NICK SPANSWICK
EVENTS AND DESIGN
Click on photos to open in slideshow
A Lake Como fantasy
We were thrilled when we learned that this young couple wanted to get married at the bride's family home - the garden faced directly on to the Bosphorus and was filled with lush green lawns and ancient trees - the perfect setting for our 'Lake Como' inspired wedding decor concept.
However, we soon realized it would require a lot of work to make the garden suitable for two nights' worth of celebrations for a total of approximately 500 guests. We covered the entire garden with decking to create a safe flat level, and from there we designed custom furniture to fit around the trees, created mirrored lighting rigs that would blend with the natural beauty of the garden, and brought in cascades of flowers to create a romantic paradise of lush greenery and flowers.
We created hand painted visuals of the wedding decor for each garden, and then used them for the custom fans we created especially for the event.
The garden was stunning and completely matched our proposed 'Lake Como concept, but the low bushes along with paths of gravel and stone and huge irregularly shaped expanses of lawn would be a tripping hazard for 500 guests so we decked the garden to create a flat surface for guests to walk on.
A detail from the stone staircase that we covered in ivy and cascades of roses and lisianthus.
We positioned the wedding ceremony at the base of the garden's grand staircase, with a huge canopy of orchids and hydrangeas and strings of white flowers that made it feel like the gazebo was floating in mid air.
To watch the ceremony, guests sat on benches decorated to look like the garden's original topiary hedging, with green velvet cushions and transparent side tables.
A detail of the gazebo's flowers.
A side view of the wedding gazebo area.
The staircase led straight down to the cocktail and ceremony area, decorated with Lake Como-inspired statues, flowers and lush greenery.
Our custom carriage lanterns added a romantic 'Cinderella' touch to the sweeping grand staircase balustrade.