My wedding day was absolutely what I've always dreamed of ... since I was a little girl I wanted to have a fairy tale wedding and that dream finally came true .... I married my knight on a white horse, i felt like a princess and the venue was my castle .... everything was so elegant and sophisticated .... it was a special day that will always have a special meaning for me! And then to my husband, you are the absolute perfection .... I look forward to our future and to write our fairy tales from here on going forward. I love you Christiaan van der Merwe.
We met at Varsity where we both studied the same course at CPUT. At first, we were best friends, and one day, over the Easter weekend, Christiaan suprised me by going home with me to JHB to meet my parents. He asked for my Father's permission to date me and then he ask me to be his girlfriend. Six years later we tied the knot...
Christiaan proposed to me on n normal morning while I was getting ready for work. I did not expect a thing. It was just us and our 3 little dogs. I couldn't have imagined anything better.
The moment the chapel doors open I started crying, as I saw the light in his eyes, and him shedding tears as my father and I walked down the isle. He looked absolutely handsome, and I couldn't keep my eyes off him.
Another fabulous moment was when they announced us as the newly wed couple, Mr. & Mrs. van der Merwe and we walked into the reception hall with Sky Full of stars by Piano Guys playing in the backgroud. It was like a Hollywood moment.
Yes, we went to Knysna Forest Valley Cottages. We are planning to go to Bali in December 2017.
The look I was going for, was old Hollywood glamour, somewhat of a Marilyn Monroe look. I wanted to look different to what the usual bride looks like. I wanted elegance and class. This is why I chose a very plain dress with no detail on it, only a little bit of lace was portrayed on the train of the dress with the feature lace neck piece. This made the dress look elegant and completely different to what other brides go for. My makeup was very subtle, yet it made a statement. I went for a rose gold colour on my eyes, completely different to what the colour scheme of the wedding was. Another element that I thought needed to be completely different was my wedding shoes. It was completely covered in diamonds, and just gave you that feeling of elegance. I kept the jewelery to an absolute minimal, by only wearing infinite shaped diamond pendants. No bracelets or necklaces, as the dress was speaking for itself. For my hair, I wanted a classy look, yet keeping my facial features soft and feminine, therefor I decided on a low up-style with a gatsby style fringe.
Christiaan and I got married at Bakenhof in Wellington. What a stunning Venue it is!!! Seeing that the two of us are very much into architecture and Interior design, Bakenhof was just that perfect structure that portrayed who we both are. Bakenhof accomodated for everything, from the Chapel, to the Reception hall and the guest cottages. My bridal party and I stayed at Bakenhof the evening before the wedding and on the night of the wedding. Guests who attended the wedding stayed in Wellington guesthouses.
I focused on healthy eating, although some days I couldn't resist a slice of pizza. We are although all normal human beings, getting cravings and all! For the beauty aspect, I went for a spray tan two days before the wedding, as Winter does not allow you to get much of a tan, and I definitely did not want to look like the Ghost of Uniondale on my wedding day. I also went to get hair extensions, as I have very fine hair, and the look I was going for allowed for a lot of hair. To keep the classy and elegant look, I kept my skin moisturized daily and did facial treatments by Sorbet. I also did my nails, keeping the old Hollywood glamour look by going for the classic french manicure!
This was an uphill battle, as Christiaan and I are both designers and we wanted something completely different. Therefor we decided to go with an architectural look for our dekor, by having all glass on the tables. Lets start with the tablecloths: here we kept the old Hollywood theme by having an all black sequin tablecloth. LOVELY element to the table! On top of the tablecloth we decided to cut 80cm x 80cm mirrors as the table centrepiece. On the mirror we place glass Flute vases and small votives for candles. I wanted some floral element to create some softt feeling to the whole architectural look, therefor I added two small flower arrangements consisting of tullips and roses on the table. In the glass flutes we had long branches that went up to almost 2m in height with blossoms growing from these branches, giving the idea that an actual blossom tree is in the centre of the table. From these branches small round glass balss were hung with candles inside, creating this fairytale atmosphere. It was absolutely magnificent! Again, I had to be a little different, therefor I decided to have two underplates. A silver underplate with a crystal underplate on top. Inside the crystal underplate I had white napkins with napkin rings around them, however, the napkin rings were laser cut Initials of our names. All the chairs were high back leather chairs covered in white chair coveres and a black ribbon. My guests have to be seated comfotably. The venue provided there inhouse exposed pendant bulbs for lighting, which later at night created a stunning atmosphere. Another element of lighting was all the candles on the centrepieces and on the tables. It was all so magical.
Christiaan designed his own suit as he too did not want to look ordinary. He wore his custom made jacket and pants, that was made in a shimmer black fabric, with a crisp white shirt and dark Cravat, of course! The cravat was stunning and he looked amazing. His shoes is from Markhams, and so were the groomsmen outfits. The had black fitted pants, with a black shirt and charcoal waist-coat. Classy yet minimalistic.
My bridesmaids wore black dresses, to keep the old Hollywood glamour look I was going for. They had all lace backs with a net as the bottom dress. Gorgeous!
Minister: André Blake
Our photographers were Hein Hough from Heinphoto, and a close family friend Zahnell de Abreu. The two of them have worked together befor and they were so happy to be working together again at our wedding. They captured every single moment of our wedding day!!!
The videographer was Desmond Denton from Imagenheart. He is a Film Director and I was on cloud nine when he said he would be honoured to capture our special day on camera!
We also had the VIA film crew from DSTV channel 147 capturing our special day through there camera lenses, and I cannot wait to see what the present to us.
We decided not to have a photobooth, instead, Hein organized Instax photos to be taken, where guests stick there Instax photo in our wedding album, and then writing a special message next to their photo.
Yes, a family member was our wedding planner. Anna-marie Petzer Brink.
We did not need transport as the venue accomodated for the Chapel and the Reception hall. We however, used our own car, for the photoshoot. A Mercedes-benz SLK 350.
The venue recommended that we use Rix Catering as our Caterers for the wedding, and they absolutely delivered. The food was Stunning, and all the guests were served their meals. I did not want a buffet-style dinner.
The cake was made by Taylored treats, black fondant with mirror foiling, and our Initials laser-cut for the top feature.
NO FUNCTION TOO BIG OR SMALL...where we make dreams come true PLENTY OF VENUES TO CHOOSE FROM, ALL UNIQUE IN THEIR OWN WAY.
I designed all the stationary myself, with the help of a close designer friend, Anja Jooste and my husband lending a helping hand when I required some more hands.
Christiaan was a ballroom dancer, so he tought me to dance, and we practised our first dance in the comfort of our own home. We had Thunderbolt Sound & Lighting do our music and party lights at the venue. They supplied us with a DJ for the evening, who kept the dancefloor busy at all times.
We also had a live Orcestra, Hungarion Trio, play at the Ceremony. Truly a magical and tearful moment when I walked down the Isle with Hungarian Trio playing Gabriel's Oboe in the background!
Crowned as one of the “Top 10 Wedding Venues in the Winelands”, this glamorous glass venue offers unbeatable value and magnificent views
My passion for flowers and what I create with them to fulfill my client’s needs has enabled me to bring together a dream all my brides visualize, I strive on professionalism,...
NO FUNCTION TOO BIG OR SMALL...where we make dreams come true PLENTY OF VENUES TO CHOOSE FROM, ALL UNIQUE IN THEIR OWN WAY.
