A Beautiful Beachy Wedding With Rustic Beach Wood, Coral & Peach: Manu & Jennifer

Today’s real wedding is a beautiful beachy wedding with a sophisticated rustic theme! Gorgeous tones of coral and peach compliment the rustic elements of the beach wood and the luxe gold elements seen in the table styling of this South African destination wedding.

Beautiful bride Jennifer wears a super stylish Rime Arodaky wedding gown to marry her sweetheart Manu, and their incredible photographer Yolande Marx captures the mood of the day (and the stunning scenery) perfectly.

Words By Jennifer. Images by Yolande Marx photography.

I was looking for a dress that was simple and timeless with a special touch. Also it had to be suited for a beach wedding. I had tried on a whole lot of dresses but it never clicked.

When I put on this dress I knew this was it. I loved the lace details, the open back and the collar. Also the material was vary flowy and elegant. When I saw the look on my mom and sister’s face, I knew this was the right one.

I really like lace veils combined with a pure, simple dress. They are romantic, dreamy, classy and add a touch of mystery to a brides look. Also the veil turned out to work very well in certain pictures.

My wedding shoes were Jimmy Choo. I fell in love instantly. I have so much difficulty finding shoes as I have such tiny feet (size 35) so I was really dreading the hunt. I found these Jimmy Choo’s in London and fell in love instantly. They are high, but being petite I am used to that and feel more sexy in high heels. The sand colour fitted perfectly with the beach theme and the gold strap gave it a festive touch.

I also wore my mom’s diamond earrings and a bracelet I got as a wedding present from colleagues. I had flowers in my hair which added a beachy, girly touch. Of course I was wearing my beautiful engagement ring.

I was so lucky to find the coral bridesmaids dresses on Asos. The collar cut was nearly identical to my dress and I loved the coral colour. Online purchases are always a risk, but they turned out to be absolutely perfect.

Hannes Maritz and his team (Kraak) created beautiful bridesmaids hair pieces. They were absolutely stunning. I wanted my bridesmaids to feel beautiful and special on the day and was so happy to see they really felt comfortable and pretty in their outfits on the day.  

Hannes arranged my wedding flowers. I wanted coral and peach colors. I sent him some pictures of the style I liked and honestly he could not have done better. I was stunned.

We had Manu’s suit made at Café Costume in Antwerp. They had a great selection of materials and gave great advice. I wanted Manu to look smart, but casual at the same time. The jacket was made of a linen fabric which looked beachy casual and the pants had a very subtle patern in it.

The most difficult were the accessories. I searched for days after the perfect bowtie to give it a James Bond‐like groovy extra touch without being too shouty. This one was perfect: classic, with a cute polkadot.

Finding the groomsmen bow ties was also very tricky. Again I searched for days to find bowties that were the same colour as the bridesmaids dresses. Also I wanted the braces to be classic and qualitative so the boys did not feel too awkward so it took ages to find these blue ones for a decent price.​ 

My dad walked me down the aisle…one of the best moments of my life. He was sooooo proud. It was absolutely adorable. We walked down to Christina Perri ‘A Thousand Years’, a classical instrumental version.

Yolande is amazing. I had seen her beautiful pictures on her website, but she turned out to exceed all my expectations. She is such a professional.

She knows how to capture beautiful light and take you from your best angle. On top of that she was an absolute sweetheart. This actually counts for the whole team Hannes put together. We were so lucky!

I wanted a rustic, yet sophisticated atmosphere for our wedding. The combination of rough beach wood, golden cutlery, crystal chandeliers, Havana hats and lots of coral and peach flowers was perfect.

As I was working for a coffee company we created the ‘perfect blend’ for wedding favours sourced from a local SA roaster which we put on our guest’s plate.

I could not have been happier with my wedding cake. When we got home from the party we ate half of the remaining cake with the bridal party…it was soooo good and a great memory. :))

My wedding was the wedding I had always dreamt of. It was beachy, relaxed yet stylish and looked after into detail. There was 1 concept and colour theme (coral and peach) that came back in everything. I like it that way. We did it in my favourite country, South Africa, stayed at my dream house ‘The White House’ and spent a lot of quality moments with family and friends before and after the day.

We were not stressed out at all because Hannes’ team had everything under control. We really wanted everybody to be relaxed, have a great time and create lifelong memories. SA is a country where everybody can do what they enjoy: good food, nice wine, beautiful beaches, friendly people so the overall ambiance was chilled out. Absolutely amazing!!!

The first dance was a choice by my husband. We wanted a classic so we chose ‘Just the two of us’ by Grover Washington.

If you could impart any words of wisdom to future brides planning their wedding day, what would they be?

It is very important to research what you want exactly. I used Pinterest to create a mood powerpoint which Hannes followed 100%. Also, I find a great event stands and falls with the details. It takes time to search for certain things, but it is worthwhile. And make sure the days before the wedding you can relax.

It is very important to research what you want exactly. I used Pinterest to create a mood powerpoint which Hannes followed 100%. Also, I find a great event stands and falls with the details. It takes time to search for certain things, but it is worthwhile. And make sure the days before the wedding you can relax.

Planning a destination wedding can be tricky, but it is so worthwhile! You need to be able to trust the wedding planner. I am a control freak so that was difficult sometimes, but I felt from the beginning Hannes understood what I wanted so that helped. Also he is a legend in managing the bride haha.

What was your most memorable moment of the day / evening?

Oh my gosh, so many. I loved the look on the faces of my dad and husband when I came down the stairs of the beautiful ‘white house’, the drive to the venue, walking down the isle with my dad, the flower girl and ring bearer, seeing all my family and friends on a beach in SA, my dad and husband’s beautiful touching speeches, the beautiful video my sister made and my brother in law going nuts on the dancefloor.

What a beautiful, beautiful beach wedding! Those peach and coral tones are soooo dreamy.

Fallen in love with Rime Arodaky wedding dresses? Check out their beautiful bridal collections next.

wedding credits / photographer: yolande marx photography / wedding venue: strandkombuis / wedding planner, stylist & florist: kraak / brides dress: rime arodaky / grooms suit: cafe costume / brides shoes: jimmy choo / bridesmaid dresses: asos / hair & makeup: alicia buckle / wedding cake: pondok pop up eatery / catering: strandkombuis

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