Mojdeh and Manon met at football five years ago. “For me, the feelings were there straight away,” says Mojdeh. “According to our friends I was like an adolescent in love. But Manon was still in a relationship and I was a single mother with two children. Also, neither of us had ever been in a relationship with a woman before, so it wasn’t until a year later that we got together.”

A holiday proposal

“We had only been together for a year and a half when Manon proposed,” says Mojdeh. “We were on holiday in Thailand and a perfect evening presented itself.”

"There was a beach tent, acrobats with fire, etc. So, she got down on one knee at the end of the evening, with a ring she had bought at the back of the beach tent (the owner's wife sold her homemade jewellery there).”

Shopping for two dream dresses

“We both got our dresses at WED2B in Rotterdam,” says Mojdeh. “Manon was successful the first time she visited and chose the Roscoe dress with lace sleeves. We both like lace, but she was more modest than me. I found my Elysia dress on my second appointment. Other dresses had a nice lower back, but the front was boring. Elysia was just perfect.”

For similar styles to Mojdeh and Manon’s wedding dresses please take a look at: Cruiz, Nixie and Anwar.

Manon and Mojdeh's first look on the morning of their wedding

The couple married on 16 September 2022 at the Buitenplaats in Vlaardingen.

“The outdoor orchard wedding venue was beautiful, as was the covered Glass Haystack area,” says Mojdeh. “As the indoor venue was also stunning it meant that, even if it rained (which it did), we were OK.”

The big day

“My niece did my makeup and my two sisters and mother helped me with the rest,” says Mojdeh. “My wife had her best friend and her sister with her. Her father walked her down the aisle and my mother walked me.”

“The most special thing was that we had an ambulance as our wedding car, because Manon is an ambulance nurse. I was on the stretcher and, on arrival, she took me out of the ambulance with the stretcher.”

Dinner, drinks and a music mash up

“We went for dinner after the ceremony with a select group and had a chance to catch up,” says Mojdeh. “As for our first dance, we had a compilation that included waltz, jive, Iranian music, Dutch music, conga and ended with the merengue. No one knew about this, of course, and it turned out great!”

“Our wedding theme was festival-ish,” says Mojdeh. “We had a semi-naked, cake made by my sister and sweet snacks ordered and made by my niece and sister-in-law. Music was provided by our fantastic DJ, DJ Robsher.”

The best bits…

“The most memorable moments were the first look, the ambulance arrival and the first dance. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to get much of our written vows out, so we read them to each other again the next day!”

My top tips…

“Use the Weddingtool from The Perfect Wedding. And, above all, just let go and enjoy!”

Mojdeh and Manon’s Dream Team

Photographer: Denise Schilderman

Venue: Buitenplaats Vlaardingen

Wedding dresses: WED2B

Videographer: Martijn Knoppert

Flowers: Tropical Storm by Bloemenservice Nederland

Photo location: Van Nelle Factory

Entertainment: Eric van der Ende

DJ: Robsher

Hairdresser (Mojdeh): Leonie Rietdijk

Hair and makeup (Manon): Face and Art

If you would like us to feature your big day, like this orchard wedding, then please click here to share your story and photos with us and we’ll be in touch. Your nearest WED2B is closer than you think, click here for more details about WED2B’s bridal shops Rotterdam