Natacha & Cesar

The couple

Natacha and Cesar know Ibiza well from years of holidays. Their idea for the wedding drew on the Renaissance and on something a little wild, and they wanted a venue that felt like stepping into a secret garden. Planned by Bliss Ibiza Weddings, the brief became a bohemian garden party with a contemporary twist, elegant but never stiff.

The venue had to tick three boxes: beautiful, unusual, and able to host a long party. Finca Can CG, a traditional farmhouse used for weddings, did all three. It has old walls built in a Roman style, carefully kept gardens and a wide view of rolling hills behind.

The ceremony

The couple married in the garden, seated side by side in front of a low bank of flowers while the celebrant spoke. The styling was soft and loose: pampas grass, a pale pastel palette and touches of spring yellow, arranged to look as if they had grown there. For more on how a garden ceremony like this sits next to the legal paperwork, see symbolic ceremonies.

Natacha's dress was one of the most talked-about details of the day: a structured gown with off-the-shoulder puff sleeves that came together in a large bow at the back.

Dinner and party

Dinner was a seated meal in the garden. The tables were kept simple, in classic white with lilac accents and plain vases of flowers, and bohemian parasols shaded them from the sun. The garden did the rest.

The cake matched the hidden-garden theme: white, painted in a modern style to look as if pressed flowers in pale green, lilac and yellow had been laid on it. In place of a plated dessert, the couple set up a buffet of small sweets that stayed open for a while, so guests could slip away from the dance floor for something sweet. The party then went on through the night.

The details

• Pampas, pastels and spring yellow instead of all white
• Lilac accents on white tables
• Bohemian parasols over the dinner
• A white cake painted with a pressed-flower effect
• A mini-dessert buffet in place of a served dessert

The couple chose a destination photographer who worked in both digital and film, and added a video shot on a Super 8 camera for a vintage feel.

Good to know

If a long party matters to you, make it one of your first questions to any venue, before falling for the setting; it was one of the three conditions here. A dessert buffet keeps the dance floor full better than a plated course. If you like the look of film or Super 8, ask to see complete galleries from a photographer, not only the highlights.