Honestly, everything will stay with me forever. Choosing just one moment is impossible. One thing that stands out is seeing his face as the doors open when I walked down the aisle. I was nervous, not because I was getting married and this was 'the most important day of my life' but to have all that attention on me. I am a naturally shy person and hate being the centre of attention but seeing his face smiling at me took my breath and nerves away. At that moment it was just him and I, I forgot I had over 100 people looking at me. After that, I was completely relaxed and enjoyed absolutely everything. One of my highlights and I must say was a great decision was having midnight toasted sandwiches served at 12:00, it was so great seeing our guests dancing the night away with a toastie in hand.
We went to Bali and Gili Air on Honeymoon and it was incredible.
The trip to get to our accommodation took over 36 hours so we were exhausted when we got there, but still made the most of it from day 1. We went for two weeks and I wouldn't change a thing, it was magic. It was so lovely to relax after a stressful few months and spend time together.
To be perfectly honest I did not have a set look. I am a firm believer in less is more and if I had to categorise it I would guess that this is it. I really want to have a clean and elegant look across the whole wedding, and tried to do this where possible.
My dress, ahh I LOVED my dress. It was made by designer Justin Alexander and I got it from Bridal Manor in PTA. The service I got at Bridal Manor was fantastic. I tried on about 10 before I found 'the one'. As soon as I saw it on the hanger I knew it was the one. My favourite part of my dress was my bow.
My shoes, well I think most brides wear heals but not me, I was in completely flat sandals but decided on heals for my prep photos. 8 weeks before my wedding I fell and ended up breaking my big toe in 2 places through my joints, as a result, I was in a moon boot for 6 weeks. So the idea of wearing heels made me too nervous. Wearing flats was a good decision, I was comfortable and it helped me dance all night.
My hair was done by my beautiful hairdresser Shakeela Dagwood (Crafty Hair Tinker) I loved how she did my hair, I think the fact that she knew me helped a lot.
My makeup was done by Cathy Heaton, I really felt she captured exactly what I wanted for my bridal look.
My jewellery was very minimalistic, I wore a special bangle from my mom and sister (Pandora) and a pair of sparkly earrings.
Bridal Manor is an exclusive bridal shop that specialises in selling imported couture designer wedding dresses.
We got married at Rosemary Hill, goodness how do we begin to thank them and brag about them? It was the first and only venue we looked at and one of the best decisions we made. From the small details to the grand ones Rosemary Hill made us feel so special and took so much stress away. One of the biggest pieces of advice I could give someone is to try have as many of your guests stay close to the venue as possible. We managed to have about 90 people stay on the property and I truly feel that this and out great playlist allowed most of the guests to stay till 2 in the morning.
With over 10 year’s experience in the wedding industry, we have a passionate team of coordinators, chefs and serving staff that will ensure your wedding day is perfect!
I had every intention of getting as fit and toned as I could for the wedding and was doing well at the gym. Then 8 weeks before I broke my toe and ended up in a moon boot. The doctor had told me I was not allowed to exercise at all, even once the boot was off. It was really upsetting as I really wanted to be fitter. I didn't have a set diet but rather watched what I was eating. I went for a few tanning sessions, got eyelash extensions and had my hands and feet done.
My flowers were done by Bliss Floral Creations, I decided on green leafy leaves and pops of white. My favourite flowers are tulips so wanted to bring these into it which we did. I really love the light that candles give off so we made sure to have plenty of candles on the tables. Our origami birds, ahh I loved my birds. This was something we decided to do a month before the wedding. My Fiance left all the deco to me but after attending our table setting at Rosemary Hill we saw these birds hanging for another wedding and he loved them. After feeling like it was one thing he really seemed to want I contacted Rosemary Hill who contacted that bride and I was able to reuse the same birds from her wedding. The birds really looked amazing and I really can't take the credit for making them, but they were a highlight.
The groom got his suite from Euro Suite, it was a dark charcoal colour. November is a really hot month so we didn't feel it was necessary for the groomsmen to also wear full suits so they hired their pants in the same colour from Euro Suite. We had the ties and bow ties made by Bib Rouge. I am so glad we did this. I feel by doing this we were able to bring in our own personality and colours into the wedding. It also meant we were able to choose our own material and we could get baby bow toes made for the ring bearer (it was adorable).
Finding bridesmaid dresses was one of the most difficult things about the wedding. I wanted long dresses but didn't want wrap dresses. I looked for ages and everything I liked went over budget. I was so lucky to have one of my best friends offer to make the dresses for me. We went looking for patterns and materials together and we managed to find amazing things. I can't compliment her enough on the incredible job that she did. I was really so nervous to get dresses made but she went above and beyond not only making all the bridesmaid dresses but the gowns we all wore to get ready in and my adorable flower girl dresses.
I never really had a set colour scheme for my bridesmaids but loved the colour of the material when I saw it. I loved the silk and heavy look of my dress so wanted to try to bring this into my bridesmaid dresses. My sister was my maid of honour and wanted her to feel extra special and have something a bit different to the other dresses so we added a bow similar to the one on my dress to hers.
I had the most beautiful bridesmaids!
@dbcouturesa
Our minster was a family friend of a friend, Rudi was so lovely and we were so glad we chose him. He got to know us well before the day as we went for a few pre-marital classes with him which were really great.
Our photos were done by the incredible Heleen Van Rensburg from Splendid Productions. She was truly wonderful and I really felt that we 'clicked' (pun intended) with her. We did our engagement shoot with her and this was a really good idea, she got to know us and we got to know her. We really excited to see our video of the day and relive it all again, we asked Duck Soup to act as a fly on the wall at the wedding and we think that they will have done this brilliantly based on the other work that we have seen from them.
We didn't have a wedding planner but you get a wedding coordinator with Rosemary Hill and she was so incredible and really took away so much stress, not only on the day but the entire time while planning the wedding.
With over 10 year’s experience in the wedding industry, we have a passionate team of coordinators, chefs and serving staff that will ensure your wedding day is perfect!
As most of the guests were staying on the property we didn't need transport, but our venue does offer a shuttle service for other guests staying at guest lodges in the area.
All our food was done by Rosemary Hill. They did an amazing job and the food was delicious. Our cake was amazing, it was made by Rosemary Hill. We had a 3 tiered cake with each layer a different flavour. We had a few gluten intolerant guests so Rosemary Hill even made our top tier gluten-free. We served toasted sandwiches at midnight which all our guests are still talking about.
With over 10 year’s experience in the wedding industry, we have a passionate team of coordinators, chefs and serving staff that will ensure your wedding day is perfect!
We designed and printed it all ourselves, except for the menus and table numbers that MU Studios did for us.
Our Dj came with the venue, we gave him a playlist of songs that we wanted to be played and loved, as a result, we had a full dance floor from the moment the dance floor opened to the time the lights came on. We took a few dance lessons to just be a bit more comfortable, it was a great decision.
With over 10 year’s experience in the wedding industry, we have a passionate team of coordinators, chefs and serving staff that will ensure your wedding day is perfect!
Bridal Manor is an exclusive bridal shop that specialises in selling imported couture designer wedding dresses.
