Claire and Stewart

Tasmania never fails to make me take a deep breath- the landscape is beyond stunning and the weddings that come out of the Southern state? beautiful, relaxed and an understated elegance. Such is the wedding of Claire and Stewart, I know you’ll agree!

Stewart tells the story of how and Claire came to be “12 ½ years ago at university, the future bride tried out her pick-up moves on her future husband at a local bar to limited success. We are married now, so it must have worked. (written by the groom, of course!).”

The wedding photographs of Claire & Stewart are by Jonathan Wherrett who has a magical way of creating the most elegant photographs that capture the beauty of the couple, but also of the amazing Tasmanian landscape.

Claire remarks “People often ask us why we chose Stanley to get married. With many accusing us of seeking payback for all the weddings we have had to travel to over the years, and consequently choosing a venue everyone had to travel to. However the actual reasons were because primarily, we wanted to use a venue with character, as we both love the history and diversity of Tasmania’s buildings. Secondly, we wanted a venue where we could take our own alcohol, as with the groom being a winemaker, we were quite particular about what wines we wanted. The benefit of the location, was that it was turned into a destination wedding, with everyone utilising the amazing B&B’s in Stanley and being able to see a wonderful part of Tasmania.”

Stewart wore a suit from Godwin Charli and a tie from M.J Bale with shoes from Galizio Torresi . Each groomsmen was asked to wear  their own suits in a charcoal/blue/gray .

Claire chose an incredible beaded gown from Gwendolynne with a custom dyed hair piece from Richard Nylon . Claire wore jeweled earrings from Samantha Wills, a Lovisa cuff and shoes from Inniu. She carried a bouquet by Beautiful Bloomin’ Florist .

Claire and Stewart married at Highfield House. Claire explains “Highfield House’s tiny non-denominational stone chapel was used for the 3.30pm ceremony and the grounds were used for the cocktail hour. The old stone and timber threshing barn was ‘glamified’ by family and friends the days prior and used for the reception. The nearby stables were used by the caterers.”

The bride’s mother and father walked Claire down the aisle to ‘Love Letter’ by Nick Cave. Claire remarks “Weeks before the wedding, I thought I would be nervous, however when the day came I was completely relaxed and really enjoyed the morning with my family. I didn’t think I would be able to look at Stew when it came time to walk down the aisle, but as soon as I walked into the chapel my eyes searched out his and they didn’t look away the entire ceremony. As soon as I got to Stew I had to give him a smooch.”

Claire recalls “The ceremony was my favourite part as we wrote our own vows and made sure they were intimate and heartfelt but had a few jokes thrown in for good measure. We had a lot of comments about our ceremony.”

The couple held an “Afternoon session” after the ceremony. Musicians Jacob Boot & Laura Mead entertained guests as they enjoyed celebratory drinks (homemade lemonade and punch made by Claire’s mother) and chatter on fabric covered hay bales.

Each bridesmaid chose their own dress. Claire explains “my sisters (Emma and Beck) wore Alannah Hill and my Matron of Honour (Lucy) wore Michelle Kim. Each Bridesmaid wore an Alannah Hill belt to coordinate.”

Of their photographer, Claire says “Jonathan Wherrett was fantastic, and just so easy to have around. He managed to capture the ‘story’ of our day. We actually changed our wedding date to accommodate Jonathan being able to take our photos.”

The majority of the wedding decor was handmade. A family friend made hessian table runners, the bride made embroidery fabric hoops, the flowers were a collaboration of family and friends, including Beautiful Bloomin’ Florist and placed in vintage glass jars sourced by the couple. The bride’s sister made the bunting.

Claire says “For table seating, we used photos of the guests, with their seat numbers on the back. The guests had to find their photographs (which were hanging from string weighted by sinkers, and attached with wooden pegs) to determine their seating location for the wedding.”

The favors were “Assorted Jams (Greengage, Blackberry, Raspberry, Brambleberry, Whiskey Marmalade, Plum, Apricot) made by my mother, in a mix-match of jars covered with calico and tied with an assortment of coloured wool. The name tags were handwritten by Stewart and contained a sprig of rosemary.” All stationery was painted and printed by the groom.

The wedding was catered by Olive Tree Catering  and Claire and Stewart decided on not one but three wedding cakes made by Claire’s brother in law (of Andy’s Bakery) and decorated by friends. The cakes were decadent flavours – Chocolate brownie, Orange Cake with Coconut & Lime and Chocolate, Raspberry & Grand Marnier cake.

The lighting was arranged by the couple. From the festoon lights to the candle lanterns! Claire explains “The candle lanterns made from as assortment of large (and different) jam jars, tied with wire to make handles. They were then filled with sand and a candle was placed in each jar. They were then placed around the dance floor. For the festoon lights we bought coloured party lights and searched high and low for 60 plain old fashioned festoon lights. We had to replace each light and strung them up in the main reception area.”

The first dance was performed by DJ Dane Hunnerup who also looked after the ceremony music. Claire remembers “Our first dance was to Lanie Lane’s ‘Bang Bang’. It was unrehearsed, upbeat and fun!”

Claire says “I  remember people saying before the wedding, to try and take time out to enjoy the day because it goes by so quickly. I remember taking that in and stopping and looking around at everyone who was there….. either having a laugh, on the dance floor or outside by the fire pit, and thinking how lucky we were to have these people in our lives and to be able to celebrate with us.”

Congratulations Claire and Stewart! Thank you for sharing your wedding day with us! Thank you also to Jonathan Wherrett for today’s photographs!

Want More? Check Out These Posts:

1. Claire and Chris
2. Claire and Tim – The Celebration
3. Claire and Kez’s Fun Harbourside Wedding

Heading straight into the wedding inspiration today (I have itchy feet!) is this gorgeous garden bridal fashion shoot from the girls at Studio White. Taking their gorgeous stock of Ivy & Aster and Elizabeth Dye gowns along, the girls worked with a collaborative team to showcase their latest gowns and create beautiful garden inspiration for brides to be!

Taking place at Woolmers Estate, in Tasmania the Studio White girls teamed up with  Cheese House Production ,Designer Bride and appleblossomweddings for a beautiful shoot filled with the most gorgeous Spring time feel!

Want More? Check Out These Posts:

1. Karen Willis Holmes Vintage Garden Bridal Shoot
2. Culture Bridal
3. Jennifer Gifford Designs Bridal Inspiration

Kristy & Josh

I’m not sure whether it was Josh’s quirky story of why the couple chose their venue (check it out soon on Polka Dot Groom) or Kristy’s sparkly gold dress and the look on her face as she laid eyes on her husband to be. I’m not even sure if it was their wider than ever smiles, or the intense looks of love they shared, but I do know Kristy and Josh’s wedding was one I had to share with you and today I am so excited to!

Today’s photographs are by Jonathan Wherrett. I’ve always loved Jonathan’s work and really appreciate that his love and eye for architectural detail makes it into his wedding photography.

Kristy started the day at the hair salon Some Hallucination with her bridal party and friends and family. Kristy remarks “A great way to get everyone involved in the day was the hairdressing salon. Don’t make getting ready a drag, step away from the old tradition that you have to get ready in isolation. I had all my family, Josh’s family, girlfriends and other guests come to the salon for the morning to get their hair and makeup done with the bridal party.  We drank champagne, put on a great brunch and had a ball!  It was good quality time spent with all the girls and it made 4 hours just fly by! Also, then people are not gushing to see you at the ceremony.  It took the edge off and gave you time to spend with Aunties and cousins beforehand.”

Kristy and Josh met each other before the ceremony for photographs. Kristy advises, “Have your photos before the ceremony!!!! OMG this was such a great idea and I actually got to then wear two dresses. It just meant we could go straight from that special time of the ceremony to be with family and friends. Also you feel more fresh and have more energy to do the photos beforehand.”

The bride and bridesmaids wore handmade gowns.

Kristy changed into a handmade strapless white wedding gown for the ceremony and paired it with Christian Louboutin heels.

Kristy describes the day as “Simple, Elegant and Intimate with our dearest family and friends.”

The celebration for Kristy and Josh’s wedding guests started with a fun trip. Kristy explains, “Our guests were brought over to the venue via a catamaran and enjoyed drinks on the boat before coming down the river to see the specular venue. Gave it a real wow factor approaching the venue from the water. We had a jazz band (James Maddock’s Swing 4) playing to meet the guest and bring them up to the venue.”

The couple held their celebrations at Morilla Estate. Kristy says “Nestled on the banks of the Derwent, Moorilla Estate offered venues for all aspects of the wedding. We began the formal ceremony in the depths of the underground barrel room, surrounded by French Oak barrels.”

Kristy walked down the candle lit aisle to Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley, she recalls “It was the most beautiful, magical, dreamy moment when I walked into the cellar room to Jeff Buckley’s Hallelujah. It was a breathtaking climax.”

The couple chose family members to bear witness to their marriage certificate. Kristy explains, “We had our 80 year old grandmas be the witness to our wedding certificate. It was just gorgeous and they were so happy to be a part of it.  It will be something to remember them by always and a very emotional moment.”

After the ceremony, the couple explored the gallery with Jonathan for more photographs. Kristy says “We then were fortunate enough to have our dearest wedding photos taken down in the MONA gallery, where Jonathan superseded all our expectations. His work is artistic – not a typical wedding photographer.”

Worried about getting married in winter? Let Kristy allay your fears! She remarks “Also – a winter wedding was just the best. It’s a great time of year for people to get together when socially they are not flat out with the warmer weather festivities.”

Of their day, the enjoyment they felt, Kristy says “The seamless flow from stepping onto ferry, to candle lit ceremony to reception are a testament to the approach to this wedding.”

The party was then kicked off in the function room, Anthos and Eos which was decorated with candles. Kristy advises “For a winter wedding forget flowers and go for candles they were so much more intimate and cost effective.” Cutie Cupcakes created the cupcake wedding cake.

As they planned their wedding from interstate, Kristy has a tip for other brides. “A big tip to people having their wedding in another state – you MUST talk to local people about who is the best person for each job.  We were lucky enough to visit Tasmania for the food and wine festival “Savour Tasmania”.  We sat next to a lovely lady who recommended a salon “Some Hallucination (FABULOUS), to a photographer to even our venue. All in one afternoon we had our wedding organised and by using these recommendations had all the hard work taken out of the process.  We didn’t look at other venues, we weren’t undecided about where or what.  We just knew.”

Kristy describes the first dance as “Magical – nothing choreographed or pre rehearsed.  Just close dancing to “At Last”. It was a special moment to hold each other as husband and wife for the first time.”

Congratulations on your marriage Kristy and Josh! Thank you for sharing your day with us! Thank you also to Jonathan Wherrett for sharing today’s photographs!

Want More? Check Out These Posts:

1. Kristy and David
2. Kristy and David – The Celebration
3. Kristy and James’ Vintage Funk Wedding

“

Claudia and Peter

Oh Tasmania, I do love you for a wedding location- such stunning countryside and such a romantic feel! Our newlyweds Claudia and Peter met in Kobe, Japan so the wedding had a Japanese KANJI theme (invitations, order of service cards, place name cards etc) at a classical romantic setting at a vineyard overlooking the mountain and rows and rows of vines on a sunny summer’s afternoon.

Claudia retells how they met. “We met in Japan as we both worked for the same English language school in different cities. We were both sent to a ‘kids training day’ on a cold winter’s day in December where we met, had an instant attraction then spent most of the day holding hands and singing our ABCs.”

Today’s photographs are by Jonathan Wherrett. It’s always special to have a photographer we haven’t featured for a while back on the blog, kind of like a cup of tea with an old friend! I love Jonathan’s clean and stunning captures!

The guests arrived by a red double decker bus at the winery; it was a beautiful summer’s day and everyone enjoyed the 15 minute scenic ride from the city to the winery.

Claudia wore a strapless Maggie Sottero gown, while her bridesmaids wore charcoal gowns from Mr K . Bouquets of red roses were styled by Gay Flowers.

Claudia and Peter held their ceremony and reception at Meadowbank Estate. Claudia walked down the aisle to Handel’s Air played by a string quartet.

Claudia says, “The ceremony was short and romantic and both of us cried during our vows and when the celebrant was talking about how we met in Japan and fell in love. Our mothers read a romantic poem and wedding prayer during the ceremony.”

The KANJI theme was echoed through the reception. Claudia says, “We opted for a simple, elegant style for table placements, choosing a church candle in a vase as the main centrepiece, with ivory and red rose petals scattered. The guests had Japanese KANJI inspired place name cards (matching the invitation, order of service and thank you cards) and a charcoal heart-shaped chocolate placed next to each card.  Each guest had a crisp white linen napkin with ‘Claudia & Peter, 6 February 2010’ embroidered on the front.”

The wedding cake was made by Cake Woman and consisted of tiers of chocolate mud cupcakes with chocolate ganache icing and decorated with a piped red rose and red ribbon,  with a red rose individually piped on each cup cake. The top cake had red roses neatly arranged with a beautiful red ribbon around the outside. The stationery was created by Invitation House.

Claudia says, “Our menu was fresh roasted vegetables and seasonal salads, Tasmanian smoked salmon and oysters, frittata and marinated olives, smoked and cured meats; crisp skin fillet of ocean trout, cauliflower, ginger and coriander seed dressing; eye fillet of beef, caramelised shallots, potato gratin and rich jus and soft centred chocolate pudding with vanilla bean ice cream with local berries.”

The couple shared a romantic first dance to a classic tune. “We danced to Etta James’ ‘At Last’ and it was a very special, fun moment. During the dance someone yelled out ‘you’ve been practising!’ – the dance was a rumba and finished with three spins and a dip so practising was compulsory!”

Claudia says “We left in a 1950  Mark V white Jaguar (which was followed by a black limousine in case it broke down!).”

Congratulations Claudia and Peter! Thank you for sharing your wedding day with us on Polka Dot Bride! Thank you also to Jonathan Wherrett for today’s images!

Photos by Jonathan Wherrett

Want More? Check Out These Posts:

1. Tamsin and Peter
2. Jojo and Peter
3. Lyn and Peter

Corina and Ian

A little nod to our southern friends today- a beautiful beach side wedding in Tasmania! In fact today’s couple Corina and Ian loved Tasmania so much, they traveled from Adelaide just to marry at their favourite place- Avalon Coastal Retreat.

Avalon holds a special place in Corina’s heart- it was where Ian proposed! “Last August, Ian (my now husband) tricked me into believing a friend had offered us free accommodation in Tassie. He assured me it was just a shack but when we arrived I discovered it was Avalon! A couple of days into our stay we walked to Wine Glass Bay lookout where we found a quiet spot where Ian proposed. He had planned everything 6 months earlier! We couldn’t imagine our wedding day to be anywhere else but at Avalon.”

Today’s gorgeous photographs are by Jonathan Wherrett.

There was no bridal party for Corina and Ian- just loved ones gathered around them. Corina’s creamy peony bouquet was created by Fig.

Corina walked down the aisle by herself to Maestro from the movie “The Holiday” played by Strings On Fire.

Of their gorgeous laid back Australian reception, Corina says “We wanted the day to be relaxed with canapés and champagne after the ceremony followed by a sit down lunch. We loved the idea of a long table with acoustic guitar played in the background whilst we ate.

People could come and go as they pleased, wonder down to the beach, have their picture taken at Jonathan’s photo booth or sit on the deck. We had simple table decorations consisting of roses for the table and gladdy’s inside.

Name cards, Menus and napkins were tied together with ribbon with a starfish on top. Inside we had candles & shells in hurricane lamps scattered around the room. We didn’t want to over do the decorations as Avalon and the scenery was perfect as it was.” The reception was catered by Angassi Restaurant from Bay Of Fires. 

Corina says “We anticipated the weather in Tassie to be intermittent. The morning of the wedding was windy and cloudy  however when I walked out the sun shone …. it was magical. However after entrée and the speeches a big black cloud blew over us and it poured and we were sitting outside for dinner! When the rain passed we took the tablecloths off the tables and continued with the next course! Lucky it was 26 degrees (C) “.

One of Corina’s favourite memories happened during the speeches “I loved the speeches from our parents and friends and not to mention my groom’s speech especially when he announced we are going to Paris for our honeymoon!”

A big thank you to Corina and Ian for sharing their special day with us today on Polka Dot Bride! Congratulations! Thank you also to Jonathan Wherrett for sending over today’s wedding!

Photos by Jonathan Wherrett.

Want More? Check Out These Posts:

1. Lucy & Andrew-The Celebration
2. Lucy and Andrew