Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

Valentines Day is also the anniversary of my & my husband’s first ‘proper’ date so I thought I’d share a picture of us on our wedding day. I don’t think I’ll ever feel as love as I did that day…awww. I was SO happy!

Here’s what I loved about eloping to celebrate our love…..

1. Freedom

The great thing about an elopement is that you can make it as big a deal or as small as deal as you wish…you have the freedom to define your day. Make it as low key and spontaneous as you wish, or dream big and make it as decadent and lavish as you want.

2. It’s all about the Love

It’s all about the love and the two of you….no seating plans to worry about, no family politics, and no worry about everyone watching when you walk down the aisle.

3. Less Stress

It is less stressful that a big wedding (this doesn’t mean you avoid the stress entirely though!)

4. Creativity

The freedom to include whatever your heart desires in your ceremony, celebration and vows.

5. Intimacy

Our wedding felt very much about the two of us and the promise we were making to each other. About honoring our relationship and how far we had come together (all 7 years of it so far!) and where we planned to go in the future. A touch point in our lives together.

6. Budget

Now in theory it’s possible to spend less if there are no guests/just a few guests….but honestly I can’t say we actually managed this…. but absolutely it is possible. The harder part is that you have to leave things like flowers, decoration etc behind with you if it’s a destination elopement. Leaving my beautiful arrangements behind at the house was so hard!

We don’t regret a penny (dollar) we spent on the wedding, and although it was far from a budget affair we felt good about spending the money. It doesn’t matter what you spend as long as you feel good about spending it 🙂

7. It’s a Big Adventure!

We chose to roll our wedding and honeymoon into one big trip and make 3 weeks of it all….. it was an amazing experience and we did everything from going up in a 1940’s biplane together to doing a soul journey with a shaman, from shopping and drinking champagne like it was going out of fashion, to lazing by the pool and looking at spectacular scenery. We even saw elephant seals and dolphins. I’m a sucker for a dolphin; I just love them! I’m going to share some pictures from our honeymoon soon.

8. You can have an Intimate Ceremony and a Big Party afterwards

The best of both worlds. This is what we started out planning to do until time and finances meant planning two events in one year became unrealistic. Instead we plan to have a big party in the future, where we renew our vows and celebrate with friends and family. This way we didn’t compromise either event.

9. It’s Relaxed!

10. It’s Magical!

Image by Jose Villa