This Flower-Focused Affair in Portugal Puts Disney Weddings to Shame

Lauren Megerdichian
October 9, 2023
Categories: Real Weddings, Romantic, The Blog, Whimsical

[section title=”The Planning”]

[field title=”Wedding Colors”]light pink, bright pink, baby blue, lilac and white[/field]

[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]Our main focus was to have a small wedding so we could focus on celebrating our love with our closest family and friends and to really enjoy our time with everyone. The vision was for the wedding to be timeless and elegant with lots of flowers. [/field]

[field title=”Proposal Story”]We had been dating since college and had always spoken about getting married and having kids. In the summer of 2019, we were vacationing in the Amalfi Coast and one night we took our Vespa to have dinner in Positano. First we went down to the beach to watch the sunset and Eduardo got down on one knee and proposed. Then we had a beautiful dinner on a balcony overlooking the sea. [/field]

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[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]

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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]

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[section title=”The Fashion”]

[field title=”Wedding Gown”]I have always found beaded dresses beautiful and I knew I wanted something classic and elegant but also breathtaking. So I went for a princess dress, fully beaded, which gave it the impression of shining in the light, with a long train.

For the second dress I wanted something more understated, like a silk dress, but spotted a beaded mermaid dress and felt like it was made for me so I ended up getting it as well.[/field]

[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”]This one was harder because there were not a lot of good options but I ended up suggesting a dress to my bridesmaids that also matched the wedding visuals and everyone felt comfortable with. As we all live in a different countries (Germany, Netherlands, north and south of Portugal, Brasil and Luxembourg) we sent one to each bridesmaid and they had it tailored to them locally. [/field]

[field title=”Groomsman Attire”][/field]

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[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]

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[board_carousel title=”Cocktail Hour”]

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[section title=”The Details”]

[field title=”Food & Drink”]We wanted to have Portuguese elements in the food as a way to share our culture with our friends from different countries so we had grilled asparagus with a vinaigrette made with Algarve oranges as a starter and for our mains we had codfish (“bacalhau”) with shrimp “açorda” which are two very typical Portuguese things as well as lamb rack. Then we had a selection of traditional portuguese deserts as well as some cheese boards. The wine was also Portuguese of course, red wine from the Lisbon Region and white wine from the Douro region. [/field]

[field title=”Florals & Decor”]The flowers were the most important visual element of the wedding and what we spent the most time thinking about and researching. Once we decided on the colours we moved on to the types of flowers. We picked hydrangeas as this is a flower which is typical in Sintra (the Gardens of Penha Longa also have it) and it simbolizes gratitude, beauty and abundance as well as roses and delphiniums to create a garden-like effect.

The cocktail hour was in the garden, where we followed the same colour theme, with linens and flowers in the fountains.

For the dinning area, we went for long tables with garlands dropping down to the floor and gold candelabras to have a candlelit dinner with an intimate atmosphere.

Decorelle’s team, headed by Vera Flenova (the owner and flower designer), did a remarkable job in achieving our vision for the flower arrangements. [/field]

[field title=”Wedding Cake”]

We could not decide on which design to go for and, since we had planned for the cake to be surrounded by a huge floral arrangement, we ended going for a four layer white cake adorned with white peonies ( the main flower used in the bridal bouquet). We loved the final result of the simplicity of the cake with the exuberance of the flowers.

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[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”][/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #1″]The photographer: After looking for a long time we always came back to Diane and we made the best choice. She understood us and really captured the most beautiful moments. She has a timeless and elegant style of photography which is exactly what we wanted for our wedding. On top of being technically amazing and a true artist, she is easy to connect with so we felt super comfortable shooting with her and trusting her.

Beauty: Tom Perdigão was the make-up artist and hairstylist and again, he understood completely the vision I had and even gave his input on the final details of the jewelry, the perfume etc.. He is simply the best, you cannot go wrong. [/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #2″]Advice to other couples:

First and foremost, invite only people who you know will be genuinely happy for you. You want to have only loving energy around you.

Figure out which aspects matter the most to you and invest in that. For us it was the flowers and the photographer so we didn’t get other things which would have been a nice touch but were indifferent to us (such as getting signature drinks or a Photo Booth for example).

Pick a photographer who has the same style of photography you like and, more importantly, someone who understands your vision and who knows how to give directions.

Getting a band before the DJ is a great way to break the ice and have fun, it’s definitely worth the money and it’s one of the things people will remember the most.

Once the planning is done, it’s done, so don’t waste time worrying and just enjoy yourselves. Focus on having fun together and with the guests, it’s a once in a life time opportunity to reunite so many people you love.[/field]

[field title=”Special Detail #3″][/field]

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[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Reception”]

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