Following the ceremony our guests arrived for canapés and pre-drinks to find the courtyard transformed into a cigar lounge á la Cuba in warm leather shades of brown and red and dotted with Persian carpets, tea boxes and Moroccan lanterns. Long white tables – laden with champagne in silver coolers, elegant glassware and succulent oysters served courtesy of The Oyster King – stretched either side of the entrance while the tuneful sounds of Zamar floated gently on the air.

Then it was time for the reception to kick off with me and Gabriel inviting our guests into our special, private Winter Wonderland…

The setting was, in a word, a complete masterpiece in white and blue. White table linen, white chairs, white flowers and white floral arrangements stood in sharp relief against the ice blue lighting effects: walls uplit in dark blue, gentler wash lighting for the roof, even the band similarly backlit, and the dance floor – swirled in heavy fog – perfectly captured the soft reflection of the fairy lighting from the canopy above.

Borrowing from a Scottish tradition, Gabriel and I shared a ‘marriage of the wines’ ritual where, in a powerful moment of recommitment, we each added our blend of wine to an age-old wine vat from where it was decanted into stylish carafes for all our guests to share in during the evening.

“Marius, I know our wedding wouldn’t have been this amazing had it not been for you! Everything, from beginning to end, was perfect; a perfect start to the next chapter in our love story. I quote our photographer, Joe: ‘G.R.A.N.D’!!”

Alex and Rory, your invites are all set to leave the office for Spain, I can’t wait for you to open the parcel. Thanks Lara, they looks amazing, LOVE the name badge idea.

Website: www.larasdesigns.co.za

The date is booked and now it is time to send out your Save the Date to make sure your guests keep this special day free. You have the choice of either sending out a physical card or a digital design that you can email to your guests.

The advantages of the digital option is that it is a fast and affordable way to get the information needed across to your guests. You may wish to have links to accommodation or other websites. We can also create reply buttons at the bottom of the mail; these allow guests to give you an indication as to whether they will be able to attend or not, which may cut down on the amount of invitations that you need to get printed in the long run.

Every Save the Date is custom designed exclusively for the couple and to represent their unique event. Below are a few examples from Lara’s portfolio. Enjoy browsing through them!

Lara’s details: www.larasdesigns.co.za

Nanindi and Gabriel Slabbert – 27 August 2011

Sthembile and Thabiso Masiela – 15 October 2011

“We don’t meet expectations, we exceed them.”

Sthembile’s comments: “We both have a particular fondness for the Garden Route and, having become engaged on Wilderness beach, were certain that the Garden Route could also deliver that perfect venue for what we had decided was going to be a classic, romantic, elegant yet cool wedding, a fabulous day all about us.

As soon as Marius took us to see Kurland, with its exquisite gardens and sprawling polo fields, we knew we’d found that perfect spot; and to top it all it was close to a beautiful beach which could play host to our ceremony, Nature’s Valley. Kurland is a simply stunning venue with the most picturesque scenery. All our guests were travelling a great distance to attend our wedding so, to make the trip especially worthwhile for them, we wanted the venue to be breathtakingly beautiful. It seems we managed that, from the guest comments we received the venue certainly took their breath away.

We started off with the ceremony on Nature’s Valley beach which was preceded by gifts of parasols and hats for our barefoot guests – they’d had to remove their shoes! And the weather was so beautiful on the day; the sun was out so the beach looked absolutely gorgeous. It is said that rain on a wedding day signifies good luck so we were also blessed with rain later that evening.

We then moved on to the reception at Kurland where we all enjoyed chilled drinks and tasty canapés while being treated to a thrilling game of polo. As our guests took their seats Marius took the two of us aside for a five minute breather to reflect on the day – we found that gesture extremely thoughtful.”

Sthembile also let us in on her most special moment, “All morning I had been looking forward to seeing Thabiso and our saying our I do’s. As I was walking towards him, I was overcome by the most overwhelming feeling of happiness and couldn’t stop smiling. When he took my hand and we looked at each other I felt my heart fill to the point of overflowing – I have never felt the way I did at that moment, it was every bit the way I had imagined it would be!”

Thabiso managed to get a word in too: “After not having seen my wife to be since the night before and having waited for her at the altar, the feeling was immeasurable as she walked towards me in the bright sunlight in her brilliant white dress and dramatic veil; I couldn’t help myself and whispered to my best man ‘She looks absolutely beautiful’.”

“We think our wedding was just beautiful, everything was perfectly organised and Marius made sure that we were happy throughout the day. He was always there ensuring everything was running smoothly so that we didn’t have to worry about a single thing.

We’d recommend Marius to anyone for his professionalism, care and creativity. He is one of the very best in the industry, if not the best!”

Thanks to:

The Turbine Hotel: www.turbinehotel.co.za

Elsje Designs – www.elsje.co.za

Hausmuti – www.hausmuti.co.za

Liza Wigley – www.lizawigleyphotography.co.za

DP from Ecozest