We've been starting to notice a trend when it comes to our Anna Kara brides; so many of them have been getting married abroad, with Greece at the top of the list! Charlie is another stunning example of this, marrying husband Nick in the beautiful town of Santorini, overlooking the gorgeous deep blue Aegean Sea. 

Charlie wore the Jarred wedding dress from our bohemian Polish brand, Anna Kara. Whilst most Anna Kara pieces feature intricate embroidery, tulle and lace, Jarred is a simple wrap style wedding dress made from silky crepe, draped across the bodice and pinned at the waist for sensual Grecian goddess vibes. The skirt features a bold high split to the side, perfect for showing off a pair of statement heels, which Charlie took full advantage of in her covetable Loeffler Randall sandals.

Read on to find out more about the day, and Charlie's dress shopping experience...

Anna Kara Jarred wedding dress

I chose the Jarred dress by Anna Kara. It was the first dress I tried on and was recommended by Corinne after she had read the style questionnaire that I had filled in prior to the appointment. It was very different to the style I originally had in mind - I was sure that I was going to go for one of the more romantic lace/tulle styles by Anna Kara but as soon as I saw the Jarred dress I had to try it on! The thing that stood out the most to me was how I felt in the dress, it felt very 'me' - I love a leg slit and it had one hell of a leg slit! I also loved the neckline and the low back, the material was absolutely beautiful and I love how the train flowed. It felt effortlessly sexy and simple and also happened to be incredibly comfortable so I felt very free in it which was important to me. It really was everything I wanted in a wedding dress and when I tried on other dresses it was always at the front of my mind and thats how I knew it was the one!

Dress Shopping

My lovely bridesmaid, Sarah came dress shopping with me and whilst we both loved all the dresses I tried we kept going back to the Jarred dress.

I love the Miss Bush chapel, it's such a beautiful building and to be trying on wedding dresses there feels very special. Corinne was amazing, I really valued her input and she of course found the dress for me! I also love how informal the team are at Miss Bush so you feel you are amongst friends and very relaxed.

Styling

I wanted to keep accessories to a minimum and let the dress and shoes do the talking. I decided not to wear a necklace as the neckline of the dress was so stunning. I wore molten gold hoop earrings from Anthropologie, two delicate gold Missoma bracelets and a thin gold Missoma ring. I wore a veil for the ceremony however if you are getting married on a potentially windy island like Santorini, I would advise against this as it flew off half way through lol.

I always wear my hair down and I would have felt very uncomfortable with an up do so I chose to have some loose waves with a simple twist to keep it off my face a bit as there is a lot of it! My bridesmaid Sarah is a hair and makeup artist and did an amazing job of keeping my look quite natural - it all just about survived the wind!

As my dress had a big leg slit I needed some amazing shoes! I wore the Camellia sandals by Loeffler Randall and couldn't have been happier with them, not only are they beautiful but they are the perfect height for me and super comfy too. I lasted all night in them without wanting to take them off!

A romantic, intimate destination wedding in Santorini

We got married in Santorini because we love the Greek Islands and have been every year since we met, plus Nicks heritage is Greek! Travel has been a big part of both of our lives so it felt right for us to have a destination wedding. The venue we chose had the most incredible views and was the perfect size for the number of guests we wanted. The ceremony was very emotional, we wrote our own vows and as a surprise for Nick I had asked one of our guests, who owns a bespoke wedding song company, to perform a song he had written about our relationship - the song was both sweet and funny and was a huge highlight of the wedding!

We had a great three piece band called Marmitas who came over from Crete and performed during the cocktail hour whilst Nick and I went to a nearby village and cliff with our photographer for our couples portraits. Our wedding was in more of a local traditional area of Santorini so there were very few people around which was nice and we had so much fun with Sarah, our photographer.

I was so happy with how the tables turned out for dinner with the flowers and lighting etc, they were exactly how I wanted them to look. The colours of the flowers looked absolutely stunning as the sun was setting. We had a Greek menu for dinner and the food was delicious although I could barely eat anything from all the excitement! After the wedding, we got a coach to a bar in Fira called Tango where we had our own area on the cliffside overlooking the caldera with some more stunning views!

The best bits

I loved it all! I just remember feeling so happy. There are things that didn't go to plan but at the time I just didn't care. The best part was doing it all with Nick and having all of our loved ones there to celebrate with us.

Charlie's Advice

Try not to stress before the day about things not going to plan because even if things don't go as you imagined, you will be so happy that it really won't matter.

It is true when they say the day goes by in a flash, I couldn't believe how quickly it went so make sure to take a few moments to soak it all in!

Suppliers

Venue: Venetsanos Winery
Photographer: Sarah Taylor Photo & Film
The dress: Anna Kara at Miss Bush
Caterer: Spicy Bites
Hair/makeup: Sarah Louise Chapman
Florist: Betty Flowers Santorini
Bridesmaid dresses: Jacqueline Louise on Etsy
Menus: No Ordinary Gift on Etsy
Furniture rentals: Weddings and Whimsy Santorini
Band: The Marmitas Band
Wedding song: Bespoke Wedding Songs
Grooms suit: Suit Supply
Brides shoes: Loeffler Randall