Military couple say their vows in shabby chic wedding: Emily & Michael

Loved up Emily Harley and Michael Gill didn’t let the hardships of military life get in the way of their dream of walking down the aisle.

The pair, from Cambridgeshire, met just before Emily, 20, was due to leave to start basic army training and Michael, 25, was shipping out for six months to Afghanistan.

“We got back in contact through a few emails while he was deployed, we met up when he got home and the rest is history,” Emily says.

After Michael proposed in January 2014 the couple set their sights on a shabby chic wedding.

The planning was done in a hurry as Michael was due to return to Afghanistan in December so the date was set for June 21, 2014.

“We decided that we would have a traditional Church of England ceremony in the church where I was baptised and an informal barbecue reception at the local football club,” Emily says.

One hundred guests witnessed the ceremony at The Church of St Peter and St Paul, in Wisbech and partied on at the Leverington Sports and Social Club.

“The weather was beautiful, all our family and friends were there – who could want anything more?” Emily says.

But the best wedding presents came after the big day – Michael was told he would never be required to return to Afghanistan and the couple is also expecting their first child.

Photos courtesy of Bedford Wedding Photography.

The Church of St Peter and St Paul in Wisbech is where the pair wed, and also where Emily was baptised.

Emily wore a lace fishtail Mori Lee gown – “my dream dress,” she says, while Michael donned his full military dress uniform.

Emily’s bouquet was a pastel arrangement with roses, freesias and blue eucalypts, hand tied and secured with pearl pins.