Loveday Bridal Editorial: The Romance of Lithuania

The beautiful thing about love is that it can be seen, not just felt. During my last wedding shoot, I was able to visit the beloved and famous Jakiškiu dvaras in Lithuania and take shots with the fabulous dresses from Jovita Valaite modeled by the lovely Alisa Cerniavskyte. And it was not just the lace that made this adventure magical.

What inspired me most was the architecture – the wornness of the venue. Remember this brides: your venue can really make a difference. We shot inside the Jakiškiu and the aged appearance of the walls, furniture, and doors gave the entire collection a classic, almost surreal look. This became the perfect background for our dresses. It was not just the look, but the feel. I was inspired to capture the most historic-looking of the interior, and it really helped create this inspirational, nostalgic look. It became Shakespearean, even, with Pride and Prejudice undertones. Who doesn’t want to live in an old and royal English house?

With this came a Romeo and Juliet feel. Like if she just waited a little longer, Romeo would come bursting through the chipped door, his tuxedo already on, anxiously searching for his bride. But she is patient. The way she places herself about the room, she could wait all day. She could even be from this era of unbreakable romance and seduction. At the same time, it is timeless. She may wait all day, but as soon as he comes, it was like no time had passed. You see this in the venue itself – in the shabbiness of the walls and the contrasting cleanliness of the wooden floors. The magic is in the dress – the way it fits so effortlessly into the venue, one would think that Cerniavskyte really did belong in this ancient, romantic world.

And it was not just the model’s perfection that created this irrevocable romanticism. The close-ups of flowers contrasted with the ancient visage of the building, and inspired the idea that you can make old things look not just new, but clean, beautiful, and unique. Flowers inspire promise and a proposal – one that will not be broken. The stand-alone pictures of the dress by itself, hanging off a door, suggest a place to go, somewhere important to be. Another promise that will be held and kept. The focus on the stairwell also suggests this idea – that, if Romeo only came inside, he would know that Juliet was just about to glide down the stairs and into the kitchen. Then we had the stagnant photos of the old portraits above a table. I found these to be one of the most romantic shots. They showed not only a tie, a connection, but a memory. Love is often tied to a lost and forgotten past, one that is waiting to be recovered, and we see the promise of old relationships, both familial and not, stuck to the walls of this house like an heirloom.
The thing is, you can belong here too, in this world of perfection and old romance, even without a venue like this at hand.

There is magic to be had everywhere, if you only look for it. And remember: love is seen as much as felt.

Photography: Martina Hohnjec (Timeless Photography)
Venue: Jakiškių dvaras
​Model: Alisa Cerniavskyte
Wedding dress: Made by Jovita Valaite
Makeup: Gintare Mateikaitė (PURE make-up art)
Hairstyle: Gabrielė Šerytė for KLIP Grožio Salonas
Flower Bouquet: Debesų Gaudyklė
​Venue Styling: Balta Kate

Keep looking for magic,

Martina.