I love it when a couple march to the beat of their own drum and Katie and Rufaro did just that. They had their at-home wedding ceremony in Katie’s mum’s back garden, ditched any super romantic love songs and had a brilliant time despite the rainy conditions. It’s great to hear how their loved ones rallied around for plan B!
They then headed on over to Paintworks Event Space in Bristol for their gorgeous industrial vibe reception. They wanted a colourful day and I love the coral, orange and pink tones. They opted for bridesmaids in mismatched dresses, bright blooms and a dreamy cake.
Oh and how gorgeous did Katie and Rufaro look in their stunning outfits? All in all, it was such a fun celebration of their love.
Huge thanks go to Gina Fernandes Photography for sharing with us these amazing captures.
Wedding Ceremony At Home
The Proposal
It was Rufaro’s turn to organise date day. We went for a picnic in Greenwich Park and then went on the Emirates cable cars, which I had been wanting to do for ages but Rufaro is scared of heights so had not been keen.
He ended up proposing halfway through the cable car journey suspended above the Thames.
The Vision
Classy, colourful, chic.
The Venue
Ceremony – Katie’s mum’s house
Reception – Paintworks, Bristol
The Styling & Decor
We wanted to keep the décor simple and chic but with lots of colour, so opted for simplistic signage, menus, name cards etc and then focused on bright, vibrant flowers and LOTS of fairy lights.
The tables were set out banquet style and we hired some faux ivy hanging planks to hang from the ceiling which added some drama. Then our amazing florist Hannah created the table décor of dreams, with flowers running all down the tables, lots of jars with big bright colourful stems (oranges, pinks, corals) and tall candlesticks to match.
We hired a white tulle curtain to separate the indoor reception space from the seating area which made it feel extra special when we opened the curtain to reveal the setting.
The cake was made by Anita (at the Macaroom). It matched the theme perfectly and even used flowers from the florist to keep everything in sync.
Seeing the vision come to life on the day was one of the best feelings ever and made all of the planning feel worth it.
The Ceremony & Music
The ceremony was held in Katie’s mum’s garden. Despite months of planning for a sunny wedding day, the weather Gods had other plans so we scrambled together some gazebos and the bridesmaids decorated them with flowers and it looked amazing. In the end, the intense downpours made it feel more epic and everyone had the best time.
We are not the super romantic-cheesy type so we ditched the love songs and I walked down the aisle to James Brown – Man’s World (which was actually Rufaro’s idea but he had obviously forgotten long before the day came).
Katie’s best friend since age 4 officiated and delivered a 10/10 performance, she made us and everyone feel so relaxed and full of joy.
We had all the guests sing Will Young – Evergreen as our ceremony song and it was the BEST – one of our favourite memories from the day.
After a short and sweet ceremony we danced back down the aisle to Hot Chocolate – You Sexy Thing and then made our way to the upstairs balcony for a ‘royal kiss’ (which basically no one saw because the view was blocked by emergency gazebos) but we did get some cheers from the neighbours walking by.
Your Photographer & Filmmaker
Gina Fernandes – the one and only. I would tell anyone getting married to hire Gina, she is 11/10 in every single way.
All the guests have commented on how amazing the pictures are but also how great Gina was on the day – not awks, not in the way, just part of the vibe. Every vision I had, Gina has captured it perfectly and we could not be more grateful.
The Honeymoon
We waited until a few weeks after the wedding to go on honeymoon and we are so glad we did as there was no way we could have been organised enough to leave straight away.
We went to South Africa and Zimbabwe for three weeks and had an incredible time. We travelled around a lot so it really felt like we were on a long trip and we were incredibly lucky with the weather, and even had a couple of stays where we were the only guests at the accommodation which felt really special.
Your Outfits
I had seen the dress I wanted before we got engaged, and shortly after Rufaro proposed (before we had even set a wedding date). I went to try it on in a lovely bridal shop while on holiday in St Ives. The vibe was timeless but make it saucy – low back with button detail, simple v-neck front, and then a cathedral-length veil.
Rufaro had three wishes for the wedding and the first one was that he wouldn’t have to wear a black suit, and wanted something more relaxed. It took a LONG time to find the perfect grey colour, in the end he went for an Italian linen style grey suit with black tie and shoes, with a coral dahlia buttonhole to match the bridal flowers.
Memorable Moments
- Sitting down at dinner looking out at all of our friends and family in one place having the best time with smiles on their faces.
- The speeches! From Rufaro’s best man, Katie’s mum and sister, and Katie’s best friend. All three speeches were amazing and perfectly reflected the vibe of the day.
- Our first dance (to Tina Turner – Simply the Best).
- The very dramatic weather!
- Katie’s friends performing a synchronised dance to High School Musical, rehearsed to perfection.
Advice For Other Couples
- Do exactly what you want to do – don’t try to please everyone because you can’t.
- If you can afford it, hire a wedding planner. We organised mostly everything ourselves and it was stressful (and we couldn’t have done it without the support of family and friends).
- Put aside a substantial amount of the budget for little things that add up at the end, e.g. name cards, table plan, signage and things like stands for table numbers.
- If you are worried about the day going too quickly, make it longer!
How very beautiful!
Katie and Rufaro, I can’t thank you enough for sharing your epic day with us. What a pleasure it’s been.
Further Reading
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