A Croatia Wedding at Villa Lav

Bridal prep at Villa Lav

I got to the venue early to have a good wander round and met Carly having a little time on her own, peacefully having a coffee and doing her make up. She was soon joined by her mum, three bridesmaids and two little flower girls. Carly bought all her bridesmaids personalised bracelets, and she even got one for me! 

Carly’s a stylist so of course she looked absolutely incredible and incorperated some of my favourite suppliers in her day. Her dress was Madilane from Dotty bridal, which she had kept at her mum’s for three years due to all the postponements. She and her bridesmaids all had beautiful flower crowns from the one and only Folkey Dokey (one of my all time favourite suppliers), and Carly also had gorgeous, little floral cuff from her too. She paired all this with a perfect, embroidered veil, covered in butterflies and Carly & Lee’s initials, made by the incredible Rebecca Anne.

Outdoor Croatia wedding ceremony

Unlike most destination weddings, Carly & Lee’s ceremony at Villa Lav was completely legal. That’s right, you can get legally married in Croatia. They had the sweetest wedding ceremony, preformed in Croatian and translated to English (to make it legally binding). Carly’s dad walked her up the aisle, to Lee who was sheding some happy tears. The wedding ceremony was in a little courtyard surrounded by stone walls and olive trees.

After the ceremony, rather than canapes, they had the most amazing spread of local foods: olives, cheeses, bread, Mediterranean vegetables, and more. Then we had a rather unsucessful, but hilarious confetti shot, as no one could work out how to use the confetti canons.

Pictures around Bale, Croatia

After their ceremony, I whisked them away for some couple pictures around Bale’s winding, cobbled streets. Bale had exactly what you want from a little European town, terraced houses with shutters over the windows, bistro tables and chairs spilling out on the street, and flowers everywhere.

Styling Villa Lav

Villa Lav already looked like the perfect setting for a Croatia wedding, but the way it was styled just made it that bit dreamier. Studio Brzak was absolutely brilliant at both wedding planning and styling – the full package. It was a small Croatia wedding, with the couple having forty guests, so Carly chose to have one long table, which made it super inimate. Fairy lights and festoon lanterns hung from the olive trees all over the gardens, which looked really cute, and after nightfall, gave the place a charming, golden glow. On a white tablecloth gold rimmed charger plates, pastel bouquets, glass vases and candlesticks made for the perfect, luxury setting.

Speeches and Dancefloor

They had their meal outside under the beautiful olive trees. With three speeches, from Carly’s dad, the groom and the best man, who found a way to include those who couldn’t make it, by reading out the postcards they’d sent. Their first dance took place on the outdoor dancefloor under the twinkly festoon lights, with DJ Nikola getting everone on the floor. Carly had two emotional dances with both her mum and dad. They then partied the night away.

A huge thank you to you both for asking me to be a part of your gorgeous Croatia wedding and for my little gift. Here are your previews!

If you’re planning a wedding at Villa or a Croatia wedding , get in touch!