Angelica Gown – Adirana & Sean
COUPLE'S NAMES
Sean & Adriana Gibbs
DATE
5 December 2020
GUEST TOTAL
70
HOW WE MET
Sean and I first met through work, being at the same company. I did not know it at the time, but he had his eye on me back then, and evidently, I gave him the cold shoulder. A few years later we ended up working for the same company again, and after Sean sneaked in a kiss on a fun night out, I fell hard and fast and our office romance bloomed.
ENGAGEMENT STORY
Every year for our anniversary we drive up the West Coast in South Africa during the Namaqualand flower season, and it’s become a tradition to stop at our favourite place outside of Darling, the Groote Post, where we take a picture in the same spot every year. As usual, I walked deep into the flowers and as I turned around to face him, Sean was on one knee. It was such a special moment, just the two of us in a field of flowers.
MARRIAGE TO US MEANS
Marriage to us means a partnership between two people, loving each other’s flaws flawlessly. It means having unconditional support, encouragement, and someone to keep you honest and down to earth. It is a safe space to dream and grow together.
WEDDING LOCATION
Montpellier de Tulbagh, South Africa. We visited this farm years ago and joked about it being the perfect wedding venue. Fast forward 5 years and shopping for venues on a more serious note, Montpellier was the first venue we both unequivocally agreed to and the first to get us truly excited about our upcoming wedding. Marica and the team cannot be praised enough. The service and assistance we got from them really contributed to a stress-free and memorable wedding.
WEDDING AESTHETIC
We wanted a natural and fancy-free wedding. The beautiful nature and landscape are a big reason why we fell in love with the venue, and we wanted to keep that as our aesthetic, with a bit of a boho style to compliment the environment.
PHOTOGRAPHER
Sinjin Süllwald
Sinjin was recommended to us by our dear friend Shannon, founder of Bo & Luca, and he brought a unique and timeless feel to our wedding photos. Sean and I are both awkward with being photographed, and we did not want any stiff and over posed pictures. Sinjin did a beautiful documentary-style shoot and captured special and natural moments between Sean and I, and we are beyond ecstatic with how the pics came out.
FINDING YOUR DREAM WEDDING GOWN
BRIDES DRESS
ANGELICA gown ~ Bo & Luca
WEDDING DAY SCENT
Roberto Cavalli Paradiso
WEDDING DAY ACCESSORIES
A few years ago, I was gifted with a pair of Bo & Luca’s Peruvian Rain Dance earrings (I was already in love with the brand back then). It was special and sentimental for me to wear them on the day, and it complimented the Angelica gown perfectly.
BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES
WEDDING RINGS
I did not have a set preference for an engagement ring, all that Sean knew is that I would love a Morganite stone. Together with Claire from Botanica Jewellery, he designed the elegant oval ring with diamond detail all around. I absolutely love it and will not change it for the world, and what makes it more special is knowing how much Sean loves it as well. For the wedding band, Claire made a custom half-moon ring that fits perfectly around and compliments the beauty of the engagement ring. Sean’s wedding band was custom-made by York from VRVO, who listened closely to what Sean wanted and produced a ring unique to Sean and which was exactly what he wanted.
HAIR & MAKEUP
Marle Boltman also came highly recommended by Shannon, and she is a real gem. I felt natural and elegant, and her makeup style complimented my personality and the dress. At the last minute I decided to do something different with my hair, and Marle effortlessly created a classic look.
FLOWERS & BOUQUETS
I always wanted to arrange my own flowers (in another life I would be a florist) but quickly realised it is a bit ambitious when you are the bride. Sean’s cousin Kirsten and aunt Juju both have backgrounds in wedding décor and floristry, and they were absolutely amazing in setting up our décor. It turned into a beautiful family effort.
On Friday, all the ladies on both sides of the family, myself, and the bridal party arranged flowers into a multitude of vases, which turned out to be such a special and memorable time. On the day of the wedding Juju and Sean’s mom did the flowers and wreaths for the chapel, while Kirsten created our bouquets and set up the flowers and décor in the glasshouse for the reception. We sourced flowers and greenery from a few local places and some friends’ gardens, but the bulk of it, and the stunning flowers for the focal arrangements, we got from a beautiful local flower farm called Adene’s Flowers.
WEDDING CAKE
Sean’s aunt is a whiz in the kitchen and bakes the most delicious treats. Aunty Carol baked two of our favourite cakes, chocolate, and carrot, and Kirsten decorated them with fresh flowers.
FOOD & DRINKS
We used Malita Joubert Catering, who came highly recommended by the venue. This mother and daughter team delivered extraordinary food. We wanted something hearty and homely, and we both wanted our favourite ‘must haves’ to be included on the menu, which meant we had some traditional Afrikaans roosterkoeke and pampoenpoffertjies (pumpkin fritters), paired with a delicious lamb roast and individual chicken pot pies. We hear so much about brides and grooms not getting to eat at their wedding, but it was not the case with us. We tucked in properly and enjoyed our food as much as the guests. We selected Montpellier Spyseniersberg and MCC for the table wines, as it was our favourite easy drinking wine from the farm, but the guests could also purchase from the full range of award-winning wines and other drinks from the bar.
SPECIAL WEDDING SONGS
I’ve always known that I wanted to walk down the aisle on the wedding march, and as the ceremony was in a quaint chapel we opted for a solo cellist playing Mendelssohn’s wedding march, and it was better than anything I ever wanted. Our first dance song was Dance like Nobody’s Watching by Donavon Frankenreiter. It’s a beautifully happy song, with lyrics that we’ll keep close to our hearts, and return to, in the years to come.
CEREMONY & RECEPTION DÉCOR
Montpellier is a wine farm with beautiful nature and scenery, and we wanted our wedding to be an extension of this. In the chapel, we mostly had greenery and wreaths, and with all the windows open we had a beautiful view of the surrounding hills. The glasshouse we had the reception in is situated in a natural forest area, and we did not want our décor to draw attention away from it, but rather to draw the outside in. I also have a deep love for books, and the glasshouse had big bookshelves full of old books on the two walls not opening up to the forest, which perfectly bought two of our loves (books and nature) together. One thing I was quite adamant about was that I wanted the dancefloor outside, covered by a big Persian style carpet. We sourced a beautiful carpet that rounded off our décor perfectly, and now it covers our lounge floor and is a wedding gift to ourselves which we will treasure forever.
HONEYMOON
We had a trip to Italy planned, however, Covid has put a halt to any travel plans. We’re hoping to still do a belated honeymoon in Italy by the end of 2021, so we opted for a mini-moon in the picturesque town of Franschhoek. We had a few days of much-needed rest and recuperation, in which we spoiled ourselves with good food and wine, massages, and lots of sleep. It was fabulous just walking through the pretty streets or sitting down on a beautiful wine farm debriefing and reminiscing over the entire wedding weekend.
SOURCES OF INSPIRATION
It is so easy to get overwhelmed with ideas and themes. We talked about what aspects of our personalities and our life together we would like to incorporate, and we drew inspiration from this.
MOST TREASURED MOMENT OF MY WEDDING DAY
The entire day was truly magical, but a moment that stood out was when Sean and I went off for our photoshoot. It allowed us to spend quality time checking in with each other away from the guests, and it gave us a moment just to enjoy each other and the fact that we just got married. Another one that does not fail to put a smile on my face is our first dance. I thought it might be awkward, but the feeling of being in that beautiful bubble with my husband and hearing the cheering and joy from our guests was truly magical.
ADVICE FOR BRIDES-TO-BE
It will be one of the best days of your life surrounded by all your loved ones, and it really goes by much too quickly. Make sure you grab your new husband and take a few minutes away, just to capture the significance of the day and to celebrate each other. Don’t sweat the small stuff. There is a lot to think about and organise and you cannot have control of every minor detail, don’t let it ruin your day by stressing about it. Meet your vendors before and hire people that you feel comfortable with and can trust. I honestly loved all our vendors; venue, caterers, photographer, hair & make-up artists, and DJ, and fully trusting them to get the job done really enabled me to have a relaxed and memorable wedding day. And maybe most important, wear a comfortable dress. You spend a lot of hours in it and you would want to dance and move around freely.
VENDORS & SUPPLIERS
Venue: Montpellier
Wedding dress & accessories: Bo & Luca
Caterers: Malita Joubert Catering
Photographer: Sinjin Sullwald
Hair & Make-up: Marle Boltman
Flowers: Adene Flowers
Wedding stationery, invites & décor: Kirsten Krige