A N D R E S & M A T T H E W
You may remember when we brought you 'Married in the Maldives' on the blog earlier this year. Andres and Matthew's incredibly intimate ceremony in the Maldives took our breath away. The amazing film, put together by Untitled Film Works, made us feel part of their special day so much so that we wanted to know what happened after! Well this couple ever mindful of their family and friends came home to celebrate with them too in a fun filled reception at Doltone House. We love all the intimate moments captured in this film (again by Untitled Film Works - who else?) between family and their cultural traditions. It is such a joy to share such a beautiful film with you all and we hope you enjoy hearing from Andres below as much as we did!
http://youtu.be/rfT3iJaCRXE
F R O M T H E B R I D E...
The Meeting...
We first met when I visited his workshop in Smithfield. It was his boss that I knew, Matt was only the mechanic in the shop. The time we first spoke was on my second visit in his shop. While waiting for some parts to come in for the car we also went out to buy some lunch. It was over the 30 minute lunch break that I started to know Matt.
Love...
I never thought I would ever get married to Matt or even know Matt better as a person. I have always thought of him as my mechanic. Little did I know that our feelings would develop. It was after knowing him for about 1 year, after that time we were at his workshop. Matt is a very helpful person, he is the kind of person that even if he doesn't know you and if he knows you are in trouble he will stop and help even if it's out of his way. It was my friend's car that needed the help. We brought the car to his workshop. It was by chance that our hands touched when handing over the car keys, that moment my heart was pounding. I went home that night re-living that moment, that was an odd feeling, after analysing that scene over and over again I realised that I had feelings for this boy.
The Proposal...
Matt never expressed his interest to me directly. It was our common friends that let me in on his feelings towards me. To Matt's surprise he thought I never knew and to my surprise he finally asked me out on a date. It was at Bondi beach on our first date after dinner we were walking along the sand and enjoying the breeze. After a while he hugged me really tightly, so tight I couldn't even breath- and said "Let's get married". I pulled my body far enough to see his face and said "really?!?!" (knowing that it is our first date) but we were both overwhelmed at the time with the emotions; we both smiled and embraced in each other's hug with joy and happiness. He made a ring out of a straw from the restaurant we were in earlier in the evening. I have not felt that much peace at heart with any man, I suppose that is what they call true love...
Wedding Planning...
The first week after committing to our engagement, we were both talking about how and where and when for a wedding. Matt (being a male) said let's just take a week off and do nothing but lay on the beach. My response to that was that if both our parents agree I won't mind. He then told me the reason behind why he wanted to just go to a beach and do nothing; he wanted nothing but the two of us. Marriage is set and made for the bride and groom, I completely agree with Matt. The marriage matters the most to us. So when Matt said "let's just go to the Maldives", I did not hesitate to say yes!
Ceremony...
It was held at W resort Maldives. It took a long time to plan this wedding. The most difficult thing was that we couldn't physically go there and see if we liked the place. So the decision was based on the layout of the room, it was more like planning a holiday. But everything else was surely the same, from writing up the vows, preparing marital papers, finding the dress, the photographer and cinematographer, makeup etc.
The Dress...
Wedding dress shopping is one of the hardest things to do; there are so many magazines, so many shops and so many expos to go to and find that perfect dress. The worst thing that you can imagine can happen to any bride happened to me. I was told that my dress was lost in transit. It did upset me at first, but then knowing it was just me and Matt at the wedding I was at ease right away. It was not until 1 week before the actual wedding day I got my dress. Matt came wedding dress shopping with me, we walked for over 5 hours in many different stores. It was to the point that I said to Matt "If this last dress doesn't work I will make a dress out of the bed sheets from our hotel room." Luckily the last dress I tried on was it!! It's a very simple dress with no detail but a very long train. After purchasing the dress we went to buy some little bits and pieces to add some detail to the dress. I had seen many dresses throughout the time so it was just piecing things together with what we had.
The Flowers...
The flowers were freshly picked from the island we were on. Lucky Abraham brought sticky tape; we made our bouquet there and then in the room. We were very fortunate to have flowers at all, the island didn't have much on there.
The Reception...
We planned a reception one month after our Maldives ceremony as we both wanted to have our close friends and family to dine with us for the first time since getting married. We chose Doltone House as the venue. And because those closest to us did not get to see us join in hands to get married, Abraham and the team prepared a video from the Maldives to show our guests. This was very special to us, as we got to share such an intimate moment with people that were close to us, while keeping that special moment only for "us". Me and Matt had never seen the film until the night at Doltone House. It was breath taking to watch it happen all over again whilst remembering the actual event.
Best thing with the loft from Doltone house is that we had 3 levels to use. The guest tables were on the second level, whilst all the activities were on the first floor. We had a candle buffet table and also a photo booth for guests to enjoy.
Bridesmaids...
I saw a photo from the internet a while back, and saw 7 bridesmaids with the bride. All the girls were in different dresses, I loved the idea of that, as our wedding was based on individuality so we wanted to stay true to that. All the girls on the reception day wore a black dress of their choice.
Groomsmen...
Maldives didn't want to leave us, it followed us on to our reception day. The heat was building up during the week and on the actual reception day it was over 40 degrees. To make it better for the boys we just had them in a grey shirt and a simple black tie.
Wedding Decorations...
We used gardenias, roses and orchards. For the guest tables we had black covers, this colour went really well with the place cards that we made. The names were printed in white textured paper with a tiny black boarder around the edges. A ribbon on the edge then had these place cards neatly tucked in with the napkin. Orchards infused in a tall water vase with tea light candles around it light up the table as a centre piece. For the bridal table we had behind us on the pillar a line of tea light candles lit in jars. Our bridal table was filled with gardenias.
Gardenias were chosen because that's the flowers I love going home to. They are planted in my front yard. Since the day Matt proposed we have been planting more gardenias. We spent a lot of time nurturing them to ensure the bloom was great in time for the reception. That is one thing that I love about Matt, the dedication and time and patience he has for something as small as a pot plant. And the work paid off. We had fresh flowers from our home at our wedding. Something we loved.
The Cake...
We chose to have a macaron tower as our cake. Macarons are a treat that we travel a long way for in the middle of the night! I don't think any quest can agree to that.
Wedding Favour...
Matt's experience with weddings over the past from his mates, he has hated all the bomboniere, so during discussion Matt wanted to give his favourite biscuit to our guests. Now of course the bride always wins in wedding planning so we ended up with rock candy with both our names on it hehehehe.
Memorable Moments...
The biggest part I remember from both 2 days was the heat and sun, though it reminds me of the love we have. It's always passionate and always has energy just like what summer does to us. I'm truly grateful that the wedding was what "we" wanted. I have heard from many other brides that things were not exactly what they wanted as family decisions come into play also. Everyone was very supportive of our decisions. The biggest support was that we had each other.
Plus walking down the side of that beach and approaching Matt, knowing there was no one else but "us" and that beautiful ocean, what more can anyone ask for.
Photography...
Our photographer Ethan (0403 646 045) understood us very well. He was the same race as matt so he understood all the values and photos that his family would like. And at the same time he satisfied the needs me and Matt had. He was just pleasant to work with.
Wedding Soundtrack...
A mix of frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong and slow jams.
Honeymoon...
We went to chase the northern lights, and to see Santa Claus village : )
MW x