Drew and Dassie married at the stunning Kleinkaap Boutique Hotel in Centurion, one of my all-time favorite venues.
I met Dassie a few years ago when I photographed her brother Alex’s wedding, and it was fantastic to see all the old familiar faces again.
We were asked to photograph and film Dassie and Drew’s wedding, so on the big day, our team of photographers and videographers captured all their special memories.
I asked Dassie a few questions about her wedding.
How did you meet?
Our story isn’t a ‘love at first sight’ fairytale. Instead, we were first friends for three years before exploring a romantic connection. In 2017, Andrew was stationed in Abu Dhabi with the US military, and I was working in the same emirate as an internationally flying flight attendant. One evening my flat mate and I were in an Irish pub searching for the meaning of life at the bottom of some wine bottles. Andrew’s Marines were in the pub and eventually approached the ladies with tequila. What was their opening line? “Happy birthday! Here are some shots to celebrate.” It was not our birthdays, but us ladies were happy to “celebrate”; regardless. Eventually, we met Andrew through the group. Six years later, we are all still “celebrating”; but now we have actual occasions to celebrate – such as our wedding!
Tell us about the proposal
Andrew wanted to meet my parents ask them for my hand face-to-face before he proposed which proved a logistical nightmare because he was living in the US, I was living in Canada, and my parents were in South Africa. Fortunately, my parents and older brother decided to visit me in Canada to celebrate my dad’s 70th birthday and Andrew made sure to be in Canada at the same time. Unfortunately, Andrew couldn’t find a moment alone with my parents to ask them for my hand before he took me to the romantic Mont-Tremblant for a quick getaway. We hiked up the mountain and did all sorts of cute activities that would have been perfect for a romantic proposal but, he didn’t feel comfortable phoning my parents to ask them instead of asking face-to-face so, he didn’t propose. By the time we left, I didn’t think he would propose during this visit to Canada anymore because he was flying back to the US in 2 days. The day before he left for the US, he told me he was going on a morning run while I was still asleep, and he ran to my parent’s accommodation and asked them to marry me. Later that same day he planned to propose to me at the top of the CN Tower in Toronto, but it was so full of tourists and he knew that would have made me uncomfortable, so once again he didn’t propose. In the end, he finally proposed to me when we got to the hotel room that night and he flew back to the US early the next morning.
Describe your wedding day
In the wedding invitation I told our guests that this event would be “a celebration underneath the stars in the garden of the Kleinkaap Boutique Hotel.” That is exactly what happened on the day because we were blessed with a warm, thunderstorm-free evening. We celebrated with delicious food, South African wine, a Rugby World Cup Semi Final win, and family and friends who travelled from all around the world to make it an unforgettable evening and a once in a lifetime moment where all our loved ones could be together under the same string of fairy lights. The day was even better than we could have dreamed of – all the small details came together perfectly, and we had the time of our lives. It was truly an evening that was so full of fun, laughter, friendship, and love, that we wished it would never end.
Tell us about your dress
I wanted a classic and simple look without lace, but it was challenging to find the right dress to match my personality because I was traveling a lot and barely had time to dress shop. In the end, the dress was a team effort between myself, my sister-in-law, and my mother, even though all three of us lived in different places around the world. First, my sister-in-law helped me find the dress which came from The Netherlands through a boutique in Pretoria called Bridal Manor. I decided to remove the bow that came with the original dress and added 99 white buttons down the train. Finally, my mother saw the dress for the first time a week before the wedding and added the pearl belt as a final touch, which matched the pearls I accessorized with – the same pearl earrings my mother wore on her wedding day.
Tell us about your decor and flowers
Kleinkaap Boutique Hotel is a stunning venue so we were lucky to have such a beautiful canvas to work with instead of starting from scratch. The white Architecture is strong, so instead of introducing bright colours and distracting decorations, I knew that I would work with a neutral palette and décor that only complimented the spaces we used. In the end, I decided to make the light more important than flowers – white flowers were used sparingly during the ceremony and reception for a clean, elegant look whereas lights were the focus of the evening.
During the ceremony, candles were placed along the isle and bubbles (another play on lights) were blown by our guests instead of traditional confetti/flower petals/rice. During the canape hour, drop lights hung from the trees and our guests could appreciate the warm weather, swans, and greenery in the garden. At the reception, a fairy light tent defined the area and candles decorated the tables to make it a magical evening as the day turned tonight.
What was the highlight of the wedding for you?
The fact that our garden wedding didn’t get rained out. Even though we had a hall at the venue ready as a backup plan, my vision with the lights wouldn’t have translated well to an indoor wedding. In the end, dancing underneath the fairy lights tent with my husband, surrounded by all our loved ones, having all the details come together so perfectly is a feeling I will never forget.
Who did your hair and makeup?
Loraine Meyer from The Makeup Effect. She and her team were incredible and had us ready on the day ahead of schedule! I booked the spray on foundation for the whole bridal party which was an excellent decision since this type of foundation doesn’t start to come off before the evening is over.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/loraine_olivier
Facebook: www.facebook.com/StyleAndMakeUpEffect
Are there any other suppliers you want to mention?
Décor: Melanie from Batterboys. I highly recommend Melanie – she is excellent and can help brides articulate and execute their vision. You can email her at flowers@batterboys.co.za.
Cake: Baker Boys Confectionary – www.facebook.com/bakerboysconfectionery
Lights: Theo from Softlight – info@softlight.co.za or www.instagram.com/softlightdecor
Dancefloor and string trio: Erlo from Wedding Tunes – hello@weddingtunes.co.za
DJ: Martin Thomas – martinonights@gmail.com
Hairdresser for highlights: Dina Clase – www.instagram.com/dina.salon.sa
Any advice for other brides/grooms-to-be?
All the planning will be worth it when things come together perfectly on the day. And on the day, let go of the idea of controlling anything and have a blast! If you get too caught up in controlling the day, it will pass you by before you have a chance to actually enjoy your special moment.
What is the inspiration behind the overall wedding décor and your colour choices?
Lights. Touched on this previously.
Where are you going for your honeymoon?
To say we have done things untraditionally as a couple would be a major understatement. For example, we not only had 3 wedding events, but we travelled across South Africa with our international guests during the week leading up to the wedding and the week after the wedding. So, we are taking some time to relax after the craziest and unforgettable past few weeks before planning a honeymoon.
We are considering the following honeymoon destinations: Alaska, Iceland, or Scotland.
Since we recently moved to Europe, it is more likely that we will settle on Iceland or Scotland, but the two of us travel so often and I keep adding destinations to our travel list so I wouldn’t be surprised if we land up somewhere completely unexpected! We also have not set exact dates for our honeymoon, but it will most likely happen in the late spring/summer of the Northern Hemisphere in 2024.
What are you most looking forward to in married life?
We have already been legally married for over a year, so we are looking forward to all the little things like getting back into our routine together, eating Andrew’s delicious dinners (yes, he is the cook in our relationship), and building our life together in our new home – Germany. After three years we will move somewhere else in the world so we are looking forward to seeing where life eventually takes us.
