Suzanne Neville Amber wedding dress for Ariana, from Miss BushMiss Bush

Ariana and Jay's classic, timeless wedding took place in early October at the historic 14th century Harlaxton Manor in Grantham, Lincolnshire. The incredible venue was the starting point for the day, inspiring their simple, elegant styling.

Ariana chose Suzanne Neville's iconic Amber wedding dress, which couldn't have been more perfect for her wedding to Jay. Suzanne Neville Amber is a striking wedding dress with bold shoulders and sleek fitted silhouette looked breathtaking against the dramatic backdrop. For added impact, Ariana styled her dress with a statement veil by Nortier, worn with a sleek up-do. For the finishing touch, Ariana added glamorous Jimmy Choo heels and elegant crystal earrings. We also adored Ariana's simple lily of the valley bouquet; the soft off-white flowers and fresh green leaves complemented Amber beautifully.

Read on to find out more about Ariana's dress shopping journey at Miss Bush, and see all of the beautiful images from her wedding to Jay.

Suzanne Neville Amber wedding dress

I chose Amber by Suzanne Neville. It's an iconic dress and absolutely fell in love with its simplicity and structure. I wanted to look like a fairytale princess, but also like a modern bride and the timelessness of the design fit my vision perfectly.

I brought two of my closest friends to the appointment. Neither of them had any words when I put the dress on so I took that as the biggest sign of approval. We had seen quite a few dresses at that point and I had started to feel a bit of decision fatigue, so the fact that we all had an emotional reaction to Amber meant a lot to me.

Dress shopping was one of the first wedding planning activities I did, so at that point I didn't have the clearest image of the big day. Putting all the gorgeous dresses on not only made everything feel real, but is also made me visualise different wedding atmospheres and figure out what I liked. When I tried my dress on it was like a perfect puzzle piece and felt authentic to me, not like I was trying to recreate a Pinterest image. That moment is definitely something I'll cherish forever!

Dress Shopping

Even though everyone says not have a preconceived idea of what your dress will look like, for years I had imagined that my dress would be full lace, high-neck with long sleeves and with a fitted silhouette. However, when I tried dresses in this style, they didn't feel or look quite right which was disheartening and confusing.

I did know that I wanted a Suzanne Neville because the structure and fit of the dresses are second to none, so I went to Miss Bush.

As soon as Ben saw me he told me I NEEDED to put Amber on, even though it wasn't even on my list. I was reticent at first as I had seen it a lot on social media, but oh was he right. I completely fell in love! Ben was amazing, he took the time to listen to my concerns and helped me make Amber truly my own. I picked the couture service and we personalised the dress, it felt so fresh and young but also timeless and classy.

Jo the production manager was also amazing and made sure the dress fit like a glove! I was concerned the dress would be uncomfortable due to the sleeves and corset, but Jo managed to make it extremely comfortable while still looking snatched! I felt so good I didn't want to take it off.

Ariana's Advice

Very cliche- but trust the process and the professional people you've hired to help. While some people end up trying a couple dresses on and fall in love with one, there are also brides (like myself) that have to kiss a fair few frogs before finding 'the one'.

One more thing- I had read online that some couples don't spend enough time together on the day, so Jay and I had a sweetheart table, and we spent pretty much the whole time holding hands which made everything feel so relaxed.