Even if you consider yourself to be a self-tanning aficionado, doing a trial run at least a week in advance of your Big Day is an absolute must. Before the main event, make sure your entire body has been thoroughly exfoliated, and that any necessary hair removal has taken place at least 12 hours prior, before applying self-tanner, and you’re practically guaranteed a gorgeous, even glow!
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Photography: Jerome Cole Photography
Thanks to Blenda Montoro Photography, my bucket list now includes a bougainvillea crown and a trip to Tavarua. Until this photo shoot, I had never heard of this heart shaped island oasis, but now there’s no looking back. This gorgeous couple was lucky enough to have their post-wedding glow captured on this dream of a honeymoon and we’re feeling super lucky they decided to share it with all of us right here.
From Blenda Montoro Photography… Rubens, a Brazilian business man and surfer, had been to Tavarua several times before and always loved it’s natural beauty, the amazing people, the gorgeous resort, and epic surf. After a spectacular wedding in Brazil, Rubens decided to take his bride, now wife, Melissa to his favorite place in the world Tavarua, for there honeymoon. Tavarua is a small heart shaped island in Fiji that is adored by those who know about it. On this trip I was traveling to Tavarua from the island of Kauai, Hawaii with my husband a surfer and our 4 month old son Mateo. I brought a couple cameras planning to photograph the island and people and hoping to meet a beautiful honeymoon couple like Rubens and Melissa. Being from South America, Melissa and I had an immediate connection once we met. Over the next couple days laying by the pool Melissa and I planned a honeymoon shoot for them which they could share with there friends and family back home in Brazil. The photos were so amazing though that we decided we needed to share them with the world.
During the day of the shoot the flower headpiece was made by a couple of the Fijian ladies who worked at the resort. I gave them an idea of what we were looking for, and using flowers from the island they totally exceeded our expectations. We took photos on the Western part of the island because we wanted to capture the best lighting during sunset. We hope these photos help illustrate the beauty of Tavarua and what a special place it is.
Photography: Blenda Montoro Photography | Bride Dress By:: Iorane | Tavarua Island Resort: Tavarua Island Resort
This is one of those weddings that completely warms your heart. It’s a beautiful story, an amazing setting and a gorgeous bride and groom celebrating their love with their closest friends and family in Fiji. In other words, it’s the kind of day that fills your day with soooo much love and soooo much joy, you seriously consider sending thank you notes. See it all captured by Malia Johnson right here.
From the Bride… I am so excited to be able to share with you pictures with you of our Fijian Fantasy wedding. It was such an amazing day, especially when I didn’t think I had the bride gene before this all started. I think the fact that it was a destination wedding with only 40 of our closest friends and family and that we were all on holiday made the day even more special.
After losing my dad just before my 7th birthday, I grew up always picturing my Mum walk me down the aisle. She had truly been my best friend so when I lost her a few months after my 18th birthday, I stopped dreaming of a big white wedding. So when Pieter proposed I did not begin the planning with the same vigour as many other brides because I thought the day would actually highlight all of my family that would be missing. I pictured the day as being more about Pieter’s family and grew worried about it having that special feel.
When I raised that idea of a destination wedding Pieter agreed it would be good as it would mean that only those people that mean the most to us would actually be there. We feel in love with the seaside chapel at the Shangri la Fijian Resort and spa. When 40 guests confirmed they were coming to Fiji not only for the wedding but a week long holiday we were over the moon.
On the day, my older brother walked me down the aisle. The first tears sprung in my eyes when he said “you know Mum would be so proud.” I had to stop his pep talk in the car as it was making my heart race. I held the picture of my mum that hung from my bouquet as I walked down the aisle and knew she was there in spirit.
As I saw Pieter, the sadness went and I knew that the rest of the day would be filled with smiles as we were surrounded by so many friends and family that travelled so far to witness us get married.
We had such an amazing time with nature putting on a show with the sun shining without it being too hot, whilst the locals including the staff all embraced as to make us feel special.
We were arrived to the reception, we were in for an amazing suprise. My sister-in-law had arrange a dessert table which was stunning and tasty. To think she had tranported all of those extra touches in hers (and her children’s) suitcase. It provided a stunning talking piece and the personalised touch I thought would be hard to achieve with a destination wedding.
Photography: Lia & Stu | Photographers | Invitations: Petrella Studios | Bride's Shoes: Badgley Mischka | Calligraphy: Written By Hand | Venue: Shangri La Fijian Resort And Spa | "Here Comes The Bride" Signage: Larkspur & Linen | Bridal Shop: Brides of Sydney | Bride's Dress: Allure Bridal | Bridesmaid Dress: Kim's Couterier | Desserts: Taste Fiji | Signs, Menus & Place Cards: Paper Couture | Styling (Dessert Table & Welcome Area: Chic Style Events | Table Centerpieces: Grace Creations
I’ll be honest. Fall is my favorite season. And I long for cozy sweaters, yummy hot cocoa and curling up by the fire for pretty much the entire year. That is, until I lay my eyes on a tropical love-fest like this darling day captured by Jonas Peterson. Because this, my friends, is a sun-filled masterpiece set against the breathtaking land known as Fiji… and if every last glorious image doesn’t make you want to pack up some flip flops and catch the first flight out, I don’t know what will. See it all here.
And a little film magic from Zoom Fiji? I think we will.
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From the Bride… I grew up dreaming about getting married on a tropical island and Fiji was the perfect place to make this dream come true. Fiji holds a special place in both of our hearts as Dave surprised me by proposing and organised to fly out to Fiji the next day for an amazing holiday. We both fell love the Fijian culture, the Fijian people are so happy and friendly and we always feel so welcome there. We decided on the Intercontinental Golf Resort and Spa on the Coral Coast, such a beautiful place. We wanted an intimate wedding with close friends and family to share our special day. We wanted to create a fun and relaxed atmosphere where our guests could kick back and have a great holiday! What was special was being able to hang out with our guests leading up to the wedding, cocktails by the pool, snorkelling on the reef and great dinners. My wedding planner Jane at the Intercontinental Golf Resort and Spa did the most amazing job taking care of everything. Dave and I didnt have to worry about a thing! As we were getting married overseas I still wanted to put my special touch on our wedding so I had a ball designing our wedding invitations. I just wanted something casual and fun to reflect the day.
Were so happy with what the resort provided in terms of flowers and decor, we were lucky our family were able to help talking decorations etc over to Fiji. It was important to us for our guests to experience some Fijian culture so we incorporated Fijian dancers and a fire show, all of our guest really enjoyed this, it really made the night so special. We also had serenaders playing before the ceremony and during cocktail hour. I also had the privilege of being escorted to the chapel by two Fijian warriors. Our reception was held at the Intercontinentals signature fine dining Navo restaurant which overlooks the lagoon and the island of Navo. Dave and I organised a special cocktail for all of our guests on arrival, it was a coconut mojito, our guests really enjoyed this special touch. I loved my orchid bouquet and the beautiful pink ginger bridesmaids bouquets, they tied in perfectly with their Amsale dresses. The guys did well withstanding the heat wearing suits in the heat!
One thing that was really important to me was our wedding photographer. I had done my research but my heart was set on Jonas Peterson. I was not disappointed, he captured our day so beautifully, we both love our photos and will cherish them always. I also flew over an amazing makeup artist from Sydney, Christina Clearly who had been to Fiji many times so I knew I was in good hands. She did such a great job and we all looked so beautiful, our makeup stayed on all day and night. I sourced a local hair team from Fiji, I was not disappointed, they knew exactly what I wanted and their knowledge working with hair in the Fijian heat was incredible! We also had the pleasure of working with Zoomfiji, they also did such a great job capturing our special day. Everyone went above and beyond to make our day so amazing.
The staff were incredible at the Intercontinental and nothing was too much trouble for them. They really made sure that they looked after us and we had the day we had always dreamed about! Vinaka!
Photographer: Jonas Peterson | Wedding Dress: Brides of Beecroft | Wedding Stationery: Fave Paper Designs | Bride's Shoes: Peep Toe | Bridesmaid Dresses: Amsale | Makeup Artist: Christina Cleary | Hair: Hair N Mkp Perfectionist | Banners: LullabyMobiles | Bride's Hair Piece: Kristi Bonnici | Girls' Robes: Silk And More | Location: Intercontinental Golf Resort & Spa Fiji
This Fiji destination wedding is the stuff that dreams are made of; crystal clear water, sunny skies, coconut cocktails and image after beautiful image by Feather + Stone. Sal and Cal loaded up and shipped off from Australia for a week long celebration at Wananavu Beach Resort Fiji with 90 of their friends and family in tow. What resulted was a picturesque wedding, lots of fun in the sun and a scrumptious day after session to cap things off. Be sure to stop by the gallery for a whole lot more where these pretties came from and now without further ado… From Fiji with love.
Click here to see the entire gallery of images!
From Feather + Stone…We’re Seth and Tenielle based out of Australia (however, we are available for US weddings)!
Sal and Cal’s home is in Melbourne, Australia but they planned an exotic getaway to celebrate with their loved ones in paradise. And paradise it was. Aqua water, lush greenery, palm trees and hibiscus’s as the backdrop. They decided to tie the knot in Fiji simply because they wanted their wedding to be laid back and fun. Many of their family and friends live in different countries and they don’t get to see them nearly enough. Rather than just celebrate for ‘one day’ they wanted create a relaxed atmosphere and a memorable week long celebration for all their guests. This also meant that she could hand the planning over to the resort who did the most amazing job taking care of everything.
Sal didn’t just leave it there though, she brought over 100’s of photos of all their loved ones to create a whimsical photo collage for the reception, strung between 2 palm trees, strings of orgami cranes (symbolising wishes coming true) a goodies table full of their favorite sweets and beautiful simple decor on the tables. Their reception was outdoors under the stars with loads of tiny white lanterns weaved through the palms. They ended the night with fireworks overlooking the turquoise harbor.
We stayed with Sal & Cal and the guests for 4 blissful days and we were treated like family from the very beginning. They are a beautiful couple with warms souls and it didn’t surprise us that 90 family and friends made the trip to come and celebrate with them in Fiij. Sal and Cal said everything about their wedding in Fiji exceeded their expectations, from the moment they stepped off the plane all the way through to leaving for their honeymoon on nearby Matamanoa Island. The day before we left we couldn’t let the opportunity slip by with such beautiful people in a magic place so we snuck them away for a “day after” session and we’re so glad we did.
Ceremony + Reception Location: Wananavu Beach Resort Fiji / Wedding Photography: Feather + Stone / Hair + Make-up: Friend / Flowers: Wananavu Village Flowers / Bride’s Shoes: Top End / Wedding Dress: Lisa Ho / Bride’s Jewelry: Mother’s Earrings, Grandmother’s Ring (engagement ring) / Wedding Ring: H&H Jewellery / Bride’s Headpiece: Linda Gorringe Couture / Bridesmaid Dresses: Decjuba / Groom + Groomsmen Attire: witchery man / Decor: DIY
We couldn’t think of a better way to spend Friday morning than by getting ready a little early for the weekend with a mini-vacation to Fiji. And since, unfortunately, we can’t all hop on a plane and meet there for a Fiji Bitter on the beach, 39 East Photography has been sweet enough to share this amazing Fiji destination wedding with us. So take a few moments for yourself this morning and spend it with this gorgeous wedding. If you close you eyes, you can almost hear the waves crashing on the beach. Don’t forget about the gallery for more!
I have been very privileged to have lived and stayed in some of the most beautiful hotels and resorts due to my dad’s career in hoteling. Of all the places that we’ve lived, Fiji has always held a special place our hearts. Although we only lived in paradise for two years when I was much younger, we have continued to return to ‘our second home’ through the years and every time we leave, we leave with even more wonderful memories.
Anyone who’s been to Fiji will know that time seems to stop on these islands, and for me, this is definitely the case. Every time my family returns to Fiji, we are remembered by so many staff and friends who still live and work at the hotel from 25 years ago. There is nothing like being greeted with a big bellowing “BULA” and a heartfelt hug from our friends in Fiji.
In December, my parents and I returned to Fiji for the first time in 10 years and were so pleased that Tom could get time off work to come with us. I remember on the first day of our stay, Tom and I were exploring the resort when we chanced upon the Seaside Chapel and we knew straight away that this was THE place. We are both lovers of the beach and sea, and the chapel was the perfect setting that just “fit”. Although we had already booked a venue in Perth and even had printed our invitations (and were due to send them out the week after our holiday in Fiji!), we cancelled all our original plans and proceeded to plan our wedding in paradise.
We always knew that the wedding was going to be a small wedding because of the location so we wanted it to be intimate and casual. Even though we understood that all eyes would be on us, it was important to us that all our guests had as good a time as possible and that we expressed our gratitude for them making the trip to Fiji.
We hoped that we would provide enough opportunity in the preceding days to the wedding for all our guests to get to know each other, which would hopefully making the wedding even more fun and more memorable. In the few days before and after the wedding, we planned a cocktail function, a tour of the local village, a chartered fishing tour as well as a day cruise.
We also wanted the wedding to be distinctly Fijian, hence our wedding favors were kava bowls (for the boys) and Pure Fiji toiletries (for the girls). Whilst we didn’t have a strict beach theme, we aimed for a casual sophistication with our invitations, table settings etc. In the end, it was the unexpected that made the wedding unforgettable. At the last minute, we invited a chiefly representative from a nearby village, who led an unplanned Kava ceremony just before dinner, as well as garnered the wait staff to serenade our guests at the end of the night. Truly Fijian!
We believe that the memorability of the wedding was the fact that by the end of everyone’s stay, our guests from Perth, Singapore, Queensland and New South Wales, had all made new friends and left with fond memories of Fiji. As the bride & groom, we were able to spend quality time with all our guests, some of which we don’t see very often and truly reconnect.
Fiji also reflects a casualness and warmth that we think reflects us as a couple as well.
Fortunately or unfortunately, because of the location, there weren’t a lot of options in terms of flowers and décor. In the end, our choices were limited to what the resort could provide and we could only bring so much from Perth. We made the table runners, favor notes and table place cards from the same paper as our wedding invitations (in fact from all the invitations that had been printed for the Perth wedding) as we loved the design. The bridal party’s outfits were all chosen to withstand the summer weather in comfort (the boys didn’t wear jacket and ties) and the flowers were selected from an option of four seasonal flowers. We also managed to liaise with a nearby village to provide us with leis for all our guests at the ceremony, to make it even more Fijian.
We chose “My Destiny” by Lionel Ritchie as our wedding song to walk down the aisle to, as despite being somewhat embarrasing, we are both proud to say that we are huge fans of Lionel. In fact, tom also proposed to me with a Lionel Ritchie song so it only made sense to incorporate our favourite artist which was sang beautifully by the village choir in the chapel.
We also gave our guests all a welcome gift upon their arrival at the hotel- the girls received a sarong (or a “sulu” in fijian), and the boys a “Fiji Bitter” (the local Fijian beer) t-shirt and Fijian style can holder. Along with the wedding favors, we felt it was important that our guests take a bit of Fiji back home!
Photography: 39 East Photography / Bride’s Dress: Lisa Ho / Shoes: Tangs Studio / Jewelry: Mimco / Groom’s Pants and Shirt: Tailored at Excellent Silk House, Singapore / Bridesmaids: Karen Millen / Accommodations, Venue & Caterer: The Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa / Wedding Coordination: Cindy Lanyon
FIJI. With that single word, this wedding had my undivided attention and it is so living up to its paradise infused moniker. The images by Deep Grey Photography tell a tale of the perfect destination nuptials full of love, love, love and quite possibly the prettiest beach views we’ve ever laid eyes on. Take a little vaca with the full wedding right here!
Click here to see the entire gallery of images!
From the Bride…Mike and I had visited Fiji in 2006 and were instantly in love with the relaxed vibe, the warmth and friendliness of the Fijian people and of the stunning beauty that is Fiji. After watching a few of our close friends tie the knot and witnessing the huge amount of work that went into a wedding at home we decided that when it came our time it would be perfect to jet set off to an Island paradise with a few of our closest friends and family and get married in Fiji.
Being an event co-coordinator myself (and dare I say it, slightly wedding obsessed) it was very hard for me not to have a huge amount of control over the venue or decorations or all the little details. I was very aware that a wedding in Fiji could easily become quite a ‘cookie cutter’ affair, so Mike and I worked hard on personalizing little details to make the day feel more like ‘ours’. Some might say this defeats the purpose of a ‘stress-free’ destination wedding, but if there was something to personalize I attempted it.
Photography was especially important to me, and so I did a lot of research and finally came across Deep Grey who ever so kindly agreed to fly from Australia to Fiji and photograph our wedding. Adam and Fiona of Deep Grey were amazing and we had such a fun time with them doing the shoot. We brought our wedding cake on the plane all the way from Auckland, New Zealand. I had my dress custom made by a lovely friend of mine; the stationary was also designed by another dear friend of ours. We spent hours in the weeks before the wedding making the red heart fans to keep people cool (and believe me it was HOT!), we also made the ‘Just Married’ and ‘Mr & Mrs’ signs, as well as hand making the boys buttonholes. My mother also lovingly putting together our ring pillow with fabric from my wedding dress and a handkerchief she used on her wedding day – which became my ‘something old’. We put together all our heart shaped marshmallow favours, hand stamped each place card, and laid out ‘guest book cards’ at each place which were our own take on a ‘fill in the blanks’ type game, where we had written most of it out and left spaces for the guests to fill in feelings and well wishes on our wedding day.
For any who is tempted to indulge in a bit of DIY for your destination wedding, it is totally worth it. Walking in to our reception and seeing the things we made and the little touches we had brought with us was so exciting and just made our wedding day all the more special.
Wedding Photography: Deep Grey Photography / Location: The Intercontinental Golf Resort & Spa Fiji / Wedding Stationery: James Sievers, Friend of the Bride & Groom / Bride’s Shoes: Diana Ferrari / Wedding Dress: Stephanie Phillips Designs
There is just something so wonderful about these Fiji nuptials that I could seriously gaze at these stunning images from Jel Photography all day long. It may have something to do with the jaw-dropping location (un.real) or the bride’s amazing gown (her own design) or the feeling of pure happiness radiating from every single photo. I suspect that it’s a combination of all of the above, and more, that has left me feeling so enchanted. I think I just might adore this wedding and I know you will, too. See even more lovely images in the gallery!
Click here to see the entire gallery of images!
From the Bride…Planning a wedding is a wonderful mix of emotions – excitement, nervousness and anxiety! Our wedding was like planning a United Nations conference! We live in Singapore, our families live in Australia and the U.K.; friends are in the U.S, Europe and the Middle East; our photographers come from New Zealand, our wedding planner from Queensland; our videographer from San Francisco; and so naturally we decided have our big day in Fiji!
After 5 years together, and three since we were engaged, we finally set a date and wanted to stick to it – but choosing the location was not so easy. After a couple of false starts we chose Fiji – mainly because it would mean a week long vacation for our closest friends and family rather than have the wedding over and done in less than 24 hours!
One grandmother had never flown outside of Australia and didn’t even have a passport, so we knew it would be a logistical challenge. A funny aside to this, when applying for her passport, she discovered the name on her birth certificate was different to the one she’s been using for more than 80 years! We were so lucky that we had travel agent supremo Sue Natho from Essence Tours on our side! Sue is an expert when it comes to Fiji and really guided us in the right direction. With the internet it is simple to find a lot of information when planning a destination wedding – but having that inside knowledge is priceless.
Everyone tells you when you’re planning your wedding that come the big day all the stress will be worth it. Well, a destination wedding is a lot of stress! And they are wrong! If you have a day (or a week in our case) as wonderful as we had it doesn’t just meet expectations, it far surpasses what you could hope for. We had a dream wedding in an idyllic location shared with the most important people in our lives. And the best bit is, you walk away married to the person you love!
Wedding Photography: Jel Photography / Wedding Ceremony Location: Sheraton Fiji Resort / Wedding Reception Location: Fiji Orchid / Videography: Benjamin Hanson / Wedding Dress: Designed by the Bride via the Wedding Present, Singapore / Bride’s Shoes: Bourne Collection / Flowers: Paradise Brides / Planner: Essence Tours / Music: Fiji Choir / Groom’s Shoes: R.M. Williams / Wedding Cake: Taste of Fiji
