Rachel & Josh

With the stunning green of the forest canopy overhead, their closest friends, a celebrant and a photographer Rachel and Josh tied the knot. It was the most magical start to their marriage together, their sweet forest elopement simple and beautiful and exactly what the pair wanted. The day was beautifully captured by Wildhearted & Hitched who also helped the couple organise their elopement.

Rachel tells their story. “Josh and I worked together at a restaurant. I thought he was a jerk because he used to tease me about my other job at Wheel and Barrow… ‘did you sell any wheelbarrows today?’ Anyway, one night a few people from work were having drinks. Josh was behind the bar and we were trying to convince him to come out. He was pretty adamant that he couldn’t because he hadn’t brought a spare shirt with him. Funnily enough, a second after he found out I was newly single he decided he could borrow an old t-shirt from our manager. He was supposed to be a rebound, but that didn’t quite go to plan.”

The couple made no fuss over their outfits for the day, the bride telling “I wanted this day to be casual. I was certainly not going to spend thousands of dollars on a dress. I ended up buying a vintage, knee-length dress with lace sleeves. We didn’t even shop for Josh. He wore a pair of grey pants and a white business shirt that was far too short for his arms. The bow tie and suspenders gave it an old-school look.”

The ceremony took place at Cougal Cascades. Rachel tells “I wanted to have the actual ceremony surrounded by nature. Cougal Cascades was perfect. It is this beautiful secluded little spot, surrounded by rain forest and bubbling brooks. I could live my dream of walking down the aisle barefoot.”

“We wanted to keep the ceremony as intimate and secret as possible, so we only invited our two best friends – Kim and Zak. It was really nice sharing the day with them.”

Candice Wilson officiated the ceremony, the bride explaining “We wanted our ceremony to be just that – ours. I wasn’t interested in other people’s opinions on what we should do. That is why we chose to elope.
Josh’s nickname at work used to be ‘Peaches’ and it was a running joke that we kept alive. So during the vows, I read a lyric from one of our favourite pop punk bands, The Front Bottoms.
“You are my peach,
You are my plum,
You are my earth,
You are my sun.”
It made us both giggle.”

Rachel tells “I wanted to do the whole ‘something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue’. I ended up wearing my Grandmother’s engagement ring, my engagement ring, my Mother’s lace handkerchief and blue lacey underwear.”

The bride wore a flower crown and carried a bouquet by Gypsy and Bloom, remembering  “I had the most beautiful bouquet of pink natives from Gypsy and Bloom, and a gorgeous flower crown made to match. I’ve dried out the bouquet and crown and still have them in my house.”

“We decided to have our first dance to Josh Pyke’s “Haunt You, Love”.

“One day you will hold this hand no more,
And one day you will call my name in your sleep
And I will haunt you, love
And sing to you from the foot of our bed.”

“I think my favourite photos are the landscape style shots. I love that Josh and I seem totally alone, immersed in the gorgeous rain forest setting.”

The newlyweds surprised their family and friends with an engagement party at  Mandala Organic Arts Cafe turned ‘We just got married!’ celebration, the film captured by Poetry in Motion revealing their secret. Rachel telling “My favourite part of the day was walking into our wedding reception, after the guests had watched the video of our elopement. We were understandably nervous about the reaction from our families, but the room absolutely buzzed with love and joy. The rest of the night was a blur of happy tears and hugs (and vegan pizza).”

Congratulations Rachel and Josh! Thank you for sharing your wedding ceremony with us! Thank you also to Wildhearted & Hitched for sharing today’s celebration!