Spring in South Africa was in full bloom at the wedding of Ksenia and Alexander, captivating with its delicate beauty and exquisite charm. The 'timeless elegance' décor theme transformed the event into a true celebration of romance and sophistication, making it a true manifestation of beauty and eternity. The green and white color palette embodied the image of eternal spring freshness, filling the space with purity and refinement. Read on to find out more details about the organization of the wedding from the bride and enjoy the beautiful photos taken by our talented member Vladimir Zakharov.
Tell us a little about yourselves. How did you meet? What do you do for a living? What are your hobbies?
We met in the University of St.Andrews when I just started my masters and my husband was on his last year finishing the bachelors degree. It was a regular student party on Friday, which at first i didn’t want to attend but than a couple of acquaintances went there so I tagged along. Our first date was in the same cafe where Prince William took out Kate for the first time, so we have a cute story to tell grandkids when we grow old. Now we live in Paris, my husband works in pharmaceutical business and my field of interest is sustainability. As cliche as it sounds we love to travel and a month rarely passes by without us discovering new places or visiting favorite ones.
Can you share your engagement story?
On the day of the proposal, Alexander and I went sailing on a boat in Dubai. He was nervous, and the champagne flute in his hand was shaking a little with excitement. At some point, he began exchanging meaningful glances with the photographer and the crew, and I realized something is about to happen. The proposal was very touching and sincere, but at the same time incredibly beautiful and well-thought. He reminded me the story about his dream when he was a boy and how it is now coming to life with me. It was perfect, I smile every time I think of that day.
Did you have any pre-wedding events, like a rehearsal dinner or bridal shower?
Yes, we had a welcome dinner with all the guests the night before the wedding. As some guests never met each other before we thought it would be nice to give them a chance to get to know each other before the big day. It was a colorful evening full of games, jokes and laughter that definitely served its purpose as the next day all the invitees felt more relaxed and familiar with each other. I believe it is important for guests not to be shy and really have fun during the wedding as this day creates also their memories, not just ours.
Where was your wedding? Why did you choose this venue?
Our wedding took place in the vineyards of Stellenbosh near Cape Town (SA). It was a beautiful beginning of spring with trees and flowers beginning to blossom and the weather just warm enough to wear sun dresses without the risk of a sunburn. This location despite being very remote was one of the few places where it was easy for our guests to get to: it did not require a visa and was accessible by plane from all over the world. What is more, many of our friends (ourselves included) dreamt of visiting South Africa one day so we gave them a good reason for such a vibrant vacation.
What was the concept behind your wedding and how did you find your inspiration?
The concept of the wedding was quite simple yet demanding. The code name for it was “timeless elegance” and the color palette for the decor was whites and greens with matched the location perfectly. We wanted it to look modern and include some trendy elements yet to stay classy and traditional. Also having in mind the beauty of the location and the abundance of flowers and greenery on it we wanted not to overshadow but to accentuate it with decor. I must say, that a lot of inspirational pictures and videos were gathered by me long before the wedding. I had mood boards on Instagram and Pinterest and I must say that a big chunk of the inspiration came from The Wed. Also some ideas came from the friends’ weddings we’d been part of. When the time came and I showed my husband the concept i had in mind, he tuned in and loved it as it was.
How long did it take to plan your wedding? Did you encounter any challenges during the planning process?
I would say we started the process in the middle of May…so 5,5 months! Of course the process wasn’t easy as we were in one location, our planner in the other and the wedding was to take place in the third, where neither us nor our planner had previously been to! But we had an amazing team both on the side of the planners and of the venue who made our dream wedding happen. The most difficulties we had during the planning process were around the differences of the wedding culture and working practices, however due to the professionalism on both sides of the world everything was resolved.
How many guests did you have? And what was the seating arrangement at the wedding like?
We had around 40 guests. At first we planned for 50 but some people couldn’t come at the very last moment, so we had to adapt. During the ceremony we had several rows in a semicircle around the main venue — the Pavilion — which was surrounded by water. For the dinner we opted for arranged seating with two long parallel tables and the sweethearts table at one end.
Tell us about your outfits. How many different styles have you tried?
We had very classical outfits — the princess off-shoulder dress for me and a white smoking for my husband. It was resonating well with the concept of the wedding and felt very “us”. For the second outfit that I changed into before the danse I had a custom-made corset with a very light flappy skirt and an almost translucent cape. The dress followed my every movement creating a very graceful look. For the hair my stylist and I picked a loose hairdo with a sleek front because I was sure that I wanted a more natural look. Changing into the second dress we also changed my hair for a half-up-half-down style and added a satin bow to it. I love bows and always try to incorporate them into my looks, so I am very happy its growing as a trend now.
What was your first dance song? Did you choreograph or improvise?
The first dance was one of the most important elements of the wedding for me, second only to the ceremony itself. I blame Disney movies for this as I grew up with a notion that every great love should end with the danse and the words “...and they lived happily ever after” appearing at the top of the screen. It was crucial to us both that the music was beautiful and meaningful and the routine was choreographed but looked effortless and natural. Honestly, I was sure that all my dancing dreams would remain as such, because men rarely are enthusiastic about this part of the wedding. But Alexander never ceases to amaze me! To my great surprise after a couple of lessons with the teacher, we had a choreographed dance from my childhood dreams with some room for improvisation. By the way, for the song we chose “The Wonder of You” in the version from the TV series “Big Little Lies”. As expected the first dance was beautiful and moving, we both had amazing time performing it and some guests (our parents mostly) broke into tears.
Did you have any special performances or entertainment?
We hired a 3-piece instrumental band for the cocktail hour and the ceremony as well as a cover band for the reception dinner. All of them were wonderful! But the most memorable part was one of our guests who is a singer himself performing several of his songs as a surprise for us. I would say that one of his songs even became some kind of a soundtrack for the wedding weekend.
What was the most memorable moment from your wedding day?
The whole day was obviously a blast, but there were three moments that are most dear to my heart: the ceremony, the dance and the moment we entered the Glasshouse for our reception dinner. Undoubtedly, the ceremony was a touching moment: from the entrance of us both to the location to the wows exchange and the tying-the-knot moment. All of this with an unimaginable backdrop of South African mountains and vineyards. I told you about the dance — it was also magical time that I was prepared for. But the moment we entered the venue for the dinner — it was a total surprise for me as I haven’t seen it before and had no idea how it was going to turn out to be in reality. I gasped and had no words for a split second that’s how stunning it looked: transparent pavilion all covered with arches of fragrant greenery and long tables decorated with candles and white flowers.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
Without any hesitation I would say that the team behind our wedding was simply fantastic and definitely outdid themselves! Planner Nadya (RWG) — first of all, she believed in our idea to celebrate the wedding on the other end of the world without being present on or even seeing the location, she could adapt to all the challenges that appeared while still accommodating our wishes and vision. Together we created so many unique elements for our celebration that made it truly memorable not just for us, but for all the guests and even the team. Photographer Vladimir — we haven’t met before the arrival day in SA, but as soon as the shoot began we clicked right away. It was a pleasure to work with Vladimir and the photos we got were beyond our expectation. He promised us a Hollywood couple shoot and… he delivered! All the images look lively, sincere and simply beautiful — what more can you wish for? Another amazing thing about our partnership — we got our photos really quick. Decor team — The results in the photos can speak for themselves — all the venues were beautifully decorated and very carefully disassembled to be reused for other purposes and not thrown away the same day. Venue management — Magnificent as it was, the venue wouldn’t have half its charm without people working there. Event manager Lianca who coordinated the whole process was such a big help that I cannot imagine how we could cope without her.
What advice would you give to couples who are currently planning their wedding?
I would say listen to yourself, your partner and the planner. Exactly in that order! And the second piece of advice I would give to people like me, perfectionists and control freaks: before the wedding, try to trust your team more. They are professionals, and you chose them for a reason. And during that important day I would say the same thing my planner told me: just let it go and enjoy.
Were there national/religious traditions at your wedding and how did you implement them?
At the ceremony we did not exchange the rings as we had already done this in March during civil ceremony, but as a mutually binding act we tied a symbolic knot. This is an ancient Scottish tradition that unites the families of the bride and groom and themselves together representing a strong intertwined union. None of our families have Scottish origins but we met, fell in love and spent our first year together there, so we wanted to pay our respects to the country that brought us together.
Did you have any special or unique elements (such as a signature cocktail or a fragrance) at your wedding?
I think it would not be an exaggeration to say quite a lot special and unique elements were created for our wedding:
— Hotel key-card wrapping with a wedding program and location map that were given to all the guests upon arrival
— Thematic issue of the newspaper (The Newlyweds Times) which we put it in our guests' rooms. There we told our love story, shared our family tree, made up several wedding games, a local dictionary, and more. Guests loved it: both reading and bringing as a souvenir. Also it was a cool prop for photos!
— Guest Bingo. As we had the task of introducing all the guests and giving them a reason to communicate outside of long-established groups, we decided to give out cards with fun facts to everyone, to which they had to find a person.
— Decorative print-out elements of the wedding table: the wobbly dinner menu, the kiss menu, the custom cocktail menu, the butterflies as placement cards and hand-painted candles, which I saw on Pinterest and couldn’t resist making for us.
— Painting and sketches. We had an artist during our cocktail hour who drew sketches of the guests. She also captured the moment of the ceremony on canvas, and the very next day we had an impressionist painting that now hangs in the bedroom.
— Cake. We could not take our favorite pets with us to South Africa so we put them on the cake. They were siting on the back side of it mischievously spying on the guests.
What helped you cope with the anxiety before the wedding?
I would say that it was not “what” but rather “who”: our wedding planner Nadya. Being a perfectionist myself it was difficult for me to let go of some of the moments during the planning phase and the day of the wedding. In the morning of that day several things went south: couple of guests didn’t arrive, the timeline of the morning started to be chaotic and as a cherry on top a strong wind started and broke a couple of the decor pieces as well as affected other aspects of the wedding. But Nadya was so calm and gathered that I couldn’t believe that a person like her wouldn’t be able to solve all the problems. Also she said one very simple but so much needed truth: at that point we couldn’t change anything but that special day is happening only once, so I’d better stop worrying and start enjoying it. And she was right! As soon as I let go of things I couldn’t influence it started to be the day of my dreams.
Photo: @zakharovphoto
Planner: @russianweddinggroup
Venue: @hazendal_estate
Decor: @thegrandbotanist
MC: @artemmaslov
MUAH: @kseniya.bodyagina
Second Bridal Look: @mari.a.couture
