The incredible South African wedding photographer, Annemari Ruthven, totally made my day when she agreed to let me share this gorgeous wedding with you! You’re in for some fun wedding decor delights…coral roses, succulents, and cactus centerpieces, big plush pillows used as guest seating, hanging paper lanterns, tea cups and medicine bottles used as vases, and a yummy mix of butterfly petit fours, cupcakes, and cookies! This wedding sent the most amazing casual-elegance vibe my way.
The adorable couple, Debbie and Keith, were married at Rockhaven Farm, a luxury guesthouse found perfectly nestled among orchards, groves of olive trees and lavender in Elgin Valley, located only an hours drive from Cape Town. Breathtaking views of nature, a private dam and surrounding mountains?
Umm…sounds like a prefect wedding venue to me! What do you think?
To see plenty more of this wedding and all the amazing details, go here to see more from Annemari!
Creative Team Behind the Scenes:
Venue: Rockhaven Farm (Elgin Valley) / Photographer: Annemari Ruthven / Wedding Planners: Event Interiors (Cape Town) / Music: Silent Revolution (Cape Town)
I recently came across We Love Pictures, a fabulous Cape Town based, South African photography team and fell in love with their work! So you can imagine how ecstatic I was when the We Love Pictures team responded to an email I sent them asking if I could feature a few of their weddings on The Oceanside Bride. I about screamed when I got their reply “yes!” So ladies that is my subtle warning to you that there will be other Real Wedding features from WLP. =) But you won’t be disappointed because they have captured some of the most beautiful and unique seaside weddings!
So now up is a beautiful yellow themed wedding from Neil and Holly!
From the lovely bride: I am originally from England but I went to high school in South Africa at Pietermaritzburg Girls High, Neil went to Maritzburg College right across the road! We never actually met then and it wasn’t until 7 years later in 2007 when we met in New York while we were both working on a yacht. After an amazing couple of weeks exploring and enjoying the incredible city, we sailed out of the Hudson and realized we had started something special.
Our friends and family being able to make it to our wedding was our most important factor. As we have been living abroad for nearly 5 years we wanted to make it as easy as possible for the people we hadn’t seen in the longest time, we chose South Africa. Our next challenge was choosing from the numerous attractions that the country has to offer! We both have a love of the ocean as well as the winelands. Hermanus seemed a good fit for both and with Cape Town just down the road, the decision was made.
We were unbelievably lucky as so many people traveled from just about every continent around the world, as well as all corners of South Africa to share our special weekend with us. Those that were visiting South Africa for the first time took advantage of the safaris, vineyards, coastline and everything else that the country has to offer. And all of them are STILL raving about their wonderful holiday!
We were lucky enough to have a family friend who lives locally and owns a fabulous cream-colored Rolls Royce, with a registration plate – White Cloud. We loved the car and incorporated it into a lot of our pictures.
Everyone told us how quickly the day goes, so we tried to draw it out as long as we could. We went for an afternoon ceremony, chose a dinner venue with a late curfew, sensational views for sundowner cocktails and an excellent DJ to party the night away.
We chose yellow as a theme color as it is Neil’s favorite and plays a big part in his history. Lemons and yellow objects were used as accents in place of floral decorations.
Finally we decided to have our wedding on a Friday. We felt that this worked perfectly as so many people flew in for the weekend and this way we could maximize our time with them and draw out the celebrations! We had a spit bbq the following day with a few kegs of beer on a big open garden over looking the ocean. This enabled us to spend a lot more time with everyone and speak to the ones we didn’t get the chance to on the wedding day. Most people flew out on Sunday with sore heads and full cameras!
What challenges (if any) did you face while planning your wedding?
We were fortunate enough to have an unbelievable wedding planner with extra ordinary skills! Any challenges that she may have encountered, we certainly didn’t get to hear about!
Things that she couldn’t help us with were deciding who sits where. This was a little tricky as we had a very diverse group. But I have a feeling this may be a slight pain in the lead up to any wedding. Looking back on it now, every one was so happy to be there, regardless of where they sat. So the less you worry about this the better ;)
Please tell us about your favorite wedding moment!
Robert Steiner pronouncing us husband and wife. Walking out of the church through the crowd of all our friends and family. The car ride up to our reception. Walking into the venue. Listening to all of the incredible speeches. Looking around the room and seeing so many loved ones all together – overwhelming! Sitting here with Neil now, we are finding it impossible to think of a solitary moment that stands out above the rest. The whole day from start to finish was more special than we could have ever imagined!
What is your best advice for other couples planning a wedding right now?
Wedding planner! It’s the one decision I would never change and the one piece of advice I will pass on to any friend. Kim was unbelievable throughout the whole process. We worked with her for 10 months while we were in America and she was based in Cape town. Coming from over seas we only had 2 weeks in SA with our wedding in the middle. It was such a short time and we really wanted to enjoy that time with family and friends – not plan a wedding! Kim took care of everything and the out come was a day that surpassed any dream we might have had! If you’re not the one that’s worked and stressed over all the little details, then its so much easier to truly enjoy it all on the day!
Try your best to take the day in one moment at a time. Its flies by very quickly!
Doesn’t this wedding look like so much fun? I love all the splashes of yellow and the fun use of lemons! You know I’m a big fan of fruit being used in centerpieces and place settings. Another big thanks to We Love Pictures for sharing their amazing work with us and to Holly and Neil for sharing all the fun wedding details! Congratulations you two!
Couple: Neil and Holly
Wedding Date: November 26, 2010
Wedding Location: Hermanus, Western Cape, South Africa
Approximate Guest Size: 120
Ceremony Location: St Peters Anglican Church, Hermanus, South Africa
Reception Location: La Vierge Winery, Western Cape, South Africa
Vendors: Wedding Planner: Kim Werner, Wedding Concepts / Cake: Roxy Floquet / Hair & Make-up: Nicky Lonte / Flowers: Okasie (wedding concepts) / Wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses: Victorias Bridal Coture / Photography: We Love Pictures / Videography: Vision on Fire
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