At the moment it’s the middle of the Summer and we are dying of the heat. But I just had to squeeze this delightful Winter wedding into this week’s schedule. I just love how Emile and Karla went all out Winter for their big day. They embraced the fact that they would say their wedding vows on a dreary day.

For the decor they opted for a grey and red colour scheme to give that feeling of warmth. The the groomsmen looked absolutely dashing in their winter coats. Let’s not forget the bridesmaids with their grey dresses, warm stockings and cute red ankle boots. So chic and different!

Thank you Emile and Karla for sharing your wedding feast with us. Cari you did a wonderful job in capturing all the detail.

Tell us your love story.

I was busy with my last year of studying theology in Pretoria and went out for a drink with my friends after I had to open with prayer for a church event! And as I walked in I saw this amazingly handsome guy sitting at the table, but I playing hard to get and not wanting him to know how handsome I thought he was! We all got introduced, you know how it works, there’s always a friend bringing another friend with! Emile couldn’t figure out how a Dominee could have a Polo handbag an an iPhone!!! So he started the conversation to figure out how to put these two together and at the end we were the last two leaving!! From there, we spend many times philosophizing, going on adventures and over seas trips and just enjoying to share life with each other, including the sorrows of three funerals in the family. We went to the Cederberge for a weekend and as we sat at the cottage in the Mountains and opened a bottle of wine, I joked with him and said he must speech now! And all of a sudden he really got serious and took the ring from his camera bag and I can’t really remember from there! It was tears of love and inspiration and the most sacred moment I have ever experienced!

What were the highlights of your wedding day?

The whole day, from beginning to end was a highlight for me.

Any advice for brides-to-be?

The preparation towards the big day is also part of the whole experience, brides should enjoy it and not sweat the small stuff. And remember to know who exactly has the key for your room when you leave!!! We decided that we are going to leave at the moment when the party was at the best, so that we can treasure that memories, staying on a highlight forever!

Did anything unexpected happen?

Our wedding co-ordinator had food poisoning the evening before our wedding!
I confirmed a few things with her at the venue on the Thursday before the wedding. Then on Friday I enjoyed a wonderful day at Lanzerac Spa with my Bridesmaids. After the spa day my fiance notified me of our wedding co-ordinator who’s in the hospital!! At that time, I was too excited to get married to Emile, that I didn’t really care! Everybody always say something will go wrong, so I thought that would be my thing that goes wrong, and I didn’t want that to stand in the way to still enjoy the day!

Where did you get most of your ideas and inspiration from?

We chose to get married in Winter, and I must say there is not to much ideas for winter weddings that is not in a snowy country!! But one friend gave me the advice: “If it is winter, the people know it is cold, so don’t try and remind them how much they want a summer feeling! Embrace the winter! People usually only sit at the table for a few minutes with summer weddings, because it is nice to be in the open air. With winter you have to create an atmosphere, where the people feel cosy inside and want to stay there!” So I focused on warm colors and flowers and had a coffee station where the smell reached the whole dining area so that the people felt cozy! But because your only a bride once, I looked at every possible blog (especially The Pretty Blog: truly!!) and every magazine I could get my hands on!

What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome while organising your dream wedding?

My mother got very ill just after we got engaged. After two months when we saw no progress with her recovery, we had to make a decision to postpone the wedding till she is out of hospital. Luckily we haven’t booked a venue or any other service provider at that stage, although we knew exactly who we wanted. Unfortunately on 28 December 2011 my mother passed away! It was difficult to handle two extreme emotions at one time, one of losing your mother and the other of being so excited for your new life with your partner! But I have amazing family and friends, and the best father who didn’t miss one dress fitting, and that helped me to enjoy the moments of this exciting time, but yet allowing me to miss my mother and have a tear now and then! So the actual booking and planning was easy, but it was difficult to know that my mother would never be part of it!!

Any hints for other brides on how to keep your wedding budget friendly?

I wish I knew how!!! Just kidding!! Get married in Winter, all the venues and service providers are much cheaper!!!

What song did you choose for your opening dance and why?

Ingrid Michealson – Everybody – It’s a beautiful song about love!!

How does your wedding reflect your personalities?

We love quality food and wine and friends! And that’s why we chose to keep the wedding smaller to only quality friends and then we can give them quality food and wine!!!

Anything else you would like to add?

Emile is in the wedding industry so he organized most of the wedding and I did the honeymoon arrangements!! We switched the roles!!! And on the day, he was the nervous one and I was floating in the air!!