REAL COUPLES

A STUNNING SOUTH AFRICAN DAY Carina & Gerhard

Real bride Carina shares all the details of her beautiful day...

How did he propose?

Gerhard proposed in Hermanus, a small seaside town near Cape Town that we visit frequently, and where my parents live. We have a little tradition of taking a bottle of bubbly down to the rocks overlooking the ocean, we always sit on the same spot and often make big decisions here. He proposed with an opal ring, set with marquise cut diamonds designed by Marion Rehwinkel Jewellery. After he proposed we went back to my parents’ place and our families were waiting to celebrate with us - all of them were in on it!

What dress did you wear and where did you buy it?

I wore a custom made dress from Elbeth Gillis. I Googled ‘wedding dress designers near me’, and when I saw her Instagram page I knew she would make my dress. The dress fit beautifully and had everything I wanted. It was classic yet modern. I loved the big bow on the back and the high slit, plus it had pockets! She combined three of her dresses for me - Baylee’s top, Charlotte’s skirt, and Poppy’s bow, all in the Mikado satin. I also wore a full length, pearl veil.

What accessories did you wear and where were they from?

I opted for minimal accessories, and wore my mother’s gold pearl drop earrings, which was my “something borrowed”. I wore closed-toe heels with an ankle strap in a nude blush from Aldo and my “something old” was a cameo that belonged to my late maternal grandmother that was pinned to my bouquet. My paternal grandmother gave me a fur bolero years ago which I wore in the evening to keep warm.

What did the groom wear?

Gerhard wore a dark grey, three piece suit from Trenery, a maroon tie, and brown leather shoes. He initially wanted a black suit, but couldn’t find one he liked, so went for the grey instead. His three groomsmen wore black suits, and in the end we were really happy that he didn’t wear the same colour as them!

How did you feel when you saw him up the aisle?

I couldn’t wait to see him, so I was excited more than anything else. It felt like I hadn’t seen him for ages, even though we only spent the previous night apart, so I was really curious to hear how he experienced

the day. It’s a pretty overwhelming day, but I felt really happy and calm walking down the aisle, with him waiting on the other side.

Who were your bridesmaids and where were their dresses from?

My bridesmaids were two of my best friends from school, Lilani and Gretha, and my sister-in-law Meghann. I had a very specific idea of what I wanted their dresses to look like, and couldn’t find quite the right style until, after an extensive Google search, I came across a designer in another part of the country. Lisa from Missteeq makes dresses to order, she has a wide variety of styles and fabrics to choose from and she could make exactly what I wanted - black, off the shoulder, floor length, classic dresses. They wore their own gold jewellery, black heels, and black nail polish.

What was your wedding theme and how did you create it?

We didn’t really have a theme so to speak, but we wanted three things on our wedding day: delicious food, good music, and enough wine and bubbly to go around. We wanted a festive feeling and few formalities, so we kept speeches to a minimum, skipped the bouquet and garter toss, food was served in ceramic bowls placed in the middle of long tables, and a live band (Carla and Marné

Wedding date - 21 May 2022 Venue - The Church in Bree Street in Cape Town Reception - @betweenus.ct Photographer - @thunderandlove Dress: @elbethgillis Bridesmaid dresses: @missteeq_bridal Hair: @hair_artistry_by_anuske Makeup: @lm_makeup_artistry Flowers: @myuzu.by.lana Band: @myohmyentertainment Cake: @cake_me_happy

from My Oh My Entertainment) performed throughout the evening. Our flowers, done by Lana from My Uzu, were beautiful and added so much colour to the venue.

What was the highlight of your day?

After taking photos Gerhard and I snuck away to have a quick beer at a nearby bar. We spent the majority of the day apart, so it was nice to sit down together and just check in and catch up – really just take in the fact that we just got married! We headed to the venue, and as we entered the entire reception started singing The Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun” (which was also the song that played when the bridesmaids walked into the church). Turns out there was a power outage, but one of our talented guests grabbed a guitar and got everyone to read the lyrics from their phones. We loved this way more than having a song play over speakers, and it was a great surprise!

What was your best buy?

For me, I would have to say my dress. Elbeth did an amazing job and there was not one thing I would have changed on the dress. I felt amazing in it and received so many compliments after the wedding. As a couple, having a live band perform was great. They were so entertaining, and added a buzz we wouldn’t have been able to achieve without them. They played when guests arrived at the church for the ceremony, again during the dinner service, and when the dance floor opened they turned into a party band which was super fun.

What’s your saving tip?

We decided not to serve dessert, but instead served the wedding cake. Our cake was made by Mareli from Cake Me Happy and was a two-tier, coconut sponge cake with toasted coconut ganache filling, covered in a vanilla swiss meringue buttercream with colourful smears on the top half of each tier. The cake often goes to waste at weddings because guests have dessert instead, but there was nothing left of ours and definitely no need for more dessert. Another tip is to choose a venue that includes furniture, crockery, glassware and decor. Getting married at a restaurant, we didn’t have to rent any of these things, which saved us money and also meant less admin.

A BEAUTIFUL BIG DAY Elin & Lloyd

We love the location of this pretty wedding. Real bride Elin tells us her story...

How did you first meet?

Lloyd and I were in the same Uni halls at Cardiff University. We were introduced by various friends within the block and then officially met in the student union. We became friends first and then after one Tiger Tiger night, the rest is history…

How did he propose?

Lloyd is not the most subtle of people and is definitely not great with surprises…

We went to Tuscany, Italy, and Lloyd had planned it all, which was suspicious as I usually plan the holidays. The week before he was asking questions like ‘If we were to get engaged what type of ring would you want?’

When we got to the airport, he wanted a lock for the suitcase and had to talk me through every step of the process. He even noticed I hadn’t had my nails done and asked ‘do you think you should get your nails done?’ He thought he was totally subtle!

When we got to Tuscany, he’d organised a menu tasting at a Michelin star restaurant in our hotel. We both dressed up, and he was very nervous. There were only three other people in the restaurant, so it was nice and intimate. After we had dessert, he got down on one knee and proposed.

Where did you get married?

Fairyhill by Oldwalls.

What attracted you to the venue?

I was torn between two venues. I decided on Fairyhill as it’s got that traditional house feel, the oldy worldly heritage with a modern twist with the K room. You get the best of both worlds. The grounds are also stunning! The biggest thing for me, was finding a venue that suited all weathers, we don’t know what the weather in Wales will be like, so it was important to find somewhere, which had beauty and magic not only outside, but inside too. The K room finished it off. You walk in and you’re like ‘wow’. It takes your breath away!

What was your wedding theme?

Colour wise we had our bridesmaids in blush and groomsmen in a duck egg/ pale blue. Our stationery complemented those colours. We had loads of quirky bits and pieces. We had a table map designed, which showed where in the world people were sitting. Lloyd and I have been together 11 years and we’ve travelled everywhere so each table was based on a country that we’d been to. We also put a little story of something that happened in that country on the table to make it more personal. Love

Ellie Letters designed everything by hand and it was amazing!

What did you wear? Tell us about your gown…

I honestly didn’t think I would be that person to say ‘I’m wearing a Vera’ the dresses are amazing, but I never thought I’d get one myself. I was out with my friend, and she happened to say that The Wedding Gallery do Vera and before I knew it my friend had booked me in! We went to the shop, tried on a few dresses. Some were ridiculous and we had a lot of fun. The last dress I tried on, didn’t look much on the hanger, but I tried it on anyway and it was perfect! I looked in the mirror and thought ‘Oh my God!’ it was fitted, had a lovely cut at the front but not too revealing. It gave it that modern edge. I didn’t want a fishtail, but this was subtle, it came out at the bottom and the train was amazing! It was a simple dress, no lace, very classic plus I got to wear it more than once! It made me feel like a million bucks! It was the perfect dress! I just wanted to feel ‘this is me’ and the dress did exactly that. I felt like a movie star going to the Oscars.

What did the groom wear and where were the suits from?

Lloyd’s suits were from Oxford House Menswear in

VENDORS

Venue:

Fairyhill (@fairyhill)

Photographer:

The Wedding Guys (@weddingguys16)

Florist:

Eve Francesca Designs (@evefrancescadesigns)

Dress designer:

Vera Wang (@verawangbride)

Dress shop:

The Wedding Gallery (@theweddinggalleryofficial)

Videographer:

The Wedding Guys (@weddingguys16)

Hair:

Nathan B Pitchers (@nathanbpithers)

Make Up:

Jessie Dallimore (@jessie.makeup)

Cake:

The Gower Bakery (@gowerbakery)

Stationery:

Love Ellie Letters (@loveellieletters)

Band:

Tux Fizz (@tuxfizz)

Bridgend. He didn’t want the standard black tux vibe; we wanted a summer/outdoorsy vibe, and we were so lucky with the weather. We opted for a linen light tweed style suit that was light blue.

How did you feel when you first saw him at the altar?

We officially got married during the pandemic in September 2020, so we had a blessing at Fairyhill. I was so excited; this was our time to party and celebrate with everyone who couldn’t be there back in 2020. Our best friend did the blessing outside in Fairyhill’s outdoor ceremony area and we did funny vows like ‘I vow to keep my clothes off the bed’. I had five bridesmaids and one brides man. Daisy is my best friend from uni and my other bridesmaids (and brides man), Tom, Lysha, Glesni, Llinos and Emma, are best friends from secondary school. We’ve been friends for over 15 years and they’re my ‘home clique’.

What was your best memory of the ceremony?

As we were already husband and wife, when it got to the ‘I now pronounce you husband and wife’ line, we were given a huge shot of vodka and a shot of whiskey and toasted ‘here’s to us partying the day away’ we couldn’t stop laughing because we couldn’t do the shot. It was such a random but very special ceremony.

How did you feel on the day?

Ecstatic. It was like an out of body experience. It was the

first time we’d been together with all our family and friends since before the pandemic. We were dancing, hugging, drinking, it felt so surreal. The day was full of happiness, and we had the best time.

What’s your recommendation to future couples getting married?

It’s all about compromise. You have to find the middle ground; you might find certain things more important than they do and vice versa, but it’s all about compromise and making sure you both get the day that you want and deserve!