Leonard and Emily Left Us Speechless With Their Minimalist Wedding!

Leonard and Emily Kasasiira tied the knot at The Way To Heaven Church Ntinda in October of 2019, after knowing each other for three years. 

How they met

We worked together on a project in late 2016 in Yumbe District. We were introduced by mutual friends and have been inseparable since then.

The engagement 

Shortly after we met, he proposed (six months later to be exact) on the 14 Feb 2017. Funny story about that day was; we had agreed not to celebrate Valentines day. So I go over to his house to make sandwiches for lunch and when I’m done cooking we are seated about to eat, he walks away and comes back and gets on one knee. I’m shocked I’m crying and I’m calling my mom to tell her the news. I’d always told him I wanted a private proposal something intimate and just the two of us and when I told my mum he had proposed, she asked why he hadn’t thrown me an engagement party I told her I didnt want it and she wasn’t pleased.

(yooo…man does not joke. No wasting time)

The introduction ceremony 

The introduction was held in Masindi at my parents’ home. It’s amazing how functions bring families closer. My family did an amazing job helping me plan and execute the introduction. My Dad was catered for the fabric and he went out of his way to get the most amazing fabric for me and my entourage. 

(you’re kidding me!)

My mum was the glue, she went looking and sourcing most of the decor. She decided on everything from my traditional attire to the tent, the furniture to be used, she was the mother of the bride after all.

(and mama has such lovely taste)

My sister took charge of the decoration, she did the fabulous set up, she is the decorator and honestly did an amazingly fabulous job. My brother and his band brought the entertainment. His band kept the guests entertained and they sang so well.

The theme was white and Gold and red. Which was perfect. The outfits were tailored by two amazing tailors; G.S Mbabazi tailored our traditional outfits (mine, the matron’s and my mums). Janat Atwooki tailored all the looks for the entourage. Hers Ug tailored my engagement/ cake cutting dress. Most of the fabric was bought by my dad during a trip to Turkey. 

(can we hire dad?)

Both sequin fabrics for the maids were chosen by him (pink and black), my engagement/ cake cutting fabric too and the maid of honours first outfit. I found this so amazing. The rest of the fabric was gotten around town from various shops Faith fabrics in Jjemba, white suka with pearl detail and turquoise red suka (first two outfits) and the other from Fabrics uganda. Makeup was done by the amazing by @terimakeupstudio and hair was done by my long-term friend Rashid of @sheed_stylez salon kisementi.

(can I get adopted into this family already; my dad can’t even make choose a dress)

The wedding 

It took a village to plan. After the proposal we decided on a long courtship while we planned the wedding. My husband chose the venue, he always said that when he first saw it he knew that’s where he wanted to get married and when I saw it I couldn’t agree more. However, our Pastor had reservations marrying us by the lake and we settled on a church service then moved to the lake for the reception. It was very calm and serene. I loved everything about it from the gardens, the farmhouse and the walk way. This place had so much character we just couldn’t walk away. Our families inspected it and loved it. We managed to pull off the wedding because there was alot of support from our families, friends and service providers. A lot of moving parts that made it possible. 

The guests

 We held our reception at The Estate Bwelenga, where we hosted 200 guests, who were mostly friends, family and colleagues.

The Décor, 
Décor theme was nature. The colors were white and gold. These didn’t overwhelm the venue with alot. We wanted something minimalistic but timeless and elegant. The venue was 32acres stretch of green grass, trees flowers and a lake. We wanted this breathtaking scene to be the backdrop of our setup.The team from Vision Bridal Memories did a great job bringing this decor theme to life.

The part that stood out for you

The venue. It was a distance from church but was worth the journey.

Challenges you faced planning

The challenge was in explaining my ideas well enough to my service providers not to undermine them. Most people found my ideas boring and simple or too extra, but I found a balance. The weather was a night mare. It was in the middle of the rain season and yet we didnt plan on having a tent. The night before the wedding, it rained so heavily and continued into the morning of the wedding. I remember being on the verge of tears but it stopped shortly before the church service and didnt rain again.It’s not a wedding until some of the service providers have disappointed you and I did get some of those but well enough I always had a plan B.

(yes! We advise that you have a plan B, C, D up to Z just in case.)

Did you attend any wedding shows or hire a wedding planner?

Neither! We took a lot of time planning the wedding, my husband and I reached out to the service providers and sourced a lot of the items ourselves. This allowed us to find service providers that were unproblemantic and honestly understood what we wanted. Our wedding reception was a perfect merge of our personalities.

Your wedding gown was lovely!

Thank you! Grace Kelly’s wedding gown during her nuptials to the Prince of Monaco was a big inspiration for my gown. However, I used Mirander Kerr’s custom Dior gown version of the famous actress’ gown (Grace Kelly) for my inspiration. It was so beautiful yet simple, but timeless and chic. There were so many eras in one gown (vintage classic) and that’s what I wanted.

My gown and reception dress were tailored by the amazing Fatumah Asha. I started out with a different gown before I actually zeroed down to the final gown. She was very gracious and came up with modifications on the final gown. She and her team were an absolute delight to work with.

(Long live Fatumah. Emily, we love your vision)

My husband’s and Best man’s suits were sourced from Turkey by the amazing Vision Bridal Memories bridal shop.(speak of cool things)

The bridesmaids

I didn’t have bridesmaids, I went with flower girls, 7 flower girls. I always wanted a white wedding.They wore off-white like the little queens they are to match the bride.

(aww)

Your bridal bouquet was life!

Well I remember Winnie and Ann Kintu asking me what I was going for with the bouquet and I told them I wanted something that gave people an insight of my personality. I also asked them to put as many colours as possible.

I got some samples online and showed them exactly what I wanted. In a way I wanted my flower to represent me and @ninteentwentyonelifestyle delivered.
(I need me this bouquet every day!)

The cake

Our cake was a four-story iced, white-stucco, small but magnificent with multi coloured fondant flowers. Creme dela Creme baked the cake. They do amazing cakes to die for. I had a number of flavours incorporated; red velvet, ginger, lemon and chocolate. Our cake was a work of art, and resonated with our story. 

(we love how you incorporated both of yourselves within every detail)

One thing you would change about the wedding if you were to do it all over again

The music! We actually forgot to choose the music for the DJ to play.

(And he played whatever he found suitable we guess!)

The Beauty 

Beauty by Judy brides was my glam squad and they out did themselves. Judithiana is just phenomenal. She’s the most amazing hypeman ever. She made all of us feel so good, and was so professional and on time. She went out of her way and you could tell she really enjoys her job.Hair was done Hair by Erias. He did an amazing job too and delivered big time.

(life, life, life!)

The entertainment

Elevate Band came through with the live music. We had Brian Lubega as well. He is my favourite Ugandan artist of all time.

(at least you covered up part of the bad music by the DJ)

The nerves

We mentally prepared to enjoy the wedding. Looking at how abundantly blessed we were to plan and source most of the things ourselves, we rested easy knowing that it was going to go as planned so all that gratitude translated into happiness.

One memory that will last with you forever

My husband’s speech was just amazing, I wouldnt change it for anything.

Song for the first dance

I honestly don’t remember.

(so, love isn’t only blind but deaf too, haha)

Song you walked down the aisle to

You Waited for me by Travis Greene

(This was spot on!)

Favourite detail

The backdrop for the high table was simply breathtaking.

The photo session

We took most of the photos at the venue, there was so much to work with. Nature is so humbling. While on the grounds taking pictures, we came across a gentleman walking horses and we asked if we could take pictures with the horses. He agreed and even stood aside for us to take pictures that literally was a highlight for me.

Advice to future grooms/brides

Stick to whatever ideas you want for your day because chances are, if you dont you will regret it, it’s your day therefore make the most of it. It’s important you make your own decisions (you and your partner) I cannot stress this enough. 

Service providers 

Fatumah Asha

Vision bridal memories

Tim Lwanga photography

The Estate E’bwelenga

Nineteen twenty one lifestyle

Sangga Courts

Afro simba Events

Creme dela creme

Beauty by Judy brides

Hair by Erias

Shakers and Cocktails uganda

Elevate band uganda

Signature jewelry 

Events management

Roses that bloom

DJ Roscoe

Kaseregenyi Elijah( sous chef, Golden Tulip Canaan)

Chef Baluku Peter and David (Protea hotel kampala)

To feature, send Kadali an email to weddings@satisfashionug.com