A wedding day with a forecast of sunshine and happiness!
Thomas and I met at the Slug & Lettuce in Newlands after an SA cricket match. He had just moved back to his family farm in Clanwilliam and I was considering heading to the big smoke, so things didn’t look good for us. But somehow we managed to keep in touch and gave it a proper shot. With a move to Jozi, a trip to Morocco and then a move back to Cape Town again, we stuck it out and I guess, it was meant to be. ☺
He took me up into the mountains behind his farm one Friday evening and after much nervous chatter and a few Castle Lagers, he asked me to marry him.
We had a 6 month engagement so I was very conscious of getting all the ‘big things’ pinned down as soon as possible. Planning a destination wedding always has its challenges, but I absolutely loved it. Yes I had a look at SAWeddings.co.za from time to time when I needed some inspiration and ideas.
Pinterest, The Pretty Blog, SAWeddings, Theknot, Bridebug.
Every single second! ;) Honestly, it was the happiest day of our lives from the minute we woke up. Marrying one’s best friend and having most of your favourite people in the world to celebrate it with you is special beyond words.
I wanted very simple décor with pops of colour and lots of lights. I often find that people go a bit over the top with table décor and it’s really not necessary – often the simpler it is the better.
I had a style in mind, but 2 weeks after we got engaged I went to De La Vida to try on some dresses for fun, and I found a stunning dress that was totally out of my budget, but it turned out to be on a 70% sale (I know right?!), so my gut told me to go for it, and I am a bit of a bargain girl, so I did! I wanted all my bridesmaids to wear dresses with the same colour palette, but I also wanted them to be comfortable and possibly wear their dresses again, so they all chose their own dresses and just sent me a pic to say yay or nay. It worked out so well!
I absolutely love Proteas and fynbos (I now live in Clanwilliam so it felt like home), so Proteas were the focal point of all the décor. I wanted a very simple, rustic feel with pops of colour - plain wooden tables with lace runners, a few lanterns and some flowers.
Yes! We made all the wedding favours ourselves, although my Mom needs most of the credit for this, the wooden seating plan, the water bottles with labels on etc., and my Aunt made all our hair wreathes and corsages.
Mango Groove, Special Star ☺ We’ve both grown up listening to Mango Groove and it was just the perfect song to warm up the d-floor with ;)
When the adjustable straps on my dress popped off during our first kiss! I was feeling uncomfortable wearing them anyway, so instead of clicking them back in I ripped them both off with everyone’s eyes glued to me – it created a fair amount of entertainment and lots of laughter though.
Don’t sweat the small stuff! It is a cliché, but it couldn’t be more true. And make decisions together – I know guys often seem like they don’t care, but it is their wedding too and you need to enjoy the process together.
Yes we did ☺ From Victoria Falls, to Sabie, to Simbavati Hilltop Lodge in the Kruger, to Swaziland, to the North Coast of Natal for 2 amazing weeks … so spoilt!
