The Bride Wore Vintage Chanel to Marry at Her Childhood Home in Portugal
For many of us, a childhood home holds a particularly magical sway over our lives, with cherished family memories within its walls. For London-based jewelry designer Matilde Mourinho, it has become even more special, as it is where she not only got engaged, but also married, to her long-term boyfriend, property consultant Daniel Graham.
The couple had met when they were still teenagers in London, but it was almost a decade before Daniel got down on one knee during a trip to Portugal. “He got down on one knee on the beach just by my family’s place,” she remembers. “It couldn’t have been more perfect. He had my brother in on it, which made it the biggest surprise, considering how hard I usually am to surprise. After it happened, we spent the evening at home with my family, had pizza and wine to celebrate, and called our friends and family to share the news.”
Matilde and Daniel settled on October 12, 2024 as their wedding date, recruiting renowned wedding planner Liz Linkleter Events to help them organize their dream day. “For me, the planning process was incredibly enjoyable and fun, but obviously not without its stresses,” shares Matilde. “I knew I wanted to get married at home, in Portugal, and my parents were nice enough to make that happen. My mum especially went above and beyond, and I can’t thank them enough.”
With family and friends traveling internationally, the couple settled on a multiple-day affair, with a welcome evening and post-wedding brunch in the nearby area of Azeitão. “The aesthetic was very much based on each location—we wanted to keep it all very cohesive and almost like an extension of what was already there, and not take away from any of the venues themselves,” explains Matilde. “Together with our wedding planners, our vision was brought to life perfectly, and both Dan and I really enjoyed the planning process and were frankly sad when it was done.”
Another decision that Matilde was confident in was her wedding dress: she had always known she wanted to get married in Chanel. “My mum and I were immediately excited about the journey to find it,” she remembers. “Initially, I had no specific design in mind, so I began by exploring the Chanel haute couture archives. The dress that captivated me was from the fall 1996 collection—the year I was born, making it even more meaningful. It felt timeless, with modern touches, and was just perfect for the October weather.”
As it happens in the movies, when Matilde found the dress, she just knew. “During my first fitting in Paris, my mum and I browsed archive books in person,” she explains. “When the fall 1996 look was pulled, I knew it was the one. We made slight adjustments, including changing the color to a more bridal white and removing the trousers underneath. By the second fitting, the bodice was complete, and they used a custom mannequin based on my measurements throughout the process, which I got to keep after.”
She turned to Massaro Paris for Chanel for her wedding shoes, which drew inspiration from classic Chanel designs. She kept her bridal look a secret from everyone—including her bridesmaids—making it a special memory for just her and her mother. “I’m forever grateful to have shared it with her,” she adds. In a harmonious touch, the mother of the bride also wore Chanel haute couture with matching Massaro Paris for Chanel heels.
Unsurprisingly, Matilde wore jewelry from her eponymous brand for her wedding day. “I chose pear-shaped diamond earrings totaling 11.16 carats of lab-grown diamonds, to match my engagement ring that has a five-carat lab-grown diamond,” she describes. “My mum wore a bespoke Matilde Jewellery necklace in recycled 14k white gold with 39.35 carats of lab-grown diamonds, using pear, marquise, and round diamonds.”
As someone who doesn’t wear a lot of make-up, she worked with make-up artist Melissa Bourne on a natural look, with pre-wedding treatments by facialist Guendalina Gennari for a maximum glow. “I just wanted to look and feel like myself,” the bride says.
Dan, meanwhile, was suitably dapper on the wedding day, choosing a custom Zegna navy tuxedo with a satin lapel. “Inside the jacket, the wedding date was embroidered, and the shirt featured our initials, M & D, on the cuff,” says Matilde. The bride’s father—and legendary soccer manager—José also wore a custom Zegna suit, while the best men (which included Matilde’s brother and Dan’s two brothers) had bespoke Duke & Dexter loafers with “Best Man” handwritten on the sole.
“I also had lapel pins made for my dad, my brother, my grandfather, Dan’s dad, and Dan to wear on the wedding day,” shares Matilde. “I wanted it to be a small token from me to them. They were based on the design of the Matilde Jewellery Azulejo pendant necklace, which is inspired by a traditional Portuguese azulejo tile design. I replicated this in a 14k recycled white gold finish and they all wore it on the day in their own way.”
The celebrations kicked off on the Friday evening with a welcome dinner, with the couple both wearing Dior. “I chose a black lace dress from the spring 2024 ready-to-wear collection, paired with Dior heeled sandals and a Dior bag borrowed from my mum,” says Matilde. “The moody elegance of the look suited the candlelit vineyard venue. I wore this with Matilde Jewellery Tempest earrings and a mix of rings. Dan wore a Dior black checkered wool suit from the autumn 2024 collection, paired with Zegna shoes.”
The fact that the wedding ceremony took place at Matilde’s family home made everything even more special. “I woke up in my childhood bedroom and got ready with my family on the morning of my wedding,” she shares. “Being surrounded by them kept me calm and relaxed as the day began. Everywhere you looked was beautiful, and after a few rainy days leading up to the wedding day and even the morning of, we had blue skies and sun throughout the whole ceremony. Seeing all our favorite people in one place was an incredible feeling.”
After the ceremony, guests moved to the drinks reception and dinner, before concluding festivities in “The Club”, a space created by Linkleter and her team for the after-party, with a performance from Superfly. “I changed into a custom dress by my friend’s brand Blaize Caprice,” Matilde says. “We settled on a fun, short dress perfect for dancing. Blaize sourced the fabrics from France to ensure the look complemented my Chanel wedding dress, while still having its own flair, and I switched to Chanel white flats.”
There was a final Chanel look for her post-wedding brunch the next day in the gardens of Herdade do Peru, but this time it was also her “something borrowed.” “I wore my mum’s Chanel Resort 2018 dress with the same Chanel flats from the night before,” explains Matilde. “I knew I wanted to wear something of my mum’s at some point during the weekend, and I’ve been in love with this dress of hers for years—I actually asked her if I could wear it right after we got engaged.”
Like many brides, there’s nothing Matilde would change about the day now – apart from wishing she could do it all again. “I feel really grateful for how it all went and for all the people involved in making it what it was,” she concludes.
Photo: Norman & Blake1/57A quiet moment at our welcome dinner venue, José Maria da Fonseca, before our guests arrived.
Photo: Norman & Blake2/57The husband and wife to be.
Photo: Norman & Blake3/57Obsessed with this Dior dress. I got it on a trip to Paris with my mum.
Photo: Norman & Blake4/57Dan looking handsome in his Dior suit.
Photo: Norman & Blake5/57Our photographers found this little room within the venue and the traditional Portuguese tiles made for the perfect backdrop.
