BellaNaija Weddings presents “The Atilary Wedding”! Barbara Ejemhen Irianan & Alex Ogbe

When Barbara Ejemhen Irianan met Alex Ogbe at his birthday party, he told her she was his “birthday gift from God” and would one day be his wife. Well … he was right!

“The Atilary Wedding” was a beautiful affair from Warri, Delta state to an intimate wedding dinner by Nigerian standards – less than 200 guests – in Abuja where the couple resides. Atilary {click here for his BN Weddings features} is the name of the groom’s photography company, so fittingly, the couple envisaged the ceremony to highlight the photographer who is usually behind the lens, in front of the lens for his big day. He even took some of the shots of him and his beautiful bride by himself!

We’re honoured the couple shared their joyous moments with us.

BN Weddings wishes Barbara and Alex a lifetime of joy and love.

~ All Photos by Atilary.

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How Did You Meet?
by the bride, Barbara
We met on the night of the groom’s birthday at his surprise birthday party in 2010. Being the shy type it was a miracle he mustered up the courage to come say “hi”. His friend came over to say hello to my friend so I guess not to be left out as a wing man he walked up to me with his best “fine boy swag” on. And it worked because not only had I been checking him out all night (he was the tallest guy in sight) he was very charming! It was literally butterflies from then on. We talked for the rest of the night, it was like catching up with an old friend.

Pre Wedding Photos I think he got carried away and went on to tell me I was going to be his wife that night and I was his birthday gift sent from God! Yikes! (Talk about a “frozen” moment) A tad bit forward (very forward actually lol) but flattering at the same time. He swept me off my feet from that moment, we had a little kiss (our chemistry was indescribable) and its been a whirlwind of a happily ever after since then!

The Proposal
We had just moved in to our new place and decided to throw a little housewarming. We had had the busiest week settling in and making arrangements for the party, so an engagement was definitely the last thing on my mind! I remember I was running around with no shoes on serving our guests and my friend kept banging on about me putting on my shoes. In retrospect I understood why she wanted me to look presentable lol.

An engagement still didn’t cross my mind when Alex went on to give a speech. But to my surprise the speech had nothing to do with the house or thanking the guests for coming, it was about me the whole time and I was thinking, why is he serenading me so much, it’s about the house not me (I’m so clueless) it still didn’t click when the guests brought out their camera phones and a photographer and videographer appeared from nowhere. All I could think of was why he took this house warming so seriously lol then lo and behold he got on one knee!

Only then did I see the sweat buds that had formed on his face and the nervous look in his eyes! He was in tears and went on to put the ring on the wrong finger lol but he was immediately forgiven when I saw the ring! Let’s just say from that moment, all the people around failed to exist, I was in a world of my own. The feeling is indescribable, to say yes to your first love has to be the best feeling in the world!

Advice from the Couple! (they planned their wedding themselves)

Don’t waste money trying to impress your followers or friends! Have a wedding that fits your pocket and makes YOU and YOUR partner happy! Your wedding isn’t about anyone else but BOTH of you so try and impress YOURSELVES and not anyone else. They will eat and go home and soon forget all about your wedding, so what’s the point? It’s a one day affair and life goes on after that so be wise financially.

Most importantly God comes first, leave everything in Gods hands and he will come beyond and above for you and meet all your needs and exceed your expectations!

Finally have fun planning! Make it draw you and your partner closer, heck, take him to your make up trial, aso ebi shopping and dress fittings with you, it worked for me! Find what suits you both. Planning and doing absolutely everything related to the wedding together made us best friends and further tailored our vision of our wedding most accurately to our dream wedding!

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Bridal Shower
Registry
White Wedding

Traditional Wedding

~ All Photography: The Atilary Team | instagram.com/atilary_ & @nsoedondubuisi & @mofebamuyiwa| Email: atilarystudio (at) yahoo.com

Wedding Info – Date | Venue | Colours
Traditional Wedding: 15th November 2014 | Bride’s family house in Warri, Delta State | Blue and pink
White Wedding: 22nd November 2014 | Dunes Restaurant, Maitama, Abuja | Gold & pink

Wedding Attire
Wedding dress: Blu by Mori Lee 2015 collection. Bride’s note: I was the first bride in that dress!
Reception dress: Sherri Hill
Bride’s Trad Makeup: @Christine_Creations for MUD Nigeria
Bride’s White Makeup: @MamzaBeauty

Groom’s Suit: Tom Ford
Groomsmen Tuxedo Jackets: Brook Taverner
Groomsmen Pants: @KimonoKollection
Bridesmaids Dresses: @SommaPurple

Traditional Wedding
Blue Dress: @FalkebyAisha
Gold Dress: @StyleTemple

Vendors
Wedding Planner: Bride & Groom
Decor, flowers, table setting: @NorthernBelleNG
Passcard: @ifidon
DJ: @ukogabriel