Bride, 28, enjoys her dream £10,000 wedding for just the cost of her £750 dress after winning more than 20 online competitions to bag everything from the luxury country house venue to her cake
- Hannah Alexander, 28, spent hours entering contests online after realising she could not afford her wedding
- In eighteen months she was able to get a luxury reception at a country house hotel along with other items
- After the wedding she and husband James, 26, both from the West Midlands, went on their honeymoon break
Bride Hannah Alexander had the £10,000 wedding of her dreams to her childhood sweetheart – after winning over twenty competitions on social media.
Savvy Hannah,28, spent an hour a day entering contests on Facebook and Instagram after realising she and husband James, 26 – both supermarket workers – could not afford their longed for traditional white wedding.
Incredibly her efforts over eighteen months bagged a luxury reception at a country house hotel, a honeymoon, stag and hen dos, photography, a cake, decorations, bridal make up – and even their wedding rings.
Bride Hannah Alexander, 28, from Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, was able to have the wedding of her dreams to husband James, 26, after winning more than twenty competitions on social media
Over the course of eighteen months Hannah spent an hour a day entering contests on Facebook and Instagram after realising she and husband James, both supermarket workers, could not afford their traditional white wedding
Her haul of winnings meant the couple were able to bag a luxury reception at Moxhull Hall, a country house hotel, a honeymoon, stag and hen dos, photography, cake, decorations, bridal make up – and even their wedding rings
Her astonishing haul of winnings meant she and James, from Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, were able to marry in style in front of 60 friends and family.
Hannah said: ‘James and I had the traditional white wedding we both dreamed of.
‘Entering so many competitions was a job in itself. I must have entered hundreds and hundreds. But we had such a fantastic day.
Hannah, who works for Sainsburys, and James (pictured with his groomsmen), who works for Aldi, had initially decided to put their wedding off when they realised how much it would cost them
James said: ‘Hannah was incredibly focused. She wasn’t only focused on winning but winning stuff we really liked. I am stunned she managed to win so much’
The couple got married on October 2 this year and followed their magical day by going on a honeymoon break to a cottage in Yorkshire
‘Everything was absolutely perfect.’
The couple, who first met at school sixth form over a decade ago, were shocked when they discovered how much their dream wedding would cost.
Says Hannah: ‘I was thrilled when two years ago James proposed. I’d always dreamed of a very traditional white wedding and immediately we began looking at venues.’
But the couple were horrified when they realised their dream wedding would cost thousands.
-
South York rises from the ashes: Oligarch’s luxurious reborn…
EXCLUSIVE: Camille Grammer’s wedding dress is salvaged from…
‘The most perfect day!’ Footy star Kieren Jack marries…
Share this article
‘We both longed for a great day. But we were also saving for a deposit for a house and family couldn’t afford to help. It was a huge disappointment to realise we simply couldn’t afford the sort of wedding we wanted.’
Hannah, who works for Sainsburys and James, who works for Aldi, decided to put their wedding off.
Hannah and James first met at school sixth form over a decade ago, and longed to marry in 2018 to celebrate ten years together
Friends and family also chipped in to help the couple as the day approached, with the groomsmen buying their own suits and paying for the VW camper van to take everyone to the reception
It was while Hannah was searching the internet in 2016 that she saw a competition to win a wedding reception at Moxhull Hall, a country hotel and restaurant near to where the couple live and decided to enter
‘I resigned myself to a long engagement while we saved enough to have a very basic wedding,’ she admits.
A few weeks later in summer 2016 Hannah was browsing Facebook when she saw a competition to win a wedding reception at Moxhull Hall, a country hotel and restaurant near to where they live.
‘I had to write why I would like to win a wedding there,’ she recalls, ‘I thought why not?
The bride had to write about why she wanted to win a wedding at the country hotel and decided to take a chance. She said: ‘I wrote about how James and I met at school and how we longed to marry in 2018 to celebrate ten years together’
Friends and family were able to help the couple with the final touches for the wedding, with one friend making the cupcakes and brownies as a present. Hannah was also able to win the £300 wedding cake through one of the online competitions she entered
‘I wrote about how James and I met at school and how we longed to marry in 2018 to celebrate ten years together.
‘I added it was exactly the sort of place where I dreamt of marrying.’
After entering the reception competition, Hannah decided to try some more.
‘I heard nothing about it for months. In fact I forgot all about it. But entering that competition got me thinking, it might be possible to actually win our wedding.
Hannah’s luxury prizes:
-Wedding ceremony Venue and Bridal suite for the Night : Moxhull Hall:£5000
-Wedding cake: £300
-Photographer: Focal photographs £1000
-Wedding rings: £250
-Honeymoon (mini moon) cottage:£350
-6 x personalised engraved Cufflinks:£35 x6: £210
-Stag do: Luxury apartment stay in Liverpool: £165
– Wedding props and decorations- Table runners, log cake stand, postbox and artificial trees: £100
– Confetti and cones: £20
– Brides Perfume: £75
– Grooms Watch: £240
-Grooms Aftershave: £130
-Sweet Favours: £30
-55 bags of Sweets for sweet table: £50
-Save the Dates: £40
-Wedding website stationery: £100
-Engagement photoshoot- Focal photography: £500
-National Wedding fair VIP tickets: £35
-Curl me deluxe hair kit: £60
-Hen party hamper: £50
-Bridal makeup box: £25.00
Total: £8480
‘I began researching on Facebook and Instagram for give aways and competitions to enter.’
The couple were over the moon when out of the blue they discovered they’d won their reception.
‘I said to James – now we can get married! From then on there was no stopping me. I was determined to win our big day.’
Over the next year she entered hundreds of competitions.
‘I have no idea exactly how many I entered but it must be hundreds,’ she admits, ‘I’d come home from work and sit at the computer for at least an hour a day.
‘Much of that time was spent on research for the right prizes. James and I didn’t just want any wedding – we wanted a traditional white country wedding.
‘Some contests were as simple as leaving my email address – others involved filling in forms or writing a few sentences.’
She confesses some people thought she was mad.
‘I had quite a few comments that I could find stuff I won didn’t turn up on the day as it could be a scam,’ she says, ‘and also some people commented spending so much time trying to win my wedding was quite sad.’
James says: ‘Hannah was incredibly focused. She wasn’t only focused on winning but winning stuff we really liked.
‘I am stunned she managed to win so much.’
Over the months Hannah gradually ticked off her wedding list.
‘At first I thought I would just get a friend to take photos. But then I realised how important they were.
‘I spent dozens of hours researching photographers and entering giveaways. When I found Focal photography I was worried because they were based in Sheffield.
‘Luckily they were happy to travel for the big day.
‘I was also delighted to win the wedding cake as I knew it would be fabulous.’
As their wedding day approached, friends and family – impressed by Hannah’s achievements – also chipped in to help.
The bride also spent hours researching photographers and entering giveaways. She said: ‘When I found Focal photography I was worried because they were based in Sheffield. Luckily they were happy to travel for the big day’
Among the many items Hannah was able to win through her online competitions was the couple’s £250 wedding rings and the £240 groom’s watch
The lucky bride also won a £75 bottle of perfume for her big day. She estimates her wedding would have cost her more than £10,000 had she not had the help
‘A friend made the cupcakes and brownies as a present, the groomsmen bought their own suits and paid for the VW camper van to take everyone to the reception, the maid of honour bought her own dress and I arranged my own flowers.’
To save extra cash the couple also booked the wedding for 2pm with a big hog roast at 6pm.
Wedding donations:
– VW campervan: £250
-Maid of Honour outfit: £110
-Wedding presents: £1800
-Groomsmen suits: £1000
Total: £11,640
‘It meant guests ate lunch before they came and we only had to provide one meal,’ she explains.
‘Meanwhile I sold some of my winnings – such as a coffee machine and fitness tracker watch – to put towards paying for my £750 wedding dress.
‘As late as the week before I was still entering contests. Days before I won some Halloween sweets and split them into little bags for favours.’
On the day guests donated a further £1800 which meant her wedding dress and the food was paid for.
After tying the knot on 2nd October 2018 the couple went on their honeymoon, a break in a cottage in Yorkshire.
‘The cottage was beautiful, complete with a logburner. It was so romantic,’ she says.
She estimates her wedding was worth over £10,000. ‘But to us just having the day we wanted has given us so many priceless memories.’
The wedding might be over but Hannah has now got the bug for a competition.
‘I can’t stop entering contests,’ she admits, ‘currently I am trying to win everyone a Christmas present!’
Bride Hannah’s tips to win your dream wedding day
-Treat it like a job and set aside an hour a day
-Be prepared to do lots of research and enter hundreds of contests
-Enter competitions close to where you live
-Pick small companies and start ups so there is less competition for the prize
Source: Read Full Article