Elegant Toronto Wedding Inspired by Dolce & Gabbana

We love seeing weddings that are a long time in the making, and Renata and Aundrae went on their first date in 2005. Nearly a decade later, the couple exchanged vows in Toronto with the help of photographer Boyfriend/Girlfriend, wedding planner/designer and reception florist Melissa Andre Events, and bouquet florist Blush & Bloom, choosing a wedding theme inspired by Dolce & Gabbana’s spring/summer 2014 campaign. I dare you to find a more fashionable couple!

From the bride, Renata: From day 1 we knew we didn’t want anything typical so when we met with our wedding planner, she presented the most perfect inspiration: Dolce & Gabbana spring/summer 2014 campaign and we were instantly sold! The rich golds, warm reds, blacks and hint of blue when combined, made something so dreamy!

Warm. Romantic. Inviting. Rich textures. Fashion forward. Our wedding reminded me of a modern Spanish cathedral – it took place in a church (built in the 1800’s) so that speaks for itself. Melissa & her team modernized it with the gorgeous Christian Lacroix wallpaper as the table top and modern elements throughout. One of our favorite elements we added was the custom drawn caricature – we both love soccer and have played for almost all our lives, so having both of us drawn in our wedding attire, wearing soccer cleats, was an obvious choice.

For the ceremony, we had an arch made up of rucus foliage as well as hanging amaranthus. My bouquet was very important to me – I really wanted something I had never seen before and so different. My friend Becky is beyond talented – I sent her an image of the protea flowers and I knew I had to have it. How it turned out was better than I imagined! Our floral arrangements at the reception were a mix of garden roses, peonies and anomones.

Any advice for couples planning their weddings now? My advice for couples planning their wedding is to stay calm and try not to get caught up in it. I found the process can easily get stressful and frustrating – especially costs and budgets. Pick whatever is most important to you, and eliminate things you could live without. In the end, as long as you get married, the rest will fall into place.

Video by Images Weddings:

Wedding Music:
First Dance: “I Found My Everything,” Mary J Blige
Music was a huge thing for us! We both love music and different genres, and knew that music is the one thing to get people going! For our ceremony, we had a single violinist so it was so romantic and beautiful and we wanted him to play Ave Maria as it means so much to us. The cocktail was inspired by Frank Sinatra with a mix of soul, Motown and jazz.