Daniela & Simon's Romantic Winter Wedding: Toronto Wedding Photographers at Fantasy Farm in Toronto ON

Daniela & Simon's snowy Wedding in Toronto at Fantasy Farm was everything you'd imagine  a Winter Wedding to be: elegant, romantic and so much fun.

Daniela and Simon are a charming couple and upon meeting them, we loved their energy, their cool, laidback vibe. We knew their Wedding would be beautiful when Daniela spoke about her winter wedding theme and her phenomenal attention to detail.

We started the day at an Airbnb in Toronto where Daniela and her bridal party were set up for hair and makeup. It was a cosy and clean home, with a lot of charm. There were so many nooks and crannies that you would expect from a downtown charming home. A long staircase led to the upstairs quarters to a bright, white room, with a large window that allowed natural light to seep into the room. This was the perfect room for Daniela to get ready. The tender touch of her mother's hands, helping Daniela with her necklace, to the dressing of the bride with her sister by her side, it's these moments that matter. These small moments create such warm memories.

Let's not forget the 'first look' with Dad. Daniela's father was charming and had a great sense of humour. And his first look with Daniela was so beautiful to capture, with Mom in the background, radiating with so much love and pride.

You could hear the girls downstairs giggling. What I loved about Daniela and her bridal party was the fun vibe of the group. It was like I was a part of the bridal party too, they were so welcoming. As I was editing the bridal portion of the photos, my iTunes playlist suddenly blasted the fun song, 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' by Cyndi Lauper, definitely the right song for these gals. I mean check out the cute plaid outfits and those smiles are all genuine and authentic.

The bond between these ladies is ironclad and we can say the same for the fellas. This bunch was tight-knit. We witnessed some fun moments with this crew throughout the day and evening. The fellas got ready at Fantasy Farm. Lots of large windows let in a ton of light. Simon's brother lent a helping hand getting Simon outfitted in suit and tie.  These guys were a blast, Mike had so much fun photographing their free-spirted and fun personalities. 

From time to time, we are lucky enough to witness cultural traditions. We enjoyed the opportunity to learn about Romanian traditions at the Saint Elijah Romanian Orthodox church in Schomberg. This included crowning the bride and groom, then along with their witnesses, circling around several times up near the altar while joined together by a white ribbon. The next tradition was dipping bread in honey, to be eaten by the bride and groom and their witnesses. This beautiful church is on its way to being fully restored, with an upper balcony. Mike jumped at the opportunity to get a bird's eye view, capturing some stunning shots from above. Daniela loves architecture, and this gorgeous restored church was a great choice. With the high ceilings, the church was adorned with stunning gold chandeliers, giving off a warm glow to the ceremony taking place below.  

We headed to Fantasy Farm for some fun photos. It was a bit chilly but that didn't stop Daniela one bit for the opportunity for some stunning winter wedding photos.  We love when our clients don't mind the cold, the wind or the snow. We decided on keeping everyone warm, by taking turns for photos, as some of the crew hung out in the limo bus.

The portrait session is filled with so many romantic photos, and I wish I could share them all here. The snowy ground and the winter forest set the scene for some fun, romantic and memorable moments. The cold didn't stop the Wedding party from having fun. They certainly had a wild imagination as you can see from the photos below, LOL!

Oh and if Daniela's leather jacket looks familiar and you can't pinpoint where you saw it, I'll let you in on it. Yes, it is the official #TheJustMarriedJacket, the sisterhood of the travelling leather jacket started by a Toronto bride. Daniela found about this unique opportunity through the Bunz Wedding group. It is this kindness and generosity that has made Daniela the 93rd person to adorn her gown with the famous leather jacket. If you want to learn more about #TheJustMarriedJacket, see the link below.

If you are thinking of a Toronto Wedding venue, then Fantasy Farm in Toronto, is a great choice, with  a stunning backdrop for photos. You can see the Toronto skyline in the distance at this venue. Inside the venue, Daniela decided on a fresh look to her banquet hall decor. With acorns and pine as her theme, and tiny little lights in vases, along with a beautiful floral wall, it set the scene for a romantic wedding venue vibe. We captured some beautiful moments as Daniela and Simon had their first dance and of course we ended the night with some stunning shots outside.

DJ Ken Lindsay started the night with his harmonica-playing bit and it got the crowd wild. He sang a hearty tune of  Keep Your Hands To Yourself by Georgia Satellites, and it hyped up the crowd as they sang along and cheered on DJ Ken who rocked the harmonica with the bluesy song. The solid rythym and the atmosphere of the crowd going wild was what most definitely got the  party started! 

As you can see from the photos, the dance floor was busy with grooving guests and of course a few shenanigans from the groomsmen, LOL! What's cool is that we witnessed another Romanian tradition. It started off with two people holding hands who were very familiar with the custom, and then their energy spread out like wildfire so that as the traditional music continued to  play, the energy of the moment moved the crowd together onto the dance floor. Then it was everyone in the room, circling round and round each other, until the entire dance floor was completely filled with spinning guests, hand upon hand, fingers interlocked. It was surreal, you could feel the energy, not only from the upbeat traditional Romanian music, but from the crowd of people sweeping across the dance floor, having so much fun. 

If you're on the fence about including traditions into your Wedding because you're not sure how your guests would feel about it, I'd say go for it. Chances are, they're going to have this much fun as you can see from the photos below! 

Kind Words from Simon and Daniela
Simon:
Mike was great! He arrived early, kept a thoughtful watch on time and got lots of photos of the guys getting ready. He even captured some fun shots of the guys putting the finishing touches on the reception venue. He was in constant communication with Cecilia to coordinate the pickup of the girls.

Daniela:
Cecilia was awesome! She made sure to get photos of the girls in all stages of getting ready (from the time she arrived and until we were out the door). She took great care to make sure I got first look photos with my dad and with my wedding party - as well as getting dressed photos with my mom and sister. She made everyone feel comfortable and provided good guidance to get group photos of the bridal party and my family pre-wedding. She also took candid photos some of my favorites because of their realness.

Both Daniela & Simon:
We love Mike & Cecilia as a team! The fact that they themselves are a married couple shows in the way they interact and provide support for each other. The way they interacted on our first meeting was a huge reason we wanted them as our photographers on our day. They were fantastic in going through our list of desired photos but also allowing us to throw in our input for fun shot ideas if we had any. They were such troopers for our cold outdoor session where they were both taking photos at all times (being very efficient) while we have to do photos in shifts so people could warm up on the bus. You could feel that they are there to best capture your day as you envisioned it.

Their Love Story (shared from their wedding website as per Daniela and Simon):  
On Friday - April 13th, 2012 - a life changing event occurred when Simon and Daniela met at Grace O'Malley's Irish Pub (aka Gracies) in downtown Toronto. This serendipitous encounter marks the beginning of their love story.
On that fateful night Daniela was out celebrating with her friends the official last day of classes of their Undergraduate program - a huge accomplishment and a very good reason to celebrate. The girls chose Gracies for this celebratory night because of the live music and great atmosphere. While the girls did not frequent Gracies often - this particular pub was an old favorite for Simon and his friends from the time they were in school. Luck would have it that on April 13th Simon and Daniela would cross paths on the dance floor.

It all began when Simon asked Daniela if she would like to dance. The chivalrous approach was charming, attractive and ultimately successful. One song turned to two and then three -and by the time they parted ways at last call they had exchanged numbers with the hope of another encounter. Simon expressed his interest the very next day - another delightful surprise and a glimpse into Simon's endearing nature. Due to final exams and presentations Daniela postponed their first date - however they finally made it happen on April 30th, 2012. Extremely nervous (it had been 17 days since they met) but equally excited, Daniela met Simon that night for their first date - a Blue Jay's baseball game. Daniela had never been to a game before so Simon explained the rules, they watched the game and spent 3 hours getting to know each other (because we all know watching baseball is mostly about socializing). The following few weeks were filled with weekday and weekend dates - at the island, at friend's gatherings, movies and homemade dinners - and with each passing date they began falling in love. More than 6.5 years have passed - years filled with amazing tropical vacations, skiing long weekends, family Christmases, European expeditions and countless island days; but also Grad school deadlines, new jobs and work pressures. Throughout it all - Simon and Daniela
have continued to fall more and more in love and continue to bring out the best in each other every passing day.

The Proposal:
Simon proposed on our 5 1/2 year anniversary - funnily enough on another Friday the 13th -October 13th, 2017. We were celebrating at home with our traditional meal for special occasions - a homemade charcuterie board. He disappeared into our room for a moment and when he came out he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. He said that he had the ring for a few weeks and kept waiting for the perfect moment (when we were on a hike or doing something different) but that night felt like the perfect time. To this day he claims that he didn't realize it was a Friday the 13th.

Great advice from Daniela & Simon for new couples in love:
1. Choose to marry your best friend.
2. Compromise needs to become part of your tool set.
3. Planning a wedding together will be a test - handle it as such, because the rest of your lives is filled with tests that you will have to get through together.

Daniela & Simon, we are honoured to have photographed your Wedding and to discover the many Romanian traditions. We enjoyed meeting your family and guests. We wish we could share a lot more of the photos on this journal post,  and we can't wait to get you started on your Wedding album, which will surely be filled with these and other beautiful, candid memories. 

Cecilia & Mike
XO

Hair/Make up: The Blush Parlour
Florals: Claudia Petrusan 
Decor: Daniela, the bride
DJ: DJ Ken Lindsay 
Sweets: Bloomer's
#TheJustMarriedJacket