Haylene and Eben's wedding

Date: 17 April 2010
Venue: Asara Wine Estate and Hotel, Western Cape

How did you meet?

Eben and I met in 2007 when I moved into the same block of flats where he was staying. We were friends at first, going out for dinner and drinks. But when the cute notes and flowers started appearing on my car before I went to work, I knew he liked me! I gave the poor guy a tough time, told him I first wanted to get to know him before I would even consider dating him. Which of course took a while... After he met my family, I gave him the go ahead and we haven’t looked back since...

How did he propose?

He asked my boss to give me the weekend off (I’m a beauty therapist), told me to pack casual clothes, and whisked me away to the Singita Ebony Lodge. Wow wow wow! He booked me a massage, we went for lunch and a game drive and when we finally got back to our room I realised there was a brand new dress and shoes on the bed. He arranged for dinner to be served in our room, and then he disappeared for a few minutes. When he came back he went down on one knee and popped the question! He put the most amazing ring on my finger, and the rest, as they say, is history!

How did you decide on your venue?

We wanted our wedding to be completely different to any of the other weddings we’d been to, so we flew to Cape Town and drove around looking at wine estates. When we arrived at Asara, we knew it was the one!

The flowers

Eben and I both love Orchids and that was the one thing we knew we wanted from the beginning. Eben always buys me Orchids for anniversaries, or for ‘just because’. I love the pinkish-purple colour of the Butterfly Orchid and that’s what inspired the colour scheme. The flowers were absolutely perfect, my bouquet was stunning and I also had an Orchid in my hair. There were also light boxes under some of the table arrangements.

My advice to brides-to-be

It’s so  incredible to get married, I would do it all over again tomorrow if I could. Don't stress about your wedding day and how ‘it has to be perfect’. Remember why you are there: to marry the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with, and take all of that in. The ceremony, the shared moments between you and your new husband – all that matters because all the rest is out of your control. Enjoy every moment because it flies by too quickly!

Bride’s little black book

Wedding planners: The Aleit Group; 021-887 4448
Caterers: Chef Carstens from Asara Wine Estate; 021- 888 8000
Dresses: Maci;  012-654 4708
Photographer: Daniela from Jan Hendrik Photography; 082 589 1385
Videographer: Just Shoot Me Productions; 083 695 5175
DJ: DJ Piet; 084 524 6573
Cake: Christo from A Designs; 021-887 4448
Flowers & décor: Design by Marcel; 082 428 6848
Lighting: Something Different; 0861 266 2378  
Stationers: Bella and Co; 073 937 756
Hair and make-up: Le Hair Lounge; 021-883 8323