Jodie & Tim

I always more than a little smitten with a reception under an open sky and today, Jodie and Tim are sharing their romantic Margaret River garden wedding in all of its glory with us,

Captured beautifully by Ashleigh Sky Photography,  the beautiful Gilgara Retreat with it’s sprawling green lawns, bush backdrop and weeping willows set the scene for a day that was about being together in the most wonderful of ways.

For Jodie and Tim, it seems to was always meant to be, The pair meeting at just 15, at a  costume party, their love story culminating in a sweet proposal with the couple’s four-legged friend- Molly. Jodie shares “We love sneaking away for a few days, especially down south as it has always been our happy place. For our ten year anniversary, we packed up the car and Molly the dog and stayed in a cottage on a Hops Farm in Margaret River (Hops Farm for Tim – the beer lover). All day I had been pestering Tim to let me give him his anniversary gift; a set of engraved cufflinks. He kept putting it off, but finally caved and confessed that he had forgotten to wrap my present so I’d just have to close my eyes instead. When I opened my eyes Tim was down on one knee with a big cheesy grin on his face and Molly by his side. I don’t think I actually said Yes for a good 10 minutes, but I’m sure the girly squealing and tears gave me away, it was perfect.”

Although initially overwhelmed by dress hunting, Jodie found her gown at Bridal By Aubrey Rose. She shares  “Despite my many Pinterest boards, I really didn’t have a clue what kind of dress I saw myself wearing! Luckily my mum and 2 younger sisters know me better than I know myself and we locked in a dress in the second shop we visited. The lovely ladies at Bridal By Aubrey Rose were so attentive and invested in finding me the one. The lace detail and high neckline made the dress feel elegant but not overly formal – suiting our outdoor venue perfectly.”

Jodie walked down the aisle on the arm of her father to Angus & Julia Stone’s “Mango Tree”. She explains “Although Tim and I are big fans of them, we just really loved the lyrics to this song.”

The beautiful Gilgara Retreat set the scene for both the ceremony and the reception. Jodie sharing “Even before we were engaged we had always imagined having a wedding ‘weekend’ as opposed to one or two venues on the day. This was mainly because we had guests travelling from Scotland and England and we hoped to create a mini-getaway for everyone involved. The South West has always been special to us so when we met with Angus at Gilgara Retreat in Margaret River it was a no-brainer, it was the perfect venue for us. Our bridal party and close family members stayed with us at the venue Friday through till Sunday afternoon. It gave us all the opportunity to hang out under the stars the night before, play cricket, have breakfast together the morning of the big day and also gave us a chance to set up the lighting and large pieces of furniture prior to the craziness of the wedding day. We especially loved that our dog Molly could be there too, despite her many attempts to escape and chase the local kangaroos!”

Lee Hall officiated proceedings, Jodie telling “Our ceremony was fairly short and sweet; just the way we were hoping it would be. We stood under a large weeping willow tree at the bottom of the grounds Our dog Molly stood very proud with the Groomsmen in her floral collar until things got too exciting and she watched on with the guests in the front row. Our celebrant Lee Hall recounted the story of how Tim and I had met and the journey we had been on since we were both teenagers before asking us to say our vows. Lee made the ceremony light-hearted, but romantic in its own way. Following the ceremony, the bar opened, canapes were served to our guest’s lawn games were out and an acoustic singer played until the reception began.”

Sweet natives and plenty of foliage were dotted throughout the floral arrangements, styled by Flowers For Mrs Harris  Jodie shares “My bouquet consisted of a natural stem, hand tied, relaxed, messy, posy style using greenery, proteas, eucalyptus and pops of colour. The bridesmaid’s bouquets were the same, but slightly smaller in size. Late into the wedding planning, I decided to add a half-crown of flowers that resembled my bouquet that was woven into a small plait in my hair. Each bridesmaid also had a small wired spay of greenery and flowers woven into their hair. The groom and groomsmen had a floral buttonhole with small pops of colour complimenting the brides and bridesmaid’s bouquets.”

“I felt like the luckiest bride in the world with our bridal party! It was incredibly special to have both of my sisters and my best friends stand by us on our special day. My sister Emma was my maid of honour and my bridesmaids were my sister Chloe, and best friends Harriet and Kiralee.”

When asked of her favourite part of wedding planning, Jodie tells “The excuse to have endless girly nights with your bridesmaids drinking red wine and ‘wedding planning’. It’s a given!”

Of their photographer, Jodie says ” Tim and I can both be so awkward in front of a camera; we’re not used to it! Ash made us both so relaxed and managed to capture the special moments in the most beautiful natural light. Her style is exactly what we were hoping for and to this day we still have people asking who our photographer was!”

Guests enjoyed a stunning reception, including a decadent cheese tower cake. Jodie explains During the planning process we were able to include things that were really ‘us’ – like a cheese tower for dessert and share plates and tapas instead of a set meal. It might not have stood out to others but it meant something to us.”

Guests dined on a feast catered by Food By The Chef at long tables under the sky Jodie tells “Tim and I both love wooden accents so we tried to include carved or personalised wooden details where we could. I found a cute ring box on Etsy, used a wooden box that we had been gifted at our engagement party as our ‘cards box’, and a lovely client encouraged us to borrow the carved table numbers that her husband made for their wedding – they were a great feature on our long tables.”

Jodie and Tim hired Blush & Bloom to make sure their day ran smoothly. The bride telling “If your venue doesn’t supply a wedding planner or stylist, seriously consider hiring one if your budget allows. The amount of pressure Domaney took off myself, Tim and our family on the day and also leading up to was invaluable!”

After dinner, the newlyweds took to the dance floor, Jodie remembering “We were nervous about this as neither of us can dance to save ourselves! We chose the song Green Eyes by Coldplay as it had been a favourite of ours ever since we seen the band live a few years prior.”

The Wedding Tape worked with Jodie & Tim to create a magic film of the day unfolding.


A big congratulations to your both Jodie and Tim! Thank you for sharing your day of beauty with us! Thank you also to Ashleigh Sky Photography for today’s stunning imagery!