NEWLYWEDS ‘loved every second’ of their intimate and non-traditional wedding day in the sunshine.

Amy Rich, a stay at home mum, and Rhys Cowe, an offshore crane operator, have married in an intimate ceremony in the Lake District.

The couple, who are both 32 and from Sunderland, met each other through mutual friends before going out for a drink.

Mrs Cowe said: “It was just so easy going from the start, we enjoyed each other’s company so much we spent every day we could together. Rhys has always worn his heart on his sleeve and I love that about him!”

The smitten pair got engaged in 2016 on the edge of Derwent Water in the Lakes.

They opted to marry on March 23 with just themselves and their four-year-old daughter Eliza at Storrs Hall on the edge of Windermere.

Mrs Cowe said: “The hotel provided us with witnesses so we had Tiree our photographer, Sam and Amy from Storrs Hall and our registrars with us.

“We surprised our family on Mother’s Day when we returned from our trip to the Lakes and they really weren’t expecting it as we had managed to keep the secret to ourselves since August 2021 when we booked it!

“We were lucky to book the wedding when we did. There were still some Covid restrictions in place when it was booked but as we planned to have a small wedding we didn’t think we would have any issues and just hoped the restrictions would continue to ease, which they did!”

The pair said they ‘loved every second’ of their ‘perfect’ wedding day.

“We loved every second of our relaxed day,” Mrs Cowe said.

“We had our own favourite quirky songs, the sun was shining from early morning and because of the intimate wedding we chose, and our non traditional ways, we got to enjoy a lovely breakfast together, get ready in our stunning room as a family and I even went for a morning stroll around the beautiful Storrs Hall grounds to watch the Nuthatches.

“In the ceremony I did a reading from one of our all time favourite books – A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

“And after the ceremony we enjoyed cocktails on the lawn in the sun.

“A highlight for us was walking out to the Temple of Heroes on the shore of Lake Windermere to get some photos with Tiree and as we stood at the end of the walkway, a ferry of people went right by us and all cheered and clapped for us - it was a truly special moment!

“By this point, we were lucky to have the incredible Sammy from Storrs Hall taking care of Eliza and giving her dinner inside, as she had decided she’d had enough of photos after the initial few!

“Our relaxed afternoon was spent taking in the beautiful surroundings whilst Eliza drew an endless amount of pictures. In the evening we were looked after again by the lovely staff at Storrs who served us the most amazing four course meal and went above and beyond to ensure we had the most perfect day.”