Vanessa and Jonathan go way back to their days at Shawnigan Lake School where they both attended. It was fitting they had their wedding at their alma mater- and get this: all their friends and family stayed in the dorms. How fun is that? The school’s grounds are unbelievable gorgeous and feature a chapel, where the ceremony was held.

Okay, but before we talk about anything else… that dress, right? Vanessa has incredible taste, and this dress was sent from heaven for her. And by heaven, I of course mean Klienfeld in New York. The Romona Keveza dress is a gray-blue raw silk confection. Un-flipping believable.

Of course everyone wants a beautiful, sunny day on their wedding, and in so much as this wedding was planned perfectly by the bride, the weather doesn’t always get the memo that it’s your wedding day. The weather threatened all day… in July… in a summer that saw almost no rain. We were protective of Vanessa’s raw silk dress in the rain and did what anyone would do: we wrapped her in garbage bags (and surrounded her with umbrellas). And were we glad we did because as Vanessa walked from the courtyard to the chapel the sky opened up and poured. Of course at that point she was so excited to see her husband-to-be that nothing was stopping her.

We used shades white and green, but we worked in pale blue for the ceremony to highlight Vanessa’s dress. Those soft, subtle blue hydrangeas in the arrangements were a last minute addition. When I saw them (they came in randomly on the Thursday before the wedding to my floral supplier Mt Newton) I grabbed them because I thought if we put colour anywhere we will do it for the church flowers and highlight her dress.

The day-of coordinator was Tammy of Blue Lily Event Planning, the photographer was Erin Wallis (who I’ve been wanting to work with for years, and it was a dream come true!) and hair and makeup was by Chelsea Dawn.

We used the Love balls in the courtyard between the chapel and dining hall… they came in handy for the groomsmens’ game of soccer.

The larger arrangement on the head table are from the ceremony-we always move the ceremony flowers to the reception so they can be enjoyed for the entire event. We made over 275 feet of garland with salal, eucalyptus, plumosa fern and ruscus. It tied the indoors to the lush outdoor surroundings and was striking on such a large scale.

The dining hall at Shawnigan (aka, Hogwarts) was transformed by simple, natural flowers and lots and lots of candles. Their massive fireplace helped set a romantic ambiance.

Shara from Bash Specialty chose some special pieces, including the bride and groom’s love seat (seriously, how perfect?) couches, side tables, pillows, and more to create a living room atmosphere in the dining hall.

…There is a tradition at Shawnigan: at breaks the school serves fresh cookies! So the couple, familiar with the cookies, requested their favourite flavours for the dessert table and paid homage to their school days together.

Vanessa is a family friend from Qualicum and it was a joy to take part in her and Jon’s special day. We wish you many years of health and happiness, Vanessa and Jon. XOX

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