Real Bride

#EnzoaniRealBride: Stephy & Kyle

Natural Forest Elegance & A Celebration of Love

Stephy and Kyle celebrated their love in a gorgeous ceremony at the Galagos Country Estate in Pretoria, South Africa that fits "natural forest elegance" to a tee. From their first meeting, the sparks flew...and a best friendship soon blossomed into a beautiful romance. Read on to find out Stephy's best advice for fellow brides-to-be... and how she finally found the perfect gown in BT16-08 from the Beautiful Bridal collection at Blissfully Bridal! Find an authorized Beautiful Bridal retailer near you.

THE DRESS

As a bride, the choice of dress is one of the hardest, yet most important decisions to make.

For me, the choice of style for my dress that I always admired, was an off-shoulder type of design, however, I also wanted to include an open back. I had sleepless nights thinking about it, especially since I had one particular wish, I wanted to find something semi-modern, with soft elegant lace and a vintage touch. Where to find something that incorporated all that, I was clueless… After almost 2 months of searching, a friend tagged me on Blissfully Bridal's page, and the more I viewed it, the more I loved the designs! I was then asked to pick 5 of my top favourites. What made it so special for me and honestly proved to be fate: I was asked which of my choices I wanted to try first, and I decided I would let Elmari decide for me, since as you can imagine I couldn't choose…

The moment I saw myself in the mirror with that first choice on (BT16-08 from the Beautiful Bridal collection), I just couldn't stop smiling. I looked at myself over and over, and I knew it! When the curtains were pulled back, the smiles from my mother-in-law, and Elmari included, said it all, not to mention the tears! I knew it had to be this one! I didn't even bother with the other choices, I just couldn’t even see myself in anything else because this dress had all the qualities I was looking for, and it honestly made me feel like the bride I had always wanted to be!

THE LOVE STORY

Far, far away in a kingdom called Johannesburg, a boy and a girl met… We were in social groups that should never have even crossed paths. Me being Jewish and him not… I had just returned from living in France and had started a new school, trying to fit in all over again with new and amazing people, so I was quite nervous and shy when it came to new introductions. When I first met Kyle, he had walked into a party that I was invited to, and what struck me at first was his presence; almost everyone turned around and all greeted him by name and with smiles.

He has such a pure, kind and sincere aura about him that almost anyone can pick up, and this truly amazed me. When he saw me, he was intrigued at first and sort of looked from afar until his friend broke the ice and we all just couldn’t stop talking. We spoke as if we knew each other for years and almost instantly connected. I knew I may not ever see him again, so I left the night saying it was nice to have met, however, soon after that, we almost always bumped into one another! Somehow our paths always met up in the most random situations - places you would never expect - and from there, the best friendship grew between us.

One day, he invited me out, after months of waiting for an opportunity. He took the risk of ruining this newfound friendship, poured out his hope and made it all happen. Deep down no matter what, it would be all worth it in the end! And it truly was! When Kyle puts his mind to something, he always gets it! He always told his family that he would marry a French girl, and that he definitely got! We ended up dating at the end of 2009 until he proposed to me last year, the most amazing, unexpected surprise day ever! It's been a tough ride and our relationship has been tested a couple of times over the years, but we fought through it all, and made it all worth it in the end.

THE WEDDING DAY

Wedding day preparations are always filled with mixed emotions of pure happiness and nerves, and it’s a fun-filled adventure of new and exciting memories. For me, I had three very special memories that I can never forget.

1. Kyle and I both decided that instead of incorporating religion into our wedding, we would make it more sentimental and add personal touches that no one had ever done, but would also mean something to us. So I had a cape made with Kyle’s family Scottish coat of arms sewn on, and this was placed over my shoulders by Kyle before the ceremony began with its usual introductions, vows and rings. It signified the placement I would now take on as a Mundell under his protection and the importance of our relationship uniting as one.

2. With my father-daughter walk down the aisle, I remember how nervous I was walking down, so my father sang to me under his breath, he made me concentrate on every word he was singing that toned down the nerves I had. It was a song that is said to be the song that welcomes the angels; this made me smile as it signified a very spiritual song. My father kept saying that we were inviting the angels to bless us and everyone else on this very special day, and it made it a truly meaningful beginning for Kyle and me.

3. Lastly, we never saw or spoke to one another a week before the wedding, however an hour before, his best man and my maid of honour delivered letters written by both of us for one another, that we read quietly in our own time. It represented our love we shared and the excitement for our newfound journey together.

MY ADVICE...

A bride carries a certain kind of strength and aura about her on her wedding day, and this I believe protects her from any sort of jealousy or negativity that people may put her through. The one thing that I learnt and truly wish for every bride to remember is to never be afraid to say no, don’t be afraid to disappoint anyone, no matter who they are. Regardless of what your profession may be, it’s the only time you get to have a final say and make final decisions. I was put through an immense amount of tests by people, but what carried me forward is listening to my gut feeling, trusting my first instincts and most importantly, killing with kindness and burying them with a smile.

True sincere happiness can overcome any bad amount of negativity that comes your way.

Most importantly, soak in every moment and indulge in every memory you can make. It is truly the best experience a person can go through and it goes by way too quickly.

You are making a lifelong commitment, so don’t allow the pressures or the emotions to catch up to you; it’s a fun and exciting experience to begin your future.

Communication, honesty, trust and respect is the key to any relationship, keep it alive and your bond will grow strong. “The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.”