A SCOTS groom went all out for his Twilight loving bride – by recreating her favourite scene from the vampire novels on their wedding day.
Jeff Rochester spent up to 14 hours a day for a week transforming the green at Ednam Village Hall outside Kelso into the romantic forest setting.
The Twilight wedding, made famous by Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson in the Hollywood version, was shot in forests of British Columbia.
But the 42-year-old from Kelso – who has never even read the books – managed to “blow away” his bride on Saturday with his own version in the Scottish Borders.
With the help of eight tonnes of stones, 1,000 bedding plans, 50 trees, a cast iron stag and real birds of prey the groom managed to convert the green.
A working water wheel, dry dyke stone circle altar and a waterfall of bedding plants meant the 10 by six metre space was almost unrecognisable.
In total the transformation would cost more than £10,000 if it were to be recreated – but in wedding style most of the materials were given on loan.
Jeff, a support worker and former landscaper, explained: “Vanessa was very keen on the Twilight series. She was taken with the wedding scene in the forest.
“It was always her dream to get married in that type of scene. This was my take on the garden.
“She’s a big reader, she reads a lot. That wedding scene was quite captivating. She mentioned it many times,” he laughed.
Asked if he’d read the books he said: “No, I’m not really a reader. I’ve seen the films. It was 100% for Vanessa.”
He continued: “I did 95% of it myself. The schedule was tight – there was a couple of lads from Kelso that helped.
“I made a 12ft waterfall with flowers, and a stone circle that we got married on. There was a water wheel that was working and a shed as if it was in the forest.
“We had a red stag, full size, made of cast iron. The rings were held in the antlers. And we couldn’t not include fairies.”
Jeff worked on the garden from 6am to 10pm the whole week before the wedding.
“I’m still catching up on sleep,” he laughed.
But his main concern was his bride seeing what he was up to.
“I put a 6ft panel fence round,” he said. “The big worry was that it would catch her eye.”
Asked how much the building work alone would cost to re-create he said: “If I was to ro-do it – if I was still landscaping – it would probably cost between £5,000 and £7,000.
“A lot of stuff was borrowed and the plants were hired. There was thousands of flowers of all kinds. I had virtually half a playing field of flowers which we gave away to villagers.”
Steve Emerson, who supplied the plants, said: “There was a lot of trees so it would look quite wooded, ferns and grasses and lots of bedding geraniums so it would look like a cascade of colour.
“There must have been 800 to 1,000 bedding plants, 40 – 50 trees, and 300 shrubs and herbaceous plants.
“The retail value would be in excess of £4,500.”
Bride Vanessa, 26, said: “It was out of this world. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t know what he’d done, I was blown away.
“The bridesmaids were all sworn to secrecy, and the curtains in the hall were all drawn, so I couldn’t see out before the ceremony.”
Speaking about her love of Twilight she said: “I read the books first, I’d always wanted to get married somewhere pretty and natural.
“It was two million times better than I could have ever expected.”
