I love the color palette of this wedding. It’s lovely and soft with the perfect amount of style, and carried beautifully throughout the entire party. And the images from Carla Marie? Equally lovable. They tell the prettiest story of a couple head over heels in love, and you can see every last gorgeous moment right here in the full gallery of images.
From the Bride…When we first moved in together, we would take walks to and from our home to the river. On those walks, we’d pass this beautiful old church, and I knew from the moment we first walked by it that I wanted us to be married there, and that we would have a picture with all of our guests on the steps of the church. When we got engaged, we chose the ceremony venue of the Royal Mayfair Golf Club because of all the huge windows in the ballroom, which made you feel as if you were almost sitting outdoors – but without the mosquitos that plague our city every August! It was a gorgeous setting, and both venues were right in the heart of downtown and the river valley – two places where we first really fell in love.
We met while on vacation in Mazatlan, Mexico three and a half years earlier, so it was important to us to have subtle hints of “Mexico” in our wedding. We accomplished this at the reception by starting off the evening with a toast to our guests: as our wedding party walked in they began handing out margaritas that our venue made for us, called “The Mazatlan”. The table numbers were in Spanish and the favours that our guests took home were salsa and chips, both of which were made from a local chef who recently immigrated to Canada from Mexico City, and who uses only local organic ingredients.
I’ve said so many times that I would re-live that weekend every single year. Family members and friends flew in from all over the country and the US and we started off the party with a relaxed backyard rehearsal dinner at my parents’ home. The night before the wedding, my mom and I stayed together in the hotel where we got ready the following morning, chatting, laughing, and crying about all of the beautiful things in our lives. And on the morning of the wedding, my beautiful bridesmaids began to trickle in with Starbucks and magazines in hand. Over the course of the next few hours, we relaxed, laughed, and watched as my Maid of Honour painted little signs celebrating each of us: one sign stating “Newlywed”, another “Engaged”, another “Bébé On The Way”, and others. When I was in my gown, I made my way to the lobby of our hotel for the first look with my soon-to-be husband: a moment I will never forget, and one that I am so glad is captured on film! We then left the hotel, just the two of us, and went next door to our favourite Mexican restaurant and shared a Margarita, as another ode to the country where we met. It was wonderful to start the day off with a private little “date” before the pictures and ceremony.
My advice to brides would be simply to go with your gut – don’t second-guess your style or your choices simply because you are seeing or hearing different things online or from your family or friends. Also, please don’t feel compelled to complicate the day with unnecessary details. Find a few things that are important to you, and stick with them. For me it was being surrounded by family, the subtle theme of Mexico in the decor and creating an environment that was relaxed and welcoming for all of the guests. And finally, choose an amazing photographer – we were blown away by the beautiful, clear images that Carla from Carla Marie Photography captured. They are the images that will decorate your home and memory books for years to come, the images that your grandkids look at and ponder, the images that you will cherish. We are so thankful to Carla and all of the other vendors for their help making our day so incredible.
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Photography: Carla Marie | Decor: A Chair To Remember | Floral Design: Funky Petals West Edmonton | Printed Items (all signs, programs, invitations, thank you note, etc): One of the groom’s lovely sisters | Ceremony Location: St. Joachim’s Catholic Church | Reception Venue: Royal Mayfair Golf Club | Cake/cupcakes: Whimsical Cake Studios | Cake-Topper: Better Off Wed | Makeup: Jenn Chivers Freelance Hair and Makeup | Hair: STACIE PAIGE HAIR | Wedding Dress: Watters WTOO | Bride’s Shoes: Nine West | Jewellery: Bittersweet | Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew + Donna Morgan | Groom’s cufflinks: White Truffle | Groommen’s Tie clips: Metals Heart | Bride’s Rings: Simon G