Sara elaborating on her wedding theme

Natalia: What theme, if any, do you have for your wedding?

Sara: Well it is a blue, white and a little bit yellow, which is quite nautical, although I am not having any specifically nautical references except stripes. So it's a stripy wedding really!

Natalia: Was this always what you wanted or has this theme evolved from another?

Sara: It has evolved, after visiting the island, choosing the church and reception venue I realised that it was pointless trying to introduce new colours, themes that are just not suited to the venue. It was either a cream or white with blue as that is what surrounds you the entire time! I love stripes and dots, so I decided to go for a stripy theme with a little yellow added into the mix. It’s fresh which is what I wanted, to accentuate what is already in place

Natalia: How are you manifesting this theme? What details and touches are you incorporating into the decor?

Sara: This is a funny question for me today, as I am trying to find reasonably priced navy tablecloths, which is not easy! In an ideal world, I would have navy tablecloths, yellow napkins, stripy linen favours, and stripy ribbon on the invites. My centrepieces are small olive trees in buckets with lemons around the base. The bouquets will be tied with blue and white ribbon and some of my friends will wear sashes that are blue and white. I am looking at getting Niko and the best man stripy linen handkerchiefs as well.

Natalia: Will the friends be just part of the congregation or are they your bridesmaids?

Sara: Well, the best man's wife and close friend of ours will wear one, as will the young bridesmaids. Lot's of my girlfriends are choosing blue for their dresses, which I am encouraging! My sister who is the chief bridesmaid hasn't chosen a dress yet, so we are uncertain if she will wear a sash. We have only been shopping in Rhodes, which is not what you would call a fashion capital.


Natalia: Are you finding it difficult to find what you need in the whole of Greece or Just on Rhodes? The table clothes and napkins for example.

Sara: It is difficult. Not just in Rhodes but in the whole of Greece. I have found a blue fabric, but it's very bright and I am uncertain if it will look like a child's party. It is a common problem and renting in this country is a bit of a nightmare. I have tried several places today, but it will be cheaper to buy the fabric and have them sewn up than rent them. They don't seem to have understood the concept very well over here, it's almost as expensive as buying if not more. I mean who needs 20 round tablecloths after the wedding!

Natalia: Tell me more about your theme details. I love the idea of the olive trees with the lemons on the base.

Sara: Well the decor is going to be based on ambient lighting meaning many lanterns, candles and I am having tiny fairy lights in the olive trees. Actually after visiting the hotel this weekend, I really don't think it needs a lot of decorating.

Natalia: That is a very good point t make. Some venues really only need and accent rather than a full make over.

Sara: Yes, you work with what you choose. If it's a banquet hall, then more attention is needed. If it's a gorgeous garden, seaside venue then less is often more. My venue is quite large, so you either have to go ridiculous or accent it. So I am accenting. I am also creating a lounge area. This will be white outdoor sofas with a pale grey cover and stripy cushions. I will have more candles on the tables and the bar will be set up in the area

Natalia: A more chilled area to relax and chat?

Sara: Actually I want most people to move to this area after dinner. So we can continue in a more party like atmosphere. I didn't actually want a sit down meal at all, but have been coaxed into it by pure and simple logic; Guests cannot stand all afternoon and evening
We are going to cut the "cake" and have our first dance and we are giving everyone sparklers to hold for this. The dessert will be set up behind the lounge area, so in order to see the cake and eat dessert you have to get up and hopefully people will stay on the lounge side.

SP & NY

Natty's Preliminary Decisions

Sara says: How did you decide to have a wedding abroad?

Natalia says: Although I have been born and raised in England I have always felt an affinity to Greece.  My husband is also from South Africa and a huge fan of hotter climates, so we thought it would be great for us to get married on a Greek Island rather than in the UK.  Greece for me is a more magical place than England and the idea of having all my friends in one place for a week was too tempting to miss!

Sara says:  What made you chose Crete out of the hundreds of islands in Greece?

Natalia says: My Grandmother was from Southern Crete a place called Sfakia. So I decided that it would be nice to have it on her island.  Also it gave me more options than most of the islands as it was bigger and logistically easier to get to from all the relevant destinations the guests were coming from.

SP & NY

Sara says: So you didn't really even consider other destinations? It was steam ahead to Crete really!

Natalia says: I was looking into a couple of Islands at the start. Spetses and Skiathos were a couple of my choices. It was after looking into the options and of course talking to you, my wedding planner (!) that I decided on Crete

Sara says:  Crete is a large island, did you research on the internet and decide on Chania?

Natalia says: I had long conversations with my father who knows Crete very well and we decided that that side of the island was quieter and more untouched than the eastern side.   The internet was not particularly helpful as most Greeks do not have a website and if they do they are either written in Greek or are just rubbish!

Sara says: So you decided on Chania because you were lucky enough to have a father that knew the area!

Natalia says: Partly, and partly because it was beautiful.  We arranged a road trip down there; my parents, Jubbs (my husband) and me to go see it we liked it.  A little daunting for Jubbs as he was about to get stuck in a car with my father and me which is always interesting to say the least…we are a little too similar for our own good.

Photos by friends

Sara says: Really that is the only way to go about it?

Natalia says: It was the most efficient way in our mind to go about it.  I could have delegated everything to you but as you know, I am too much of a control freak for that.  We hired a lovely Renault Megan and set off searching the area for appropriate venues

Sara says: But that's actually a better way to go about it.  I stress when a bride has only seen her venue on the web she may hate it when she arrives.

Natalia says: I agree and from experience they really do look very different in photos than real life.  For example the monastery which we chose. The stone would actually change colour at different times of the day.

Sara says: So how did you end up choosing your ceremony and reception venue?

Natalia says: We had decided on a 3 day event. As everyone was coming from far and wide we felt that it would only be fitting to put on a Friday dinner, Saturday wedding and a Sunday lunch. So finding venues for them all was a bit tricky and they did end up changing a few times. On the initial trip we managed to find the church and the reception venue, which we stuck by!  You sent me through a few options of reception venues and on there was a place called Villa Catani.  It is a beautiful villa, run by Katrina and Costas who are gorgeous!  When we went to see it we realised that it would not be suitable for 200 guests but Costas new of another villa which could work.  I had always wanted an old Cretan building rather than a hotel so when we arrived at Metohi Kindelis it was love at first sight!

Photos by Cristina Oliver and friends

Natalia says: It was an old renovated Cretan farmhouse.  Manoli the owner studied in Italy and had come home, renovated his family home and started an organic fruit farm on the land! He has done it beautifully.  The outside still has all character and charm of it's original self yet the inside has been designed to fuse the modern with it's old, original character.  Quite breath taking really.  It is very rare to find an original building as up until lately the Greeks tended to flatten the old and just build new.  With the reception venue ticked off the list, the next venue to find was the church! 

Photos by friends

Natalia says: As I am a Greek Orthodox, I wanted to get married in the Orthodox Church. Jubbs, it turns out is a Catholic, despite having lived his entire life believing he was Church of England (I will elaborate on that another day!). He therefore had no arguments (or basis for one!) to get married in my church. This is where we got very lucky.  My parents neighbour in their sleepy little village in Oxfordshire, used to be the head of the archeological museum in London. He very kindly put us in touch with the head of the archeological society in Chania, who was amazing. We ended up getting permission to marry in the monastery at Aptera which is steeped in history and surrounded by an incredible view over Souda Bay.

Sara says: It really is about who you know in this country!!!

Natalia says: It truly is!  Contacts get you everywhere as we found out more and more as the process went on.  My advice is you don't lose anything by asking!

Natalia says: Only 2 more venues to go plus a florist, caterer, light and sound, entertainment.  Oh and the priest!