Private Island Retreat Wedding: Sana & Derek

HRM Photography

April 8, 2013

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Sana & Derek were married on an island. Artscape Gibraltar Point is located in the former Toronto Island Public and offers 35,000 square feet of affordable retreat space, artist studios and accommodations for artists and creative thinkers. The tranquil and idyllic setting was perfect for their intimate and artistic wedding. The day started with the entire wedding party taking the ferry over to the island together. “We knew immediately that we wanted to hold the wedding on the island – it’s the perfect escape from Toronto, and a place where we have spent countless summer days swimming, biking and hanging out on the beach,” wrote Sana. “Artscape had the perfect laid-back and nostalgic feeling that we wanted in a venue, and they even let us have a bonfire outside on the beach!”

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Sana opted for an untraditional bridal look, choosing to wear a blue dress by Betsey Johnson and Dr Martens, while Derek wore a tartan kilt. “We wanted the wedding to reflect who we are as couple, and the things that we love to do”, the bride continued. “Almost everything was handmade or vintage, and there were tons of things that came straight from our home. Derek’s parents picked all the flowers from a local wildflower farm and we used craft beer bottles that we’ve collected over the past couple of years as vases. The pine cones in the centre pieces were gathered on a camping trip and the crystals and little vintage animals were from our shelves at home.”

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“The bunting was cut and sewn at home, and we even used our vintage Singer sewing machine table for cards and the guest book.The crazy assortment of all our favourite things made the day feel like it was truly our own, and because we decided to take care of as many of the details on our own as possible, we both felt really proud of ourselves for pulling it off.”

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“We had our hearts set on an outdoor ceremony on the beach”, Sana concluded. “We feel so perfectly happy when we are outside together, and it would have felt wrong to be married indoors. Much to our dismay, it rained all morning and afternoon on our wedding day. When the time came to have the ceremony, we kept stalling for time in hopes that the rain would stop just for a few minutes so we could all go outside. Finally, we decided we couldn’t delay it any longer. At that exact moment, the sky began to lighten, and the rain let up. We all rushed through the lawn to the beach, and as our feet hit the sand, we looked across the water and saw a perfect double rainbow appear between the parting clouds. It was the most incredible thing, and it made our day.”

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Amazing! Thank you Sana & Derek for sharing your wedding with us today.

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