I’m a firm believer that every day needs at least a small dose of glamour – however you choose to weave it in (using your fanciest coffee mug totally counts). Well today lovelies, you are getting enough glamour to hold you over all week by way of this London beauty captured by Polly Alexandre Photography. It’s traditional elegance meets dream wedding, all planned and designed by Kim Balasubramaniam (the bride). You can see all the gorgeous right here.
From the Bride… My husband and I still can’t believe how perfect our wedding day was. Each time we reminisce or flick through our beautiful photo album, we’re reminded of what an amazing time we had. Although first and foremost it was an opportunity to celebrate our 10-year love story with our family and friends, as a wedding planner and stylist myself, we wanted our wedding to feel decadent and glamorous. It was always going to be about the details! We chose to marry in London — we both fell in love with the statuesque building that is Islington Town Hall for our ceremony. Although we had 150 guests, the room itself was round, so the ceremony felt very intimate and personal. Each guest received a bag on arrival that my Mum had made (I had seen similar on SMP before and searched high and low for the perfect lace trim; I actually ended up shipping it in from New York!) that we had filled with handmade goodies such as postcards of our children’s book readings, the order of service, delphinium petal confetti and heart-shaped shortbread. We wanted to make a lot of the items for the wedding ourselves, both to save money and to make everything as personal as possible, and I was determined to prove that DIY details can be glamorous!
We hired two iconic London buses to transport guests from our ceremony to the reception, which everybody loved. On arrival, we served signature cocktails garnished with rose petals, delicious canapés and had a Spanish guitar band to entertain everyone. In the main ballroom, a mix of round and banquet tables were laid with cream linens and lined with numerous vintage crystal and silver receptacles. These were filled with church candles and roses – we had over 1,000 roses and spent months collecting silver trays, crystal vases and bowls. Amongst many other things, we handmade our napkin rings from black velvet ribbon and diamante clasps to echo our stationery suite, made wish bracelet favors for the ladies, created crystal-trimmed place names and designed escort cards that were tied to even more roses. During the drinks reception, our photographer Polly Alexandre whisked us away for our couple shots. Even though it was the greyest, rainiest day London could throw at us, we were blown away when we saw how beautiful all the images were. You would have thought it was the most perfect weather, and Polly managed to capture every single detail of the day in her beautiful, inimitable style. We will cherish our photographic memories forever.
We wanted our wedding to be the greatest party we’ve ever thrown, so in the evening, the emphasis was on fun! We hired a fabulous DJ, had free-flowing cocktails running all evening and had a photo-booth that we customized with our own logo and props. We made boxes of pashminas and flip-flops for the ladies to use and take home with them, each of which had a little hand made tag on them that coordinated with all the other items from the day. The dance floor was full all night, with guests only taking a break to feast on the fabulous cake my Mum had made for us and the Sri Lankan “short eats” that Chara’s Mum had also made. We managed to incorporate elements of all our favorite things in life into our wedding, from Chara’s love of football and my love of shoes, to our passion for travel and even our two cats. We thought carefully about every item we included and had our guests’ enjoyment in the forefront of our mind when planning everything. It really was the most emotional and special day, and looking back, we wouldn’t change a thing.
Wedding Photography: Polly Alexandre Photography / Ceremony: Islington Town Hall in London, UK / Reception: 45 Millbank in London, UK / Wedding Design, Styling + Planning: Kim Balasubramaniam (The Bride) / Floral Design: Cindy Kirkand of Creative Works / Wedding Details: DIY by the Bride, Her Mother + Sister / Catering: Kalm Kitchen / Wedding Cake: DIY by Bride’s Mother / Cupcakes: Hummingbird Bakery / Bar: Bars by Design / Band: Andalus / DJ: Mitch Matthews / Photo Booth: Say Fromage / Paper Straws: Peach Blossom via Not on the High Street / Wedding Dress: Adapted from Novia d’Art + Custom by Mamfii Bridal / Bride’s Shoes: Karen Millan + Swarovski Crystals Glued on by the Bride’s Sister / Bride’s Tiara: Halo & Co. / Hair: Severin Hubert of The Hepburn Collection / Makeup: Mariam Jenson / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Maids to Measure / Bridal Preparations: The Sanderson Hotel / Groom’s Suit: William Hunt via Hugh Harris / Groom’s Shoes: Kurt Geiger