well, read on…

We spent a few hours in Hyde Park, taking photos and generally messing around before heading to the Victoria and Albert Museum. We’d always said we wanted to go to the V&A together but never got round to it, so he told me he’d looked online and knew what exhibitions we would want to look at (a lie, he’d done this on his dry run the month before!). I spent a good half hour moaning about the fact the exhibition focusing on clothing and dresses from the past featured a Juicy Couture tracksuit as the representative of the ‘naughties’ (it’s just wrong!) and he had to chivvy me along as I was clearly holding up the plan! He suggested we popped into the courtyard for a drink but then took me aside to the opposite corner. At this point I thought, ah ha…I knew it! Once he stopped and took a deep breath my suspicions had indeed been confirmed.

He told me he had a confession; that he’d popped into the shop when I’d been in the ladies’ and that he had got me a little something (I translated this as ‘I wanted to design you a ring but got stressed that it wouldn’t be right so instead I am going to propose to you using a cheap ring and then you can pick what you want later'). He told me to close my eyes and to hold out my hand. I felt him put a box in my grip and stood there thinking ‘If I open that box and there are a pair of earrings in there I am going to kill you!’ As I opened my eyes I saw him down on one knee and when I looked at the box I couldn’t believe it…he had designed and created a stunning ring with the help of the fabulous Harriet Kelshall Jewellery team; it was natural white gold with a champagne-coloured, rose-cut diamond. He proceeded to run through a little speech he had tried to learn, but I couldn’t listen to a word he was saying as I my head was singing ‘he’s proposing! He’s proposing! We’re at the V&A and he’s proposing! Why is no-one looking/clapping?’ I obviously said ‘yes’ and then made him go through his speech again so I could take it all in. I got a little misty eyed and we hugged. Then I spent a few minutes admiring the rock!

He told me that the reason he had been trying to keep to a schedule was that we had a table booked for afternoon tea over the road so we hurried past the V&A shop (my favourite bit of the whole museum as well, dagnammit!) and over the road. We headed through the restaurant and then he started to lead me to the bar. I was just chiding him for the fact that people have afternoon tea in the restaurant not the bar when I noticed a group of people with balloons, flowers and champagne. A group of people I knew. Very well. All of my friends! This was the point when I found out that pretty much the entire world had known before me, including Le Trousseau’s Mr and Mrs R who had been out with us the night before and not said a word! We spent the rest of the day calling relatives and getting hold of those who hadn’t been able to make it.

(Much) later that night, we arrived home, elated, and have spent every day since grinning inanely! It was then revealed that my fiancé (I love saying that!) has been blogging about the whole process! He will still be blogging as we plan our forthcoming nuptials, as will I here at Le Trousseau.

So, in some sort of slightly wrong internet blog love in, you can catch up on the LML planning process here at Le Trousseau and with the delightful Stag Test Dummy over at I Am Staggered.

I can't wait to share my planning with you, so stay tuned!

With love, as ever,

Little Miss Luxe xx