My heart is exploding with joy as I peruse through the wonderful Indian wedding celebration honoring Harreet and Amit. Harreet enjoyed multiplied Indian wedding ceremonies (lucky gal!) and her pretty in pastel theme for this celebrated hurrah is my favorite (I think!). For her last celebration, the bride turned up the sultry notch in a sheer grown with deep-V lace bodice, beaded sleeves, and a sheer organza skirt. Clear glass votives, candles, lush floral and earthy succulents were displayed on the glistening tabletops as lavish centerpieces. I am always blown away by the talented work of Lush Décor, and this ultra classy theme is superb. The Paradise Banquet & Convention Centre was truly transformed into a magical wonderland for the reception party! Harreet was the center of attention the whole night as apparent in our very Instagram worthy gallery shot by L'Atelier Lumière International Photographie.
How did you meet your Groom and when did you know he was "the one"?
I had moved back from London after an 8-year stint and went back to visit my sister a year later when Amit and I crossed paths in Marylebone. It was that chance meeting and an amazing first date over delicious wine & cheese, captivating conversations and loads of laughter that sparked the start of something truly magical.
When I first met Amit, I was instantly attracted to his incredible energy, charming personality, chivalry and love for life! Right when we met, it felt as if we had already met and every step in our relationship since has just felt effortless – things just happen and fall into place at the right time.
Share the scoop on your Proposal Story!
Despite the long distance nature of our relationship, Amit and I were so lucky to be able to pack our bags, every two months, to meet one another in London, Toronto or some part of the world. So when Amit planned his trip to Toronto that summer, I didn't think anything of it!
It was Friday, the end of a long work week for me and Amit's last few days in Toronto so we planned a night out with my friends. Before heading out for the evening, Amit booked us the Spa at the Shangri La to relax and unwind. It was a sweet gesture and so 'like' Amit to plan something like this so again, I didn't think anything of it!
After the spa, we made our way to the condo to drop off our bags and when I opened the door to the flat, I was shocked to see hundreds of flowers, candles, and photos of us placed throughout the rooms! Amit had hired a photographer to capture the details, reactions, and emotions that filled the moments that led up to Amit going down on one knee and asking me to marry him! Our 'dinner' turned into a night of celebrating our proposal with my brother, sister, brother-in-law-to-be, cousins, and friends! The celebrations continued the next day with my parents and extended family at our family home. Amit planned the perfect proposal and found a way to incorporate my family and friends which was so important to me!
Tell us how you went about planning your wedding, and your overall experience with the Venues, Hair & Makeup, Outfits, Decor Theme, and all of the other important details.
We started our wedding planning by brainstorming the 'where' - where did we want to get married? We were inspired by the recent weddings we had attended in Boracay and Phuket and were convinced that we wanted a destination wedding too! After some research and shortlisting our options, we went full circle and decided on Toronto. Why? Because, we re-evaluated what was most important to us - having all of our family and friends there AND being able to add personal touches and detail to every event we hosted. We felt that this was do-able in Toronto, given I’m in the same city.
We then moved on to our venue selection. We wanted to keep our Sangeet playful and fun, just the way you feel when you go to a 'mela' (fair). We wanted to incorporate little trinklets that our guest could take home - bindis, bangles, dupattas - and have a big enough dance floor for all the singing and dancing! Dreams Convention Centre was definitely the perfect space to host – we even had a big enough runway to the dance floor for our London Thumakda rickshaw entrance :)
For our wedding, we wanted a space that was outdoors with a breathtaking view. Given half of our guests were traveling to Toronto from overseas (Australia, UK and many for the first time), the waterfront felt like the perfect setting. We were instantly drawn to Palais Royale - the location, food, customer service and the experience they provided from the moment we walked through their doors was incredible. Even today, everyone talks about how well-presented and delicious the breakfast and lunch was during our wedding - they were super attentive to all our dietary requirements and ensured that these restrictions didn't hinder to taste of the dishes!
Our reception was just as perfect too. We wanted a venue that didn't need much decor and spoke for itself - gold embellishments, detailed ceilings, and grand chandeliers. Paradise Banquet Hall was literally our vision. Also being an Italian banquet, they offered a sit down Italian dinner with an assortment of late night snacks and desserts - our guests were amazed by the vast menu and array of delicious snacks and desserts throughout the night. No one was ever hungry during our reception, that’s for sure!
Being in the wedding industry myself (I'm a professional makeup & hair stylist) - I've had the pleasure of working with the industries finest vendors and had already decided on some key vendors I wanted to bring on board - these included: L'Atelier Lumiere (Photography), Ryan Apigo Films, Lush Decor and Fine Cakes by Zehra.
My makeup and hair was a tough one. I had 6 bridal makeup trials before deciding on my artist. I then asked myself "when was the last time I got my makeup done and really liked it?" - I remembered Maryam (@m4makeup) my makeup artist who dolled me up for my cousin's wedding almost 4 years ago. I called her, booked a trial and then gave my deposit. Best decision I made as she made me feel very comfortable and totally worked with me on each of the 3 looks, letting me add my touches where I wanted to. She listened to what I wanted - a flawless, clean, natural finish with pops of color and did a phenomenal job on all my looks! For my hair, I booked the talented, Jyoti (@bellahair.jb). She has an eye for perfection and gave me such different hairstyles for each of my events - all inspired by a recent Bollywood star wedding!
My outfits and jewelry were also very much Bollywood inspired – the recent ' star' weddings that have left us all speechless! Here are my inspirations for my main events:
Sangeet
- Outfit: Manish Malhotra inspired
- Hair: Sonam Kapoor inspired
Sikh Wedding
- Outfit: Manish Malhotra inspired
- Makeup/Hair: bold and sharp. Loved the deep red lips!
Hindu Wedding
- Outfit: Sabyasachi inspired
- Hair: Anushka Sharma inspired
How did you select your bridal lengha or wedding dress? Did you have a favorite color in mind?
I'm a HUGE Bollywood fan and absolutely inspired by the fashion - elaborate outfits, gorgeous fabrics and bold colors. I wanted to keep my Sangeet outfit trendy, playful and pretty - incorporating flowers in the outfit to tie in our 'floral wedding' theme. For my Sikh ceremony, I wanted to stick to the traditional gold and red combo and for the Hindu ceremony a floral outfit playing on the lighter colors - pastel peach, pastel green, light golds. Inspired by Sabyasachi and Anushka's wedding, I was totally drawn to this piece.
What was the most enjoyable part of the planning process, and why?
I would have to say, putting together the personal touches. Pinterest is so addictive during the planning phase and there were just too many cute ideas that I wanted to do!
Doing almost 300 pieces of each personal touch item, required some helping hands! My parents, brother, sister, cousins all offered to help. We picked one night a week for ‘arts & crafts’ to put these pieces together – a great way to relax a little and spend time with your loved ones during the busy wedding planning craze!
What did your guests particularly love about your Wedding?
What we hear time and again from our family and friends is the 'attention to detail' throughout our wedding. From our choice of venues, the decor, our outfits, and jewelry, to the personal touches and little trinklets for our guests - no detail was missed! Some of our personal touches included:
- Welcome bags for our out-of-town guests - full of 'his' and 'her' favorites
- A bangle/bindi/dupatta bar at the Sangeet, with keepsakes for the ladies
- Individually wrapped napkins for 'your happy tears' placed on each guest’s seat for the wedding ceremony
- shawls placed on the deck where our ceremony took place for our guests 'to hold if they get cold'
- 'lucky in love' lottery tickets at our reception which were placed under the dinner plates for our guests to scratch and win!
- kids were given a cartoon of Amit & I along with crayons which kept them busy for most of the reception!
- flip flops for the ladies at the reception - 'a little treat for your dancing feet'
- hangover kits for our guest to take home after the reception. This included mini branded water bottles with Advil, gum and vitamin C!
Was there a really special moment in your wedding that constantly replays in your mind?
Our wedding took place at Palais Royale - right on Lakeshore with stunning views of the Toronto skyline. My most special moment(s) that replay in my mind are my entrances for both my wedding ceremonies. The first being my Sikh ceremony where both my parents walked me in, and the second being my Hindu ceremony where my brother and Mamma walked me in to 'Din Shagna Da' - truly inspired by Anushka Sharma's wedding! That feeling I had both times, walking down the aisle and seeing Amit in front of me was just magical... it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it!
Do you have any words of wisdom for Brides-To-Be?
Enjoy every moment - we spend so many months planning one of the biggest days of our lives and it passes us so quickly! Take it all in and be in the 'now' when it all happens. Take deep breaths - those are important too!
See you tomorrow!
