Vintage glam wedding at the Hotel Grande Bretagne | Lauren & Giles

I just can’t seem to find the right words to describe the following vintage glam wedding at the Hotel Grande Bretagne gracefully captured by photographer Anna Roussos. In the ultra luxurious setting of this landmark hotel in the heart of Athens,  a handsome couple with excellent taste, Lauren and Giles said “I Do” … in the most stylish way!

Their beautiful love story: “I first saw Lauren out one night at a bar in Melbourne in the spring of 2006. My first impressions were that she was “a babe” and had a really big smile. I remember saying to my friend at the time “who is that girl?” I would have approached her but she appeared to be with someone else. The last I remember of that night was the sweetness of her face illuminated by the halogen glow of the lights in the fast food store I was in as she walked by…”

And Giles continues: “Weeks later I was at work and heading out for lunch break. I was in the lift and the door opened several floors below at the floor of a law firm. I sighed… “Those lazy lawyers always take the lift one floor”, I thought to myself. Then to my surprise I saw “the babe” with the beautiful smile from that fateful evening entering the lift with me. I could not believe it. She was real and standing opposite me. Over the following weeks, months and years, I would occasionally see this girl in the lobby, in the lift and in the streets surrounding the building where we both worked. She would wander past me just going about the activities of her day, whilst I would wonder to myself: “what is this girl really, like?” “If I met her, would we be friends?” “Would we get along?” She became a bit of a crush…”

“Some years later, I was invited to a friend’s barbeque. When I arrived at the barbeque I was looking around to see how many people I knew there. As I walked out on to the veranda on that cool summers evening I saw “the babe”, my “crush” standing on the grass. I was so surprised and thought: “I have to talk to her tonight!” “I have to find out what she’s like!” I lurked by the snack table until she approached, lured by the presence of a bowl of Nacho Cheese chips on the table. I then started talking to her. The rest, as they say…is history…”

The bride tells us about her lovely blush Jenny Packham wedding dress: “My wedding dress was a blush, beaded gown by Jenny Packham. I knew I wanted a dress in an art deco style and fell in love with her designs very early in my search. I wanted something “different”, not necessarily white and comfortable and easy to wear most of all. I tried on this dress many times and kept coming back to it. I loved the color, elegant style, floaty skirt and intricate beading. I look back and am so happy with the choice. It was really me! We also danced until 5am and I was comfortable the entire day and night”

“The wedding colors were blush, mint and blue/navy. My dress and the flower girl dresses were blush and the bridesmaids wore beautiful mint, grecian gowns. Giles wore an electric blue suit and the groomsman wore navy”

“We had no preconceived ideas about the wedding and what it would look like. We wanted something simple and practical for our guests with small children (hence the hotel venue), but also something elegant and befitting this important occasion. Once we chose Greece and the Hotel Grande Bretagne, the style of the wedding just flowed. The opulence and grandeur of the hotel influenced my dress and Giles’ suit, the bridal party outfits and the simple decorations we chose. I guess there was an “old world glamour” to our style…”

“Giles proposed on the 29 December 2012. We had arranged a weekend away at the Royal Mail Hotel in the Grampians to celebrate our two year anniversary. In the late afternoon of the second day, we decided to go on a walk in the mountains. Giles had secretly packed a bottle of our favourite champagne in his backpack and was hoping to find a scenic spot to have a picnic and “pop the question…”

“After a long trek in the heat of the afternoon, we eventually came to a clearing on the side of Mt Sturgeon with sufficient elevation to offer unfettered views across the western plains. On the grass of the clearing Giles unpacked his backpack to reveal a picnic and the champagne. Without too much warning, he was straight down on one knee and said to me: “honey, will you marry me?” This confused me for a few seconds as there was no lead up to the question. Therefore, my immediate response was “are you serious?” Of course he was and you can imagine the happiness that ensued for us both!”

“It was a big decision for us to hold our wedding celebration in Athens. Whilst Giles is not Greek, we both share a great love of Greece and felt it was the most meaningful place to celebrate our commitment to each other. My dad also played a very big part in this decision. He is the link to my Greek heritage and sadly passed away 4 years ago. It was important for us to be able recognise and acknowledge him on this important day. We also wanted to include him in our celebration and what better way than in the country of his birth”

“The ceremony was held in the Royal Room of the Hotel Grande Bretagne. The room had an exquisite stained glass ceiling. It was a beautiful setting”

The moment that bride will always remember: “This would have to be the moment I walked into the Royal Room for the ceremony. The room was lit up, decorated beautifully and all our guests were standing smiling. It really warmed my heart. Of course, Giles was also smiling at the end of the aisle. This was a really precious moment”

“The best decision we made was having the wedding in Greece. We had the most amazing, memorable trip in the lead up, on the wedding day and in the week that followed on a “funny moon” with our friends and family in a small seaside town near my dad’s village. The downside was the extra organisation associated with a destination wedding, but it was a labour and love and truly worth it in the end”

After her fairytale wedding at the Hotel Grande Bretagne, the bride shares her advice with us: “Make a conscious decision to enjoy the day no matter what and then do it! We had a few trip ups along the way, including on the day, but I didn’t let this phase me at the time. I was too happy and enjoying myself too much!”