‘ It is hard to choose one best memory from the day as our whole wedding was truly magical and perfect and we wouldn’t have changed a thing.’
Venue Dana Villas Santorini Wedding • Date 18th of Sept 2019 • Number of Guests 24 • Budget ££
Why did you choose to get married in Santorini and at Dana Villas in particular?
We chose to get married in Santorini after going on holiday there 5 years ago, the year before we got engaged. We were having sunset drinks and our bar overlooked a wedding venue. A wedding was taking place and it just looked so magical. We decided then and there this would be where we would marry one day.
Dana Villas was perfect for us as we wanted an intimate wedding. It was important to us sharing our special day with our closest friends and family and then have a big wedding evening party when we got back to the UK.
How long in advance did you book your wedding?
We booked our wedding in June 2018.
How many guests did you invite to your wedding and how many accepted and attended?
Originally we invited 22 adults and 4 children however 2 of these adults were unable to attend closer to the time, so on the day there were 20 adult guests and 4 children and then myself and Simon.
Tell us about your gorgeous dress
My dress was a white rose bridal gown, I was looking for around 6 weeks before I found it. The dress on display was not exactly what I wanted so I requested some changes to make sure it was exactly what I wanted. It was perfect on the day
Can you tell us about your shoes and accessories, where they’re from?
I loved my shoes, they are Carvela by Kurt Geiger
My jewellery was a necklace and earrings, a matching set from John Richard
I borrowed a diamond bracelet from my mother in law, it was a present from Simon’s Dad who was unfortunately very un-well and wasn’t able to make it to the wedding.
My veil was from the bouquet where I bought my dress, Confetti and Lace in Leeds
Tell us about the Grooms very smart suit.
Simon and the groomsmen’s suits were purchased from Skopes
And the bridesmaids?
We bought the bridesmaids dresses from ASOS, they all wore different styles, but all in shades of pink.
Tell us about your bouquet.
I chose roses in shades of pinks to match the bridesmaids dresses, along with cream roses, gypsophila and some greenery.
Did you have a wedding theme?
Our theme was modern and minimalistic. The view and backdrop at Dana Villas is spectacular and we didn’t want to distract from this.
Tell us about the finer details of your wedding day.
We chose a naked wedding cake with fresh flowers to match my bouquet.
We created our own menu from the standard menus the venue offered and everyone loved it!
Our favours were a small bottle of ouzo, it was accompanied with a personalised shot glass saying “we’ve tied the knot, so take a shot. Simon & Lianne 18.09.19) which Simon made
We also made some tags to attach to the bottles to thank our guests for travelling to Santorini to celebrate with us. Additionally, our name cards were also favours, these were small hexagon pieces of acrylic with our guests names written on in gold vinyl (also made by Simon).
For the 4 children- we created gift bags which included toys, bubbles, paper, colouring, wedding activity packs etc.
Simon also made larger hexagon pieces of acrylic with our table numbers written on in gold vinyl and we displayed these on white easels.
Our centrepieces were 3 vases in varying heights with floating candles and diamantes in them.
Simon also made several signs also in acrylic saying ” let the love sparkle” and “please sign our guestbook”. We had a sign on the bar which said “open bar- the hangover only lasts a day, but the memories last a lifetime”. He also made our table plan on a large piece of acrylic and our cake topper .
We kept our entertainment simple and created our own playlists for the different parts of the wedding and this was played through the sound system. We hired a DJ for the evening party.
What’s your best memory.
It is hard to choose one best memory from the day as our whole wedding was truly magical and perfect and we wouldn’t have changed a thing.
What do you think makes a wedding abroad stand out from a wedding in the UK?
The weather was amazing and we’re huge sunshine loves. The views in Santorini are truly spectacular. For us having our wedding abroad meant we also got to have a holiday with our closest family and friends, meaning we’ve created so many special memories.
What advice would you give to future brides and grooms who are getting married abroad?
We didn’t visit our venue until 3 days before the wedding and this was a great surprise for us, as although we knew what to expect from pictures it was nice that we hadn’t seen this before as it gave us something else to look forward to.
However, we had done extensive research on our venue. I think it is important to do research and make sure that the venue you choose is exactly what you want, especially if you don’t visit it beforehand. I would also strongly advise that you use a wedding planner as it can be very stressful planning a wedding and without the Bridal Consultant’s helping and supporting us, I don’t think we would ever have been able to create such a perfect day for us and our guests.
Our whole group booked our holiday together and this removed any pressure our guests may have felt having to arrange their own holidays. We all travelled together and stayed in the same hotel which worked brilliantly, we made so many memories everyday of the holiday and not only on the wedding day.
We hope you enjoyed reading about Lianne and Simon’s breathtaking wedding at Dana Villas Santorini, here are some of the suppliers involved in the day.
Venue | Dana Villas | Wedding Dress | Confetti and Lace Brides Jewellery | Jon Richard/ Grooms Suit – Skopes|Bridesmaids Dresses – Asos |
Budget Key | £ – 10k and under | ££ – between 10k and 20k | £££ – over 20k.
