The very first thing I fell in love with when I first laid eyes on this wedding from Magic Wedding Studio was that gorgeous gown. Simple, yet absolutely stunning, the gold detail won my heart in a second. And then I read the brides story and learned that gown was made from her grandmother’s veil. Does it get better than that? Why don’t you check on the gallery and tell me what you think. I think no.

 

From the Bride… I am so excited to have my wedding featured on SMP, especially since I spent hours on SMP perusing the beautiful images of past weddings! My name is Amelia Farid and my new husband is Kalan Rutstein. Our wedding was held on July 7th, 2012 in Beijing, China where we met, and where both our families now live.

We come from diverse backgrounds – Kalan is Bermudian-British-American, was born in Papua New Guinea and raised in Pakistan, Israel, Albania, Italy and the Philippines, while I am Persian-American, was born in Hong Kong and raised in China. So we both wanted a wedding that didn’t conform to any particular tradition. The idea of a big elaborate dress, an aisle to walk down, and overdone decorations didn’t appeal to us. We decided on a low-key color palette of mint green, cream and gold. The ceremony was the most important part of the wedding for us. We are both members of the Baha’i Faith, so we had a simple ceremony emphasizing readings, prayers and the exchange of the Baha’i marriage vows. Then guests were led outside for a buffet of delicious Persian food. Unfortunately it started raining just as people were settling down to eat! But this turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Not only did we get to enjoy the truly hilarious sight of people rushing inside (in high heels and with napkins on their heads), but it also created a wonderfully casual atmosphere for the rest of the night. After dinner, we had some performances and speeches, including Kalan surprising me by singing my favorite song from when we met. The night ended with a whole lot of dancing. Details from the wedding that I love include:

1. The “Family Tree” was a tree on which we hung photos of our parents, grandparents and other people we love. We thought this would be a great way to honor the amazing people that came before us and include family members who weren’t able to make the long trip to China. We especially loved having photos of our parents on their wedding days.

2. I had a lot of trouble deciding on a dress. I wanted something unique and meaningful. So when my mother showed me a wedding veil that her grandmother had worn to her wedding in Iran in the early 1900′s I knew I just had to use it! The veil is hand-embroidered with strands of pure gold into intricate patterns onto a beautiful mesh material. I was in love! After some deliberation, I decided to make a wedding dress out of it. I had a tailor make a simple slip to wear underneath and sew the veil around it in a delicate painfully long (but absolutely worth-it!) process.

3. Our families all contributed their unique talents to making our wedding a reality. The cake (or should I say cakes?) was designed by my mother, who created beautiful peony bases on which they were placed. Kalan’s mother helped with finding the venue and decorating the space. Our whole extended family spent the day of the wedding arranging flowers and setting everything up. My cousin who is a graphic designer designed the program and invitations. My sister created the bird-shaped placement cards and worked hard on coordinating logistics. Kalan’s sister who has a beautiful voice performed a song during the wedding and set the playlist for the evening. His other sister created a beautiful slide show of our childhoods and courtship that was shown after dinner. Another cousin of mine manned a station where people could take polaroids, sign them and hang them up as a guestbook. My brother coordinated the finances. Even my little 10 year old sister contributed at every stage of the planning process. It was amazing to see how much time and effort our family and friends put in to making our wedding what it was. This, for me, was the best part.

Wedding Photography: Magic Wedding Studio | Wedding Venue: Green T. Living in Beijing, China | Wedding Cinematography: V1 Video

I’ve been kind of obsessed with the idea of visiting Brazil ever since a good friend of mine spent two months soaking in the amazing landscape and culture.  He said it was awesome… and after seeing this sweet affair captured by Alem Photo, I agree whole-heartedly.  A fun-filled day set against the beautiful Itapema Beach, it’s drop-dead gorgeous blooms from Clari Decorações meets a laid-back, yet elegant vibe meets one of the most stunning brides you will ever see.  Join me in the gallery for all of the pretty.

 

From the Bride… Our ceremony and reception took place on the beach of an oceanfront restaurant in Itapema, Brazil.  We rented a wooden deck and a tent, which, in combination with the decorations created a wonderful ambience. We were both so thrilled! The reception was on-site, at the restaurant, immediately following the ceremony. We had a beautiful reception, filled with flowers, the finest seafood of South Brazil, and a wide range of delicious desserts. It was an incredible night, everyone looked so happy and we saw all our guests enjoying the party!

Dave and I like to travel and live abroad. Subsequently, there were guests from the United States, China, Colombia and Brazil. They were able to experience American and Brazilian cultures in one big event. In both the ceremony and reception, we kept some Brazilian traditions, while adding some American flair to almost everything we did. As an example, instead of the classic garter toss, Dave followed a Brazilian tradition of being blindfolded, spun around, and placing a tie over the head of one of the bachelors, who move in a circle around him.

As a graphic designer, I loved creating the plans and layouts for my own wedding. Things went very smoothly with my wedding decorator as I gave her a clear picture of what I wanted, so she was able to do her job of making it all possible. It was breathtaking to see all of mine and Dave’s work come together just as I had imagined.

Fourteen people came from America to see us say “I Do” and I wanted to make sure that everything would look perfect for them, since they had come all the way to Brazil. Our American family and friends loved the atmosphere and the joy that the Brazilian culture brought to the reception party. Likewise, our Brazilian guests were amazed with all of the American details we added to our big day!

Wedding Photography: Alem Photo | Ceremony Venue: Itapema Beach in Itapema, Brazil | Reception Venue: Recanto da Sereia Restaurant in Itapema, Brazil | Wedding Cinematography: Mottiva Filmes | Wedding Coordination: Agape Cerimonial | Floral + Event Design: Clari Decorações | Catering: Recanto da Sereia Restaurant | Wedding Cake: Eveline Maia | Dessert: Menta Pura | Macarons: Les Amies Macarons | Music: Tiago Catafesta | Wedding Stationery: the bride Perfetto | Wedding Dress: Yolan Cris Barcelona | Bride’s Headband: Black Tie São Paulo | Bride’s Shoes: Macy’s | Hair + Makeup: Juliane Friedrich

I’m not exaggerating when I saw my jaw literally dropped at these photos. Do you know, half of them are at the art historian bride’s home? You’ve simply got to read all about the wedding below and then block out your entire afternoon. You’re going to need at least that much time to devour every Tuscan inch of the full gallery from Innocenti Studio Photography & Video.

 

From Innocenti Studio Photograhy & Video… When Kira contacted us for the first time, she was looking for a photographer that would capture two particular moments of her wedding day: her own house in Florence where she would get ready for the wedding, and the Ceremony in one of the most beautiful churches in Florence, Santa Maria dei Pazzi. Before moving back to her home city of Paris, Kira (an art historian) and her fiancé Damien decided to celebrate their marriage in the homeland of Renaissance culture, in real Tuscan style.

Although we were expecting to meet Kira in a beautiful location, our jaws literally dropped when we saw the house she was sharing with her artist friends… huge rooms decorated with old frescos and pianos, contemporary paintings, dried flowers, whimsical objects and the air was still smelling of fresh paint… we were totally speechless!

The house was the perfect frame for the total simplicity of Kira’s dress, in perfect French chic style, and for the pink palette chosen for the bridesmaid dresses.

The ceremony took place in a secluded religious complex in the centre of Florence dated back from 1257, that includes the Church of Santa Maria Maddalena dei Pazzi and a former convent, in Borgo Pinti. The reception was then held in the fourteenth Century residence of Il Trebbiolo, nested between the hills of Fiesole and surrounded by olive trees, with a breathtaking view of the valley at sunset.

The wedding was a triumph of understated elegance and simplicity, and the main design was the perfect choice of venues and location made by Kira, that we think couldn’t represent better the real essence of Florence, bringing together its two essences: the city of the Arts per excellence through the artists’ house and the Renaissance Church, and the beauty of the landscape and its cousin at Il Trebbiolo.

From the Bride… The main idea for me and Damien was to have a beautiful Tuscan wedding in Italy. As I am an art Historian, I was living in Florence at the time, and I wanted to have my wedding in a beautiful Renaissance/Baroque church and a decoration inspired by Italian Renaissance sculpture (Della Robbia’s).

Even the food we chose was not just Italian, but typically Tuscan, and the menu was prepared according to the season. For the catering we chose Guidi Lenci, the best ever really in Florence, and food and service were perfect indeed!

The designer of my dress is Berengère Saint Pierre and the invites were made in Florence as well from the Il Parione, the owner Stefano is quite amazing and I would say he’s the best in Florence – as my photographers Emma & Esther from Innocenti Studio – the pictures are absolutely beautiful and we LOVE them!  

Wedding Photography: Innocenti Studio Photograhy & Video | Ceremony Venue: Chiesa Santa Maria dei Pazzi in Florence, Italy | Reception Venue: Il Trebbiolo in Fiesole, Italy | Catering: Guidi Lenci | Ice Cream: Gelateria Carabè | Wedding Invitations: Il Parione | Wedding Dress: Berengère Saint Pierre: | Bride’s Shoes: vintage Charles Kammer Paris | Groom + Groomsmen Attire: Wilvorst