Engaged in Paris, married in Sorrento…Nicole and Daniel’s story is the dream of every globetrotter! These two actually met in Australia and became soon-to-be-weds while living in England. So, how on earth did Nicole find her blush pink Astrid & Mercedes Provence gown? Our lovely bride came home to Canada and visited us in our flagship Toronto bridal boutique!
Read all about her unforgettable Italian destination wedding, how she chose her gown, and her and Daniel’s divine honeymoon abroad while soaking in the sights below!
From Nicole:
How did your sweetie propose?
“Daniel proposed in Paris in front of the Eiffel Tower!
For Christmas that year, Daniel booked us tickets to Paris (we were living in England at the time). We got there on December 30th, the next morning when we woke I was very excited to go see the Eiffel Tower! It was about 10 am, and Daniel was putting on his suit that he brought for dinner that night (bow-tie and all). I asked him several times why he is putting it on so early but he just kept saying he felt like it so I went along with it. He was a bit quiet on our walk over to Eiffel Tower, but I didn’t mind…I was too busy taking in all the sights of Paris. When we got there, Daniel took me over to the Trocadero Steps across from the Eiffel Tower so we could get a better view. After a few moments of sitting and enjoying the scenery, Dan asked someone to take a photo of us. It was at that moment that he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! It was a perfect moment! I am so happy that we have a beautiful picture to always remember it.”
wedding gown + veil: Astrid & Mercedes Provence via the flagship Toronto bridal boutique | photographer: Adamo Morgese | scroll down for full vendor list
How did you choose your gown?
“I was home for a few weeks from England and I wanted to get my dress with my mom, sister, and grandmother. I went to a few different places before I went to Lea-Ann Belter’s flagship store in Toronto. I tried on a few dresses there, but the Provence dress was just perfect—it felt like a fairytale! I made a few little changes to the dress to make it my own; I gave it a crystal belt, asked for a lower back and for an extra foot to be added on to the train. It was the perfect dress for me—not completely traditional in the blush pink and I fell in love with the little flower details!”
Tell us about your day! Did you have a theme or style in mind?
“Our day was perfect (I may be a bit biased, though)! We didn’t have a particular theme in mind—we really let our venue and location do most of the talking. Daniel and I met travelling (in Melbourne, Australia) and we are from different countries; I’m from Canada and he is from England. So we decided a destination wedding was a perfect fit for us, and decided Sorrento, Italy would be the perfect place. It was a small wedding of 55 people who flew in from all over the world—Australia, New Zealand, England, and Canada. Our ceremony was at Saint Francis Cloisters, which is a small courtyard in the middle of Sorrento which is truly beautiful. We had our dinner/reception at Foreigners Club, and behind our head table was Mount Vesuvius! Both the venues were picture perfect I can’t imagine having our wedding day anywhere else.”
What’s your funniest wedding day memory?
“For me there were a few funny moments throughout the day. My mom who is an event planner redoing all the florals for the tables on the morning of the wedding, at one point I thought I lost Daniel’s wedding band right when we were leaving for the ceremony (this one was more tense, a groomsmen had taken the ring and not thought to let me know), and then there was us kissing at the wrong point during the ceremony. I think the funniest moment was near the end of our day when I found a long tear in my wedding dress (very upsetting!). I showed it to my mom who just kind put her hand in the rip and said ‘Should I just rip it off?’ It was getting really long and I was tripping all over it. My mom then proceeded to rip OFF a good piece of silk of my beautiful dress. My best friend/ bridesmaid Elysa was standing next to us and she knew just what to do with it. She ripped up the piece of dress and gave everyone on the dance floor a piece of it, which everyone promptly tied around their heads! During this time, Daniel wasn’t in the room. When he walked in he was very confused and asked what he had missed—the look on his face was priceless. It was a bit of a sad funny moment, and now everyone has a piece of the dress for a bit of a keepsake which is pretty cool.”
What was your favorite wedding day moment?
“I’m not sure there is one specific moment that is my favourite. The whole day was so special. There was a moment we had to ourselves after dinner while everyone went inside and waited for us to enter and have our first dance. It was just a few minutes but it was a chance for us to really take a moment and enjoy our day just the two of us. I would recommend every bride and groom take a moment for themselves on their special day just to really take it in and enjoy.”
Describe your wedding day in 5 words or less:
“Beautifully and perfectly us!”
Where did you go on your honeymoon?
“For our honeymoon we decided to go to a few places and do a bit of a euro trip. After our (AMAZING) ten days in Sorrento with our closest family and friends where we got to go to Positano, the Amalfi coast and a private boat tour of the Capri island. My husband and I went then went up to Rome for a few days to explore the Colosseum, Vatican and all that Rome has to offer! From there we went to Barcelona for a week where we got to relax on the beach and sip sangria all day! We ended our trip in Lisbon which was just beautiful. It is a very old city, so there was so much to see and do. We climbed to the top of huge hills to visit castles and beaches to swim in the ocean. My husband and I love travelling so a honeymoon where we got to go to so many different places was just perfect for us.”
Any advice for future brides/grooms?
“Be true to who you are, try and enjoy the planning process and don’t stress the small stuff!”
Nicole + Daniel’s Sorrento Wedding Vendors
wedding gown + veil: Astrid & Mercedes Provence via the flagship Toronto bridal boutique | photographer: Adamo Morgese | makeup: Beauty Line Luise | ceremony: Saint Francis Cloister | reception: Foreigners Club