Australian model Melody Le and Christiaan De La Fe met through mutual friends at a basketball match in Miami back in 2013. “It was my first time living and working in America, and I was only two weeks into my stay in Miami when my roommate invited me to a basketball game,” Le told . The pair immediately clicked, and De La Fe invited Le over for the holiday season – a bold move, but one that eventually paid off. “I was casually invited by Chris to spend Thanksgiving with his family three days later, and I happily accepted not knowing where it would lead,” Le said. Two weeks passed, and Le knew he was the one. “We spent almost every day together and pretty soon I knew that this was unlike anything I’d experienced,” Le explained, before adding she made arrangements to tie up loose ends in her hometown of Melbourne, and make her move to the USA a permanent one.
It was three years later in March, 2016 when the couple decided to visit Japan to see the cherry blossoms bloom in Kyoto. Le initially had a gut feeling De La Fe would get down on one knee, but as the holiday wrapped up, she thought she’d misread the signs. “It was late in the afternoon on the very last day of our trip, and I thought that if something was going to happen it surely would have by now. But then he took me up to the biggest cherry blossom tree overlooking the whole city and got down on one knee! I immediately said yes and we both cried and shared a beautiful moment together,” Le told .
Picking the wedding location was easy, given the couple already had an idea of how they wanted their impending nuptials to look. “We chose our venue in the region of Valladolid, Spain because we travelled there two years prior during the summertime and it was the most romantic and beautiful place we had been together. We weren’t engaged at the time and remember saying to one another, ‘Imagine getting married here’.” Either way, the couple knew a destination wedding was on the cards, given the guest list was from all over the world. “We thought, ‘why not bring them to a place that holds a special place in both our hearts’, plus everyone gets a forced vacation!” Le said.
The hunt for Le’s dream dress though, wasn’t as easy as the venue. “As a model, I had been wearing wedding dresses for shoots and shows since I was 16, and I honestly thought that finding one I liked would be hard since I had tried on so many without special feelings towards them”, she explained. It was actually while working with Australian bridal designer Anna Campbell for New York Bridal Fashion Week, that Le saw something with potential. “I had been trying on her dresses all week, and had fallen in love with the underpart of a dress that had multiple sparkly tops to it. It was the end of the day and I told Anna I was in love with the simplicity of it, and asked if there was a way to turn it into something I could wear,” Le told before adding “Thankfully, she told me we could turn it into whatever I wanted.” The finished product was sophisticated and chic, much like the celebrations itself. Filled with love, laughter, and a heavenly Spanish menu, the pair’s wedding was equal parts romantic and celebratory.
Scroll through for the rest of Le and De La Fe’s incredible Spanish nuptials.
“I wanted to feel classic and elegant, so I decided to put my hair up and go for a dewy but elevated look – not too much on the eyes, natural skin, fluffy lashes and rosy cheeks,” the bride explained.
“I accessorised with Anna Campbell earrings, veil and one of her hair accessories on top of the veil,” Le told
The bride and her bridesmaid sharing a special moment.
“My bridesmaids, mother and junior bridesmaids arrived to the bridal suite early and we spent the morning sipping on Champagne, eating a beautiful spread of Spanish foods, sharing stories, and exchanging gifts as we got ready.”
The back of Le’s dress featured some beautiful detail.
“I had my sister, my sister-in-law, my best friend in America and my best friend from Australia in my bridal party. Sadly my best friend from high school was unable to attend. I also had my sweet younger cousins as junior bridesmaids,” Le told
“My husband on the other hand is a very social man and I think choosing groomsmen was such a hard task for him. He ended up having nine!”
The groom wore a custom P. Johnson tuxedo with vintage cufflinks.
The floral arrangements were by Alfabia Flores.
The newlyweds.
Just married!
“I felt so humbled, blessed and happy. I really took the time to process what had happened. As I had moved to the US, it figured it was probably a very rare occasion to have all my family and friends in one place at one time.”
You may kiss the bride.
“This will forever be the best weekend of our lives and it meant so much that everyone who attended made such an effort to be there.”
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