M&M proposal made a sweet marriage for Portsmouth couple
'˜I was just so scared about everyone seeing me,' laughs Ellie.
Dressed in white, Ellie married her soulmate, Luke Hayden, who she met at Southdowns College in 2013.
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Hide AdEllie, 21, and Luke, 22, were studying Uniform Services together when they realised they shared a romantic spark.
'˜We just started taking an interest in one another,' says Ellie.
'˜He wasn't someone I would normally go for - it was completely out of the blue.
'˜But I fell for him,' she says, with a huge smile creeping across her face.
'˜He's just a lovely guy,' she sighs.
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Hide AdEllie grew up in Havant and Luke was in Farlington. As the couple spent more and more time together as students, they realised they had both found the one.
In May 2016, they decided to spend a weekend in London sightseeing and getting away from their busy jobs as a lifeguard and tool maker.
But little did Ellie know that Luke was planning to get down on one knee, in a very sweet style.
'˜It was outside Westminster Abbey and Luke was holding a little bag from M&M World,' says Ellie, reflecting.
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Hide Ad'˜He gave me the bag and inside were loads of M&M's saying 'will you marry me?' Of course, I said yes!'
'˜I rang my dad straight away and was in hysterics - I just couldn't believe it.'
Two years down the line and the wedding date had been set for April 14 2018.
'˜We picked The Langstone Hotel, as it looks over the harbour. It's such a beautiful venue,' she says.
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Hide AdAnd with 60 guests invited, the dress bought and every other detail to sort out, Ellie claims she couldn't help but feel '˜quite stressed'.
'˜Thankfully, I had a lot of help from my step-mother.
'˜But everything on the day was just perfect.'
And just when the post-wedding buzz was settling down, the Haydens will be jetting off across the Atlantic to spend their honeymoon in New York.
'˜I have been there before but Luke hasn't and really wanted to go.
'˜It's such a beautiful destination so I have absolutely no complaints,' she laughs.