About the couple

Some couples meet in the most romantic of settings—sunset beaches, candlelit dinners… Stephanie & Simon? They met at work. First as colleagues (all very professional, of course), then again later as “just friends” 😉.

Friendship turned into dating, dating turned into moving in together, and eventually Simon decided to propose—in the middle of a pandemic, no less. Bold move. Naturally, it put their dream destination wedding on pause, but as we now know, this is a couple who plays the long game.

At home in Toronto, their nights are happily simple: cooking together, wine glasses in hand, a movie on, and just enough debate over what to watch to keep things interesting. Weekends are for trips—sometimes across the globe, sometimes just around the corner—but always together.

When they decided to tie the knot in Curaçao, they brought the same mindset they bring to life: keep it meaningful, keep it elegant, and keep it fun. In other words, the perfect combination for a wedding that would be as unforgettable as it was unshakably them.

About the planning

The best weddings don’t just happen on the wedding day—they start the second your guests land. Stephanie & Simon wanted the kind of wedding weekend that made people feel like VIPs from the jump, so we rolled out the welcome wagon… literally, in the form of customized welcome baskets. Packed with little bits of the island (and a few very handy “why didn’t I pack this?” items), they were the perfect “hi, we love you, enjoy the rum” start to the festivities.

The weekend officially kicked off at Gouverneur de Rouville, where the rehearsal dinner unfolded on the balcony at sunset, overlooking the picture-perfect Curaçao Harbor. Add in amazing food, tropical drinks, and private transportation to and from the hotel, and suddenly we’d set the bar very high for the days ahead.

When it came to the wedding day, elegance was always the headline—but Stephanie & Simon also wanted that extra spark that makes people say, “Wow… this is so them.” The original design had soft peonies and pastel tones, but halfway through planning, it hit us: tropical weddings deserve tropical drama. So, we tossed the blush and ivory aside, grabbed the boldest blooms on the island, and created the most jaw-dropping half-moon floral backdrop for their seaside “I dos.” Think elegance, but make it vacation mode.

The guest list was intentionally intimate—just their closest friends and siblings—which made the whole day feel even more personal… and yes, much easier to herd for group photos. Win-win.

For cocktail hour, we paired a saxophone and piano duo with a golden Caribbean sunset. And not just any sunset—one of those “there’s rain in the air” sunsets that sets the sky on fire. Those colors became the backdrop for their portraits, right before the clouds decided they wanted to join the party.

Cue the wedding day plot twist: minutes before the reception, the skies opened. No time to panic—we just picked up everything (flowers, candles, goblets, you name it) and replanted the entire reception indoors. Guests barely blinked, the music didn’t miss a beat, and the rain became part of the soundtrack.

In the end, it was the perfect reflection of Stephanie & Simon—stylish, intentional, and completely unfazed when things go off-script. A couple who can handle a pandemic, a destination wedding, and a last-minute rain plan… all with a glass of wine in hand and a smile on their face.

Review 

We truly can’t say enough good things about our wedding coordinator, Ghislaine. From the moment we started working with her, she made everything feel effortless. She was warm, responsive (even late at night and on weekends!), and always willing to adjust plans to make things work for us. All of her vendor recommendations were incredible – we loved our photographer, videographer, florist, musicians, and more!

Even when the weather threw us a curveball on the big day, Ghislaine remained calm and worked with the Avila team to seamlessly pivot and still deliver the most incredible day. One of our favorite touches was the personalized welcome packages she put together for our guests – they were so thoughtful and beautifully done.

We’ll be forever grateful to Ghislaine for helping us create the wedding of our dreams, and memories that we’ll cherish for a lifetime!