Julie & Matt

The beauty of a black tie garden wedding is something pretty special. The elegance of the formality combined with the rough, unstructured beauty of Mother Nature. Julie and Matt truly made their wedding day their own with a gorgeous garden ceremony (held in Victoria’s Yarra Valley), an unexpected delicious dinner option and plenty of love and romance to make it the most splendid day of all.

Julie recalls how she and Matt met ” We met at high school and did the Debutante Ball together (10 years ago) and have been dating ever since.  Matt proposed to me at the Chinque Terra in Italy ”

Jonathan Ong took the wedding photographs of Julie and Matt. I love the way Jonathan plays with light and captures the most intimate, beautiful moments. Pose Media captured a film of the day.

Julie wore a Carla Zampatti gown and paired it with shoes ordered online from Heels.com.  JC Hair created soft curls in Julie’s hair while Natural Chique styled Julie’s makeup.

The groom, Matt looked dapper in his Arthur Galan ensemble.

The transport was provided by the couple’s loved ones. Julie remarks “My cousin drove me in her Mustang and  Matt’s uncle drove the groom in his flashy car which was a Custom Line ”

Julie and Matt held their ceremony and reception at Alowyn Gardens in Yarra Glen . Julie was particularly in love with the stunning archway.

The processional was made special by live music. Julie recalls “Matt’s best mate Adam played the guitar live for me while I came down the aisle and he played “The Girl” by “City and Colour.”

Julie and Matt were married by Gary Lockyer  and had their wedding rings made by Dwayne Designs.

Julie describes the wedding as” Absolutely gorgeous, very unique and couldnt have asked for anything better. ”

Of their photographer, Julie says ” Jon was fantastic!!!  We didn’t want the really posey posey photos, we wanted a very natural look, and that’s just what we got. Jon set up a photobooth for us, which was a great hit and everyone had a great time getting their pics taken in there too, and we had a great time laughing at them all while flicking through the pictures. ”

The gorgeous floral arrangements were designed and created by Flowers By Kirsty.

For dinner, guests were treated to gourmet burgers from Grill’d. Julie explains ” They came out in their Airstream Van (which is very cool) and served burgers and chips which was a great hit! ”

Mother Nature made her mark on the day, leading to one of Julie’s favourite stories. ” The sun was shining for the Ceremony and then we had a short thunderstorm at night for the reception, then as soon as the thunderstorm passed we had a gorgeous double rainbow shining right over the top of the reception which was just beautiful.

The newlywed’s retro inspired wedding cake was created by Cherrytree Bakehouse.

Matt switched his bow tie to a red one for the reception.

The first dance was a surprise for the bride. Julie explains ” We danced to “Groovin Slowly” by John Butler Trio. Matt chose the song to surprise me and it was just beautiful. ”

The music kept guests on the dance floor all night long. Julie recalls “The band we had playing were “The Teskeys Brothers” and they were absolutely fantastic”.

Congratulations Julie and Matt! Thank you for sharing your beautiful wedding with us today! Thank you also to Jonathan Ong for sharing today’s photographs!

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Kate & Reuben

There’s nothing quite like a backyard wedding. Walking out of a house that is filled with memories, down the aisle to marry your lover. Kate & Reuben married in a beautiful, intimate wedding in Reuben’s parents garden in Macleod, a suburb of Melbourne and celebrated by dancing on the lawn under the open skies. Not only did Kate and Reuben come together for the day, but so did their family and friends- many contributing their talents and time and effort into creating a beautiful wedding day for Kate & Reuben.

Photographs today are by Sayher Heffernan. Sayher has such a gentle beauty to his images and has captured the intimacy and delight of Kate & Reuben’s wedding day so sweetly.

The couple and their families decorated the wedding themselves. Kate explains ” We made fabric flower garlands for inside the house, and used colourful yarn from the Australian Tapestry Workshop (they have over 300 colours!) to hang the garlands and fence off some areas of the garden.

Brightly coloured flowers (from Reuben’s mother’s garden and Fowlers Flowers ) were grouped in bottles. Kate explains ” We collected bottles and jars for the flowers over a couple of months – we had some good finds of Mason and Fowlers jars at second hand stores, but most of the small hanging bottles are juice bottles from the Mediterranean Wholesalers on Sydney Road, Brunswick. ” Milly Sleeping designed the couple’s stationery.

Family and friends being involved was a major part of Reuben and Kate’s wedding day. Kate recalls “We love that so many of our friends and family contributed to the day. A friend designed our invitation, we had a sewing bee to make the fabric flower garlands, Reuben’s brother made the cake, Reuben’s sister did Kate’s hair and a whole lot of other people contributed in so many ways leading up to the wedding.” Will Costello styled Kate’s makeup.

Kate wore a gown she purchased off the rack. She accessorised with jewels created by Yuko Fujita at Pieces of Eight Gallery. Kate walked down the aisle with Reuben to “The Book of Love” by Magnetic Fields.

Kate and Reuben married in Reuben’s parent’s garden. Kate explains “The whole thing took place took place in Reuben’s parents’ garden because it’s such a beautiful setting, and we wanted somewhere that felt personal. And it’s such an amazing garden! We were very happy to get married amongst the flowers and veggies, and with the chooks down the back. ” The couple were married by Gina Andrews.

The couple chose wedding rings from an artisan gallery. Kate explains “The three rings (engagement and two wedding bands) are by Suzi Zutic at Pieces of Eight Gallery”

Of their photographer, Kate remarks “Sayher was brilliant. We met him at a friends’ wedding earlier this year and loved his photos. And he’s a really nice guy – just the kind of person you want to have around at a wedding!”

The wedding cake was made by Reuben’s brother, a former chef.

food&desire catered the wedding with sweets from Balhas Pastry and extra cakes made by Reuben’s mum and grandmother.

Congratulations Kate & Reuben! Thank you for sharing your wedding! Thank you also to Sayher Heffernan for sharing today’s wedding photographs!

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 Lizzie and Ben

 There’s nothing quite as romantic as marrying amongst the vineyards and I think you’ll agree after seeing Lizzie and Ben’s classic wedding that it’s a truly beautiful way to tie the knot. Lizzie and Ben’s elegant black and white colour scheme with just a hint of soft pink topped off the beautiful feel of the day.

Lizzie recalls how she and Ben met. “We first met back in 1991 I went to Tintern, he went to Yarra Valley & in yr9 we did dancing classes with the yr10 boys. We didn’t really take much notice of each other but in 2002 I opened a beauty salon in Park Orchards & in 2005 his sister in law started coming in to the salon & she decided it would be a good idea to set us up so pretty much one by one the whole family came in to check me out (his mum became a regular client) & then one day just before mothers day Ben came in to buy a gift voucher for his mum (who happened to be having her nails done at the time). It was so embarrassing I quickly gave him the voucher & then went back to my client. He came in again weeks later saying he wanted another voucher but would come back another time to get it (it was hard to talk to him when I had clients in the salon desperately straining to hear the conversation) I thought about him all weekend & after a pep talk from the girlfriends decided to call his mum & get his number she pretty much answered the phone with his number I text him & asked him out & I guess the rest history…”

Photos today are by Kirralee Ashworth who has done a beautiful job capturing the clean, classic elegance of Lizzie and Ben’s day. Video was captured by C2 Video.

Lizzie carried something very special with her as she walked down the aisle. “As I walking down the aisle I wore my Grandpa’s Airforce wings that my Grandma used to wear as a good luck charm to keep him safe while he was flying Catalins during WW2. She gave them to all her children to wear whenever there was an exam or something she felt they needed a bit of luck with.  I loved wearing them and my Grandpa loved it more. My wedding band was made using the diamonds from my Grandma’s wedding band so that was special too ”

Lizzie and her bridesmaid’s had their hair & makeup done by Lisa from Living Dolls Makeup Artistry. The couple had their stationery designed by a friend. Lizzie notes “My beautiful friend Sarah designed our invites for me and they were amazing. We used a photo of us kissing from another friend’s wedding with the words “Twas not my lips you kissed but my soul”.  Our colour theme was Ivory, gold  black which we used throughout.”

Lizzie chose a strapless gown by Anna Campbell and paired it with her grandmother’s pearl earrings. Her bridesmaids wore black floor length gowns by Zimmermann. Tiffany Devlin created Lizzie’s bouquet.

Lizzie and Ben held their ceremony and reception in the Yarra Valley wine region at Train Trak Winery.  Lizzie remarks “The staff, the food, the wine the venue all absolutely amazing they were so accommodating and friendly from day one and the venue has such a warm feel about it we fell in love with the place the first time we went there.  The owner Rob would have to be one of the nicest guys we have ever met and was brilliant on the day helping us with the ceremony and keeping me calm.”

Ben and him groomsmen wore suits from Myer while the page boys wore outfits from Seed and the flowergirls wore dresses from Tea Princess.

Lizzie walked down the aisle to “The acoustic version of ‘Flying Without Wings’ by WestLife.  I have loved that song forever.”

The photo of Lizzie and Ben with her grandfather is one of her favourites of the day.

The ceremony was performed by Barry Masenhelder.

Of their photographer, Lizzie says “Our photographer was fantastic she made us feel at ease all day.  We didn’t want to do all the staged photos and wanted more natural photos of not only ourselves but all or guests and thats exactly what we got…perfect!”

Rita from Blooming Brides decorated the reception (held at ZONZO Train Trak Winery) with white blooms. Ed Dixon Food Design created a “cheese” cake.

For their favors, Lizzie did something a little different with her mum. She explains “My mum has been collecting wishbones since my sister and I were born and we used them on our lolly jars.  Mum painted them gold and then my mum, my Aunty and myself spent a day sipping champagne and filling jars with smarties and tying the wishbones on.”

Lizzie and Ben hired Jerson Trinidad to entertain their guests during their wedding reception. He also played their first dance. Lizzie recalls “Our wedding singer Jerson sang ‘No One’ by Aicia Keys a song we both love. We didn’t even think to rehearse this so just winged it on the day…no funky dance routine for us just a nice moment between the 2 of us (actually probably the most time we had together all night!)”

Congratulations Lizzie and Ben! Thank you for sharing your beautiful day with us! Thank you also to Kirralee Ashworth for sharing today’s images!

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Suong and Robert

It’s not Summer in Melbourne without a visit to the Stokehouse or at least a walk along the beach in front of it. So today’s wedding of Suong and Robert and the popular St Kilda venue is such a nice one to showcase at the height of Summer.

“Suong recalls how she and Robert met. “We met during University and were best friends for three years before we decided to travel around the world together for three months. I realised I had deeper feelings for Rob after he bought me an ice cream in Madrid to compensate for a terrible meal.”

Photos today are by Brent Lukey who has captured the wedding with such warmth. Clean classic shots that show the beauty, love and happiness of the day.

Suong wore a gown by Karen Willis Holmes and paired it with Mimco shoes and jewels from Christine Barro. Her one bridesmaid wore a Zimmermann gown while Robert wore a suit from Hugo Boss. Evelyn of Rouge Artists styled the girls hair & makeup.

Flower Temple styled the beautiful floral arrangements.

Suong and Robert met before the ceremony and had photographs with their bridal party in some of Melbourne’s famous laneways. Of their photographer, Suong says “Brent Lukey was the first and only photographer we met. From the beginning, it was very clear that this was someone who understood our requirements and spoke our language.  Apart from being a wonderful photographer, Brent is also an absolute pleasure to work with- he was professional, efficient and interacted very well with all our guests. There is a beautiful sense of clarity, timelessness and humour, which is so evident in his photos. ”

Suong and Robert were married at Stokehouse Melbourne. Suong explains “We held our ceremony at sunset on the deck of the Stokehouse which overlooks St Kilda beach and onto Port Philip Bay.  This allowed us to flow seamlessly onto canapés and then the reception at the same venue. The restaurant manager Joel and his kitchen and waiting staff were incredibly gracious.”

Suong walked down the aisle to “Brown Eyed Girl” by Van Morrison played by The Baker Boys who also performed during the reception.

Celebrant Janet Hussey married the couple.

A three tier wedding cake was created by Cake Face.

Suong and Robert put plenty of personal touches into the reception. Suong explains “We created the table signs on each table, which was named after a special city/country and a short description of what that place meant to us as people. “

“We also designed and printed the “Penguin book cover,” which were our post cards for guests to fill out in lieu of a guestbook and they were able to place these in a metal mail box. We also designed the “tram scroll,” canvas which was our seating chart.”

Guests received boxes of beautiful chocolates from Cacao as a wedding favor with tags handmade by Suong and Robert.

For their first dance, Suong and Robert chose “Praise You” by Fat Boy Slim. Suong recalls “We recreated the dance from the Spike Jonze video clip featuring the fictional dance group the Torrance Community dance group.  We finished with, “I want to grow old with you,” by Adam Sandler from the movie, “The Wedding Singer.”

Congratulations Suong and Robert! Thank you for sharing your wedding day with us! Thank you also to  Brent Lukey for sharing today’s photographs with us!

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Fiona and Lionel

Do you know more engagements happen around the festive season than any other time of year? I love the festive season myself- there is something about how happy everybody is that definitely rubs off on me. So with that, I thought I’d share the Collingwood Children farm engagement photos of Fiona and Lionel by Its Beautiful Here. The farm is located just a little distance from Melbourne’s CBD and is such a fun place to visit to take time out from the hustle and bustle of the city- or to have photos taken to celebrate your engagement!

Fiona tells their love story “1999. Moby’s Play was on the radio, Fight Club was in the cinemas.. and that’s when we met. We started going out a year later. Fast forward 11 years of relationship later (which seems like yesterday) and we’re finally getting married (it’s about time, our friends say). If you need a proof that high-school sweetheart does exist, look no further.”

Lionel explains “Over the 11 years, she has been a close friend, a lecturer, a sister and a girlfriend. She used to come up with my class timetables at Uni, help me revise my subjects and reminds me when assignments are due and where the exams rooms are. She knows whenever I was being untruthful (mostly trivial matter such as whether I have showered or pretended to be sober when I’m not).

I love her for the things that I’m not; an attentive, caring and loving person.”

Fiona says “Like he said, he’s like my little brother. He needs my constant attention and care. He’s lazy and a great procrastinator, but will do things rather well once he feels like it. He means well and (is) compassionate though this is never evident unless you know him very well.

He likes to read and knows a lot about mostly random things, from geography to history to cars. I could not, not mention about his automotive fetishism. He’ll go on and on about it and I have to pretend to be half interested!

I love him for his honesty, sense of humour and inner sanctum sense of care.”

“We’ve always enjoyed the simpler things in life.. nice coffee, honest food, long sleeps and simply doing nothing. The not so simple things that we enjoy are shopping and travelling (we travel every year when time and funds permit). Other than those, we keep it pretty simple.. we don’t do archery, paragliding or badger baiting together.”

“There you go.. a short story about us. We’d like to share how the next 11 years will be.. but you probably know already how it will pan out.. more food,  longer sleep-ins and not doing much at all.”

“As Noel Gallagher once said, it’s the importance of being idle. That’s what brings us together.”

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