My husband and I have been together for 10 years. We decided to get married on our 10 year in 2022, so for most of our family and friends, this wedding was a long awaited event. Many wondered why it took us so long to get married, well, we were engaged for only two years, in 2020. I think it just comes down to, we knew what we wanted and we were just waiting for the right time to tie the knot. In our hearts and mind, we were each other's soulmate and we knew we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together.
I definitely feel like there were 2 most memorable moments on our wedding day. During our ceremony and after our ceremony. During the ceremony, We exchanged our wedding vows and at that exact moment it felt like the whole world just stopped for a moment, hearing those words and seeing my husband’s emotions were so precious to me, he isn’t a very emotional person with words, more with actions and to hear him express his love for me was just so beautiful. The second moment was after the ceremony. My husband and I were sent to the wedding reception to wait while all the guest were escorted to the canapés. It was a moment for just the two of us, we were holding each other, smiling from ear to ear and just taking everything in. Having that “alone time”, even if it was just for 5 minutes, meant so much to the both of us.
For highlights, it has to be the the moment I walked down the aisle, we were both so nervous and overjoyed with emotions. My husband got emotional, and so did I. We locked eyes during the entire time. We really enjoyed the dancing. Having our first dance was so beautiful and enjoying to letting loose on the dance floor with our guests.
We did something very different and more to our hearts for the father and daughter dance. We asked my father and my husband’s mother to join us both on the dance floor for a father and daughter AND a mother and son dance. This was a very grateful moment for our parents. The guests loved our food and our cake, we decided to do mini macaroons, mini cake pops and donuts for our wedding cake. Easy to grab and go and sooooo delicious!!!!!
It was raining that day. The night before, it poured buckets! Literally! We were both a bit stressed as our ceremony was located outside, but my husband decided the morning of our special day to change our ceremony to an indoor area. I felted so calm with his decision, I trusted him and honestly the ceremony looked beautiful. I saw it for the first time when I walked down the aisle and it looked beautiful. Definitely a good choice to have a great pan B just incase.
We went to Thailand!
It was my husband’s first time travelling out the country and we had a 11 day honeymoon of absolute bliss and paradise. It was such an incredible experience and we will always hold it close to our hearts.
My wedding look was a vintage inspired look.
My makeup was done by myself, as I’m a professional makeup artist from C.C. Lash & Brow Artistry. Very glam and glow. Using natural shades and contour for my face and brown, gold, champagne shimmer and a winged liner for my eye makeup. My brows were laminated and on point. Finishing off with a nude lip.
My hair was loose vintage waves. Absolutely styled to perfection. My hairstylist was Coenette de Beer from Makeup & Hair Modern Artistry. She is very skilled with vintage waves!
My dress was made in Paarl in the Western Cape by Charlotte Francina. My dress was inspired by a photo I found online many years ago. I just knew it was what I wanted from the moment I saw it. My dress was different, pleated material, more on the ivory colour, and very boho inspired.
My shoes were bought from shein, super affordable and looked stunning! The shoes were white in colour and short Stiletto with pointed heels and pearls around the ankles. Very classy look.
My jewellery was bought from Loot and Lovisa. My pearl earring from loot were a beautiful stand out accessory. I have had many followers on my Instagram ask me where my earrings were bought. And they were very affordable! I wanted a statement piece for my earrings and they delivered! I had other ear piercings that I accessorised from Lovisa and including rings. More rose gold and gold tones.
Charlotte Francina McDonald, my great grandmother, was one of those iconic women: fiercely dynamic with an insatiable appetite for life. There was no challenge too great, no dream
Our wedding Ceremony & Reception was at The Pheasant Hill Boutique Hotel and Wedding Avenue in Pretoria.
Our close family were able to stay at the venue’s accommodation and there was plenty of space for our family. Our bride and groom party and guest stayed in nearby accommodation. I was able to list plenty accommodation around the venue that was close and affordable for our guests.
I started going to a CrossFit Class month before hand and tried my best to stick to a health lifestyle (most of the time…lol)
Skincare has always been an important part of my daily routine. As a makeup artist I believe that skincare is just as important as the products you buy for makeup. Following a skincare routine that suites your skin needs will help your makeup look flawless on your special day. Little Bridal tip.
As a Lash Artist, I’m obsessed with lash extensions. I regularly go to my lash artist, Nadia from NH Artistry Studio to fill my lashes and apply them with perfection. No need to hassle with mascara.
From the beginning of my planning, I had absolutely no idea what my theme was going to be. I guess at one point I felt a little overwhelmed with the amount of prep and ideas. There are so many beautiful colours and themes today for wedding decor that i had no clue what I wanted.
At some point, I created a wedding decor board on my Pinterest Account. The more I added to the board, the more I realised it started to look more Boho. I found my theme and started to work from there. I wanted a very classy, boho theme and colours.
Flowers were a combination of Anthuriums, roses, tulips, dried palm leaves and dried & preserves flowers.
The flowers were mostly white in colour and the dried & preserved flowers bought in a beige and brown colour in between. We even spray paint some dried flowers gold. This combination on colours brought out the Boho look to my decor.
Plates and cutlery were gold in colour and flowers were held in glass vases.
furniture, were Tiffany chairs.
We had candles situated between the flowers on the floor and on the tables to bring out the gold and glow tones.
My husband's Suite was made by a tailor shop at the Oriental Plaza in Johannesburg. We unfortunately cannot remember the name of the specific shop it was made but their services and quality was fantastic! His suite colour was a dark sage/olive green with a white shirt and black tie and shoes. Very unique colour but it suited him perfectly with his gorgeous green eyes and dark hair. My husband is honestly the most handsome man ever! I'm a very lucky wife:)
The grooms men wore black suites with white shirts and black ties. Very classic look.
I wanted each of my Bridesmaids to wear what they feel comfortable and beautiful in. The bottom design of the dresses remained the same but each bridesmaid could choose a design that they liked for the top. I also chose different colours for each Bridesmaid's dress. Colours that fit with the colour theme of the wedding. Warm tones with Satin material.
The colour of each dress was a combination of:
> Bronze
> Copper
> Rose Gold
> Gold
> Sage Green
The colours really looked beautiful together and each Bridesmaid had there own unique colour and style that suited them.
I was happy to let them each do whatever makeup look they wanted, and to accessories which any jewellery they chose. They hair was loose with curls and pinned with a side piece hair accessory that I gifted them. I wanted each of my bridesmaids to feel beautiful in their own way. Hairstylist for my bridesmaids, Flower girls & mother of the bride is You'nique Hair.
The shoes were a combination of nubes or gold.
For my Flower Girls, I ordered 2 dresses from JJ House.com. It's an online store for wedding dresses and accessories. I was very impressed with the price and quality of the dresses. To save on custom costs, I was lucky enough to delivery the dresses to my Sister in America and she was able to bring them with her to South Africa before the wedding. The dresses were so pretty. One was long in length and the other was short. Both dresses had the same colour and pattern design and suited each Flower Girl perfectly. We added curls to their hair and finished off with beautiful flower hair bands that I purchased from Lovisa.
We wanted to do something special for us and my Uncle. Uncle Anton is married to my Mother's sister and they have all been a big part of our life together. We asked if he could marry us, as we felt very comfortable with him and he knew us and our relationship. There was already a form of understanding about who we are as a couple and our love for each other. My Uncle had recently renewed my Mother & Father's vows, so we knew he was more then capable and happy to do it.
After the wedding, we signed our legalized papers and were officially Married by law.
Our Photographer & Videographer were Frank & Misses Photography. We loved their look and style. Very unique and meaningful. They bring a beautiful presence in their photos and videos. Their professionalism is outstanding and they are very helpful and friendly. We enjoyed working with them and would recommend their services to anyone!
We did our engagement shoot with Frank & Misses, which we used as a digital video for our wedding invitations. They designed our Digital Wedding invitations for us and this also gave us a chance to get acquainted with them before our wedding day.
The owner from our venue helped plan our wedding. He assisted with the decor, flowers, food, canapés and DJ.
The rest was done by my husband and I.
No wedding transport was needed and everything was located at the same venue.
The food for the reception and canapés were made from our venue. This was included in the package which was a great and very convenient option for us.
For Canapes we had a selection of buffet snack foods. A variety of different food groups to suite each guests selection.
For the Reception food we had a selection of two starters, two mains and one dessert.
> Starters:
1. Stuffed Crepe with a creamy chicken mushroom filling and served with a cheese sauce.
OR
2. Camembert with green figs baked in Phyllo.
> Mains
1. Lamb Shank served with rustic potato mash and julienne shredded veggies.
OR
2. Chicken Fillets stuffed wit butternut and mozzarella with a creamy pepper. Dew sauce served with rustic mash/rosti and seasonal veggies.
> Dessert
Hot Chocolate lava pudding with ice-cream on top.
> Vegeterian
Stuffed red pepper with ratatouille served on mash with a creamy pepperdew sauce.
Our Menu selections were sent to each guest beforehand to selection their meals.
The guests loved our food and our cake, we decided to do mini macaroons, mini cake pops and donuts for our wedding cake. Easy to grab and go and so delicious!!!!! We added a mini cake on the top of our cake stand to do the traditional cake cutting. Our cake was decorated with flowers from the decor and gold flakes were added. Our cake was made by Melissa Doubell from Just Teddy. Literally the most delicious and beautiful looking cakes i have every tasted!
Cake Flavours:
Swiss Meringue Buttercream with Chocolate sponge, caramel, white chocolate ganache, cookie cream & Vanilla.
Our Stationery was designed by a Local Printers shop at our home town Heidelebrg.
Our reception decor and flowers were provided by our Venue coordinators. Flowers were a combination of Anthuriums, roses, tulips, dried palm leaves and dried & preserves flowers.
The flowers were mostly white in colour and the dried & preserved flowers bought in a beige and brown colour in between. We even spray paint some dried flowers gold. This combination on colours brought out the Boho look to my decor.
Plates and cutlery were gold in colour and flowers were held in glass vases.
furniture, were Tiffany chairs.
We had candles situated between the flowers on the floor and on the tables to bring out the gold and glow tones.
Our DJ was also part of our wedding package from the venue including a French Violinist band that played during the canapés. Music was sent to our DJ my myself as I knew exactly what music I wanted played during the entire day. Music is a BIG part of my life. My husband and I enjoy a combination of classic, old age and new age music. Especially band stand and jazz.
We didn't take dance lessons as we felt comfortable to practice our first dance together beforehand and just let the music move us. It was a beautiful moment.
Charlotte Francina McDonald, my great grandmother, was one of those iconic women: fiercely dynamic with an insatiable appetite for life. There was no challenge too great, no dream
