Hudson Gown – Amber & Michael

April 28, 2020

Real Brides

Hudson Gown – Amber & Michael

COUPLE’S NAMES

Amber Abrahams & Micheal Timm.

WEDDING DATE

1 February 2020

LOCATION

Natte Valleij – We chose the most beautiful private residence which is rented out for weddings. The venue includes an overgrown fairytale garden with the perfect spaces for an outdoor reception in front of the manor house, an area for post-reception welcoming drinks and snacks, and my favourite section which is a stunning spot for that dream long table next to the risen dance floor which is also used for speeches. We decided not to use the indoor area to keep with our garden-themed wedding, although that is also an option. Natte Valleij also offers 14 sleeper accommodation on site!

GUEST TOTAL

We had a total of 65 guests at our wedding, which was a small number for us as more than half of those guests were my family alone! We kept the group to close friends and family which made the day so special and intimate.

PHOTOGRAPHER

Courtney Gretchen Photography – Courtney is a friend of ours whose work we have always loved. Knowing our photographer allowed us to really have fun with the photos and let loose. It was extremely important to me that the majority of our photos were simply documentary-style and not posed.

BRIDE’S DRESS

I wore the most incredible Bo & Luca gown which they call the Hudson. Bo & Luca were the only dress brand I visited and as soon as I put the Hudson gown on I was finished. The gown was made from the most beautiful satin that was silky soft. It fit like a glove and was so comfortable. I remember walking into the showroom with one specification in mind for my gown. “I would like to be able to sit barefoot on the grass with my legs crossed.” The Hudson gown allowed for that movement, especially when on the dance floor!

BRIDESMAID’S DRESSES

My instruction to my 9 beautiful bridesmaids was to wear whatever it is that would make them feel the most beautiful. They knew it would be a warm February day and that a flowy long dress would be the most comfortable. They all wore such different, yet similar styles which when put next to one another looked like the most beautiful compilation I could have ever dreamed of. Giving them the freedom to wear whatever made them happy was a special way for me to share the unique and wonderful friends in my life through their different styles with my guests and family.

PROPOSAL STORY

My husband proposed to me on his 25^th birthday in front of both of our families. What is funny is that I didn’t find it strange at all that he invited my grandparents to his birthday lunch, we are a very close family and he has always been the sweetest with being extremely involved with my side of the family. His birthday was at one of our favourite places, Leopard’s leap, as they offer the most beautiful buffet lunch on Sunday’s that is so plant-based friendly and insanely delicious. Michael used his birthday speech to propose to me, and I remember being so caught off guard and absolutely shocked! I didn’t see it coming at all! The answer was an obvious yes, and I have never felt more loved than in that moment.

WEDDING THEME

I had two ideas in mind for the wedding that I really wanted to actualize, and those were having an outdoor garden wedding, with accents of a bohemian floor table as a relaxed chill space for our guests. We found a company called ‘The Souk’ which allowed us to create the bohemian feel for such an amazing price. I highly recommend them.

WEDDING RINGS

For our rings we decided to go for gold, literally. I had always said to Michael that he should never design my wedding ring for me because it was something I wanted to do myself. So he took the smart route and prosed with a beautiful simple gold band. He told me that we could melt it down and I could design the ring I wanted, but I fell so in love with the simple band that I decided not to change it, and I don’t think I ever will. My husband’s band is by ‘Dear Rae’ and is such a beautiful design. It has a signet style in a matching yellow gold to mine, with an intricate landscape design engraved on the top.

FLOWERS & BOUQUETS

The flowers for our wedding day were done by the mother of my Maid of Honour. She is an extremely talented and creative woman whose floral arrangements spread throughout her home at all times. When she offered to do the flowers for our wedding as a gift, we felt so incredibly lucky. We decided to stick with very simple greens with dots of colour through the use of seasonal flowers. My bouquet was mostly green and draped down like perfection as I held it, with yellow flowers placed throughout.

WEDDING CAKE

Our wedding cake was one thing I had sorted from the day we got engaged! I knew that I wanted to use ‘Thank Goodness Foods’ for our cake and they made a beautiful one-tiered banana and chocolate vegan cake, topped with berries and flowers. It was delicious. For our wedding day desserts, we asked ‘Rumsy’s Noose’ to make an assortment of vegan doughnuts for us. Oh my goodness, we are huge fans of theirs and cannot get enough, neither could our guests!

FOOD & DRINKS

Our wedding food was the most exciting part of our wedding day (for me at least). I wanted to create a plant-based feast for our guests to enjoy and employed the help of my talented friend, Jüte Scott, a student at Silwood Kitchen to help me plan our menu and execute it for our 65 guests. Jüte and her catering partner, Meredith, let me be as involved as I wanted. We developed a buffet-style menu that we believed all of the guests would enjoy, with the hope that no one would even notice the lack of meat or dairy. I was so happy with the food, and the guests were extremely complimentary of the chefs. I still drool thinking of my stacked up plate of goodness.

MEMORABLE MOMENT

The most memorable moment of our wedding day was walking down the aisle and seeing Michael’s face. He burst into tears which was always a secret wish of mine, to see him so excited after seeing me in the dress I had chosen. It was so special for me.

ADVICE FOR BRIDES-TO-BE

My advice for brides to be is to make sure to put down on paper exactly what it is that you want out of the day. Do not create a day based on what you think others will want or based on what you think is expected of you. Our simple wedding allowed guests to feel relaxed, taking away the formal pressures of many other weddings we have attended. Stay true to yourself, don’t spend more than you need to, and keep it simple.