Dream Winery Wedding

Amelia and Nick had their dream winery wedding amongst the vines at Hessenland Inn. Located on the shores of Lake Huron, Hessenland is your local destination wedding spot. They were able to bring their winery wedding to like with small touches that made a big impact!

Bride & Groom: Amelia & Nick Sarantakos

Wedding Date: Sept 26, 2020

Photographer: Jorge Polio Photography

Original Guest #: 115

What was your original plan?: “Our original plan was more or less the same as what we did, but on a larger scale. I had finished addressing invitations for 115 people when the gathering restrictions first came into effect, so all our planning came to a grinding halt. We discussed postponing, but after more than 10 years together, we just didn’t want to wait any longer and decided to go for it. So we waited until we got the go-ahead in July for 40 people indoors to make our final guest list. We also sent revised invitations to everyone who now couldn’t be there in person. They had the option to attend our ceremony virtually, which many really appreciated.” – A

Ceremony & Reception Location: Hessenland Inn & Schatz Winery

Colour Palette: Burgundy & navy with white, blush, and grey accents. Rustic/elegant with a wine theme.

“The venue’s natural charm went a long way so we didn’t have to add too much in the way of décor. We used a lot of wood elements with lots of greenery and light-coloured florals for a romantic feel. Again, the venue being a winery carried most of the winery wedding theme, and I didn’t want to be heavy-handed with the theme so we just added small touches here and there. We chose to hold our ceremony in the vineyard, which we decorated with a couple of wine barrels. We used corks as a base to hold place cards for dinner.” – A

Tell us your story!: “Nick and I met back in 2009; I was working at SARI Therapeutic Riding and he happened to volunteer at their summer camp for a week. He must have been nice enough, although it wasn’t exactly love at first sight. Afterward, I essentially forgot about even having met him until long after the summer ended when he sent me a message on Facebook out of the blue. We started chatting a bit online, he began volunteering on weekends pretty soon after that, and even though I told him I wasn’t looking for a relationship, he was just persistently around ALL. THE. TIME. So that winter, I gave in and said, we could go on some dates.

Since then, he’s become my best friend and we’ve been through everything together.

We’ve muddled our way through various degrees, shocked our families with our fur-baby, Teeka, and ultimately ended up back in London to start our careers. In September 2018, Nick surprised me with a short trip to Alberta. We hit the road early to beat the crowds in Lake Louise, hiked up to the Big Beehive lookout, and when we got to the top he asked me to be his wife.

Aside from being Nick is absolutely the most stubborn and persistent person I’ve ever met, and if it hadn’t been for that, he might have given up as I tried to send him running for the hills all those years ago. Now over 10 years later, our wedding day was everything we could have imagined (despite all the chaos leading up to it), we’ve just bought our first home, and can’t wait to see how our life together plays out. ” – A&N

Bride’s dress and accessories: Taylor’s Bridal Boutique

Groom + Groomsmen attire: Collins Formalwear

Bridesmaids attire and accessories: Sophie’s Gown Shoppe

Florals: Garden Gate Gifts and Florals

Décor: NJS Design Event & Party Rental

DJ: Music Central Entertainment

Hair: Teased Bridal

Makeup: Top Knots & Gloss

Videography: Yunco Weddings

How did you find your photographer?: “Jorge’s assistant, Jaye, is an old friend of mine. I’ve been following and swooning over their photography since she started working with him so there was never any doubt that they would be shooting our winery wedding.

Jorge was absolutely incredible to work with. I’m generally not super comfortable being in front of a camera but he’s so energetic and enthusiastic, making it such a wonderfully fun time that I completely forgot about being awkward.

I’m in love with our photos. I didn’t give him a shot list but they captured everything I could have ever wanted. The photos are so natural; he would give us a direction and then just let us do our thing.” – A

Biggest Challenge: “The biggest challenge was hands-down all the waiting and uncertainty. I’m very organized and usually enjoy planning but I got to a point where I was so done with trying to plan when everything kept changing. The only thing I could do was sit back and let everything work itself out.” – A

Best Memory: “It’s so hard to pick just one, but the feeling of nerves and excitement through the entire ceremony is something I’ll never forget. My hands were shaking the whole time!” – A

Any advice for couples planning their wedding?: “Enjoy every second – they don’t lie when they say the day goes by fast – and don’t sweat it if things don’t go according to plan.” – A&N