NMJ Lovers
NMJ Lovers | Sophie and Simon
For Sophie and Simon, sentimentality is at the heart of everything they do, and of course, was so naturally imbued in their special day. From the buttons on Sophie's wedding dress, to a surprise necklace to accompany their lives together, every detail and every moment was so beautifully thought out and considered for their weekend of ceremonies in Germany.
It's this kind of love which inspires us and it has been such a joy to connect with a couple who are just so truly meant to be together. Join us as Sophie and Simon share details of their magical weekend with family and friends.
Wedding Date: September 25th & 26th, 2020
Location: Olpe, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany
Venue: “Haus Rhade“ & “Haus Bamenohl” in North Rhine Westphalia, Germany
Dress: For our civil wedding I chose a dress by Anna Kara which had a lace top and a slim fitting bottom.
For our catholic wedding the dress was a very special piece. The original dress was made by Truvelle. But I did not like the top and I had always loved the idea to being able to wearing the dress I got married in the whole night. With simultaneously wanting a long train we cut the dress in half (top and bottom) and ordered more of the same fabric. The amazing team at Victoria Ruesche (Cologne, Germany) made a whole new dress according to my imagination that I could wear underneath the original bottom of the dress that we had cut. The most special part was buttons from the wedding dresses of my grandmothers, mother-in-law and mum as my “something old”.
How did you both meet?
We have known each other for quite some time now. We went to school together and became very good friends at first. After finishing school in 2013 we stayed in contact and got to know each other even better. We finally went on our first date in November 2013 - and the rest is history.
Simon, tell us about the moment you realised Sophie was the one you wanted to spend the rest of your life with…
During the first years of our relationship, we were constantly in a long-distance relationship with ever-changing locations. I remember hanging out in Shanghai during my semester abroad and talking to a good friend of mine who I got to know during that time. We were talking about our relationship, and I was thinking and saying that, if we would manage all the usual challenges of a long-distance relationship over the years, I will definitely marry this woman! Some years later we did marry, and the guy I was talking to is now my best friend and was of course our best man in September!
Where and when did you get married - tell us a little about your day?
We got married on the 25th and 26th September 2020. As we wanted to celebrate our civil and catholic wedding on subsequent days, we decided to plan a whole wedding weekend. With our closest friends and family, we spent the first day hiking in the region where we grew up. We went to a cabin in the woods made some barbecue and had some time to calm down and really sink into that wedding spirit. Also, our friends and family got to know each other very well. In the evening we drove to Haus Rhade where we were going to celebrate on Saturday. We spent the whole weekend there in a beautiful scenery.
On Friday at noon, we celebrated our civil wedding in a very personal and emotional ceremony at an old manor. It was followed by food, drinks and music.
On Saturday we were joined by some more family and friends to celebrate our church wedding. After the ceremony we celebrated at Haus Rhade and danced the night away.
What was the highlight?
The whole weekend was so perfect, it is really hard to choose a highlight. We think for us it was really being able to spend four days with the people closest to us and being able to celebrate this special moment in our lives, especially in these challenging times. 
Tell us about your NMJ rings, what did that process look like? What drew you to Natalie Marie for your wedding pieces?
We have been following NMJ for a couple of years and we loved the style of the jewellery as well as the sustainable approach.
As things got more and more serious Simon secretly approached NMJ. Together they decided on a bespoke piece featuring a white sapphire in the middle and one diamond on each side.
After Sophie’s engagement ring was an NMJ piece the decision where to get our wedding pieces was never up for discussion. We both always knew we wanted plain yellow gold wedding rings, so we contacted NMJ again and described what we were looking for. We chose the Fine Half Round Wedding Rings. As Simon wanted a rather slim ring, we decided on a width that NMJ made for us.
Sophie, we love that you adorned your day with NMJ, from your wedding bands to an initial necklace from Simon. What do these pieces mean to you?
I love jewellery that has a personal meaning – for me it is so special to wear a piece and be reminded of our engagement, wedding or any other special moment or person in life. My engagement and wedding ring mean the world to me. Whenever I look at my hands wearing them, I am reminded that these special days really happened, and I can remember them vividly. I always hate to take them off and do not feel complete without them.
The Mae Necklace was a special surprise. I once saw it at the NMJ website and said to Simon that I thought it was a beautiful piece to accompany our life. So at our wedding it started with the two of us (S & S) and whenever our family will grow we will be looking forward to adding another little initial to it. 
At NMJ, at the heart of everything we do is love. Tough question, but tell us, what do you know about love?
For us love is this invisible bond between us that is our foundation. It enables us to be at our strongest, at our bravest and be convinced that we can do anything. At the same time, it is our safety net that helps us cope when things in life do not go according to plan, when there is pain or challenges.
We are both individual people but the knowledge and feeling of having this foundation we can always rely on enables us to continuously grow together.
Photographer: Lena Heckl