Zoё and Charlie were married on 2nd January 2021 at Cap Maison, St Lucia
How did you meet?
We met through my twin sister, Augusta and her husband Alex, who has been a very good friend of Charlie’s since university. They introduced us in the summer of 2017 at a brewery in Hackney. We each didn’t realise they had invited the other but we clicked immediately.
How did the proposal happen?
Charlie proposed to me on holiday at his family’s place in Cape Town, South Africa. On the morning of the second day of the trip, he suggested we go for a walk by the beach.We sat down on a bench overlooking the sea and he began by telling me he “needed to talk to me about something important”. At first, I honestly thought he was about to break up with me on the second day of our holiday! He told me later that he had originally planned to propose at sunset but wanted to make sure there was time to phone our families. Charlie is from the UK and I am from New Zealand so there were a few time zones to take in to account.
Where did the wedding take place?
The wedding took place at Cap Maison Hotel on the Caribbean island of St Lucia. It was a very intimate ceremony in the gazebo on a cliff top overlooking the ocean. On the day itself it was quite windy, which gave it quite a dramatic feel.
We think we moved our wedding date about six times. We had planned for a traditional country house wedding in Hertfordshire with 150 guests in the summer of 2020 and then the spring of 2021. It started to become pretty clear that the original wedding we wanted wouldn’t be possible, and that my family from New Zealand wouldn’t be able to make it so we decided to completely change tack and go abroad.
What did the bride wear?
I wore a custom-made dress from Bridal Rogue Gallery in Marylebone, London. Catriona and her team were wonderful, and it turned out beautifully. Thankfully it withstood the Caribbean heat very well. We are hoping to have a celebration at some point back in London so I am hoping it may get a second outing.
My veil I got on etsy from Laura Vere Veils – she was extremely helpful and answered all of my questions. I had been a bit unsure about wearing a veil but I’m really pleased I did now.
Who else was in the bridal party?
Because it was abroad and there were travel restrictions, we kept it very small. The only guests were my twin sister, Augusta and her husband, Alex, who were our best man and maid of honour.
What was your theme?
With the Caribbean as the backdrop and the beautiful setting at Cap Maison we didn’t really need a theme.The team at Cap Maison, especially Arron, did a beautiful job of making sure we had lots of local tropical flowers and decoration. It was very different from our original English countryside feel but it felt very special.
Describe your cake
The chef at Cap Maison made us a delicious white and dark chocolate cake, which between four lasted the rest of the holiday.
Something Blue?
Even though we were abroad we tried to keep some things traditional and remained separate from the night before the wedding until the ceremony. We had both written each other notes to read the morning of the big day and inside Charlie’s was the most beautiful antique sapphire ring – it was completely unexpected and such a wonderful surprise.
What were the highlights?
Given all the disruption, we just feel so lucky to be married finally, even if it wasn’t what we originally had planned. And because the wedding and the honeymoon were both abroad the whole thing felt very special.
Your best buy?
An iPhone tripod, a microphone and a Zoom subscription so that we could stream the whole event for close friends and family! We had people watching in the UK, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico, the US and Saudi Arabia. It worked brilliantly and it was a way of including our guests in the service even if we are very sad they couldn’t be there in person.
How did it compare to the wedding you initially had planned?
It couldn’t have been more different. We planned for a traditional country house wedding in Hertfordshire with 150 guests and we ended up getting married on a cliff top in the Caribbean sun with just two other people as guests. But we feel so lucky to have managed to do it in what has been such a challenging year for everyone.
Is there anything you wish you’d done differently?
Honestly, not really. It was a big decision but we definitely feel we did the right thing. Perhaps wearing my shoes in a bit more – they were a bit difficult on the grass!
FINER DETAILS
Photography: Jelani Le Bourne (www.jelanilebourne.com)
Venue: Cap Maison, St Lucia (www.capmaison.com)
