The flowers were designed by senior lecturer in product and industrial design, Dr Guy Bingham, from the University of Loughborough and printed by Wendy Birtwistle, part of the team at the University of Sheffield’s Centre for Advanced Additive Manufacturing (additive manufacturing being another term for 3D printing).

The intricate design took 18 hours to print and was carefully packaged to travel with Candice to the USA for her wedding ceremony with Bret in the Butterfly House of Indianapolis Zoo, where the couple spent their first date. They’d met online two years earlier while playing the popular online game, Evony.

“I carry out research into 3D printing and I love what I do, so I thought it would be really cool to make it part of our wedding,” explains Candice. “However, having such a special bouquet meant I certainly wasn’t going to throw it to my wedding guests! The great thing about having a 3D printed wedding bouquet is that it won’t decay like natural flowers, so we’ll now be able to keep it as a permanent reminder of our special day.”