A Colorful Graffiti-Inspired Elopement in Hungary

Graffiti inspired lesbian gay wedding in Hungary Budapest Europe captured by Halmai Gyöngyi Photography (13)

In Hungary, marriage equality hasn’t be achieved, but, this group of creatives wanted to celebrate the incredible love between Eniko & Melinda in this colorful, fun, elopement shoot.

Why was creating this shoot important to the team?

Capturing the love of two women surrounded by a rainbow-colored decoration was already enough for the team members. Sadly it is not common to be a part of an LGBTQ+ wedding in Hungary since they are not allowed to marry legally (they can be registered life partners only) and in the last couple of years, LGBTQ+ people’s lives are getting harder in our country.

However, despite this fact, courageous couple Melinda and Eniko were excited to be a part of this. Likewise, the wedding vendors involved are thrilled to have the opportunity to work on such a special occasion with one of my extraordinary couples.

What are the key styling elements of the styled inspiration, and who brought them to life?

The key styling elements were the colorful graffiti on the hotel’s walls, the concrete, and the black iron stalls and grids. Adapting to these elements and colors, Evelin Varga created amazing flower arrangements and bouquets. Our goal was to have unusual décor elements and colors and not typical wedding “must haves” on this shoot. That’s why we did not want a “normal” wedding cake but a cookie cake and ice cream bar. And we chose, for example, black wedding rings and black jeans jackets and sneakers. A cool neon sign and pixel tubes on the walls made the look even more special. It was great fun to brainstorm about the final design, and all of the team members took their share of it.

Grafitti inspired lesbian gay wedding in Hungray Budapest Europe captured by Halmai Gyöngyi Photography (1)

Eniko & Melinda’s story

We’ve been together for almost sixteen years, so picking just one memory we love is nearly impossible. If we indeed had to choose, we’d go with the year 2012 when we bought our very first tiny apartment and moved in there together. We both left our parents’ house, packed up our lives with all the little belongings we had gathered over 21 years and started a new chapter, just the two of us. The apartment was so empty at the beginning that every room echoed when we spoke or listened to music. We had no TV, no kitchen furniture; the bathroom was ready, we had a couch, and since it was wintertime, we could even put the milk for our coffee outside into the window. Those were the happiest of times, just like in the movie: Benjamin Button when they finally got together in their place. We solved everything piece by piece, and within months our family welcomed a new member: a tiny bunny, who is turning ten this year, stealing our hearts ever since.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome together?

Our journey together didn’t start smoothly, as we were fifteen when we fell in love, and there was no place where we could be together. Most of the time, we needed to pretend that we were just good friends because our parents didn’t know, and we were too afraid if they’d found out, they would have kept us apart.

For years we wished to spend every waking moment together, waiting for the time when finally we no longer have to explain why we enjoy each other’s company so much. We were classmates, so we could be together quite much, but then the others would talk and often bullied us: teenagers are pretty mean, and we had our fair share of it.

Tell us your favorite thing about one another.

Eniko– I love that Melinda is very attentive. Sometimes she knows something is up with me, even before I realize it. She always seeks opportunities to show her affection to me, and not to mention she’s so funny. There is no bad mood that she cannot improve, that’s why she’s my Chandler Bing, and I’m her Monica.

Melinda– I love her whole personality, the fact that she has a very rough background, but she is the most giving and patient person I’ve ever met. She is open-hearted, full of love, and a true optimist. She always listens to me, often challenges my beliefs, and we have the best talks. Her intelligence is very sexy, and our all-night-long talks were one of the very first things I fell in love with.