A dream wedding at Casa La Siesta.
JP and Chloe tell us about their intimate wedding at Casa La Siesta.
How did you meet each other?.
Funnily enough, Chloe was born in Gibraltar but only returned as a student for a work placement at Hassans, a local law firm. JP was working there at the time and they hit it off like a house on fire.
Who proposed to whom?.
JP popped the question at the “bullring”, a military lookout on the southernmost tip of the Rock of Gibraltar. Chloe got up that day thinking that it would be another day at the office. As her day progressed, she found hundreds of teal coloured balloons and secret messages that took her through all the locations she and JP had shared their most special memories. She was then surprised with a flight to New York where they stayed at the Library Hotel and after a quick breakfast outside Tiffany’s, she popped in to pick out her engagement ring.
Please, describe us your bridal dress.
Aire, Barecelona. Like a princess dress. 🙂
Which jewels wore during the wedding?.
The engagement ring is a Tiffany princess cut solitaire and her wedding ring is a Tiffany full circle diamond jazz band. Chloe’s earrings were shaped like a diamond butterfly, having originally been handed down from her mother, Sharon. Chloe, hidden behind a great big wooden door, handed JP an IWC Portuguese chronograph minutes before their wedding ceremony.
The shoes…
Chloe’s shoes were from ASOS and they were block heel sling back, pink glitter with jewels on the front. JP was wearing a pair of Paul Smith brogues that he picked up in Covent Garden, London.
How was your bridal bouquet?.
The bouqet was white, pastel pink and soft green, made mostly of English roses and assembled by Toni, from Casa la Siesta. The bridesmaids each had a bouqet of baby’s breath.
Who made the make up and hair?.
Make-up was done by Liza Mayne, who stepped up to the challenge of also doing Chloe’s hair due to a last minute cancellation from her hairdresser.
The ceremony place… Casa La Siesta.
The informal ceremony was held at Casa La Siesta, round the front courtyard of the Casa. The sun’s energy had started to fade and a smooth haze covered the sky, much to the guest’s delight. Chloe’s dad, Ronnie, walked her down the aisle and then read out the vows that JP had drafted months earlier. Chloe had looked into using a professional celebrant but it felt natural to have someone closer to their hearts play such a crucial role in the ceremony. Chloe’s brother read out a quote from Les Mesirables that went down a treat, as Ronnie then calmly guided the couple towards their exchange of vows and rings. The guests were sat on opposite sides of the bride and groom, so they were in full view of the ceremony.
Why did you choose “The Love Hunters” for photography and film?.
Chloe was fascinated by The Love Hunters © spectacular use of colours and artistic presentation. After stalking The Love Hunter’s website and Facebook page, she and JP set out to meet Marcos at his luscious offices in Guadacorte where they were suitably impressed as they discovered the relentless passion he had for his job. If there was anything that Chloe was sure about, it was that she had to use Marcos from The Love Hunters © to document their wedding.
What about the floral decoration?.
JP’s mum organised the baby’s breath and transported it to Casa La Siesta in two industrial sized black bins. These were kept in an air-conditioned room until the day of the wedding when the girls all assembled them into glass jars that had been filled with sand from Tarifa, Cadiz and Sandy Bay, Gibraltar, topped off with hemp string for that rural touch. Casa la Siesta also decorated the iron framed arches where the couple had their ceremony.
How was the celebration?.
The wedding spanned 3 nights at Casa la Siesta, a small boutique hotel in Parralejos, a tiny at the foot of Vejer, Cadiz. The 20 or so guests (immediately family and a few friends) arrived the night before the wedding and were treated to a bbq. On the day of the wedding, the 3 course dinner was prepared by the superb kitchen staff at Casa La Siesta and served along a narrow table in the courtyard, flanked by a jazz quartet under the starlight.
Male guests were asked not to wear a tie, to add to the informality. All guests were also asked to refrain from taking pictures. We knew Marcos and his team would do an excellent job with the photos and video so we wanted the guests to concentrate on enjoying the moment themselves, not through their phones.
The most special and emotional moments…
Having the photographers and videographers join us on the dancefloor and battle it out during a limbo competition. For Chloe, seeing her dad approach her right before he was to walk her down the aisle. For JP, having all the guests hold hands and dance along to the jazz band whilst they were still sitting down on the dinner table.
The table decoration.
Chloe set up the long narrow table with a soft glittery grey table runner, medium sized lanterns had been decorated with heat resistant flowers with candles inside that, a few jars with baby’s breath, burlap bows around each of the wooden chairs and a few wooden pegs for decoration. JP’s mum, Lily, also prepared the wedding cake, a soft sponge cake with a crunchy white icing and lots of flower decorations. The cake was laid out on a dessert table, with jars of homemade sweets and cookies. The guestbook was a retro globe that Chloe picked up on ETSY and signed with sharpies by each of the guests.
Which song did you choose for the first dance?.
Chloe and JP danced along to Frank Sinatra’s “fly me to the moon” played by the jazz band (Ian Green’s Marbella Big Band). The bride and groom were surrounded by their guests who blew bubbles before quickly joining them on the dance floor, where they stayed until the early hours of the morning.
