SOPHIE + RYAN| PAROS ISLAND, GREECE
Perth based bridal gown owner Sophie of Zolotas Australia met Ryan as her neighbour one day over the fence of their parents homes in Perth. Introduced by their mothers, the rest is history!
"We were together for three years before we got engaged... it was a complete surprise! Ryan got a ring made in Perth from a Greek Jeweller Stelios, from there it travelled 13,000km in a pair of socks in his suitcase to the other side of the planet'“ (Paros Island, Greece) where Ryan proposed to Sophie at her childhood home of Villa Sophelle.
what led you to decide on your wedding venue?
it was my childhood home, it is such a beautiful villa with so many amazing memories it made sense to have it at the villa! I even took my very first steps where we were standing at the ceremony!
most favourite moments of the day:
Everything was amazing... I would say it was incredible when we were having a sunset dinner and we looked out across at all our loved ones in the same place. It meant so much to have so many people that travelled from all around the world for our wedding!
favourite details about the day?
Definitely our wedding plates – oh my gosh we packed 95 plates in our suitcase from Perth all the way to the Greek Islands but it was so worth it as they matched our theme perfectly! We also had surprise Brazillian dancers as part of our entertainment which got the crowd dancing! They were a lot of fun!
how long did it take for you to find and how was your dress/suit shopping experience overall?
Being the owner of @Zolotas_Australia there was a lot of people asking about how I would have my dress design! To be honest I put complete trust in the designer ‘VG Zolotas’ who knows exactly what to design for every body shape and for the theme of the wedding! I found myself in two incredible dresses – one for the ceremony and one for the reception! These two dresses were designed and handmade with love from our head office in Greece @atelierzolotas
Ryan was similar when it came to his suit, his fav part was when the designer changed the buttons on his shirt to match his bow tie!
“we had a 3 day event for our guests in order to say thank you for everyone that travelled all the way to the Greek Islands!
Day 1 welcome beach party with Greek dancing and plate smashing
Day 2 boat party to the blue lagoon and pirate cave
Day 3 wedding day!”
what does marriage mean to you?
It means having someone to share the good moments with, bouncing ideas and thoughts off someone who won’t pass judgement and will give you an honest response. But most of all someone who will invest as much time in you as they would themselves, this to me is true love.
any classic stories you want to share from the day?
The faces of confusion and surprise on the Greek people’s faces as 20 Australian men conform to the rules of the great song Eagle Rock, will forever be entrenched in my story book.
advice:
Start planning well in advance and make sure you spend time going over your budget as your planning progresses. But most of all enjoy the process and enjoy each other while planning, it can get stressful at times.. Especially days leading up to it!
any stand out vendors for the day?
Beinng in the wedding industry I did a lot of research on vendors! A few that made the day incredible were our photographers that flew from Thessaloniki, the live singer from Santorini, the videographers all the way from Adelaide, The make up artist from Perth and the cocktail bar men from Paros!
we had a 3 day event for our guests in order to say thank you for everyone that came!
Day 1 welcome beach party with Greek dancing and plate smashing
Day 2 boat party to the blue lagoon and pirate cave
Day 3 wedding day!
Videographer @idocinema
Photographer @lighthousephotography_gr
Dress @atelierzolotas @zolotas_australia
Suit @gentlemenexperts
Neon bar sign @neoncollective.co
Hairstylist @juliapopovamuah
Rings @stelios_jewellers
Earrings @thallojewelry
Bar menu @sketchandetchcreative
Cocktail @ramantanis_bros
Wooden decor @footeandflame
Bridesmaid dresses @onefellswoopofficial
Wooden name tags @natures_treasures_boutique
Ceremony @villasophelle
Reception @h2O_villaparos
Music @louisvlahakismusic