I remember waking up calm, stress-free and excited to meet this day that we had been planning for such a long time.
The weather was absolutely perfect, overcast with impending passing showers, but nevertheless it was perfect in comparison to the uncomfortable heat we experienced in the days leading up to the wedding.
During the course of that morning there were still odds and ends to take care of, but my super mom did a fantastic job of coordinating things and making sure all was under control. I remember her running around and sacrificing her time and getting ready last, all to ensure I was taken care of and all my needs were met.
My eldest brother managed to sneak away from his kids for a while and willingly took on the responsibility of steaming my dress, he did such a fantastic job!
Suddenly at one point of the morning amidst all the bustle I heard the torrents of rain begin. To my surprise I was still calm and filled with hope that when the time came for the ceremony to begin everything would be perfect "come sunshine or the rain".
Eventually the time came and I arrived at the church about 30 minutes later than planned, in the effort to stay as dry as possible. Upon entry the church was full of warm smiles of family and friends armed with the camera phones to capture and flood social media with the scenes of our beautiful day.
I remember the walk down the aisle with my father beside me, he was so strong for me! He promised that he would try his best not to cry. I reached the front and looked up and saw my stunning fiance who was dabbing his eyes with tissue and I giggled because he never cries.
One of my bridesmaids was a bit to excited for this day that she skipped a few meals and almost fainted in the front during the ceremony- thankfully it wasn't serious and everything continued perfectly.
The reception was so much fun! We were so blessed to have family and friends from far and wide make time to come to our little town of Ladysmith and celebrate our union of love.
We spent the first night in Ladysmith so we could return home the next morning to bid farewell to our family that had stayed over for the wedding.
We then set of for Durban and spend a few nights at the Royal Palm Hotel in Umhlanga.
My wedding look was nothing short of sparkle and glamour!
From the outset I was dead set against a white dress. When I pictured myself in a wedding dress all I've ever known is that I wanted to shine...so you can bet I went with the most non-traditional outstanding dress (no it wasn't black lol)...I actually don't even know what the colour was, it was champagne with tons of GOLD glitter- I'll let you decide form the pictures.
Standing at 1,4 metres in height I needed all the help I could get to make sure the dress set perfectly. I couldn't find a gold shoe high enough in South Africa, so I took to Ali express and found the most jaw dropping Christian Louboutin look alike stilettos. Even though my shoes weren't visible under my dress I felt like super star!!
I accessorised in gold as well. I wore a stunning gold tiara from Isabella and bangles and a Bridal set from Bollywood Jewels.
The wedding was held at two separate venues in my hometown of Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal.
The ceremony took place under the beautiful stained glass windows of the All Saints Anglican Church built in 1902 and the reception at the newly built YHSCC Hall.
Many of our guests stayed the night and were accommodated by Farquhar Lodge, Mount View Lodge, Dongala Boutique Hotel and Memra Guest house.
The decor aspect of our wedding was very important to us I do not think that my descriptions will do justice to just how perfectly our service providers brought our vision to life. Even though we had not specifically set a theme I'd say it was definitely along the lines of "Glamorous Royalty" we wanted our guests to glamorous. We opted for rich colours of Burgundy and Gold , lots of lights and different textures like sequins and velvet.
Ramu & Mala Maharaj of Oriental Stage & Lighting did an amazing job with the decor, lighting and coordination of the event.
The flower centerpiece arrangements done by Mrs Alta Odendaal was definitely one of the highlights of our decor. We were absolutely speechless at how beautiful they were crafted. To tie in with our bold colours we opted for bold and bright coloured flowers such as deep red and cerise roses and carnations with hints of salmon chrysanthemums. What made our arrangements stand out from all others was the facts that entire foliage was gold!! Mrs Odendaal and ourselves along with family has spent a few afternoons spray painting tons of ivy, ferns and eucalyptus plants. The result was worth all our efforts.
The Groom wore a shiny indian styled burgundy suit with a silky burgundy shirt and Gold snake skin shoes (sounds like a weird combination- I know!- but it really was so epic- check out our gallery). Months before the wedding we happened to see the shoes on Instagram and he joked about wearing those for the wedding but we knew it was definitely not to be found in South Africa. So I made it my mission to secretly seek out and acquire the exact same shoe, and guess what! I did! and his smile when seeing them for the first time was priceless.
The Groomsman wore burgundy suit pants, crisp white shirts, burgundy braces and a burgundy tie. The look was completed by blush pink buttonholes.
Pants- Edgars
Shirts and ties- Jet
Braces- China Mall Johannesburg (it was the only place in which we found the right shade)
We did a lot of hunting for ready made dresses but none of them made the cut. I then decided to go back to my original plan of having them sewn.
I searched through many pinterest pictures to find the most elegant pattern for the girls. The only thing that was left was to find the best material to perfect the dresses.
I found the fancy flower material at Moosa's Sales Room in the Oriental Plaza and the most amazing duchess silk at Exquisite Fabrics in Overport.
Pastors Shailen and Melina Singh of House of David Isipingo jointly officiated our wedding. They had previously officiated the weddings of both my elder brothers and the manner in which they do so is so symbolic and beautiful.
Choosing a photographer and videographer was one of the most important decisions we had to make.
We chose Arista and Luis Marreiros of Rissiepit photography to capture of moments. Included in our package was a complimentary engagement shoot (see pictures in my gallery), we gave them an idea of the look we were going for and the results were amazing.
I must commend them for working so well together ,working with them has been a pleasure. They did not just take pictures but they took the initiative to help us coordinate everything so that we got our moneys worth and maximised time.
Its been only a few days and I cant wait to see our wedding pictures as captured through their eyes.
I think the place place we stuck to tradition was with the food. Bemaath Caterers served the traditional Mutton Breyani, Dhal, Raitha and Sooji with almonds and cream.
For our wedding cake we were definitely not having a fancy looking, ugly tasting plastic icing cake lol. We opted rater to purchase and indulge in 3 of our favourite cakes from Chateau Gateaux. (Mozart, Fudge Piccaso and Mousse au Chocalat).
I am blessed to have talented family members who assisted me with the designing of our wedding invitations. We designed our own save the date invutes and asked Darren Dorasamy to use the same elements and colours for our wedding stationary.
Tugela Press assisted us in record time to print the invitations and create beautiful champagne bottle labels
I had also used an online app to create a monogram that would be used to personalise our wedding. VJK Signs in Durban did an amazing job in laser cutting our monogram to help add those special personal touches and complete our vision.
