Category: Intimate Weddings

Floral Romance Wedding at The Oyster Box Hotel by Vivid Blue Photography {Kerry & Marinus}

by gaby

Isn’t it an amazing thing how a smell can instantly take you back to a time and place, or remind you of a person or a feeling? Someone just has to spritz Issy Miyake in my direction and I’m instantly 20 again, getting ready for a night out at Stellenbosch (if only I still looked 20, but that’s another story!). Today’s bride not only filled her elegant reception with enough beautiful flowers that they’d give off the scent of a small garden, but gave each of her female guests perfume to spray, so the whole room was filled with a delicious scent that none of them would ever forget. I love the romance of that, and romance is exactly what Kerry and Marinus’ wedding delivered, from Kerry’s spectacular lace dress, to the Oyster Box location, to the soft pink lighting that infused the scented reception. And all of it was captured to absolute perfection by SBB fave, Vivid Blue Photography. Oh, and PS – flash mob proposal! Wow. :)Read More

Intimate Orchid-Inspired Dullstroom Wedding by Jack and Jane {Cindy & Carsten}

by gaby

We always love when a couple use the details of their wedding day to tell their love story, but when it’s a bijoux wedding, those details often become even more unique and special because there’s more focus (and often more budget) to invest in them. Take today’s gorgeous pair of lovebirds – Carsten proposed to Cindy in tropical Singapore, where she fell in love with a specific type of orchid in the botanical gardens. So when planning their small wedding back in SA, it was those very flowers that the couple chose to remind them of that special time, and which formed the basis of their wedding and floral design. Sweet, simple and truly intimate, we’re so excited to share their happy day with you, beautifully captured by SBB faves Jack and Jane Photography.Read More

Intimate Open Air Wedding at Groot Constantia by Marli Koen {Sarah & Kyle}

by gaby

You know, some of my favourite stories about weddings are about the way that a community (even in our modern age) responds to a bride and groom – for example, the way all the neighbours came out to wave my friend Lee off to her ceremony, for example, or the spontaneous applause that can greet a couple during a city photo shoot. It reminds me of the way that in a European village wedding, the bride and groom might walk from church to reception with their guests following behind and strangers cheering them on – a happy and triumphant parade. Today’s wedding reminds me of that spirit a lot – you can almost feel the sense of community at Sarah and Kyle’s wedding in these lovely pictures by Marli Koen, as well as the couple’s togetherness as they see each other for the first look and couple shoot, greet their guests, collect their waiting retinue, and walk down the aisle together. Their friends and family surround them, leaning in to hear their words of love, and afterwards, under the leafy shade on South Africa’s oldest wine estate, there’s the fluttering of fans, the drinking of wine, and the joy of a love story long in the making come to fruition. I also have to mention how much I love the lasercut pincushion proteas in coloured bottles on each table – such a sweet and fun South African detail!Read More

Simple Elegance Nature’s Valley Wedding by Jenni Elizabeth {Michele and John}

by gaby

You know, it can be a challenge to find new words and new ways to describe the weddings we feature on SBB. I feel like I say “gorgeous” a lot these days. Well, I’m about to say it again, because today’s wedding is GORGEOUS. Absolutely, get-your-swoon-on, magazine-worthy gorgeous. Michele and John chose to go with a simple colour scheme of white, blush and gold, which was complemented throughout by the deep emerald of foliage from their hanging swags and table garlands, and spectacular floral ceremony arch. Everything about it fits together like the pieces of a beautiful couple, partly thanks to the absolutely breathtaking pictures by Jenni Elizabeth. We’ve been looking forward to featuring Jenni’s work for a while, and I hope you’ll be seeing many more of her lovely images on SBB in future. But for today, let’s sit back and breathe in the simple elegance of Michele & John’s Garden Route wedding, and the sheer romance.Read More

Intimate Boho Bright Garden Wedding by Riekert Cloete {Lise & Gary}

by gaby

Back in the day when my mom and dad got married, there was none of this whole weekend, hundreds of people at your wedding thing going on. They had a morning wedding and a brunch in my grandparents’ garden. Me, I was a little girl when Princess Diana got married, and from then on, big weddings were the THING. So when I heard about my folks’ wedding, at first I just thought shame*. But I’ve got to tell you, as I’ve done this wedding blogging thing over the years, I’ve found a certain appeal in those intimate backyard/garden weddings. Something incredibly charming about celebrating this huge, momentous thing and then sitting down around a table small enough to talk to everyone there. How wonderful must that feel? Today’s couple opted for just this kind of wedding – in fact, it might be the most intimate wedding I’ve ever featured at just fourteen people including the bride and groom. But it is full of heart, and colour, and family and love. Not to mention all things bright and boho, and the most incredible vintagey dress. I adore every one of Riekert Cloete’s gorgeous photos, which really bring Lise and Gary’s big day to life. Oh, and their how-they-met story? Total Hollywood!Read More

Travel Themed Old Mac Daddy Wedding by Yolandé Marx {Marli & Pieter}

by gaby

You all know how I feel about travel themed weddings (love ’em!). Which might have something to do with my own love of travel, but I also love how it can be a metaphor for life and relationships. Because life really is a journey, isn’t it? I’m the first to admit I don’t always look at the scenery along the way, preferring to focus on the destination, but in hindsight it’s always the journey that gets you somewhere that teaches you or inspires you or provides you with the lasting lessons or memories. Today’s couple, inspired by their awesome airstream trailer park venue (oh, we love Old Mac Daddy’s don’t we!), based their wedding around the idea of going on a trip together – kind of a perfect metaphor for starting out on the adventure of marriage. They incorporated this theme in sweet, subtle ways – through an airstream logo, and travel-themed stationery, and (my fave) little old school cartoon-hobo-style knapsacks on a stick to house the favours. Adorable! The vibe was light hearted and lovely, made even more so by the drop dead gorgeous pics by Yolandé Marx. I’m a huge fan of Yolandé’s work (in fact, check our her gorgeous new category images in our Supplier Directory – swoonage!), and her dreamy shots of Marli and Peter in their lakeside location are some of my favourites!Read More

Real Wedding at Café Felix {Henda & Danie}

by gaby

Zippididoodahzippidi-ay… You guys I am in such a good mood – the sun is out in Durbs and I am BEYOND excited for this weekend which I get to spend with some of my favourite people in the world. I am declaring Sunday my godsons’ un-birthday (which I do once a year or so, by the power invested in me as a fairy godmother, obvs) and I can’t wait to hang out with them on the beach and catch up with their parents. So that’s why I’m a bit hyper, but also because YAY PUNCH THE AIR I have another beautiful wedding to share with you this fine Thursday. Danie and Henda had their big day at Café Felix, an awesome Cape venue that never fails to impress, and they dressed it in the prettiest of pastel florals, soft white fabrics and bunting, wreaths and garlands and ribbons, oh my. It looks like some kind of fairytale garden, with just a touch of boho. The weather wasn’t perfect – in fact, these are some of the windiest photos – but oh my word, Anné Gray of Anné Photography used it to create the most stunning portraits, with Henda’s soft dress and veil floating and billowing out behind her. They look like Cathy and Heathcliffe. (But, you know, not annoying.) This one is pure romance.Read More

Real Wedding at La Petite Dauphine {Natalie & Alex}

by gaby

It’s such a pleasure to me to be able to share the stories of so many brides and grooms here on SBB. But it’s even more of a pleasure when I get to share the love story of someone I know, and that’s what I get to do today! Natalie is a fellow Minervianer (which for the non-Stellenbosch crowd means we were in the same res at uni). She’s the loveliest person, and very beautiful, and I always knew some dashing man would sweep her off her feet. It turned out to be one of those stories where Nats fell in love with her best friend (love those, right?!) – I finally got a chance to spend some time with the couple here in London recently and they are ADORABLE. What I love most about their wedding day is that you can see the sheer joy radiating from both of their faces, and in fact this is the first thing Cheryl McEwan, their fab photographer, said to me afterwards, that the love on their big day was so tangible. This is what it’s all about, people! Well, that and a lovely in lavender intimate French-style reception at La Petite Dauphine and a bride in a romantic Suzanne Neville dress… but mostly the love. ;) Don’t miss Nats’ goosebumpworthy description of how they met and got together!Read More

Real Wedding at Hillhouse {Leigh & Andrew}

by gaby

Hello friends! It’s our first real wedding of the week, and this one is chock-full of handmade goodness! You know, people who have met me always assume (because I’m not much of a child person) that I’d be the first person to say that I prefer weddings kid-free. In fact, the opposite is true. I love kids at weddings (unless they’re screaming through the vows – take them outside, folks). They’re always so giddy and excited and awed by the whole thing, and they’re the most fun on the dancefloor. But more than anything, they remind me that a wedding is a community celebrating an event that isn’t just happening to someone else, but is part of who they all are and the fabric of their lives and friendships – having children there (another part of that fabric) just seems right to me. Anyway, this isn’t a lecture on why you should have kids at your wedding (do, don’t, up to you) but rather a thought that came out of today’s lovely wedding which also happens to have been particularly child-friendly. And the thing is, that with all the colour and beauty and detail (how much do we LOVE that altar backdrop, for example?), it seems very much a colourful tapestry of celebration in the way I’ve described. Samantha Maber was there to take these beautiful photos, and I’m thrilled to share them with you today!Read More

Wedding at Cascade Country Manor {Emma & Steve}

by gaby

Recently I’ve been featuring a number of fabulous alternative or more intimate venues, and today I have another. Cascade Manor is situated in lovely Paarl, and as well as having 900 olive trees on the property, features a beautiful waterfall – what a setting! Today’s bride and groom came from Tanzania for their big day, and together with planner Barry Geyer, created a look that was sumptuous and elegant, but still had bright pops of colour to keep up the visual interest. Moira West took the absolutely gorgeous photos, and didn’t Emma and Steve rock every one of them? With him in his slick suit and she in her romantic dress and hot pink shoes, it was difficult to narrow them down. But narrow I did, and here they are for your viewing pleasure!Read More