Did you do any DIY Projects or create any handmade items for your wedding?
Sarah and her Mother-in law made all the corsages themselves. Sarah made her wedding bouquet with flowers hand picked by the couple from a local florist in Trastevere.
What creative or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?
We included subtile elements from our cultural background. Sarah wore Pakistani gold jewelry inherited from her mother and grandmother.
Marius had his family gathered with him before the ceremony, and had his son be his best man. His brother was our witness. We also wanted our day to capture the Italian vibe, hence our wedding pictures in Rome!
What is the most memorable moment of your day?
One of the most memorable moments was our wedding dance. Another was the ceremony – it was way more special and personal than we expected, given it was a civil ceremony at the Royal Norwegian Embassy. They made us feel like we had a full on ceremony with our officiant being present and making it very personal.
What was the biggest thing you did to save money?
We found an opening at the Embassy just two months before the wedding. Inviting all of our guests was no longer an option, so we saved the most on having an intimate elopement with only our closest family.
The second biggest thing we saved money on was our vendors by reaching out as soon as we got our ceremony date in place. With our time frame, most of the vendors were already busy or over budget. We also saved money by planning our wedding outside peak wedding season.
What was your biggest splurge?
Our biggest splurge was our hotel!
What were your favorite details?
Our wedding dance was one.
We decided to end our day with a drink at a local tavern right by our hotel. Surprisingly, no one was there but us and the waiters when we arrived. Sarah decided to ask the young boys if they would play “Ti Amo” on the outdoor speakers so she could have her wedding dance with her newly wedded husband. We danced into the night in our wedding attire, with drizzling rain in the veil, under the blue star-filled sky of mesmerizing Rome.
What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?
If you want a destination wedding with all your friends and family in attendance, start at least one year in advance. You will also need a planner who can get the right vendors according to your budget.
Elope! We would not have done anything differently. We got to do it exactly how we wanted and got to spend our whole day together. The two of us and our incredible photographers got to wander the streets and monuments of romantic Rome. We had the beautiful, warm and congratulating people of Rome as our audience. We felt like celebrities for our very special day.
