Now a little heads up here, this was the wedding I had just 3 weeks to rescue, through no fault of the venue owner but the on-site 'wedding coordinator'.
I will also add it is very rare here to have problems whilst planning your wedding but sadly it happens and as I am known as the Fairy Godmother of Weddings I was drafted in to save the day as they were seriously considering cancelling. You can read more of what happened here.
But as always love won, I adored L & V and was determined they would have their dream day and what a day it was as they bought their friends and family together from all over the world, including New Zealand, to celebrate their love story.
It sounded a beautiful love story and they are certainly a match made in heaven, the joy emanating off L & V as they celebrated their marriage was a privilege to witness.
Welcome Drinks at Max Beach
As the wedding guests arrived in Spain they were first invited for a welcome drinks at Max Beach. A venue here along the coast overlooking the Mediterranean. Activities were organised as well for the day before the wedding such as golf, spa or a beach day at Siroko beach.
The wedding day preparations were well underway, the lighting, chillout by BeLounge and furniture had all been set up beforehand.
As L & V were getting ready and so many of their hugely talented friends were part of their wedding ceremony singing and playing beautiful meaningful songs with a keyboard hired from Malcolm at Entire Occasions.
Wedding Cocktails and Dinner at Finca Casablu, Mijas
Guests then went down to the cocktail area, under the trees, for a 90 minute cocktail and canapés with Goyo Catering.
We had a rogue green parrot determined to disrupt the cocktail hour by flying into handbags and guests heads but eventually it was caught and safely caged for the duration of the wedding! No harm was caused to the green parrot!
One of the ideas I loved was they had a newspaper printed all about the couple, funny stories, how they met, etc. It was loved by all the guests and of course one of the family members is a newspaper owner! But a brilliant idea for a wedding and a conversation piece.
Wedding Reception at Finca Casablu, Mijas
After the ceremony and cocktail guests lined up ready to shower L & V with confetti as they entered the dinner area.
The table seating plan was at the entrance, but we did come across a little hiccup. WEDDING TIP!
As this was a last minute wedding for me, I hadn't been able to hand hold and advise. So there were choices and each guest had chosen meat, fish or veggie but hadn't been assigned seats. They had just been assigned to a table so we didn't know where the fish and veggies were seated. We were given different coloured stones to mark them but of course this wasn't going to work.
If you do have menu choices so make sure the guests are assigned seats and not just to a table.
It isn't a huge problem but from the catering point of view they had to ask each table what their food choices were.
The tables were beautifully decorated in shades of autumn with flowers by Flores de Reding, Marbella.
The glassware and table settings are part of the details Goyo Catering offers to couples, they have choices to what cutlery, glassware, place settings, linens, etc they can choose from.
My team were tasked with decorating the napkins, tying the menus to each one with string, thankfully I had a big enough team to achieve this.
WEDDING TIP, always let your planner know any other details they need to do on the day to make sure they factor in time and/or staff to complete everything. Check if it is in their remit too as your wedding planners, usually it is but don't assume.
The guests sat down for a delicious 3 course dinner by Goyo Catering. L & V circulated around the tables to celebrate with their guests and mingle.
There were plenty of speeches and merriment as everyone relaxed and enjoyed the evening set under a sky of fairy lights, my must have ✨ Nothing more magical than a sky full of stars!
Party Time at Finca Casablu, Mijas
After so much stress for L & V it was a complete delight to witness them having the wedding they had planned and dreamed of as they rocked the dance floor and had their cake cutting.
I actually felt quite tearful having gotten them to this stage where they were celebrating their love story and marriage with all their family and friends enveloped around them to bring joy back into their lives. A huge congratulations to L & V from all the suppliers and us to a fabulous wedding and being such utterly charming clients. My only wish it to have been planning their wedding for longer and got to know them so much better.
With credit to all the suppliers who made this day happen.
Beautiful day captured by Mireia Cordomi
Venue Finca Casablu, Mijas
Catering Goyo Catering
Lighting and Chill out supplied by Be Lounge
Ceremony Equipment and Keyboard Hire Entire Occasions
Flowers from Reding Flowers, Marbella
Cocktail music Patrick
DJ Salvi
Cake at Alyson's Cakes
What is the Finca Casablu like as a Wedding Venue?
From a wedding planner's point of view the Finca Casablu is a gorgeous venue located near to Mijas.
The nearest hotel is the Ilunion hotel up the Mijas road. There are also other hotels in the main town of Mijas, a pretty town and always popular with tourists. The location is also about 20 minutes down to the coast.
The only down side is it is quite distance along a mainly unmade road with some steep turns to get to the venue. This means transporting guests would have to be done purely on mini buses or taxis to get there.
From a suppliers point of view, for example, catering trucks would be able to get access but nothing larger due to the steep bends.
The venue itself is a beautiful home that sleeps up to 24 guests with 12 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms set in lush gardens with plenty of areas to host your wedding. The cocktail catering by Goyo was prepared in the mini casita that later becomes the dance area where the DJ is set up. Most music here now on the Costa Del Sol has to be inside by midnight so as not to disrupt neighbours. There are a few exceptions.
The main garden is perfect for the dinner and can easily accommodate a larger size wedding.
Overall summary Finca Casablu is a beautifully kept venue and perfect for a relaxing holiday or wedding.
If you are dreaming of hosting your wedding here in the south of Spain get in touch.