Now this was the most romantic surprise I have ever experienced. My husband planned to make a day full of surprises for my birthday as my birthday usually falls over the Easter weekend so we always spend that time with family but in 2016 my birthday fell a few days earlier and so he took full advantage of celebrating my birthday. The day was planned to perfection. This magical day started off with an early morning breakfast at our favourite spot in Magaliesburg, and after that he blind folded me and I was taken on an hour drive to my next destination. At the entrance to the next stop I opened my eyes to the beautiful landscape, home to De Hoek Hotel. He had arranged a couples massage and romantic picnic in the forest. After snacking on delicious picnic food from the basket, we lay on the blanket sipping champagne. My husband then asked to read a letter he wrote. This letter explained everything I was to him and how he looked forward to spending forever with me. After shedding a few tears, he asked me to stand up and gave me a big hug. All of a sudden he dropped down on one knee and asked me a question I could not refuse. I said YES! This amazing day ended with a romantic dinner for 2, a 5 course meal, more champagne and a night stay at the incredibly beautiful De Hoek hotel.
There are countless moments I will treasure forever but the truly special moments were the reveal of my dress to my bridesmaids and the look my Dad gave me as he saw me as a bride to be. Nothing can prepare you for the emotions that spark in a moment like this. It’s hard to pin point a single moment when I think about walking down the isle holding my dad’s hand so tightly, to the way my Husband and I looked at each other when exchanging our vows. That moment of a first kiss as Husband & Wife. The happiness I felt when walking into my beautifully decorated venue for the first time. Words cannot describe how incredible our first dance together was and how it felt as if no one else was in the room...I felt like I was on a cloud. Pure Happiness...
Yes, we went to the tranquil untouched beauty of Zanzibar with its white beaches and clear waters. A hotel so secluded, we were one of only a few couples with a beach hotel, and all its amenities practically to ourselves. We stayed at the Sea Cliff and enjoyed every moment of their world class honeymoon hospitality.
A dream come true! I felt so incredibly beautiful and it was all thanks to these amazing people...
Wedding Dress - Suzy Goncalves (My mom)
Make-up - Dyllan Morais from Artistry by Dyllan
Hair - Daniella Rosa from N&E Hair & Beauty Studio
Jewellery/Accessories - Pandora & Swarovski
Shoes - Oriental Plaza
Lingerie - La Senza
Lashes - Ivone Rodrigues Ho Tong owner of The Lash Lady
Facial treatments - Mandy Gonsalves owner of The Scar Clinic
The Oakfield Farm Wedding Venue in Muldersdrift was the venue of choice with its beautiful gardens and large open spaces. Their largest venue is the Homestead Hall, had the perfect setting and most importantly space to fit our rather large guest list. Oakfield was definitely the most beautiful venue we had found, and my husband approved open finding out about the elegant cigar lounge.
Our decor was romantic and modern throughout, I kept to a very neutral colour palette with a touch of blush pink, greens and white. We had crisp white linen, oval tables with madison chairs, and make sure that all table decor was kept to a low height to make sure that guests could interact without distractions. Lots of glass vases and candle holders ensured a very clean minimalist look, with lots of candles and beautiful fresh flowers. White draping with warm fairy lights were draped from the ceiling along the roof beams from the centre of the room, over the dance floor outwards.
The Groom wore a tailored, slim-fit navy suit, with a white textured cotton shirt, a matching navy tie and brown leather shoes. His Groomsmen were dressed in black slim-cut suits and each received a uniquely coloured and patterned pair of Happy Socks as a gift from my Husband.
My bridesmaids wore light pink dressers each of the bridesmaids got to choose the design they liked, with silver accessories and nude shoes.
Dressers - Estelle Visser from Estelle Designs
Make-up - Monique from Moniq Makeup Artistry
Accessories - Lovisa
Rev. Fr. Ignatious Fidgeon was our priest and he resides at the Krugersdorp Holy Rosary Catholic Church.
Our photographer - Adam Hilton from Hilton Photography
Our videographer - Andre Mostert from Motion Craft Films
I absolutely love organizing and planning with a passion for perfectionism and have had many years in the event coordination industry and so I did not have a planner and dedicated my own time to planning my special day. We did have a venue coordinator allocated to us that enabled the reception to be completely managed from start to finish.
My Father is an avid car collector with many vintage Alfa Romeos and so I stayed traditional and used one of my Dads vintage cars. We refer to it as the 'White Beauty'. With a bridal party of 20, we chose to hire two 12 seater Luxury Vans to transfer the party from house to church and then to the wedding venue.
Oakfield Farm prepared all the canapés and provided an exceptional 4-course menu. Which was absolutely divine!!!
Our four-tier white wedding cake was beautifully hand-made by Kelly Jayne and her team with each tier having its own unique flavours of kalua coffee, vanilla caramel creme brule, carrot and marble nutella. Wedding cake, that kept you going back for more!!!
I was lucky enough to have two stationers. Wedding Invites and Electronic notes By Denieme Spencely from Vanilla Ink.
Table Seating & Kids Table by Alicia Dos Santos from Perfect Haramony.
The party was the best ending to the most perfect day. We danced the night away and I must confess, the dance floor was full the entire evening and so it definitely made it a night to remember!
Our first dance was choreographed by Mario Gomes from Mario Gomes Hip Hop Studios to our amazing Wedding song - “Heaven in you - J’Something ft Hugh Masekela”
DJ Paul Dos Santos, well known in the Portuguese Community from SG Productions, provided both traditional and current music at the reception.
What a PARTY...
This acclaimed, multi award winning venue is where romance, beauty, old fashioned hospitality and excellence come together a mere 30 minutes from Sandton and Centurion.
This amazing mother and daughter duo have been featured in many magazines and have won prestigious awards like 1st place in the 2014 Good Food And Wine Show Wedding Cake Challe...
