Copper Marriage
I actually did not know: when you are married for 12.5 years, it is called a Copper Wedding. And this is a much bigger milestone than being married for 10 years.
Anouk and Marcel knew it, because this would be their special anniversary. A day that became totally opposite of their summer wedding. After all, it is the middle of winter and therefore particularly cold. So: scarves on, mittens on and still enjoy going outside.
Preparations at Center Parcs
They had arranged a cottage at Center Parcs Zandvoort. A nice warm house with lots of light and enough space to start the day with lots of sweet and nice people. Their children also attended this special moment. Those weren’t there 12.5 years ago. So how fun is it to experience this day as a family?
Anouk is not only a wedding photographer with her husband, just as Ramon and I are, but she is also the owner of It’s A Great Day. This company makes wedding cards and stationery and so she was able to completely unleash her creativity on her own Copper Wedding. Her sister created a design for a tree of life that incorporates a lot of symbolism. In addition, much of the styling was in shades of blue and copper. Appropriate, right?
The photo shoot was, let me be honest, just really really cold. So it was a winter photo session, of course. I thought it was so clever how all four of them just tickled through and took off the coats. The boys running around nicely, up and down the dune here and there, and Anouk and Marcel keeping each other warm. The four of them had already scouted a few nice locations near Restaurant Stranded, so we were able to take a lot of pictures in just under an hour.
Not much later, they arrived at Restaurant Gestrand, a beautiful location, among the dunes, where you can easily set an Irish Pub atmosphere. After all, Ireland is a country they love to go to. That atmosphere, the music, the togetherness, this feeling they also wanted to reflect during their Copper Wedding.
The festive ceremony was done by Nine and Robert of Cloud09, complete with live music as well as a handfasting moment. Here you literally saw Tying the Knot: the boys were both allowed to pull the cord and a knot was created. So beautiful! And each rope represents something else, very symbolic.
Since they are already married, of course, they did not want to exchange a ring now, but all wanted the same bracelet. With that beautiful tree of life on it!
Anouk and Marcel took the congratulations and nice words were spoken. Not much later, the company went to the table. Shared dining with platters on the table and so enjoy a delicious meal together. I also got to eat with them : )
Moments like this are golden, aren’t they? Having a very nice party and then being able to dance with your own children!
Copper Wedding with live music
I stayed until the party got going nicely. I first took some images of that, and then one of their sons went on a Kahoot quiz. All the questions, of course, were about the boys themselves and about mom and dad. Super fun also to still experience this. When this was over, the last wedding of the year (on my own) was over for me. Surely this is always a happy AND sad moment. But fortunately, this was a great day!
Good news: we have been published on Girls of Honour!!!
Addresses from Anouk and Marcel
Location: Center Parcs Zandvoort and Restaurant Gestrand
Hair and makeup: Daantje Burgering
Dress: Etsy, with special thanks to The Bridal Shop
Suit: Schutz Fashion
Bridal shoes: Converse
Clothing children: H&M, Zara, Scapino, Tie24
Wedding card and stationery: IT’S A GREAT DAY
Flowers: Blooming Moments
Videographer: Jasmine, YES my video
Ceremony: Cloud09, Nine and Robert
Cake: Cake Queen
Band: Woodworks
