Part 5: The Reception 🤍
Hands down my favourite moment of the entire wedding was being introduced for the first time as Mr. & Mrs. Mason-Tromp 😭
I always knew I wanted us to walk in to Dela by Johnny Clegg, but somehow it became even more special because one of Tanner’s close friend @inwithashout actually toured the world with Johnny Clegg as his saxophonist… and he played live while we walked in.
Actual goosebumps. What is life 😂
We also asked everyone not to sit at their tables while we entered. We wanted one big circle around us because if there’s one theme you’ve probably picked up by now… it’s music and dancing hahaha.
I genuinely don’t think I’ll ever forget it.
Everyone had been transported there in groups and cooler boxes in these chaotic little cars which honestly just added to the fun of it all.
For food we kept things super simple. We had food trucks, a massive potjie and brownies. The most delicious poitjie of my life. Shoutout @tommysugopizza
We also saved so much money on decor because the canyon itself was already so beautiful. We literally just added lights and tablecloths I bought from a fabric store that I didn’t even hem 😭 threw on some fairy lights and called it a day.
The speeches continued during reception and genuinely became one of the biggest highlights of the wedding.
And of course Tanner and I had to say thank you to everyone the only logical way possible… by handing out tequila shots 😂
Then we had our first dance 🤍
Stay tuned for the final part… where the actual party starts.
📸: @tyanderi_com
The Canapés
I’ll be lying if I said the excitement of the whole day didn’t fully hit me during canapés 😂
I genuinely did not know what to do with myself for a bit. It was the most overwhelming feeling in the absolute best way possible.
Having every single person you love all in one place, all there because of you, all wanting your attention, celebrating you, hugging you, speaking to you… it’s honestly an overflow of love that I don’t think anyone can properly prepare you for 🤍
So naturally I dealt with it by running around everywhere trying to keep myself busy hahaha.
But everything started calming down once speeches started.
We actually decided to start speeches during canapés because we had a LOT to get through, and honestly I couldn’t recommend it more. It created such a nice pause between everything and gave everyone a moment to settle in properly before the chaos of the reception.
The speeches were completely unfiltered, raw, hilarious, emotional and slightly chaotic… exactly what you want 😂
And then right before leaving for the next venue, we all took shots, downed our drinks and headed off to where the real party started 🤍
Part 3: The Ceremony 🤍
One thing I can say about this ceremony is there was so much love and happiness ♥️🥹
The ceremony itself was unfiltered in the best way possible.
The boys handed out beers and ciders before the ceremony, while the girls walked down handing out tequila and Jäger shots instead of flowers 😂
Music was such a huge part of our wedding because it’s always been such a huge part of our relationship.
The boys walked down to a psytrance song which definitely shocked a few people, and the girls walked down to a classic song tied to my friendships with them.
Then Tanner walked down the aisle smiles and tears, and I came in with both my mom and dad because… only child energy 😂🤍
And naturally Tanner was already emotional with absolutely no tissues prepared for himself.
I arrived in a full Pumba Africa Burn-style mutant vehicle which was painfully on brand 😭
One thing about me (Nicole)… I was NOT just going to walk down the aisle 😂
From the start, I knew I wanted to dance down the aisle to Tanner. We chose a song that’s been part of our relationship since the beginning, and there’s one slightly bouncy part in it that I always knew would be my moment hahaha.
It felt so ridiculously us 😂
The entire ceremony was raw, emotional, windy, chaotic, imperfect and completely us.
There were little mistakes, random laughs, moments where we ignored structure and just spoke in the moment because it felt right.
Tanner’s brother @travis_mason_music officiated and when I say no one could have done a better job o mean it.
Then we did our vows and Tanner absolutely destroyed me emotionally 😭
The wind was INSANE the whole ceremony, but honestly it added to the atmosphere. And when we finally walked back down the aisle, obviously we didn’t walk… we danced 😂
We even had bubble machines for the confetti line but the wind sent the bubbles into another dimension.
Honestly, it was probably my favourite part of the entire wedding 🤍
A few minutes away from the best decision of my life.
I remember the day like it was yesterday. Nics and I started the day with a walk around the venue, taking it all in before we official say I do.
We then went out to do some Yoga lead by my beautiful Mama bear Cheryllyn Berry. Who lead us through a beautiful yoga session as the sun came up.
I then went for a small dip in the pool before me and the boys headed to the round room to get ready.
I was full of so much excitement and joy, that I left writing my vows out to the last minute which lead to this beautiful photo which I takes me back to the feeling I had when I wrote those words. My Vows to my soon to be wife are my promise for life so every sentence means the world to me.
I almost forgot to give the boys their personalized gifts while getting changed but I am glad I didn’t. I got them all a few little things to remember the day by as well as to show my gratitude to them for standing next to me on the best day of my life.
We finished off getting ready with a nice bottle of whisky, toasting to the day ahead.
Photos: @tyanderi_com
Ring: @pedrodasilvajeweller
Venue: @pod_karoo
Part 1 of TBC.
We got ready in the middle of the canyon in a literal party bus… which later became our afterparty venue 😭🕺🏻 honestly iconic behaviour from us.
The wind also decided to absolutely humble me that morning and I’d be lying if I said there weren’t a few panic tears because NB: OUR ENTIRE WEDDING WAS OUTSIDE 🌬️😂
I had custom “Trompie” pyjama sets made by @goodnight.girlypops for everyone and I’m OBSESSED. Quality 10/10. I’d wear this out in public 😂
Also fun fact: I had 3 maid of honours and no bridesmaids because there was genuinely no world where I could choose between the three women who have shaped my life in such different ways… so I simply refused to choose 😂 @alex0ds@__ella__g@megantromp
Another thing that made the morning really special was how much we did ourselves. My cousin did my makeup, my mom did my hair, and we were all set up the reception tables ourselves 😭 Not that there was much to set up.
These moments ended up meaning way more to me than outsourcing everything. Also it just felt slightly ridiculous asking someone to drive 3.5 hours into the desert to glue lashes onto me. DIY for the pocket ❤️
Just before I put my dress on, I got a walkie talkie call from my husband-to-be and we had this little back-and-forth moment, so stoked we got a photo out of it.
My mom helped me into my dress and we had to practice a few times before to get the lace up right and she nailed it ♥️
A moment for the dress, I genuinely don’t think I could’ve loved it more if I tried. My only brief was:
“It needs to feel like a wedding dress… but make it it festival.”
And somehow that resulted in the most perfect see-through sparkly situation ever.
Then obviously seeing my dad for the first look absolutely finished me emotionally.
The whole morning just felt full of love, chaos, wind, laughter, wind and people constantly asking where random things were. I had to super glued my broken nail to my finger. Chaos.
Would relive it 1000 times over.
Photos: @tyanderi_com
Dress: @vonvebridalcouture
Makeup: @megantromp
Hair: @drmarlettromp
Lashes: @bangersandlashcpt
Ring: @pedrodasilvajeweller
Bracelet: @famkejewellery
Venue: @pod_karoo
Are you ready for these photos by @tyanderi_com ? 🤍📸
This husband-and-wife team specialises in documentary-style wedding photography and videography in South Africa. Their approach? Natural and unobtrusive, focusing on the laughter, nerves, quiet glances and all the in-between moments that make a wedding feel real. With years of experience and hundreds of weddings behind them, they create timeless wedding photos and films that feel honest, emotional and true to your day and your story.
Head to www.saweddings.co.za to view more and enquire today!
#WeddingPhotographerSA #WeddingVideographerSA #DocumentaryWeddingPhotography #WeddingFilm #SAWeddings
