Service Providers - Hair, Makeup & Nails

It was important for me to book all suppliers early - that way, I didn't have to worry about it again under trial time a month or so before our wedding. I found my suppliers all through the internet and couldn't have been happier.

Hair

Our (my mom, mother-in-law,bridesmaid and myself) hair was all done by local girl, Chantelle Newton. She came to my house to do the trial about a month before the wedding and I was one of those brides, who changed the entire hair look after the trial. I was desperate not to look like I was wearing a helmet, so opted for a simple do, which held fantastically throughout the afternoon / evening. It worked well with my veil too! www.chantellenewton.co.za

Makeup

I am not a fan of makeup, and was dreading looking like a drag queen, so I spent hours searching for a makeup artist who had a portfolio with pics of natural makeup application. I found Adele Aucamp (www.adeleaucamp.co.za) and never looked back. I felt like a true princess on the day!

Nails

I was put in touch with the lovely Sanmarie Botha through freelance beauty therapists I found on the internet. I only met her on the day, but what a lovely person! My nails possibly looked the best they have ever after a mani / pedi and it lasted throughout the honeymoon, which was a bonus!

All my service providers were young, vibrant ladies and such a pleasure to have around to beautify us for the wedding. I would recommend each of them to my friends.

Service Providers - The DJ

Music is not only important at weddings, but at any event. It can often determine how much fun is had at an event, and most hosts judge how much fun people are having, by how much time is spent on the dance floor.

The choice of DJ was particularly important to my husband. We had been to too many weddings where he requested good ol' Rod Stewart and the DJ promised it would be played - and somehow the requested tune never appeared on the music list. Needless to say, the DJ was not a favourite memory of those weddings!

A friend of mine told me about a DJ she had heard fantastic reviews and comments about. She was using him at her wedding, so it was going to be good to see whether he would pass the "Rod Stewart" test. He did - he played the requested song soon after we had asked and his music was awesome! Needless to say, a year in advance, and he was booked the very next day following the wedding.

Meeting with John was an absolute pleasure - he knew exactly what we were after and we didn't have to think twice about him, following our pre-wedding meeting. On the day, he arrived at the venue, set up and carried on. John Oosthuizen of Capricorn Music (www.capricornmusic.co.za) was phenomenal.

We spent majority of our time on the dance floor at our wedding along with all the guests, and couldn't have asked for a better DJ! Thanks John :)

Green and White Wedding Inspiration

As focus has generally shifted globally to a preserving our world, we have become more respectful and appreciative of our surroundings.

December is a time for spending outdoors and taking in what we are fortunate to have around us.

With such good weather, an outdoor wedding is a fantastic option. The grass is lush, the trees in full leaf, flowers are blossoming and the birds are a-tweeting! Green and white is a celebration for all things natural.

Turquoise and Yellow Wedding Inspiration

A punch of colour as we hit December is a must - it screams SUMMER! The combination of turquoise and yellow bring about thoughts of fun, laughter and happiness...the perfect recipe for a lifetime together!

Pink and Green Wedding Inspiration

I figured, whilst on the subject of colour, I should take a break away from our own wedding and share a little colour inspiration. As summer is here, I thought pink and green were appropriate colour choices.

I can almost smell the roses!!

How we incorporated the colour scheme

Our hand bound guest book we had made covered in a light grey linen paper

Our stationary ink was a dove grey with our table numbers in charcoal

My mother-in-law made our beautiful ring cushion (all by hand!)

The buttonholes, corsages and bouquets all had silver brunia

The men wore grey morning suits

My bridesmaid wore a dress made from charcoal satin back crepe

The cake was finished in the two tones of grey and white

Colour Scheme Choice

From the very beginning I thought I had a very good idea of the colour scheme I wanted. I ignored the warnings from our nearest and dearest when they said that our thoughts and ideas would change during the planning process. Older and wiser - they were right yet again!

We really wanted to keep the look neutral and natural - simple. Our initial colour selection was something like this...light blue, white and taupe

To help us make our colour selections, we went to a well known stationary store, The Deckle Edge (www.deckleedge.co.za). We selected papers in similar colours to try and get a better idea of what would work and what wouldn't. I also searched high and low for ribbons which could work with the colours.

Our final choice - dove grey, charcoal and white. Perfect for our formal do!

Some of our favourites

About the Photographer

Choosing a photographer was never going to be easy...both my husband and I are not fond of being in front of the camera, but this was one day that had to be recorded regardless. Cape Town has a number of phenomenal photographers around - each with their own specific techniques, method of lighting etc. We needed someone who was going to get the shots of the day, without making us feel uncomfortable in terms of "striking a pose"!

We met with Simone Alexander of Alexander Photography (www.capetownphotography.co.za). She was perfect - from her personality through to her work. There was no doubt in either of our minds that we wanted her to take the photies for our wedding...and we couldn't be happier.

All the photos included in the blog so far are thanks to Simone!

Photos - Reception Setup

The start of the photos

The Venue

We, South Africans are really spoilt for choice in terms of wedding venues. In Cape Town alone, you have the option of hosting a wedding on the beach, on various wine farms, at beautiful hotels and more, all within an hour of the city! We knew we wanted something different, something spectacular and preferably somewhere no one had been before. Off we set in search of the perfect venue (the very first weekend after the engagement - talk about eager - armed with a map book, a strict schedule to visit 5 venues in one morning (and no longer...eek pressure), a full tank of petrol, and a heap of enthusiasm. The very last venue of the day was one I had found completely by chance on the internet. It wasn't a name that appeared on all the same lists of venues when "googling" the "wedding venues near Cape Town", but it seemed an interesting option - an olive farm.

Cascade Country Manor (www.cascadecountrymanor.co.za), owned and run by Maika and

Volker Goetze, is about 2km off the beaten track in the Paarl valley. The recent rains had left much to be desired from the road. I kept getting snarly looks out the left eye from my fiance indicating his thoughts..."do you know what this is doing to my beloved vehicle?!"

It was SO worth it! As we pulled into the large, white wrought iron gates, we were literally speechless...It was simply beautiful. We were taken by the calm, natural beauty and the architecture, not to mention the cascading waterfall on the property!

On this olive farm, we took our vows.

How, Why, When...

I absolutely loved all the planning involved in our wedding, and it seems such a pity to stop all the "googling" because the day has come and gone. So, I have decided that I will give blogging a bash - it gives me a reason to relive our planning experience, continue searching for beautiful, different and fresh wedding ideas and an opportunity to hopefully provide some exposure to South African service providers in the wedding industry.

A year of planning provided ample time to put together the little details which added to our day turning out to be a great success - described by my husband as the "best wedding I have ever been to"...we'll ignore the bias!!

Simple detail seemed to be the key.

Because this idea has stemmed from our personal experience of planning our wedding (yes! he was very involved), I thought I would slowly work through how we put our wedding together and take it from there.

Happy days...