Real Weddings

Nicole and Jacques

The 25th September was a very special day for Nicole James, as it was the day she would exchange wedding vows with the man she loved, Jacques Becker.
This day would mark the culmination of a courtship that had spanned ten years or, as Jacques mentioned in his wedding speech, it covered a period of 3701 days! From first setting eyes on each other in Grade 12 at high school in East London, they had been inseparable.

The wheels were set in motion for the wedding a year earlier when, on their nine year and one month anniversary, Nicole arrived home to find a trail of hearts around the house. These eventually lead her to Jacques, who then went down on his knees and proposed.

After visiting many wedding venues in Cape Town, the couple finally settled on Rhebokskloof Private Cellar Estate for their wedding venue. They had attended a wedding there a year previously and were impressed with the high standard. They were certainly not disappointed on their wedding day as, according to Nicole, Oscar and his team did an absolutely superb job of both the decor and the catering. She found Oscar to be very professional, extremely organised and very patient, from start to finish. Indeed all their guests commented on how delicious the meal was, and what a beautiful venue they had chosen.

Their attractive invitations were designed by Blue Print Design and sent out to friends and family around the country and overseas. Nicole's brother was one of the guests who travelled a long distance (from London) to share the special day with his sister

As the couple were both originally from the Eastern Cape and as the wedding was being held in Cape Town, it was necessary to source accommodation for family and friends, and so an entire hotel in Paarl was booked out. The date of the wedding - 25 September - was also chosen with guests in mind as, being the day after a public holiday, it gave everyone the added benefit of a long weekend to travel to the wedding.

Nicole’s bridesmaids were two cousins and a friend she had known since Grade 8. With the bridesmaids coming from different provinces – Port Elizabeth; East London and Johannesburg - there were certain logistical nightmares to overcome regarding their wedding outfits. In the end, although the dresses were all made by different seamstresses, they all looked stunning. Their eye-catching mocha dresses of reversed bridal satin with red shawls were complemented by necklaces of red stones, with earrings to match. Red stones were also worn in their hair.

The day before the wedding consisted of pampering and a chance to catch up with all the family and friends from out of town. Although it rained on the day before, the day of the wedding was fortunately sunny, with a little wind.

Anna the Make-up Artist and Gillian the hair stylist arrived at the hotel and in their calm manner, set to work calming nerves and ensuring that everyone, especially the bride, looked stunning. According to Nicole, Anna and Gillian made the 'getting ready' part so much fun that they all felt extremely confident in their hands. The end result was that they all felt like princesses.

Nicole and Jacques chose the wine cellar at Rhebokskloof for their wedding ceremony. Its rustic, Tuscan feel imparted a lovely cosy atmosphere and this was enhanced by the sounds of the Serenade String Quartet. The opening hymn, All things bright and beautiful, was a childhood favourite of the couple. Nicole also chose two readings – one the Apache Blessing and the other, The Art of Good Marriage by Wilferd Arlan Peterson (see below).

The couple had nothing but praise for Jan Theron, the photographer they had entrusted with capturing their wedding day on film. Theresa, Jan's wife, captured the event for them on video. One month before the wedding, Jan met with the couple and took them into the country, where he took a series of pre-wedding photographs. They were both grateful for this added service, as it gave them a chance to know more of what would be expected on their wedding day. It also meant that they were both far more relaxed having Jan around them taking photographs on the actual day.

Arriving at the cellar on her father's arm, Nicole looked stunning in her beautiful Paul van Zyl gown. She admitted that the minute she saw the dress, she knew it was the one she wanted to wear on her wedding day. The style and cut of the dress suited her slim figure perfectly. The pretty tiara and veil she wore were also obtained from Paul.

Wedding touches we liked:

At the service, while the couple was signing the register, the bridesmaids walked down the aisle with baskets on their arms and handed out paper cones containing red rose petals to all the guests. This meant that at the end of the ceremony, when the couple made their way down the aisle, they were greeted by a shower of petals thrown by the guests. The paper cones were made from copies of music paper.

While the photographs were being taken, Rhebokskloof served the guests champagne and snacks.

Jacques caused a 'tissue' moment at the reception when, during his speech, he got the DJ to play a montage of love songs he had put together, illustrating to Nicole his deep love for her.

A Wedding Book was passed around amongst the guests at the reception. This gave them the opportunity to write a message to the couple - a wonderful reminder for them of their wedding day, and especially to help them remember all who shared it with them.

We loved the attractive gifts of fudge for the guests. Boxes from Merrypack were lovingly filled by Nicole and family members. Sealing wax and gold hearts added the finishing touch. Nicole also made the menus, table numbers and order of service.

Although Nicole thought that after ten years it would be impossible for Jacques to hide anything from her, he managed to save the best secret till last. Nicole had been told they were going to a game farm in Natal for their honeymoon, but when they arrived at Johannesburg airport, he completely overwhelmed her by producing airline tickets to the exotic island of Zanzibar. The reason he had told her they were going to Natal was because it was the only place he could find in SA that, like Zanzibar, required both yellow fever and malaria tablets!

We wish Jacques and Nicole much happiness in their future together.

Celebration House Service providers

• Photographer: Jan Theron
• Dress designer: Paul van Zyl
• Venue: Rhebokskloof Private Estate
• Invitations: Blue Print Design Studio
• Garter: The Wedding Box
• Musicians: Serenade String Quartet
• Make-up: Anna, The Make-up Artist