The entire wedding day of those two lovebirds is radiating happiness, overflowing with vibrant colors and lush florals! The “rainbow” pop of color against the lush green gardens of this wonderful venue created the dreamiest setting to host their celebration of love impressing all their guests. “Nikos and I didn’t want to make this a traditional wedding. We didn’t have a wedding organizer, no wedding cake, and our first dance was a last-minute decision. But our venue, Pyrgos Petreza, was just wonderful and organized everything to perfection, with perfect timing on each step of the reception, and with amazing attention to detail. I worried about nothing!”, the stylish bride is sharing with us. From the wooden elements, the romantic candle lights to the lovely couple, you will fall madly in love with this eye-popping wedding day!
Captured beautifully by Phosart Photography
The bride shared with us: “We had a fall wedding in Athens.We met at the University of Manchester in the United Kington while we were taking our post-graduate studies. We were neighbors in the university’s international housing. We were friends and remained friends even after graduation, where he returned to Athens and I to Manila. We kept in touch on Facebook only. Then, 12 years later, we decided to meet again in London and the friendship eventually blossomed into a love affair – a long distance one at that as I was living in Singapore at that time. A work opportunity to move to Brussels a year later accelerated things, and we got engaged a week before Christmas 2017, when we were set to spend the holidays in Manila where Nikos would meet my family for the first time.”
“A week before Christmas, I spent a few days in Athens before we flew off to Manila. One evening, Nikos suddenly decided he wants to put up a Christmas tree. To me it was strange because we were leaving in a few days and we wouldn’t enjoy the decorations anyway – but he insisted. After a couple of hours setting up and decorating the tree, Nikos turned on the tree lights and asked me to sit with him in the sofa to look at our creation. The control freak in me didn’t want to do this with the mess we’ve made in the living room, so I told Nikos I need us to clean up first and for him to vacuum the floor before we sat down to enjoy the tree. After he vacuumed, he came back to sit beside me in the sofa and opened a box with a beautiful solitaire diamond engagement ring… then I cried, hugged him, then he said ”be my wife”. I nearly destroyed his timing and the romantic moment because I asked him to vacuum first. But I knew he was a keeper because he knew how to clean the house! A love story that took 13 years in the making…”
“I wanted a chic, winery wedding, not formal, rustic, somewhat French countryside. The flowers were more like wildflowers picked from a garden – I didn’t want a specific color or design scheme that made it stuffy. I wanted a play on color on the entire wedding decor.”
“I’ve always dreamt of an intimate long dining table in the garden for my wedding dinner, with a long fresh floral garland in the center with tealights. It was an international wedding, with over 15 nationalities in attendance, and about 40% of the guests traveling to Athens from all over the world. You could say our wedding contributed significantly to Greece’s GDP that month since our international guests took the time before and after the wedding ceremony to travel around Greece and enjoy being tourists.”
“Three months before our wedding, we had a civil ceremony. So, at the wedding ceremony itself, Nikos and I agreed that my dad, who is a lay Bible teacher, to give a brief inspirational message about love and a prayer to bless our future as a couple.”
“Nikos and I really wanted our guests to have a good time, so from the moment they arrived for the ceremony, we started serving wine. After the ceremony and while the formal photos were being taken, we had the guests relax, chat and meet one another while enjoying pass-around hors d’oeuvres, wine, and cocktails for about 30-45 minutes, before they were asked to takes their seats for the dinner.”
“I went to several stores in both Brussels and Athens to find the right wedding dress. And when you try on the right dress, you just know it’s the one! I finally chose a simple wedding dress at Livas Wedding (https://livaswedding.gr/) from their Ariamo Bridal Collection, which are Italian-made wedding dresses. I was thinking at first not to wear a veil, but when the stylist at the store made me try on one, I decided to wear one with a long train for dramatic effect.”
“As someone who used to work for a former foreign minister, I am used to organizing high level events with great detail. The joy of not having to worry about your own wedding really made it the best day of my life because everything went smoothly. I was enjoying the evening celebrating with my husband, family, and friends without me have to attend or worry about the details.”
“Pyrgos Petreza helped us find all our vendors, including our great photographers at Phosart. As Nikos and I were commuting back and forth between Brussels and Athens, we were basically planning the wedding remotely.”
The best moments of my wedding was my father walking me down the aisle and seeing my husband waiting for me.”
“Post-dinner, we had a dessert buffet (we bought 10 cakes and other bit sized desserts from a patisserie delivered to the venue), a cheese buffet (French, Spanish, Belgian, and Greek cheese wheels) with cold cuts, and a coffee corner with Belgian chocolates and pralines. We also wanted to make sure that we had an open bar so the guests can really have fun and dance the night away.”
Bride’s Advice: “Plan ahead. Budget well. Do what you and your husband like, don’t let other dictate what happens at your wedding. And don’t use conditioner on your hair on the day of your wedding — in my case, I did and it was so hot that day, the waves in my hair didn’t hold because my hair was too soft and silky from my use of conditioner.”
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