Real Wedding: Cecilia & Andy

Source: http://snippetandink.blogspot.com/2009/09/real-wedding-cecilia-andy.html

Jonas Peterson is by far one of the most talented photographers out there, so if you don’t know about his work yet, then I think this is the perfect time to introduce you. Though he’s based in Australia, he is happy to travel – today’s couple, Cecilia and Andy, flew him to Sweden for their wedding!

A friend of Cecilia’s who was also engaged, found her dress at Lisa Ho. She suggested that Cecilia try dresses on there, too, and of course Cecilia fell in love with the exact same dress that her friend bought. Realizing that they were the same size, and that they would not have any mutual friends at their weddings, they decided to share the dress! What a great story! Cecilia also wore a long pearl necklace from her mother.

Though Cecilia and Andy currently reside in Australia, they decided to hold their wedding in the bride’s native country of Sweden. Guests traveled from Sydney, Toronto, New York, London, Oslo, and all over Sweden to join them on their wedding day, with 60 guests in all, making for a perfectly intimate celebration.

The ceremony took place at a beautiful 13th-century church in the village where Cecilia is from and where her family lives. They found an officiant to perform the ceremony in English, so that everyone could appreciate it.

Cecilia’s friend made her bouquet of calla lilies. Andy wore a gray suit from Herringbone.

The reception took place at Cecilia’s parents’ summer house not far from the church. Located on a lake, it is a very private location, and a special place to the bride and groom – perfect for their wedding! With Cecilia and Andy planning mostly from Australia, it was a huge help to have her parents in Sweden working on details there.

All of the centerpieces and the wedding survival kits (for those guests who had never attended a Swedish wedding before) were made by the bride, groom and their families, among many other DIY projects.

At Swedish weddings, and at Cecilia and Andy’s, the dinner lasts for hours, with lots of toasts, speeches, and traditions. The couple’s friends made slideshows of photos and movie clips from the Hen and Buck parties (bachelorette and bachelor parties in the U.S.). One of my favorite traditions that Cecilia shared with me is that whenever the bride leaves the room, to powder her nose for example, all of the ladies run to line up and kiss the groom, and vice versa when the groom steps out. Hilarious!

One of the couple’s favorite moments from the day was a big surprise organized by Cecilia’s parents. Between the main meal and dessert, everyone was asked to go outside to the lake for the surprise “kulning.” Kulning is a traditional Scandinavian way of singing that is quite unusual and hauntingly beautiful. Jonas Peterson talks about it a bit, and has an example of it that you can listen to over on his blog.

A DJ kept everyone, including the bride and groom, dancing late into the night – Cecilia is so glad they stayed and partied until the wee hours with all of their guests who traveled so far to celebrate with them.

A big thank you to Cecilia and Andy for sharing all of these details of your Swedish wedding with us – congratulations! And thank you of course to Jonas Peterson for sharing these gorgeous photos. See more of Jonas’ work on his website and blog – you won’t want to miss any of it.