Paul and Nicola

Introducing Paul and Nicola – a lovely couple who absolutely adore each other! They got married on one of Durban’s typically beautiful winter days. It was a celebration of love and many happy tears were shed. We loved spending the day with you two love-birds! Here are a few highlights from the day.

Nicola tell us about your dress.

“I had two distinctly different ideas and my Aunt, who made the dress, managed to help me pull them together. The lace was beautiful handmade Chantilly lace – I had always wanted that on my dress so it was a dream come true. I made the fabric flowers that went on the front and back. I am such a procrastinator when it comes to things that intimidate me that I only made them 2 weeks before the wedding!! My poor Aunt! The veil is special – my Aunt sewed fishing line from my Grandpa’s reel into the edge to make it wavy. My Grandpa passed away years ago so it was a very sentimental thing for me.”

Paul what do you love about Nicola?

“Her commitment to the Lord and her support of me, and our involvement in the church group we belong too. She has an awesome sense of humour, and can always make me laugh….even when I don’t particularly feel like laughing.”

Nicola what do you love about Paul?

“I love that he is a true gentleman (thanks to his mom and dad!) and that he really loves God and wants to do the right things in our life together.”

Why did you pick Collisheen as your wedding venue?

“Paul actually did the research here. We had stopped at a few venues on the way to his parents’ farm in Joburg and they weren’t really what we wanted but we had provisionally booked one. Paul got up early the next morning, did some research, made a few phone calls and the rest is history.

Of course, the location was beautiful and easy for our guests to get to.”

Paul what were you thinking as Nicola walked down the aisle towards you?

“…..A-M-A-Z-I-N-G…she looked absolutely beautiful. I was so grateful to the Lord for providing the right person for me.”

Nicola how did Paul propose?

“He organised a little day trip in the midlands on the 27th December, just after Christmas, under the guise that the family would all need a break from each other and we could have some alone time. I was completely unaware of his plans and even organised for us to go see a potential flat for him on the morning! He kept checking his watch…We eventually made our way past Nottingham and he gave me little clues to work out where we were going for lunch. HOME IS WHERE THE ?? IS? (heart), NICOLA DRIVES A ?? FIGO? (ford), I AM LOOKING FOR A ?? TO LIVE IN (house). I was super excited because I had heard a lot about the chef there but still didn’t suspect anything. Paul is a romantic kind of guy…so I STILL didn’t suspect anything when we were seated in the gazebo for two outside. When we got to the end of our meal, Paul just wanted to go for a walk and I insisted that we couldn’t leave without trying a dessert and coffee. Those who know me, know I eat at a snail’s pace. It was torture for him! He even rinsed his hands with bottled water at the table ☺☺Eventually we started our stroll and got to a split in the road next to a paddock. Paul stopped walking at that point and was hugging me, but all I could smell was the pile of manure in the corner of the paddock. I begged him to move somewhere else. (Ruined that whole fork-in-the-road metaphor for him!). Finally, we were standing next to a dam but he got an attack of the nerves and kept saying “just give me a moment” etc. I was so confused that it just popped out “Are you proposing to me??” That broke the ice and he started saying the most beautiful things…and let a few tears get out. It was also the first time he told me he loved me ☺☺ I already knew it but it was magical to hear. He had practiced getting down on one knee in the morning, so that’s how he popped the question. Of course, I was ecstatic!!!! I didn’t realise it, but he had organised my family to get together at my sister’s house and we all had dinner together. It was awesome!!! I thought I still had to make burgers for dinner ☺”

Did anything funny or memorable happen on your wedding day?

“We were about to leave for the venue and my mom and one bridesmaid noticed I hadn’t taken my wedding dress with.

My sister needed rescue and I didn’t ☺

I didn’t expect my Gran to be in the front row with my bridesmaids – that was a fantastic surprise when I got there.

One of my bridesmaid’s shoes broke as we were about to head for the chapel. It got stickitaped back on to her foot. During the signing of the register I saw a pair of bare feet in the briemaid’s row, broken shoes under the chair and bridesmaid singing in the front with other shoes on. There had been a bit of lending going on ☺”

What was your vision for your wedding day?

“We wanted it to be a relaxed day, without too much fussing, and to enjoy it with our friends and family. We also liked the vibe of a lunchtime wedding. Ultimately, it was about starting our life together and we didn’t want to lose sight of that. We also wanted to include little details that had meaning for us.”

How did you and Paul meet?

“We met when we were about 11 years old through church youth and camps. Paul ended up being one of my older brother’s good friends and was one of his best men at his wedding.”

Paul what were your first impressions of Nicola?

“Nicola was part of what I would term the “cool group”. I always wanted to be in with them…so I became friends with her brother ☺ . When we met up last year I was impressed by Nicolas caring nature, and commitment to serving the Lord.”

Nicola what were your first impressions of Paul?

“At that age I wasn’t very interested in boys but he was into hunting and those kinds of things and I was more a beach girl so his activities didn’t really impress me. I did think then that he had very good manners and a fantastic sense of humour. We lost touch for a while and when we met up again last year, I was definitely very impressed about everything he had become and who he was as a person. Definitely an excellent impression!”

Any advice to future brides planning their wedding day?

“Don’t sweat the small stuff. People don’t leave your day noticing that the aisle decorations weren’t straight or the crystals you meant to put on the table were missing (neither were true for our wedding – our helpers did a fantastic job!) Enjoy the time leading up to it – you never get that again. Let people help you – they really do want to be part of it. Don’t get crazy in debt for one day – there are more important things to come after that.”