Well... here it is - a whole blog post about my own wedding day...which feels surreal to type omg!
I'm married! Eeeekkkk!!!
And I'm bloody excited to share everything about this incredible moment of my life - its bittersweet... feeling so grateful but so gutted...that its been and gone now! But the wedding bubble... man I wish I could bottle that feeling up and give myself a little dose of it every now and again lol.
Destination brides, you have my heart! It can at times feel super scary planning this huge event that's so far away from home but as long as you don't sweat the small stuff and take every second as it comes, you'll be absolutely fine :) So lets get into it!
Charlotte & Ben - Finca Ses Voltes - July 6th 2023
THE WEDDING VENUE - FINCA SES VOLTES - Sant Llorenc, Mallorca
During one of the covid lockdowns, Ben and I sat and had a long conversation about what kind of wedding we would like. Not long after getting engaged we actually considered eloping with only our immediate family present, but with me being considered high risk and not allowed to leave the house for a whole year - it really made us steer in the complete opposite direction.
We decided that when the time came, we wanted to party...hard and on holiday. I lived and grew up in Mallorca so it came naturally to us as our first choice.
Then came choosing a venue. We looked for somewhere with an authentic Spanish feel and somewhere we could hire for multiple days. A deep dive on insta one night had us stumbling across this hidden gem.
Finca Ses Voltes is an independent villa set within the mountains in Sant Llorenc. Its intimate, serene and completely secluded from reality. A place where you can gather and laugh and play amongst nature - it even has its own mountain?!
The finca also has a ceremony room, a separate spacious area to take your vows in front of the scenery, 8 bedrooms including a bridal suite and multiple living areas so guests have their own quarters to relax and unwind.
I so couldn't wait to get into the infinity pool. Which I did, immediately.
Then Toni, the owner came by on his moped with a beer barrel strapped to his back, announcing that the villa actually comes with booze?!... hurrah!
We had the best 6 days of our life here, eating, drinking and messing about in the pool until the early hours. It feels like a dream!
The Glam Squad - Charlotte Joy & Tonic Mallorca After the grooms party left the finca, the girls had a chance to head out onto the veranda to enjoy a bridal brunch alfresco. Charlotte and Katie arrived not long after to do our glam. It was such a treat! I booked them without having any trials at all, I just looked at their previous work online and thought 'Yep! I want these girls to make me pretty!'. And it could not have been any better, their vibes are unreal! We had so much fun, chatting and putting the world to rights, I completely forgot I was getting married. Their work is GORGEOUS and they are so talented and I just love them both. Thank you ladies, you're the best <3
I gifted my mum and ben's mum custom handkerchiefs with offcuts of my wedding dress made by our lovely seamstress Hana and embroidered by the fabulous Anne from Courtyard Bridal.
My beautiful husband Ben having lots of hugs from Mother of The Groom, Julia and The Best Man, Ollie. The grooms party all wore matching suits from Suitors Northampton, which were very reasonably priced despite hiring them for 10 days.
My Wedding Dress -The Deneb - Bonsoire Bridal
Was of course, from my shop Bonsoire Bridal in Northampton (I'm so sorry for that shameless little self promo lol!) ...Now... How on earth did I choose? That's the question I get asked the most. It was definitely not how I expected it to go! Like most brides, I had my eye on a particular one - a floaty, bohemian dress with lace. If you have an appointment with me... you'll know I bloody love lace and lots of it!
One day a box of new gowns from Adriana Madrid Atelier arrived and I pulled this gown out. I thought 'Thats gorgeous but it probably won't be my dress so I'll wear it for a photo for instagram to let everyone know its a new arrival"...oh those famous last words. The moment my mum did the zip up, I knew it was my wedding dress. And I wasn't posting that photo on the gram lol.
So here she is! The DENEB dress by Adriana Madrid Atelier. With allllll the Chantilly lace and the sparkles and a corset style bustier I just adore! It usually comes with sleeves but I wasn't going to wear them in the blazing Spanish sun, so I opted for detachable straps that I would remove after the ceremony.
The Mother of the Bride Dress
My mum (Claudia) wore the Martini dress by Miabelle Designs, a stunning one shoulder crepe gown in 'Tickle Me Pink' with a spectacular black bow. And she looked HOT HOT HOT! A bold look for a bold woman!
Maid of Honour Dress & Man Of Honour
Siobhan also wore a Miabelle Designs dress, the ASTRID in Palais emerald. Look how stunning she is, what a beauty! Jake was matching with the grooms party as we ended up sharing him - he means so much to both Ben and I.
An emotional First Look with my Dad <3
And then after chugging a pint of Stella Artois, an accidental spill of Prosecco on Siobhan's dress (it happens, it'll dry!) .... it was time to go and marry Ben!
The Mother of The Groom Dress -
Julia looked absolutely beautiful in the LEONA dress by Miabelle designs. A modern mother of the groom style, in coastal green with pearl buttons to the hem. We helped Julia put together this entire outfit from a single swatch of fabric and it turned out better than we could have imagined.
Ceremony Music A few months before the wedding I was fretting about the ceremony music. I couldn't find anything we really wanted - until @feelingblew 's guitar cover of Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition went viral! As soon as we heard it, we knew it was right. And thus the rest of the music came naturally. As the guests were being seated, instrumental versions of ibiza club anthems played, all songs that we had danced together and with our friends to throughout our lives.
We were married by my school friend Ben Clark, whom after we revealed we were engaged, he revealed to us that he had secretly become a celebrant - so that was that! Ben was going to officially lead us into being husband and wife. Flamboyantly loud and the soul of every party, he was the man for the job! For our reading, Ben's sister Abbie read an extract from the written version of Game of Thrones. Its a short but sweet paragraph from Khal Drogo and Daenerys wedding - as huge fans of the show this was absolutely perfect for us!
Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide who would read their vows first!
Our wedding rings were both from Loupe in Milton Keynes - our retail assistant Olivia was fantastic from beginning to end and I just loved visiting the store so much! Ben specifically wanted a matte wedding band and they really helped us to source the perfect one.
After the vows and the rings, we sealed the deal with a kiss.
I love these! The dress code was black tie/cocktail hour and how gorgeous does everyone look?!
The Photographer - Doriane Descamps
With her softly editorial vibe, a focus on capturing more moments and less poses and her knack for always being in the right place at the right time, I always knew it would be Dory! Having worked alongside one another in the past on styled shoots and even travelling together to Amalfi to do a photoshoot in Positano I'd seen her work and how amazing she is - quietly moving around to get the shot, you'd never even know she was there! I'm so lucky to call Doriane a friend and she's so amazing at what she does!
With Doriane <3 After the group photos, the guests headed to the poolside to enjoy cocktail hour and canapés with a view of mountains of Mallorca whilst we snuck away for our couples portraits in various locations around the finca.
We then went back to our room for ten minutes to freshen up and recharge briefly before the evening festivities began. Joining our guests at the end of cocktail hour was a highlight, as were the Pomada's I consumed - a Mallorcan cocktail consisting of fresh lemon, rosemary, gin & tonic. I ponder about those daily.
Venue Styling & Catering - Tot A Punt
Before we knew it, the sun was setting and the table was ready. We opted for one long table to allow our guests to feel consistently included.
We wanted a fairly minimalist vibe with pops of colour to keep the incredible views as the main point of focus during dining. Working with Tot a Punt and our planner Elizabet on decoration, we chose to have smaller bud vases with an assortment of fuchsia toned florals so that we would easily be able to see each other and a mixture of smaller and bigger candles. I loved the combination of mixed metallics, using gold rimmed plates and silverware.
We entered the dinner party to 'Hollywood Swinging' by Kool and the Gang.
This was followed immediately by the speeches - I'd say that is my number one tip! Those doing speeches were so nervous and were openly worried about not being able to enjoy the meal, so getting it out of the
way mean't that they could look relax for the rest of the night.
The Dinner Menu provided by Tot a Punt consisted of:
- Pumpkin Raviolis in pesto cream sauce (this was a HUGE hit - we all wanted seconds!)
- Chicken with creamed polenta, Mediterranean vegetables
- Tot a Punts iconic lemon meringue tart
- Selection of after dinner appertifs and digestives
- Plus a midnight snack of mini ensaimadas and chocolate sauce
Vegans and vegetarians were also catered for with mostly the same dishes adapted to suit their dietary requirements.
After dinner, it was time to party - we opened the dance floor with our first dance, choosing Latch by Disclosure and having everyone join us after the first verse. I would say the first dance is what I was least looking forward to but it turned out to be one of my favourite moments!
Party Music - DJ Angel Rod
The music choice for the party was personally selected by our incredible DJ, Angel Rod, who incorporated a mixture of house, soul funk, a few party bangers and by special request as a surprise for my mum and our Brazilian guests, he played some carnival classics! We samba'd so hard.
Entertainment - Manu Blaser Saxophonist
Then out of nowhere came Manu... And he turned it UP! With his LED lights and his unbelievable skill, the dance floor was non stop. I was drenched in sweat so I've no idea how he blew into that saxophone for two hours but what a talent!
The Second Outfit -
After sneaking off for a wee cigar with my oldest and dearest school pals, it was time to change into my second dress.
A collaborative project with the lovely ladies behind The Caro Lines who crafted my corset and the work of our seamstress Hana who created a two skirts, a detachable liquid organza overskirt and a silk mini skirt. The purpose being that I will wear all these pieces individually after the wedding for anniversaries or nights out - with jeans, with shirts - the opportunities to re wear and re love are endless.
And so after dancing until the early hours of the morning, our guests stumbled down the hill towards their pre arranged transport, Roig Buses - ready to go again later that day, our villa pool party where we ate paella and played a lot of beer pong! We had the wedding of our dreams and I still pinch myself three months on. It honestly wouldn't have been possible without the kindest support of our loved ones and of course, the brilliant and talented suppliers. So a huge huge HUGE thank you to everyone involved - we adore you! I'll do a separate post soon about top tips for getting married specifically in Mallorca, but if in the meantime you have any burning questions feel free to reach out to me! I'd love to help :) For now, Ciao! Charlotte ~ finally a #bonsoirebride
xx
Wedding suppliers:
Photographer - https://www.dorianedescamps.com
Venue - http://www.fincasesvoltes.com/en/
Catering + Venue styling - https://grupototapunt.com
Dress - www.bonsoire.co.uk
Bridesmaid + Mothers Dresses - https://miabellebridals.co.uk
Suits - https://www.suitors.co.uk
Hair & MUA - https://www.charlottejoy.co.uk
DJ - Angel Rod - https://www.facebook.com/AngelRodMusic/?locale=en_GB
Saxophonist - Manu Blaser - https://www.instagram.com/manublaser.sax/?hl=en
Coach transport - https://roig.com
Paella - website coming soon, to enquire call Carmen - (Spain) 615630291
Celebrant - Ben Clark
Beauty treatments - Gloss Me Up - https://www.fresha.com/a/glossmeup-northampton-1-ivy-house-cottage-aey9b8jj
Wedding Bands - https://www.loupe.co.uk