We are super excited to share the Warm-hearted Spanish inspired wedding of Jeff & Monique with you. There are not enough words to describe this breathtaking wedding in short. Every detail of this wedding is spectacular from the couple, wedding photographs to the floral design to the wedding cake.
Let us not even get started with Monique’s wedding dress. Her wedding dress is a Nicole Spouse design all the way from Italy – jaw-dropping gorgeous. The bride was looking for something different than the usual and we love it.
The Decor of their wedding was stunning and they didn’t stick to one specific color. They went with a vibrant, lush and festive feeling and worked with that. The inspiration came from Jeff’s heritage. The couple worked off the Spanish feel and were spoilt for choice with ideas and color schemes.
Grab a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy this warm-hearted Spanish inspired wedding. We have to warn you, you will be busy for a while – we couldn’t stop staring at our screen.
For more amazing wedding inspiration visit Vivacious Weddings and be inspired for your wedding.
The story behind the Wedding Dress:
Jeff and I went to one of the bridal expos held at Canal Walk to walk around and see what the latest trends were etc. Not looking for wedding dresses at that time, we stumbled across the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. The dress was on a mannequin, and he said he really liked it and I should go try it on. I wanted a dress that would fit our Spanish Inspired wedding, and after trying on some seriously amazing dresses I was left with 2 exquisite options. The one he picked out turned out to be my absolute favorite and I just couldn’t let it go, that’s how I knew it was the one. Different is what I was looking for, can’t explain how happy I was with my decision. The dress was made in Italy by Nicole Spouse and it came from The Wedding Boutique.
Engagement Story:
It was the day before Human Rights Day and I’m the kind of person who is always one step ahead and knows absolutely everything and when it’s coming. While Jeff had initially planned to propose in Lisbon on our holiday (Only finding this out afterward), I called him at work on this day and asked him if he wanted to go away for the night to Langebaan. At that moment he realized that this would be the perfect opportunity to propose and to start our journey together, as he had already bought the ring and he knew I would never have expected it since I planned it…
Jeff and I managed to get last-minute accommodation and left later that afternoon. Arrived at the hotel, checked in and we decided to go down to the lagoon. It was a beautiful evening, we were walking along the beach and the sun was setting. We were standing on the sand by the ocean when he went down on his knee and asked me to marry him. For once I really didn’t see it coming, I was completely shocked and lost for words yet the happiest I have ever been, and of course, said YES! The area holds a special place in my heart.
Favorite Wedding Memory:
Goodness, where to begin, there are a few favorites… Waking up on our wedding day was so surreal. I couldn’t believe the day was finally here and I was getting to marry the love of my life. The 2 of us wrote our vowels to each other to read privately the morning of the wedding. Jeff’s note to me was so incredibly heartfelt. The whole time I was reading it I could hear his voice in my head and it made me smile from ear to ear. I couldn’t help but tear up while reading it, was such a special and exciting moment.
The moment I cherish the most is standing at the end of the altar, holding hands and exchanging vows to each other, powerful emotions attached to professing our love to one another. It was just so beautiful! And to have our family and friends witness this made it even more special.
Walking into the reception with my husband for the first time. It was a feeling I will never forget, we were both completely blown away! It was a very emotional moment for me, that I’m glad I got to share with him. Seeing all our hard work, planning, ideas come to life was just mind-blowing!
One of my favorite moments was during the reception, just looking around and thinking that all these people are here because they love and support us, and just feeling really lucky that everything came together and everyone was here celebrating with us! It was a very happy day. As cliché as it sounds, I can honestly say it was literally the BEST day of our lives…
The inspiration behind the Wedding Decor:
Vibrant, warm-hearted, different, festive and Spanish is the look we were going for. My husband is Spanish/Portuguese, so I really wanted to bring in his culture without making it seem kitsch. That was the main inspiration behind us going for the décor we did. I think we pulled it off beautifully, it represented us as a couple perfectly. Our floral arrangements included raw vegetables, beautiful flowers, and lush greenery. The florist Pippa from Wildflower seriously nailed it! She listened to my requests, got my vision, understood the look and feel I was going for and blew our minds on the day! She provided us with the florals, and some of the decors on the tables as well.
Wedding Cake Inspiration:
We attended a family member’s 50th Birthday celebration a year or 2 before our wedding and just absolutely loved the cake she had. So, we decided to use the same lady Lia to make our wedding cake. We chose a metallic 3 layered cake which half of it was in gold leaf to paint a unique and dramatic effect. The 3 layers were a mix of Vanilla Bean Salted Caramel, Red Velvet and Carrot cake (my husband’s fav) topped off with florals from our florist. We sent her some of our décor ideas and she worked off that. We loved our cake and recommended her to everyone.
Wedding Venue:
Eureka was just the perfect fit for us. The moment we went to view it, we knew it was the one. Choosing Eureka was definitely one of our best decisions we made. We didn’t want our guests traveling too far as well, as we had quite a few guests coming from overseas, so we kept it close to home and our guests not having to spend a fortune on accommodation.
Another reason was whilst trying to visualize how our look and feel would fit in at the different venues we viewed, Eureka was just by far the best for our over-all requirements. Mieke the Head Chef and Coordinator at the venue was just outstanding. From being there for us from start to finish, being so patient, and putting up with all of our questions and last-minute changes. Her planning, preparation, and attention to detail were truly amazing.
Wedding Colours:
We didn’t have any specific colors for our wedding. We just went with a vibrant, lush, festive feeling and worked with that. The inspiration came from my husband’s heritage, so we worked more off the Spanish feel and we were really spoilt for choice with ideas and color schemes.
Honeymoon:
We left on Christmas morning for a month’s holiday to Thailand and Singapore. It was incredible and relaxing. We made the most amazing memories together that we’ll cherish forever.
Advice to couples planning their wedding:
Congratulations! You said yes to the one you love the most, and now you are planning the wedding of your dreams! You and your future spouse will spend the next few months preparing for one of the most important events in your life (and hopefully a fantastic and glorious honeymoon!). It is easy to get caught up in planning and appointments. Do not forget the more important part of the best day of your life.
Yes, the flowers, dress, location, favors, food, and music are all important. But the “best day ever” is only twenty-four hours of partying. Your marriage, on the other hand, is forever. This one day will hopefully be all that you anticipate it to be, but do not get lost in the planning and forget to prepare your heart and mind for what is most important: walking the rest of your life beside the one you love.
Musical choices at the Wedding:
The DJ was Dino Silva, he’s played at quite a few of our family functions. It was a no brainer to have him as our DJ, and he was just on top form that night! We danced the night away until the early hours of the morning. The music was very important to us.
The entertainment for the Canapes was Acoustic Element, who are just seriously talented! We requested that they play quite a bit of Spanish music to fit the theme of the day and the feedback we got from our guests about them was just wonderful, it was a great decision to have them play for our guests.
Our first dance song was From This Moment by Shania Twain. It was a tough decision for us as we had 2 songs we really loved. We went for this one because of the words and how it made us feel when we danced and listened to it. We didn’t go for any dancing lessons; I didn’t want to put extra stress on us and wasn’t sure how it would be with my dress as it had a long train. So, we just rocked it in our own way!
Wedding Service Provider Credits:
Photographer: Hugo Coelho
Florist: Wilde Flower
Lighting: Baie Goeters
Furniture: Scape Events
Wedding Dress: The Wedding Boutique
Venue: Eureka Functions
Wedding Website: Shift Events
Wedding Cake: Lia Rothman Cakes
Stationary: Design by Paulina
Hair & Makeup: Hair & Make-up by Zita
Canape Entertainment: Acoustic Element
