I love how fun filled the photos of Anne-Marie and Brenda’s wedding are. Nothing makes me happier than wedding photos with that “wish you were there” feel!

Anne-Marie wore a dress from Sugar & Spice while her bridesmaids wore gowns from Wayne Cooper. Bouquets of orange roses were put together by a family friend. The groom and his groomsmen wore suits from Roger David with striped ties from TimothyK.

Anne-Marie says “Our photos were taken at Shorncliffe pier.  This particularly meant a lot to us as it is nearby where we’ve bought our first house that we’ve been renovating for the last year.”

Anne-Marie and Brendan celebrated with their guests at Glengariff Historic Estate. They couple loved the history of the venue- after operating for over 100 years as a dairy farm, it evolved into a into a beautiful function area, complete with panoramic views and a vineyard.

With funky wooden cake toppers, the cake had Brendan and Anne-Marie’s names written in calligraphy style  and was made by a family friend. Anne Marie and Brendan made a lot of their own stationery- their engage,ent invitations, order of service booklets, wishing well cards and thank you notes. They had their wedding invitations made by Tickle Me Invitations.

Anne-Marie says of their first dance “We danced to “True Companion” by Marc Cohn – it was a very ‘interesting’ first dance as it was non-rehearsed and ended up in the groomsmen doing various break dancing moves”. The music to keep guests dancing on the front lawn was provided by friends.

Thankyou for sharing your gorgeous summer’s wedding day with us Anne-Marie and Brendan and thankyou to Feather + Stone Photography for joining us today on Polka Dot Bride!

Photography by Feather + Stone Photography.

Anne Marie and Brendan

Hello Monday! I thought I make this Monday a little easier for those of us at our desks in front of computers by sharing with you a brand new photographer to Polka Dot Bride (one we hope we will see much more of) with a gorgeous Brisbane wedding!

Anne-Marie and Brendan were married on a gorgeous summers day, Anne-marie tells their story “We met in February 2005 at a mutual friends’ 21 birthday party (at a lawn bowls club!).  To be honest we think that it was actually a bit of a set up but it all worked out well in the end.”

Today’s photographer is Feather + Stone Photography.

Anne-Marie & Brendan held their ceremony at Corpus Christi Church in Nundah. It was the same church Anne-Marie attended Sunday School services as a child. It was also where her mother, aunty, sister and Anne-Marie all went to school.

Anne-Marie walked down the aisle to Pachelbel’s “Canon”

Long time family friend Father Rizzo flew from New Zealand to marry the couple.

Stay tuned this afternoon for more Anne-Marie and Brendan’s fun filled wedding!

Photography by Feather + Stone Photography.

Shannon and Troy

What better way to end a glorious week of real weddings than to end with one from the Sunshine Coast?

Photos today are by Studio C Photography.

Shannon has a way with words, so I’m going to leave it to her to tell you the story of her wedding day. “My husband Troy proposed to me in Sept 2008 on North Stradbroke Island, Qld. (Every year since I was a toddler my family and friends have spent the September holidays on North Stradbroke.) Troy knew this place was special to me, so he planned to pop the question on a romantic walk around the Point Lookout gorge or on top of a sand dune. Little did I know every time Troy tried to get me alone, I asked someone to join us, or I told him I didn’t feel like a walk – ruining his plans. Luckily, Troy was persistent, and didn’t give up easily.

Not long after we were engaged I became obsessed with anything related to weddings. I constantly searched wedding sites, Polka dot Bride & magazines so I could find what would be my idea of the most wonderful day. I couldn’t get enough of it and it was the best thing I could have done. I ended up having a great idea of what was in the market and where to get it, and most of all, I knew what I wanted for the big day.

The atmosphere I wanted to create was relaxed & informal – think lunchtime drinks and lot of ‘witty banter’ as my partner would say. I wanted it to be intimate, unique and beautiful. I had a fabulous team of professionals working with me that made the day seamless. My partner & I were so thrilled that the people close to us were there to share it. It was a day we will never forget. ”

Shannon wore a simple white gown form Lisa Ho and had a blush pink shrug made from laces and jewels by Holly Stalder.

Shannon’s “Something Blue” was a brooch she’d found in an antique store in Buderim. She wore cream flats from Mollini.

The bridesmaids gifted Shannon flower cuffs to wear from Sophie Kyron. They were dressed in Wayne Cooper frocks with silver shoes from Mollini.

Shannon wore earrings from Peter Lang. Pru Edwards looked after the girls makeup while Evelyn Parsons took care of the hair styling.

Shannon carried a simple bouquet of white hyacinths and blushing brides while her bridesmaids carried vibrant purple bouquets all designed by Floral Art.

Shannon found a unique piece from Frits Rosenow for Troy to wear as his buttonhole. To show off Troy’s fun personality, Shannon worked with the designers to create a pirate ship boutonniere. This kept in line with the priate ship theme of the day- invitations were created by Printable Press.

Shannon and Troy’s flower girl was dressed in a Collette Dinnagan Infant dress.

Shannon and Troy held their ceremony and reception at Montegos On The Bay on Kawana Island.

Deja Blue filled the atmosphere with Shannon and Tory’s favourite songs.

A three tier cake was created by Mary Brown (07 5444 6603). Shannon says “One other thing I did to make everyone feel a part of the day was I made up a dvd slide show of our family weddings. It played non-stop throughout the day and had photos of our grandparent’s weddings our parent’s weddings, & our sibling’s weddings. This turned out to be excellent as it brought all the generations together to reminisce, and remember their own special day.”

Shannon and Troy gave bags with custom labels from My Own Label filled with lollies as favors.

Thankyou also to Studio C Photography for allowing us to share the photos!

Photos by Studio C Photography.

Welcome back to the celebration of Tish and Hunter’s wedding! The bridal party made sure to have fun with their photos.

Tish recalls this story “Our best man ran with his mouth open to catch a popping champagne cork. In mid air he flew to catch it and came crashing down on the concrete, barely missing a steal rod. He destroyed his suit and was bloody and bruised. We have a great pic of him recovering on the ground.I should note that this was at the beginning of photos! So funny. My aunt later tapped up his suit with electrical tape. He is 6’9 so it just added to the humor when my 5’ foot maid of honour walked into the reception with him.”

Tish and Hunter received the most touching wedding gifts- her bridesmaid made a special recipe book of recipes from all of the wedding guests, while a woman from Hunter’s home town coordinated a handmade quit- asking sixty of Tish and Hunter’s family and friends to create a personalised tile for the quilt. They hung the finished product at the wedding.

Tish’s bridesmaids wore gowns from Forever New while her maid of Honour wore a gown from BCBG.

Tish and Hunter held their reception in the “Visions Room” at the Outrigger Resort in Coolangatta/Tweed Heads. Tish and Hunter hired gumtrees for the courtyard and built a custom backdrop for the head table (it helped that Tish’s father was the food and beverage manager at the hotel! Guests were guided to their tables with bunches of “Blushing Bride” native flowers. Each bunch represented a different table.

Tish and Hunter made their reception a lot of fun,  they hired singer Scott Michaels with and extra singer to keep the dance floor moving all night. Each bridesmaid/groomsmen  “couple” entering the reception to a dance or silly antics. Tish’s brother in law swung his wife over his head as they made their way to the head table.

Herbal teas were a treat served to guests.

Guests were given handmade favors of sugared almonds tied in pink tulle with gumnuts attached.

Tish and Hunter took special care to ensure that their menu used sustainable produce and was uniquely Australian. They served barramundi and lamb as a main, crab and quail as entrée options and a unique array of appetisers including kangaroo and  crocodile. The dessert was iced images of Tish and Hunter’s faces on a modern trifle.

Tish was inspired by a cake in Real Weddings Magazine. A five tiered, chocolate mud beauty, it was made by her mother!

Tish and Hunter danced their first dance to Ben Harper’s “Forever”. Tish says “My husband chose our song. I’d never heard of it but loved it on first listen. It talks about not dating just anyone, not giving your heart to just anyone – only the one you’re ready to spend forever with.”

One of Tish’s favourite parts of the wedding day was leaving to “1979″ by the Smashing Pumpkins through a tunnel made by family and friends. They got to thank every guest and kiss and hug them each good bye- ending with Tish’s mother and bridesmaids.

While Tish and Hunter departed, guests partied with the bridesmaids and groomsmen until the early hours of the morning in hired penthouses (hired by Tish and Hunter for their bridal party).

Thank you Tish and Hunter for sharing the special moments of your wedding day on Polka Dot Bride! Thank you also to Todd and Alyda at Todd Hunter McGaw Photography for sharing such a beautiful wedding with us today!

Photos by Todd Hunter McGaw