Blog Contest – Jennifer Thiessen

27 Jun Blog Contest – Jennifer Thiessen

An Australian and a Canadian met in Los Angles and fell in love!

Brent and I are two performers who met onboard a Carnival Cruise Ship, bonded over our love for the arts and instantly became best friends! We traveled the world singing and dancing together, having one adventure after the other until 3 years later he asked me to be his wife in New York City, and I said YES!

After a few makeup trial & errors, the GLAM SQUAD came to the rescue making every final touch picture perfect up until the last minute…‘Hair did’(& bridesmaids faces done) by the UBER trendy Avant Garde Salon (Miami) –Thanks for finding, Nat! –Miracle Mile, of course – fit with vintage antique hairpins and combs that were NOT so easy to find! (Just ask my Aunt Betsy!). The venue? The ever-stunning Cooper Estate, which provided the perfect backdrop to our perfect day! All hands were on deck to make this destination wedding something we’d never forget…

Blondes gathered from all over the globe – The soon-to-be Canadian bride, a European Princess & an Australian Beauty or two (we also have a brunette in our ranks) who crossed oceans to watch me say I do! Haha – Just wait till you meet the grooms men – they’re a real treat!

My Dress (sigh!) – a Maggie Sottero dress – which made its way from Barcelona (exactly where Brent and I were residing!), but was found by a French fashionista and myself in Miami at Bellissima Bride – it was actually the first dress I picked up! A sweetheart cut with Swarovski detailing? So yummy, I couldn’t resist! But the split in the dress? This meant some serious shoe shopping was in order!

Fortunately I was in Italy and was able to explore some of fashions finest domains! Prada? Louboutin? Cavalli? There was some serious discussion at Lanvin in Monte Carlo, but we finally sealed the deal in Rome at none other than Jimmy Choo… For better or worse, till death do us part!

Love the Blooms literally grew every coral colored rose for us! As we made our booking so far in advance they actually planted seeds entitled ‘Thiessen Wedding’ in a garden in Cuba and grew every last pedal just for us – we love this! And of course, add a pearl or two just for effect (of course!)… Any don’t worry, my Uncle Pat made sure nothing went to waste! He took our left over flowers to his school the following day and handed out each one to the kids to take home to give to their Mums (or their girlfriends!)… The love and happiness from our special day lived on! Every last flower had a beautiful new home and our love continued to Bloom!

As my mother’s trusty hands closed my dress, my mother in law passed out the boutonnieres & checked on the boys… who were running late and searching for a lost phone! Haha, Men, eh? ☺

Blissfully naive, I listened as our guests arriving were gathering just outside the bridal suite! (Or possibly playing Croquet – And why not? Just fab!) Our guests traveled from Australia, Canada, & different parts of America and Europe to come together for our big day. I was in tears the entire time –I felt so lucky to have so many people love and care about us enough to make the trip! Excitement mounting, I prepared to walk down the aisle for the first day of the rest of my life…

Check out ‘Unearthed Vintage’ if you liked some of the antique wood-chipped furniture or the frame installation or Freckled Stationary for our ‘He Said/She Said’madlib games,“’I Do’Sign Design’ for our welcome sign, Minted for our invitations, and Moulage Collection for our hand drawn seating chart! Fans? Ha –These were bought in a market in Barcelona and smuggled on board a cruise ship, and taken back to Miami by some very special people…Again, all hands on deck!

The most overwhelming moment for me was when I was about to walk down the aisle…I turned the corner to see all our beautiful friends and family from the very North, to the very South, East and West ends of the globe all gathered in one place, Brent’s wonderful family with mine, my grandpa sitting with a broken leg which never held him back–it was just too much! I promised myself I wouldn’t cry –but how could I not!? I was already in tears, and THEN I saw my husband to be! The most beautiful moment of my life to date! (Cue tears of pure joy here…haha, which didn’t stop for the rest of the day and went well into the night!!! Thank you Lynne Hughes for following me around with tissues on hand! This might be a good note for Brides to be…Bag = Lip gloss, & Kleenex; only to be used for tears of pure joy of course!

Ceremonial bliss! Brent and I added a ‘hand holding’ritual to our service: We held each other’s hands and promised one another that these were the hands that will passionately love and cherish the other throughout the years, for a lifetime of happiness. These are the hands that will countless times wipe away the tears from the others eyes, tears of sorrow and tears of joy. These are the hands that will comfort in illness and hold one another when fear or grief fills us. These are the hands that will give support and encourage one another to fulfill our dreams! These are the hands I will hold for the rest of my life!

I think our joy must have radiated throughout the grounds, because every last person was all smiles from ear to ear!!!!

Cue the awesome sounds of Murray Thiessen on vocals and guitar, coupled with plenty of champagne, peach mojitos, Bloody Mary’s and love! The outdoor furniture looked fab and proved useful as our guests mingled and reveled in the Miami heat! Much laughter, bocce ball & a spot of croquet were the perfect recipe for an afternoon celebration! Needless to say our guests were having a blast, and we couldn’t be happier!

Check out our gorgeous bridal party!!! Simply divine…Love them!!!

The colours? Yellow, champagne & coral, which popped against the luscious greens evident in our spectacular backdrop! While all these peeps might look picture perfect, believe us when we say it was not all cake tastings and shoe fittings…haha–you best BELIEVE my sister’s bridesmaid dress got ‘misplaced’by some hotel staff in South Beach the night before the wedding…Only to be found crumpled in a garbage bag in a storage room…haha! (Fortunately the good people at BCBG recognized the dresses were from their Alicia Collection and helped out so that no one was the wiser the next day…What’s life without a little drama hmm?) Tuxes brought from out of town may have needed alterations at the last minute, but look how stunning they all looked!!! Who’d have known our day would actually be nothing but clear skies and smooth sailing!?!

…I guess it should be noted here that the day was actually pouring with rain in the morning… Sure, we had a Plan B and a Plan C but Brent and I said a prayer, and would you believe it? The skies cleared and the weather was perfect from beginning to end! It must have been meant to be!

The bridal party took some more hilarious shots and coordinated pictures of the two families, who were now one, while the guests continued to celebrate outside! Brent and I managed to sneak away for a few private moments to bask in our first few minutes as man and wife!

As the sun set, we moved inside to the old stable turned elegant dining room to continue to wine and dine and celebrate the most beautiful day of our lives! Our cake by Anna Paz was scrumptious, and was followed by cupcakes and s’mores by the fireplace. Cue sparklers out on the grounds, barrels of laughs and beautiful bonding between families, friends and loved ones from all over the world!

They say the day goes by fast – and did it ever! I couldn’t believe that wonderful day stamped the very first moments of the rest of our lives… How could it possibly get any better than this?

While this brings an end to our wedding day blog, let me assure you it is just the beginning! (And what a wonderful beginning indeed!) Hope you enjoyed hearing our fairy tale as much as we enjoyed living it!

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends