Claire had a crush on Scott a whole 10 years before they actually met each other! "I was working in a pizzeria aged 17 with his 'best woman' Sam, who had a little book of poetry he'd written," Claire explains. "There weren't many boys writing poetry in Rotherham, and I developed an almighty crush on him from afar!"
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
Ten years later, Claire was home for Christmas visiting her parents when their paths crossed in the local pub. "He was about to introduce himself when I said 'You're Scott, you write poetry!' – I think he was a bit taken aback by having a line quoted back at him but we hit it off immediately!"
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
"As words had played such a big part in our relationship (Scott also proposed to me by writing a beautiful fairytale), we knew that a wordy theme had to be central to our day," says Claire. "Our friend Mike designed all our stationery adn orders of service to look like vintage Penguin paperbacks, and on our place cards we chose an individual literary quote to represent each guest."
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
Instead of having a traditional wedding ceremony, the couple had a very personal humanist ceremony, and part of it involved them passing each other copies of our favourite books with their wedding rings tied to them.
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
The couple went for a unique venue too – holding their ceremony in the Lantern Theatre in Sheffield! "Scott emailed every theatre within a 50-mile radius to ask if they did weddings, and the Lantern Theatre was one of the few that replied," explains Claire. "When we went to view it we fell in love! It's an old 84-seat Victorian theatre with red velvet seats, and was perfect!"
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
After their ceremony, the couple held a marquee reception in the Wood Lane Countryside Centre. "It gave us a blank canvas to work with, adn really allowed us to put our own stamp on the day," says Claire.
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
The couple filled the marquee with beautiful flowers from Orchis in Sheffield, using bright, bold flowers to bring the setting to life.
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
The couple also displayed flowers in cute decorated tins for a romantic, shabby-chic look.
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
They also displayed their flowers on stacks of Penguin books to add height, and even made literary-themed confetti by using a heart-shaped hole punch to cut out pages of their favourite books!
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
Instead of having a traditional wedding cake, Claire and Scott set up a big dessert table laden with homemade goodies!
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
As their day was so unique, Claire wanted something different when it came to choosing her dress! "I tried on lots, and eventually came to the conclusion that I just wasn't going to find what I had pictured wearing," she explains. "I ended up having one made by Claire Mawson-Hall at Wedding Days, and it was exactly what I'd always envisaged walking down the aisle in." Claire also wore a short veil, and finished her look with bright red heels from Kurt Geiger!
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
One of our favourite details about the couple's day was the big red bus that took guests between their venues – they even decorated it with white ribbons!
McKinley Rodgers
A wordy theatre wedding
Claire kept her bridesmaids' outfits simple and chic, dressing them in elegant black prom-style dresses. They also carried coordinating bouquets that fitted with Claire's flowers!
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