It’s amazing LOVE brought you here! Why did you Travel for Love?
André: “Katie and I both have family and friends all over the place. We thought that if people were to travel, it’d be nice to have a neutral location where everyone could all meet. It was also a great opportunity to go to the “tropical down south” together. For many of our family and friends it was the very first time they traveled outside of Canada.
“We were hoping to give our families and friends a little taste of the beautiful weather down south. Canada gets very cold!” – André
Katie: “We wanted a destination wedding was because we wanted something different. No one in either of our families has ever had a Destination wedding. We both have friends who have either had a Destination wedding themselves or have been to one and had absolutely loved it.”
“The reason we chose Del Sol as our Photography ‘Dream Team’ – was because there were a lot of Family and friends who were not able to make it to Mexico. We wanted to ensure we chose the photographers who would make it seem so real once we show our wedding pictures, it would seem as though those people were there with us all along. When we were first browsing Photography companies for our wedding – we saw that difference with Del Sol through their art work on their website!”
See the full wedding slideshow:
Del Sol: We love to know if there were any words spoken on your wedding day that really stood out?
André: Yes, there were a lot of special things, I don’t remember the words. I remember the feelings. I remember that during the vows and the speeches there were lots of special moments that I am really grateful for. It was very emotional.
“André’s vows as a whole that really touched me. Knowing someone has vowed their life to me, that is unfathomable!” – Katie
André: “To be honest there was soooooo much stuff happening that I don’t remember the vows per se. What I do know and remember is that it felt amazing looking at each other and that we were all very emotional with teary eyes and all.”
Katie: “When my Father gave his speech at the reception and invited André in to the family – that really touched me. My Family has had a lot of bumps along the road over the past 4 years of our relationship, so hearing those words were really amazing!”
Del Sol: Tell us about your awesome Mr + Mrs poster!
“I have a background in films. I am a professional stuntman and just love action films. I was inspired by the movie Mr and Mrs Smith as they are a loving couple who live action daily.”
“We have two “save the date” posters. The other one was more of romance cover, totally chick flick. The idea was to have two versions, one that represents me: action, out of the ordinary and different. One represents Katie: loving, caring and compassionate. I am super grateful that Katie was willing to step out of her comfort zone and do non-traditional movie posters and Save the Date invite cards with me. We wanted to do something different and this proved to be a real winner.
Katie: “André is in the film industry and he really wanted to pull that part of his life in to our wedding. It took a lot of convincing for me to feel comfortable with the idea, but now – looking back, it has been worth it. It is really remarkable how the poster turned out and what a huge hit it has been for all of our Family and Friends! If anyone is going to remember anything about our wedding, it will for sure be that poster.”
Del Sol: What was the most amazing moment of your day?
André: “The most amazing moment of my wedding day was seeing Katie walking down the aisle as well as the vows and ring exchange. She looked stunningly beautiful and was walking towards me, to join me in our new adventure.
Katie: “The most amazing part of my day was standing in front of my Family and Friends and not being nervous to proclaim my love for André for the rest of my life.”
“I absolutely despise being the center of attention – but because I was so happy to be proclaiming my love and affection to the Love of my Life, I hardly noticed all the people watching us! It was as though I had tunnel vision for ‘My One & Only.’”
How was your experience with Vanessa and the del Sol team?
André: “Vanessa was like a real ninja, discreet and almost invisible!”
Katie: “Vanessa and the team were phenomenal! From the moment Vanessa arrived at my dressing room to the closing of our Wedding reception – they had great idea’s for photos!”
“Our Bridal Party was a lot to deal with as there were a couple bad ankles, a bad back, etc . The team was very accommodating and really made the pictures appear as though there were no special accommodations. Also, I want to mention that on our wedding day, there were a few surprises and Vanessa’s team were amazing at going with the flow!”
André: “Out of everyone involved, every vendor we dealt with, Del Sol Photography was by far the best ones to deal with. Throughout our wedding planning experience we had a lot on our plate, stress was high, they took the time to listen to us and be a supportive voice in Mexico. They’ve addressed all of our concerns and over delivered on their customer service.”
Del Sol: We loved your wedding style! Andre, it’s no mean feat to pull of a white suit and hat and we loved the bright colors!
André: “The colour scheme was something we had in mind for a very long time. Both Katie and I love hot pink. As for the guys, we didn’t want the traditional black and white suits. We like to be different and stand out doing our own thing. Since were in a tropical setting we went with a tropical summer theme. We chose turquoise because it represents the beaches down south. When you fly to a tropical location, from the plane you can see where the water and the shore come together giving that beautiful turquoise.”
“When we thought of all the colours separately it seemed all over the place: we had turquoise, pink, beige, brown and my suite, ivory. Certainly sounds bizarre are first but I was telling my friends, trust the vision. With the bridesmaids wearing pink, being down south, over looking the ocean, everything will come to place and I am certainly happy it turned out well. A little bit of risk but that certainly paid off.”
“I definitely didn’t want to wear a three-piece black tuxedo on the beach. I wanted something light and breathable hence how why I chose a linen suit. I wanted something that would bridge the groomsmen and bridesmaids together while going through the bride and groom. When you see all of us together (bride, groom & wedding party), the colour scheme gives a very nice cheerful tropical feeling that is very unique to us in its own way.””
“The hat was difficult to find. In my vision I had that hat all along but in Canada these hats in the ivory color are very hard to find. I was really getting discouraged and finally accepted that I was not going to have one. For me though, the hat was one of the most import piece of my outfit. It was the finishing touches to complete my vision.”
“A day or two before the wedding I was walking on the beach on the Resort in Mexico with my friends and saw a hat merchant. I went to grab my suit jacket, came back and matched a few hats side by side with the jacket and to my surprise I had finally found the winner!”
Del Sol: Why did you choose Now Jade?
André: “We chose the Now Jade Riviera Maya because of it’s Pergola overlooking the ocean. Katie and I, from the start, were pretty sure what we wanted. We wanted to see the ocean but not stand in the sand.”
“Our goal was to be on a tropical outside terrace overlooking the ocean. That was our Google search term. We browsed many images until we found the Now Jade’s pergola. We were sold.” – André
Katie: “Honestly, when we first decided we wanted a destination wedding, I had never been to a resort before and André had only been to two others before. Because neither of us really knew where we wanted to go, we went shopping for Travel Agents. We shopped and shopped and shopped. I think we had met with about 4 different agents at 4 different travel agencies before we decided which agent and company to choose.”
“From the moment we walked in the door to the agency, our agent put us at ease. Within the first 20-30 minutes of our conversation, she suggested Now Jade. She showed us some pictures of the Now Jade and we fell in love with it.”
“However, we didn’t want to choose right then and there. So, we went home and did our own research. Now Jade fit the bill!”
“I do have to say, however, the Staff at the Now Jade we were great. Sandra was our Wedding savior! Many of the guests who attended our wedding in Mexico at the Now Jade, had absolutely nothing but positive things to say about the resort and staff!”
Del Sol: How was your experience in Mexico – bearing in mind the travel advisories against Mexico?
Katie: There were a couple of people who mentioned to us about the Zika virus concerns and the fact we are going to Mexico at the end of October – they were expressing concern over the Hurricane Season. Having questions about the Zika virus did put it in my head as a warning. I did some research on it and I spoke with my doctor. In the end, it is okay. We heeded to the warnings.”
André: “Our Mexico trip was pretty rushed. We were there for seven days but if we had to do it again, we’d take at least ten days.”
“Something else we didn’t realize that October/November are busy months for Weddings at that resort. We thought because we were not in the tourist high season it’d be more relaxed but not at all! The manager Sandra Casillas in the wedding department was a huge help for us. She was caring and gave us amazing service.”
“As for the overall travel to Mexico, it was awesome! Some guests had a few reservations because of negative news of Mexico but after traveling there, they had a great experience and said they would come back.
“For me, I was in Mexico in Riviera Maya five years ago and came back. The staff are very friendly and so are the locals. Some of our friends and family went on many excursions and had very good reviews.”
Principal Photographer: Vanessa
Tropical Outside Terrace Wedding: NOW Jade – Pergola
Wedding Reception: NOW Jade Bamboo Room
Wedding Dress: David’s Bridal
Groom’s suit: Vernini Uomo Men’s Clothes – I was also very pleased with the service received at Vernini Uomo Men’s Clothes, the place where I purchased my suit.
Del Sol Photography is a preferred vendor for Now Jade Weddings for luxury photo and video services. That means there is no vendor fee to hire us!
If you want to see more NOW Jade weddings be sure to check out our Now Jade Blog Post and Now Jade Wedding Archive.
Want to talk about your wedding day?