Anneri & Timothy celebrated their most treasured day on the 23rd of November 2012 at one of my favourite Johannesburg venues, Helderfontein Estate in Lonehill. Tim proposed to Anneri during a suprise romantic weekend getaway at the picturesque Wyford Farm in Van Reenen. Anneri describes his proposal as a very special and personal proposal at a cosy fireplace in a candle-lit room.
I asked Anneri about their inspiration for their wedding day:
“Your wedding day is the day in which you celebrate the start of you and your soulmate’s lives together with family and friends – this signifies a marriage and not a wedding day. With this in mind, our purpose was to have a relaxed, joyous celebration and not an uptight wedding. We did not attempt to impress or outshine anyone, so we kept things simple and according to our taste. We are both musicians and music is the reason we met, so we incorporated a musical theme in the invites and cake, but there was no exact theme to the wedding. We just chucked in whatever we liked!”
Mrs Kriel also elaborated on what she loved most about their wedding day:
“We felt like there was no separation between different groups of friends and family members – there was so much love and happiness everywhere. The lanterns also brought everyone together. Guests who weren’t familiar with each other were helping one another light and set off the lanterns – it broke the ice and everyone enjoyed it. The speeches were so relaxed and funny. Tim completely blew me away with his amazing words. I got the guy! Of course, as a given, the best part was getting married to the man of my dreams!”
Here’s some tips from Anneri & Tim for future brides and grooms currently planning their wedding day:
- Planning a wedding is team work, so delegate to your bridesmaids, moms and hubby to be. Don’t try to carry all the responsibility
- If you don’t want to stress like a mad thing, be prepared to compromise when you can’t have something exactly the way you want. Just remember, it’s still your special day!
- On the day, anything that goes differently to the way you planned it, is not a disaster – no one else will notice.
- Don’t think that you’ll have time to write your speech (if you choose to make one) a week before the wedding! I didn’t, and I wish I had written mine months before the wedding when my mind was clearer.
- Find out beforehand what the venue’s “hidden” costs are, such as finger snacks and corkage which is not always included in initial quotes.
- Pick a hairdresser that you know and trust to do your hair. An unknown hairdresser may not care as much as your regular hairdresser to do an amazing job.
- Try and save money where you can – little things add up!
- Make sure your guests know about group photos. They will all run away to the drinks/snacks table after the ceremony. It then becomes a mission to get everyone together. We missed out on a lot of group photos because of this.
- Lastly, pick your photographer well. Your wedding photos will be the most treasured things you get to keep (besides each other) after the day is over.
Such great advice! I particularly agree with the one regarding group photos! I always recommend making a list and notifying everyone beforehand. Guests love to disappear after the ceremony, hehe 😉
Anneri also added the following: “A special thank-you to Izelle and Gerhard for their amazing work! They have wonderful work ethic and their photos absolutely rock!”
Thank you so much to these two for the lovely words. We had so much fun at their wedding. Their wedding day was classy and elegant without being pretentious! I loved how they made all the guests feel special and that each bridesmaid and groomsman had the chance to say a quick speech. It’s also rare to see all of the guests lighting lanterns during the evening – it made for some awesome photo opportunities.
Mr & Mrs Kriel, thank you for letting us play a special part on your wedding day. Congratulations, we wish you two all the happiness in the world!
Ceremony and Reception Venue & Catering: Helderfontein Estate, Lonehill, Johannesburg, South Africa (website)
Wedding Coordinator: Karen Voges from Helderfontein Estate
Bride’s Dress: Bride & Co. (website)
Bride’s Shoes: Moda Shoes (facebook page)
Bride’s Jewellery: Creative Talents (website) & something borrowed
Groom’s Outfit: Hyde’s (website) at Eastgate Shopping Centre in Johannesburg, Gauteng
Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Queenspark (website) & Forever New (website)
Bridesmaids’ Accessories: Edgars (website)
Cake: Veronica, friend of the couple
Video Credit: Faz. friend of the couple
Flowers: Kelro, Helderfontein Estate‘s in-house decor company
Make-up: Marina du Triou – 083 633 2883
Band: Amarillie Ackerman from Duo2000 (website)
DJ: Rosa Bianca Entertainment Company (facebook page)
Sound System: Greg Cragg from Red Ark Studios (website)
Wedding Favour Cookies: Pâtisserie Belle in Randpark Ridge (website)
