Pamela and Gerasimos chose the gorgeous Greek island of Naxos to celebrate their special day. Their wedding planner Maria Voudia made their dream day a reality by planning every detail to perfection and incorporating the prettiest white hydrangeas. Mathioulakis Photography captured every happy moment of the couple and is traveling us with these lovely images to this beautiful island of Cyclades!
Captured by Mathioulakis Photography.
“Gerasimos and I met shortly after I left University to study law and moved to the same city as him. We started seeing one another during the pandemic so we had a unique experience dating and getting to know each other during that time. In August of 2021 we flew to Naxos, Greece to see Gerasimos’s family. We booked a short romantic trip to Santorini towards the end of our visit, so I was thinking he may propose there at sunset. Our first day on Naxos, his father, Iannis, and step-mother, Sonia, took us out on their boat to do some fishing and sightseeing. Of course, I caught more fish than he did. After climbing around some rocks and going for a swim, we returned to the boat where Gerasimos unexpectedly proposed. I was so surprised, he had to ask twice. Iannis and Sonia were in on the plan because they already had a beautiful lunch complete with champagne and cake ready for us. I am so glad the proposal happened in Naxos, which is such a special place to us, and that we were able to include our family in the moment”, bride shared with us.
“I am fairly low maintenance, so I was dreading wedding dress shopping. Originally, I pictured myself in something very simple and conservative. I happened to be shopping online and came across a picture of my wedding dress. I saved it and moved on because I was not planning to get a wedding dress online. But I kept coming back to the photo, so I ordered it, assuming I would return it. When it arrived, I knew it was perfect. The top was sheer and adorned with hundreds of pearls and rhinestones, and the skirt was long and flowing but still functional. I love the way the dress photographed in the sun with the beautiful sea behind us. I also love that I chose a dress that was not too form-fitting so I could have all the pastitsio and bread I wanted before!”
“I wanted a very simple aesthetic for the ceremony and reception. I am from Cape Cod, Massachusetts in the US and I wanted to bring some influence from there to the wedding in Greece, which was perfectly executed with a mix of white roses, greenery and blue and white hydrangeas. Maria and the florist were able to perfectly capture my idea of coastal floral arrangements that mixed some of my home with native Naxos flowers. The blue and white coastal theme flowed through to the reception, again maintaining the simple design I was hoping for. I loved that we were able to tie in the design elements of the ceremony and reception with the wedding guest favors that everyone took home. With many guests in attendance from the United States, it was special that we could give them a bit of Naxos to take with them. While our ceremony was very small and limited to immediate family only, Maria found a vendor to set up a beautiful bar with cocktails and snacks for us to enjoy during and following the ceremony – I would have never thought of something like that and it truly elevated our ceremony experience”.
“Because we were planning the wedding from so far away, we fully trusted Maria Voudia to provide us the best options in vendors. Maria Voudia is exceptional at what she does. She was patient, understanding, gracious and so helpful. She made planning our wedding so easy and truly listened to what we wanted”.
“Our DJ did an amazing job mixing Greek music with popular music. After the dinner, he played some very traditional Greek music and all of the guests joined together in a circle to dance. It was such an unexpected and special moment to be able to share a tradition with both our family and friends from Greece and the US together”.
Bride’s advice: “Trust your planner and vendors and leave room for flexibility. Some of our favorite details or moments were surprises”.
Leave a Reply