I am literally swooning over this beautiful birde’s wedding gown this afternoon… it. is. incredible!! Sparkle heaven!! I also think it’s time for a bit of sunshine, which is of course one of the possible benefits of a gorgeous destination wedding like this one :-)

Loveeeeeeeeeeeee it :-) And before i leave you with it… one song springs to mind…. jump in the pool ;-)

Thanks so much to the amazing Bedfordshire based wedding photographer, Harriet Eaglestone Photography for sharing her work, here is what she had to say about the celebrations;

“The couple are both from the UK, but decided to get married in Mallorca in a little town called Capdepera as that is where the brides mother is living. It is also the place where Jimmy (The groom) proposed to Laura (In the castle that sits on the hill above the town!!).

I knew it would be a fantastic day when Laura told me she would be arriving by donkey! And that their good friend Molly would be doing the service. It was a full on family affair with everyone helping out in the morning to decorate the villa and help set everything up. The food was provided by a local restaurant that the family enjoy, and guests were able to dj the night away.

Laura decided not to have a big white dress for her wedding day, as she didn’t feel it really fitted with the hot Spanish sunshine, and the feel of the villa, so instead she wore a stunning gold sequin gown and pale ivory Carvella shoes. The dress was amazing as it sparkle in the brilliant sunshine, she looked a million dollars! Her jewelery was made for her by a friend in Mallorca, and she wore a hair flower from etsy. She did her own hair and makeup to keep things simple.

It was a beautiful service, with tears and laughs, and I love the way Laura’s face lit up when they were exchanging the rings, she looked so happy.

Then after the service it was on to a champagne reception and drinks by the pool, the formal photographs and finally the food! It smelt amazing, huge pans of paella and salads, olives and pasta. A Feast! Then lots of dancing, and because the temptation was far too strong, the boys jumped in the pool. I had to admit I was tempted my self, the swimming pool was all lit up, and had paper bag candles all around the edge. So romantic.

We danced and swam until almost two in the morning, then the local police knocked on the door and told us to turn off the music. You know it’s been a good party if that happens!”

The Proposal….

James’ proposed on Christmas Eve 2009. Laura’s Mum lives in Capdepera, Mallorca and we’d gone to stay for Christmas. We took a walk up to the Castle in the middle of the town, found a quiet spot and James got down on one knee.

The Details + Decor….

The inside and outside of the villa were already pretty fabulous so we didn’t need to do too much decorating. We had a gold, navy blue and cream colour scheme. Tables and chairs were borrowed (free of charge) from the local town hall. Tables were decorated by James’ Mum and Aunt’s with cream clothes, navy runners, Ikea lanterns and ivy down the centres. Apart from at the top table, we didn’t do a seating plan, we just let people sit where they wanted. For favours, we gave miniatures of the local liquor ‘hierbas’. Under 18’s got Barry M nail polish!

We put candle bags round the pool with citronella tea lights in. They looked lovely later on as it got dark.

For music we hired speakers from the local electrical shop and plugged them into a laptop with our playlist set up on it.

The Vision for the day…

Informal, intimate and relaxed, outside in the sunshine with good food and lots of dancing.

The Planning process….

We kept it simple and did most of it ourselves with a lot of help from friends and family. Neither of us had any really set ideas about what we wanted which helped. We knew we wanted to get married in Mallorca so we took a week’s holiday there in 2010, staying with Laura’s Mum. In that week we booked the venue (a friends villa which we booked for 10 days altogether) and hired a local catering firm. After that we relied a lot on Laura’s Mum and brother to sort things out in Mallorca for us, and had the week before the wedding for last minute preparations. We couldn’t have done it without Laura’s brother’s excellent Spanish and local contacts.

Budget……

We managed to keep costs really low by doing everything ourselves and hiring a private venue. The main expense was our flights and accommodation, but even this wasn’t bad to say we stayed in the villa for 10 days. Catering arrangements were much cheaper than in the UK – we paid 31 euro a head and were supplied with an amazing two-course buffet, 3 barrels of San Miguel and all our cutlery, glasses, plates and napkins etc.

Beautiful bridesmaids…..

We had 4 of James’ cousins and 2 of Laura’s. As they were buying their own dresses we let them choose what they wore. 4 chose knee length navy dresses from Coast, and 2 wore Monsoon maxi dresses.

The Venue…

The ceremony and reception were both held at the villa, which was a beautiful 6-bedroomed house next to the Castle in Capdepera, Mallorca. We had the ceremony on the terrace at the front of the house, then moved round the back for a pool-side reception.

The Readings + Music….

We asked our Mum’s to do a reading each and they both chose what they wanted to read. Laura’s Mum gave a reading from Corinthians, and James’ Mum read a poem called ‘The One’.

We didn’t have music during the ceremony, but Laura’s Mum had arranged for some friends to play traditional Mallorcan flute, drums, and bagpipes for Laura to arrive to.  The musicians lead a procession from Laura’s Mums house through the town and up to the villa, playing all the way.

The Flowers….

Laura’s Mum is a florist so did all the flowers. The bride and bridesmaids had over-the-arm tied bunches of cream calla lilies, freesia, roses, and blue iris. The men wore cream rose button holes (for Yorkshire!). The irises were chosen in memory of Laura’s Dad who passed away in 2005 – they were his favourite.

Dress + Accessories…..

A gold, sequined evening gown and champagne coloured Carvela shoes. My amazing jewellery was made by our very talented friend Tracy Connell. Tracy also made my bridesmaids presents and mothers of the bride and groom gifts.

I’d been to a bridal fashion show held by a local boutique (Ava Rose Hamilton, Silsden) and seen the dress in the show. I knew I didn’t want a traditional white dress and when I saw the gold one in the fashion show I fell in love with it.  It was perfect for a Mallorcan wedding.

The Cake….

Cup cakes in gold cases, arranged on a stand with a small cake as a top tier for us to cut. All made by the multi-talented Christine Goode, Laura’s dance teacher and a qualified cake maker.

Groom’s attire….

A navy linen suit bought the day before we set off!

Your Photographer….

The brilliant Harriet Eaglestone and her partner Tim Cochrane. Harriet was recommended by a friend. They flew out to Mallorca on the Saturday and stayed with us at the villa so were around to photograph all the preparations on the Wedding day. They were both excellent, taking pictures all day and helping to set up the venue, decorate the donkey cart, and clear up the day after. We’re so pleased with the pictures.

Memorable moments…..

Laura’s Mum had organised a donkey and cart to take them from her house up to the villa which was brilliant, we laughed all the way and held up traffic.

The food was amazing – we had a buffet with a massive paella which stretched to second and third helpings for those who wanted more.

Inevitably, people (men) ended up in the pool. Most of them managed to remove their suits before they jumped in, and some ended up removing more clothing than was really necessary.

The best thing though was having a week either side of the Big Day. We had a fantastic 2 week holiday with all our family and friends, so when the wedding day was over we still had a week of celebrating to look forward to.

Advice for other couples…..

Use your imagination! Forget all the preconceptions about what a wedding should be like and just do what you want. This is your chance to plan your ideal party.

You can save a fortune by doing things yourself and you’ll end up with a really personal, intimate wedding. Hiring a private venue meant we could have everything exactly as we wanted and didn’t have to deal with ridiculous charges for corking wine or tying bows round chairs. It takes a little more planning this way and you’ll probably have a few stressful days before hand but family and friends will be more than willing to help, and usually like to be involved. Just make sure everyone knows the plan for the day, and your volunteers know what they need to be doing and when.

The Honeymoon….

We stayed in Mallorca for a week after the Wedding but it wasn’t exactly a honeymoon because there were so many other people staying with us! We’re planning on taking a trip together later in the year.

 Thanks so much to James and Laura for sharing their gorgeous day with us xoxo

Credit where credit’s due….

Dress – Ava Rose Hamilton, Silsden http://avarosehamilton.co.uk/

Shoes – Carvela from Asos www.asos.com

Jewellery – Ruby Spirit Designs www.rubyspiritdesigns.co.uk

Rings – Keith James Jewellers, 5 Craven Court, Skipton

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