Walking down the aisle and seeing all our friends and family there to share our special day with us was the start of the memorable moments! The venue and flowers were better than we could ever imagine. We danced until our feet couldn't dance anymore.
Yes we did, well we almost didn't! We booked our honeymoon 2 weeks before the wedding and didn't investigate anything (always check the weather for the area and proximity of your resort to other amenities). We went to Zanzibar which is a beautiful country. Alas we went at the start of the rainy season which meant we only had one or 2 days of sun. Lucky because my husband got so sunburnt on the first day, he has fair skin, that he didn't mind not being in the sun. And we got sick from the malaria medicine... Do as much research as possible. Our hotel was wonderful but it was completely isolated and we couldn't even pop down to a shop. But I suppose being stuck on a tropical island with not much to do isn't too bad ;)
I am not a girl that often wears makeup or gets my hair done, I am always running around so it doesn't work for me, so I left my hair and makeup look completely up to my amazing H&MA! My sister said a friend of hers did makeup, to which I politely smiled and said that sounds nice, never to bring it up again. Then I found out who she was and was hooked immediately! Rentia Weber transformed me into a picture perfect bride. I had some hints and tips along the way, but she was the main driver of it all! I would recommend her to anyone and everyone.
My wedding dress was made up from special lace we bought while away on holiday and we asked a friend who makes ballet outfits if she would be able to make a wedding dress. She seemed very excited and after that has started to make dance dresses too. I went to different boutiques and dress shops to get ideas but they all looked beautiful, so we took the lace and material I had and put it together to create my dream dress.
Shoes, jewellery and accessories for me weren't a big part of my look, I wanted my dress to stand out and be the center of attention. I am also quite tall and A. didn't want to be taller than my husband and B. I couldn't think of anything worse than wearing heels all night. My party days taught me that was a no no!
We got married at The Venue at Pearl Mountain in Paarl. It is a new venue so they do not have accommodation yet.
Leading up to the wedding I took advice from some recently married friends and had pigment peels done on my skin so it was 100% sparkling on the day. I had my eyebrows waxed and tinted and tried to tan outside as often as possible.
I started yoga a couple of months before the wedding which was life changing for my body and mind. I also ride horses every day and sometimes go running and walking when I have time.
I am lucky enough to have naturally white teeth and occasionally I would go for a massage to relax and release all my stress and tension.
The venue we used is well known by our tent (Cape Tents) and decor (N Concepts) company so when I mentioned the venue they knew exactly what to do. We had a tent on the veranda because when we looked at the long range weather forecast it looked like it might rain, which it did the day before, but luckily our day dawned bright and sunny. The decor was simple yet elegant, with lounge pods scattered throughout the venue to allow space for people to sit and chat as well as be part of the party.
The flowers were done by a florist from Plettenberg (Pippa's Flowers) who is a family friend, she had only ever seen the venue once for a short space of time, with nothing in it. So she had to come up with the concept herself. Her I gave her free reign as flowers are not my job and I felt she would nail it, which she did! I advised her of my colour scheme, the type of flowers I like and what I wanted in my bouquet.
We hired a DJ (DJ Arries) who came with his own lighting and there was an area demarcated for a dance floor.
Cape Tents is a small but dynamic Bedouin tent rental company located in the northern suburbs of Cape Town
As I mentioned earlier we are quite chilled people, so the groom and his groomsmen didn't go over the top. They all bought chino's from Country Road in a camel colour, with white shirts, matching ties, belts and socks and then brown shoes. The groom also wore a navy blazer from Country Road. Our 2 dads were given the same socks and ties as the groomsmen
I used the same lady that did my dress, La Petite Tutu. We bought a light blush/ nude material and the girls could all choose their own style of dress within a certain range. Happy to say they all looked amazing in their dresses!
We almost didn't have a marriage officer because our original one double booked! But we were lucky enough to find Barry Grey step in.
One of the things we booked early on was a good Photographer! We used Until Dust Wedding Photographers
No, I am very OCD and love being organised. Luckily enough our venue came with a venue organiser who helped us along the way, Lorretta Alley Professional Organizer.
The venue had an in-house kitchen where they cooked up spectacular canapés, starter and mains. They catered for all our food allergies and dietary requirements.
Our cake was made by a friend, I like to use people we know.
We had a friend design our stationery, we gave him an idea and he did exactly what we wanted. In the end I printed the stationery at Wizards, because I have used them often before for my clients and I am on a first name basis with some of the guys there.
We 100% took dancing lessons! Always thought I was a good dancer in the club, but turns out I wasn't... who knew. So we went for dance lessons, but dancing in front of 100 people is very nerve wracking.
We hired a DJ (DJ Arries) who came with his own lighting, speakers, mic and my cousin is a music producer and he played a few mixes with our DJ.
Cape Tents is a small but dynamic Bedouin tent rental company located in the northern suburbs of Cape Town
