With its live music and festa vibe, Marilù Vella’s and Sean Buhagiar’s wedding was the talk of the season. The new bride relives the excitement for our reporter Marc Buhagiar.
Marilù Vella, otherwise known as the creative genius behind Pastizzi Gourmet by some local foodies, got married to Sean Buhagiar last September.
The couple, who will have been together for four years this month, opted for a quirky fun reception incorporating elements of Maltese culture at the Popeye Village Fun Park rather than at a villa or hotel, as is what is usually done with most weddings that happen on the island.
“The wedding had a Maltese touch and we wanted it to feel like one big Maltese festa rather than just a wedding party,” explains Vella.
“We knew we wanted something fun, different and with a twist, with lots of festoons and bunting! We both had initially planned a surprise Maltese banda for each other, as well as surprise fireworks, so we were definitely on the same page,” says Marilù.
This comes as no surprise since the newly-weds are both fans of Maltese festi, so it’s only natural that they wanted to bring that festa vibe to their wedding celebration. They then decided to speak about their plans for their wedding in order to avoid any potential double booking mishaps.
The couple had a number of live musical acts throughout the wedding festivities, from their departure from the beautiful Our Lady of Providence chapel in Siġġiewi, where the wedding Mass was held, to the wee hours of the morning at Popeye Village, music was constantly playing.
Naturally, the pair of festa lovers kicked off the party with a traditional banda.
“The party started as soon as Mass finished. When the Big Friends Guggen Musik started playing band marches outside the chapel, we had suffarelli let off. The band then joined us in an old vintage Maltese bus with our parents, brothers, bridal party and all eight groomsmen.”
We wanted it to feel like one big Maltese festa rather than just a wedding party
Upon arriving at Popeye Village, the newly-weds were greeted with more Maltese music, this time by local rock band Fakawi.
“They sure knew how to get the party going. At one point, there were so many people dancing that I thought the ground was giving in. Later, I got to know that everyone was thinking that, yet nobody stopped dancing,” said Marilù on Fakawi’s ability to get the party into full swing. Her worries about the shaking ground weren’t unfounded, considering the couple had invited about 600 guests to their wedding bash.
After Fakawi’s performance, the couple had another musical act in store for their guests at the after-party, accompanied with some party food and props to keep up the party mood until the very end at 2am.
“Our after-party was with Dj Zicotron from Electro-Swing. We had a popcorn and candy floss stand, pizza, and LED glasses to pump up the atmosphere.”
Of course, popcorn, candy floss and pizza weren’t the only edible treats offered at the wedding. As expected from the culinary creator of Pastizzi Gourmet, there was a lot of delicious food, accompanied by a selection of mouth-watering pastizzi. “Our main caterers were James Caterers. They were very patient with us because we basically designed our whole menu. They also managed to make almost all of the menu gluten free since I’m coeliac.”
Vella then crafted six recipes for pastizzi: four types were savoury, while two others were sweet. The savoury kind consisted of goat cheese, sweet potato and Maltese honey pastizzi; fig and orange compote, pancetta and roquefort pastizzi; mushrooms, spinach and truffle oil pastizzi; and vongole, asparagus cream and chilli pastizzi. For those with a sweet tooth, there were milk chocolate and Baileys pastizzi, as well as dark chocolate and Frangelico pastizzi.
What about the bride’s and groom’s outfits? Marilù’s breathtaking dress was custom-made by seamstress Maria Muscat from Babettopolis, who not only designed and made the dress from scratch, but also made the dresses of the bridesmaids and the flower-girls.
The groom’s suit, on the other hand, was designed and made by local fashion designers Charles and Ron. The groomsmen also wore custom-made trousers rather than rented-out suits.
The couple also made a donation to Dr Klown, an NGO that aims to bring a little fun, laughter, happiness and stress relief to children hospitalised at Mater Dei. Therefore, following this example, the couple wanted to give something that would bring joy to someone’s life as a souvenir.
“We gave out clown noses at the wedding, to let people know about our donation and also to ask them to use the noses when they meet someone who is going through a rough patch, and try to cheer them up. We also hoped to make people more aware of the amazing work done by Dr Klown.”
So, how did Sean pop the question? “His idea was to propose on a dgħajsa tal-pass in the middle of the Grand Harbour on New Year’s Eve. However, the weather, unfortunately, did not permit it. Instead, he waited for a few days, treated me to a lovely dinner and proposed afterwards when we were alone, in the same way he had asked me to be his girlfriend,” the bride recalled.
With a lively atmosphere and delicious food, it’s safe to say that these lovebirds must have had The Wedding (capital T, capital W) of the season, if not the whole year. “The experience in general was wonderful, I’d do it all over again in a jiffy,” grinned Marilù.