A Shabby Chic Styled Destination Wedding In Ibiza – Michelle & Mark

December is finally here and I am already wishing it were summer although todays wedding brings me a little closer to the dream of being somewhere warm and sunny.

Michelle and Mark were married at Cala Codolar in Ibiza over looking the rock of Es Vedra. Just from the photographs of the beautiful views and surroundings you can tell that the location was breathtaking.

Here to ease you into the week is Michelle with all the details on her stunning wedding day…

We chose the Elixir Shore Club as our venue. The moment we visited, the place took our breaths away, with it’s simple, effortless, shabby chic style and view of the rock of Es Vedra. The club has a marquee style outdoor area for dinner and an indoor bar area for drinks and dancing which made the evening flow perfectly. We have travelled to Ibiza for almost 6 years and have seen a lot of the island and had spent 2 weeks previous travelling to plenty of possible wedding locations and venues but our search was over as soon as we found the Elixir.

I had a good idea of the style of dress that I wanted so after stalking wedding blogs I found the one that I wanted which was an Enzoani dress. I found mine in Frilly Frocks in Drogheda, after two trips to try it on I just had to have it. Daire the owner of the shop has such an amazing eye to detail she put a vail with a soft lace trim on and it fit the dress perfectly.

Mark didn’t want a typical wedding suit, he want something sharp, trendy and modern and so he chose a Ted Baker suit, right down to the socks and cufflinks.

My four bridesmaids were all totally gorgeous and luckily for me were all near the same height and shape so it meant I was able to get the same dress for each of them that would not only compliment me and my dress but them as well. The dresses were from a shop called Super Fashions in Fashion city in Ballymount industrial estate in Dublin.

The luxury of being outdoors meant that we didn’t need to over decorate, however I did want beautiful table centres. We went for a 1920’s theme with high vases and candlesticks and rose petals scattered on the tables. The suppliers were taken care of by the wedding planner. With the Elixir comes an amazing couple Vickki & Alex of Eat Ibiza caterers who also plan. It was the best decision for us, as we are parents to two young boys, both work for ourselves and don’t have the time, money or language skills to go to Ibiza and look for every detail ourselves. We had a good idea of what we wanted so as soon as Vickki sent over all the information the fun started.

We added a couple of our own personal DIY touches to our wedding decor the name places were placed on the wine glasses, they were in the shape of pink lips for the women and silver curled moustaches for the men. Anyone who knows my dad knows him for his tash.

My mother framed photos from both sides of the families the parents and grandparents on their wedding day, it was a really special touch as some have passed and others couldn’couldn’t travel to be with us on the day.

I purchased wooden fans on Ebay and I had a friend varnish and personalise them with our names and date of the wedding.

My husband and his family are horse people and my mother got a horseshoe from his mother and decorated it in the most beautiful way, I held onto it all day.

Mark and myself are big into our music thus the choice to wed in Ibiza. So it was an easy choice to pick our entertainment, we had an act called Wed Kandi known in the clubbing world as Hed Kandi. The Dj Ben Santiago was accompanied by “Lovely Laura” on the saxophone. They were incredible every guest whether young or old enjoyed them.

My sister had a custom cake topper made for Mark and myself with lots of personal touches in it, like two blue teddies as a reference to our sons, make-up brushes as I am a makeup artist and a polo stick and helmet as mark plays.

We got Gyspy Westwood’s name from our planner and she came highly recommended, her website is really impressive and her blog has so many different types of wedding and photography styles it is so inspiring. We were completely blown away with our photo’s, Gypsy captured all the special moments we didn’t get to see. She was so professional our guests didn’t even notice her throughout the day, everyone looked relaxed, effortless and natural so it captured the atmosphere perfectly. Gypsy doesn’t do typical photographs they are creative and fun. You don’t realize how important a photographer is until you get your photo’s back you relive all the emotion over again it’s magical.

My advice to other couples getting married is to have really organised people around you, people who will really support you and pick up where you leave off. I would also advise to have a budget and be as realistic as possible when choosing what you can or cannot afford. I would even say it might be a good idea to over budget so that you are left with something at the end.

Finally I would say enjoy every second because it is over in a blink of an eye, make every second count, so no stress!!!! let someone else do it for you.

♥ Brides Dress: Frilly Frocks ♥ Bridesmaids Dresses: Fashion city ♥ Grooms Suit: Ted Baker ♥ Catering: Eat Ibiza caterers ♥ Venue: Elixir Shore Club ♥ Entertainment: Dj Ben Santiago & Lovely Laura ♥ Photography: Gypsy Westwood ♥

Does that make you feel ready for your summer holidays now, I know I am!

Gypsy always does the most amazing job of capturing such beautiful and inspiring images of a couples wedding day, don’t you think? I especially love those of Michelle and Mark with the sun setting behind them – fabulous!

Much Bespoke Love

Emily ♥