Real Wedding: Jocelyn & Stephane
I have been trying to get this wedding up on the blog before the official end of our eternal winter. I figured that regardless of how beautiful this day was, you might cry if I showed this off when it was finally spring. We are all dreaming of warm days, bright sun and the beauty of summer weddings, but take a moment to love this day as much as I did.
It was so hard to choose images from this gallery to show - though I will say this is one of my many favourites. If you're not familiar with Charmaine Mallari Photography I suggest you head over to her site immediately - well, ok, after you hang out here first. She has an incredible gift at capturing emotion in a day. This day was full of it.
I first met Jocelyn and Stephane on their venue search in early 2017. Thanks to a referral from Charmaine we met again months later and they booked a Partial Planning Package to help what was jokingly referred to on the day of as "Stephane's Dream Wedding". Planning with Jocelyn and Stephane was like hanging out with close friends - it was fun, and full of laughter . They always asked how I was, how my family was and were honestly interested in my answers. One of the things I loved about them, and after meeting their friends and family day of I found everyone felt the same, was they are so genuine, kind hearted and have so much love for the people in their lives. They really are incredible people to get to know.
The two had booked Niakwa Country Club for their reception and had a clear idea of what they wanted, they just weren't sure how to get there. They wanted a warm feel to the reception, but with a classic and elegant feel. We selected a neutral palette of champagne and ivory tones and used uplighting from the crew at EventLight to minimize the effects of the dark wood on the walls. Stephane was also very excited about having a live piano player (Ferro Montanino) for their cocktail reception because it reminded him of one of his favourite places - The Palm Lounge. Niakwa Country Club was a lovely venue to work with and delivered a well executed event with great food and one of the prettiest charcuterie displays I've seen.
Now let's give a shout out to the wedding party! I have spent time with a lot of wedding parties in my career and this was one of the best. Especially the groomsmen. They had such a strong bond that was evident throughout the day with their surprises for Stephane, their roasts and jokes and their heartfelt words. Looking at photos you'd never guess that Jocelyn and Stephane got married on one of the coldest days of the year. It was seriously -45 degrees celsius. Not one word of complaint from any of them - just lots of laughter and smiles.
I literally could go on and on all day about what a perfect day it was, how much I love these two and their friends and family or how beautiful Charmaine's photos are, but you should see it for yourself. Click here to visit Jocelyn and Stephane's Gallery. Trust me, if I could put more photos in I would!