Whether you are planning a destination wedding or are dreaming of turquoise seas and sand beneath your toes, you are going to love today’s wedding.

Sophie and Alex were married in October last year at Villa Cybaura, Cala San Vicente, Ibiza. They planned their 3 day destination wedding in just three months, and it turned out to be a beautiful day indeed.

They managed to create a relaxed, intimate and fun feel to their day. With mismatched blush bridesmaids, pastel coloured shells, and Sophie looking stunning in a Lusan Mandongus number, i adore her birdcage veil too. Ibiza provides the most gorgeous of backdrops, oh so romantic.

Thanks so much to the amazing Rachel Rose Photography for sharing her imagery today.

Names…. Sophie and Alex

Wedding Date…. 9th October 2011

The Proposal…. Alex and I got engaged in Barcelona in June 2009 – just a few days after my 30th birthday! We were living in Dubai at the time and Alex had bought the ring there and travelled to Barcelona with it waiting for the right moment. Unfortunately I wasn’t feeling too well during our time in Barcelona, so time was running out for Alex. It was the last night, we had dinner at a restaurant down by the sea and after dinner we went for a walk along the beach and Alex told me to sit down and then he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. It was such a beautiful moment, with the waves crashing in on the rocks and the twinkling lights of Barcelona behind him. I of course said yes, couldn’t stop smiling, the ring was a perfect fit and we went to a lounge bar just off the beach and drank champagne.

The Vision for the day…. We decided we didn’t want a big and formal wedding, but an intimate, relaxed and fun wedding with close friends and family – a celebration and mini holiday for everyone with great company, sea and sun, yummy food and lots of fizz! Alex’s parents live in Spain, mine in the UK and we have family and friends all over the world. We only recently moved back to the UK from Dubai, so decided that we would rather marry somewhere abroad. Ibiza is a magical island and very special to us both – not for the party part of the island, but the unspoilt beautiful region. The island has such a great feeling, spirit and beauty and we knew this was the right place for us to go for our wedding. We decided on renting a big villa by the sea so we could do exactly what we wanted to and get more for our money.

The Planning process…. We waited to set a date until we moved back to the UK, and wanted to go to Ibiza out of season (better value for money) so took the plunge with only 3 months to plan. We went on a 3 day recce in July where we chose the villa as the venue and met with all the necessary people (celebrant, caterers, drinks supplier etc) and then came back to put the plan in place.  All the planning was then done over email from the UK and we turned up at the villa the day before. We planned it all ourselves as we knew exactly what we wanted and how to achieve it.

The Venue… Villa Cybaura, Cala San Vicente, Ibiza www.villacybauara.com. We chose this villa on the very northern tip of the island as it was simply magical. It sleeps 12 with plenty of space, so could house most of the bridal party/close family and the outside area is so idyllic with amazing views of the Med, a gorgeous rocky backdrop, stunning terrace, outdoor pool, and lovely gardens and lawn – perfect for an al fresco Mediterranean wedding.  We had pre-wedding sunset drinks on the villa terrace with a very café del mar vibe (we all got stuck in creating Spanish tapas bites), then for the wedding day, held the ceremony on the grass lawn overlooking the sea and the reception around the pool. The day after we have a pool party with a bbq and then went to Amante Beach Club for sunset drinks.

The Dress + Accessories….. A Lusan Mandongus sample dress from Ellie Sanderson boutique in Oxford made from silk chiffon. My mum found the shoes on sale in Debenhams (I figured why spend tonnes of the budget on my shoes which would hardly be seen!) and we searched everywhere for the perfect hair accessory… I really wanted a slight bohemian feel and my mum found this flower corsage on the high street and it was just perfect. I kept the rest of my accessories to the minimum as I felt the dress and flower were statement enough and wanted to keep my look simple and chic.

Finding the dress…. I had cut out pictures from magazines that I liked, and wondered how I would find something I really liked that wouldn’t cost the earth… My mum and I decided to start the search in Oxford and found my dress in the first shop we went to and it was the second one I tried on! It was a few sizes too big and because it was a sample wasn’t 100% perfect, but had it taken in to fit me and after a little work looked as good as new.

Groom’s attire… Again to keep costs down Alex wore a suit which he had tailor made a few years ago in Dubai, we bought a new white shirt from Hugo Boss and  an ivory tie and hanky to match my dress. His shoes were patent leather by Gucci from a sample sale in Dubai – their first outing!

The Readings + Music…. We selected 2 readings which Alex’s sister and one of my bridesmaids read – The art of Marriage by Wilfred A. Peterson and an excerpt from Union by Robert Fulghum. We wrote our own vows together so we could decide what we both wanted to promise and commit to each other.  I walked ‘down the aisle’ to Eva Cassidy, Songbird, we walked out to Dusty Springfield The Look of Love, and our first dance was Eric Clapton Wonderful Tonight.  A local Spanish friend of ours Juan played Spanish guitar for the reception and during photos, we made a dinner jazz play list on the iPod for the bbq and hired a DJ for after dinner and dancing.

Beautiful bridesmaids….. I had 5 stunning bridesmaids – four of my closest friend and Alex’s sister who is also one of my closest friends. I sourced all their dresses on the high street and styled them to work together. I wanted a very subtle, elegant yet relaxed look combining varying shades of blush in chiffon with dress styles to suit each girl (they are all over 30 so didn’t want stiff and formal or childish looking dresses, but dresses that made them look great, suited their own style and which they enjoyed wearing). They all wore their own nude heels and I united them all with an ivory ribbon belt and blush rose flower accessory which they could wear anywhere. I had a flower girl (one of my bridesmaids’ daughter and bailey the dog was our ring bearer).

The Flowers… With such a beautiful backdrop I wanted the natural flora and fauna to speak for itself without too many fussy flowers etc. I bought bunches of fresh cut local sunflowers from the village store which I put in vases around the villa and outside, for the tables went with simple cream and orange gerberas and I made my own bouquet with cream and blush roses and a hydrangea. The men had a single cream rose for their buttonholes.

The Cake… We are big foodies and the dinner was very important to use, so we hired Eat Ibiza to cook a fresh gourmet contemporary med  bbq at the villa – fresh salads to start, a medley of bbq meats and fish for the main and homemade cheesecake and brownies for dessert. Many guests said it was the best wedding food they have ever had and we would agree! So fresh and tasty. Alex and I love cheese so decided to go with a cheese stack for the cake, which I sourced from local shops and supermarkets.

Your Photographer…. The amazing Rachel Rose. I was lucky enough to know Rachel through one of my bridesmaids and we flew her over to Ibiza to shoot our wedding. She stayed in the villa with us and got to know everyone so well, so captured such special moments and magical memories. I cannot recommend her highly enough. She went above and beyond and just got on with her job without any fuss.

The Details + Decor…. We wanted the stunning setting to speak for itself so kept the decoration simple to reflect where we were, so colours and textures enhanced the natural surroundings – sea and sky blues, rustic earthy shades and the orange of the sun. I didn’t have a wedding planner so did most of the decoration myself (with the help of my lovely friends and family). As the wedding was abroad it wasn’t easy to transport stuff, but my dad was driving down through France so we packed him up with vintage vases, shells, candles etc. I am a candle freak so made sure there were candles everywhere, the caterers Eat Ibiza supplied hundreds of candles and lanterns which gave such a magical and chilled out atmosphere when the sun went down. We had shells and starfish on the table and used champagne corks as holders for the place names I made I made a table planner out of coloured cards and hung these from a rustic heart hanging from a tree and made candy striped confetti bags. Each guest was given a card to write us a wish and a piece of lavender representing luck and love. . We also made a sunset CD of some of our favourite chill out tunes to give to everyone.

The Honeymoon…. We stayed on at the villa for the rest of the week and lazed in the Jacuzzi, swam in the pool, walked on the beach, had bbq feasts and drank oodles of prosecco. It was pure luxury to have such an amazing and private villa  to ourselves. We then spent our last night at Hotel Hacienda na Xamena on the west coast and before jumping on the plane home, a spa day at the beautiful Atzaro Spa.

Memorable moments… The most meaningful wedding ceremony I have ever experienced – sitting by the sea, with clear blue skies with closest family and friends all sharing such a special time in such a special place. Alex’s parents’ dog Bailey, who was our ring bearer, barking at a crucial point in the ceremony when he heard champagne bottles being popped!

Advice for other couples… If you are getting married in Spain, unless one of you is a Spanish resident or Catholic, you cannot legally marry. So make sure you can legally married in the UK (we did the legal bit in a registry office in England the day before going to Ibiza). Don’t fuss over the small details – they don’t matter on the day! Know your budget and decide what are the most important areas for you to spend the money. On the day don’t worry about dirtying your dress and try and keep it pristine – just relax and enjoy wearing it, as you are unlikely to wear it again! Do exactly what you want to do and treasure every moment. The time just flies by.

Credit where credit is due…
Photographer: www.rachel-rose-photography.co.uk
Caterers: www.eat-ibiza.com
Hair and make-up: My bridesmaid and international professional make-up artist Tara Shakespeare. www.tarashakespeare.com
Venue: www.villacybaura.com
The dress: www.elliesanderson.co.uk
Celebrant: Anna Kathleen www.ibizaceremony.com
Post wedding drinks: www.amanteibiza.com
Honeymoon hotel: www.hotelhacienda-ibiza.com
DJ: Scott Gray at www.ibizapa.com
Drinks supplier: www.bodegacesarwinery.com

Thanks so much to Sophie and Alex for sharing their beautiful wedding with us today…. are you planning a destination wedding? XOXO Lou

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