Long Lunch Winery Wedding - Polka Dot Wedding

Lisa & Ross

There is nothing like a long lunch with friends and today’s couple, Lisa and Ross, certainly agree – because that feeling? It’s exactly the kind of experience they wanted for their wedding. A long lunch with great music, good food and of course a big celebration! They chose Simone Addison to capture their wedding day.

Lisa tells the tale of how she and Ross came to be. “We worked together. Ross will tell an elaborate story of how I was his boss (not true) although we both know who’s now boss in our marriage (me).”

Lisa chose a gown from Carla Zampatti and paired it with peeptoe lace booties from Dolce and Gabbana. She tells, “I can say my LEAST favourite part of the planning was choosing my wedding dress. I actually bought 3 dresses as I was so indecisive and the one I actually wore was only purchased about 1 month before the wedding on a whim when I walked passed it in the shops! No regrets though, the dress fitted perfectly and was so comfortable with no stress about wardrobe malfunctions or muffin top.” Lisa’s bridesmaid wore an elegant navy gown from Zimmermann.

Lisa and Ross chose Sandalford Winery for their wedding, telling, “Our ceremony and reception was at Sandalford. We both love the Swan Valley region and we knew the venue and food were exceptional. One of the major draw cards was knowing we could hold the whole wedding there including wedding photos. The picturesque grounds provided a vibrant backdrop of red autumn leaves and lush green grass.”

The bride arrived surprisingly early to the wedding, she tells, “For someone notoriously known for being late, my bridesmaid ensured dad and I were bundled into the car on time and we arrived miraculously early, we had to do a few laps around the back streets to make sure we didn’t arrive before the guests.”

For her walk down the aisle, Lisa had Adam James perform a live acoustic version of “My Girl” by The Temptations, telling, “The cut of my engagement ring diamond is called “My Girl” and it’s inscribed on the inside of my ring. The lyrics were also very fitting “I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day, When it’s cold outside I’ve got the month of May” and our wedding was in May!”

Lisa and Ross were married by their church pastor, Lisa noting, “Ross said he was a wreck waiting for my car to turn up, nervously talking to guests to distract himself and going to the toilet 3 times. I felt like a rock star walking down the aisle with dad, some brides cry but all I wanted to do was to high five everyone, I was so happy to see Ross and everyone there for the both of us. Like our whole wedding, we wanted a casual feel, without downplaying the significance of the occasion. We had two Bible readings from 1 John 4:16-19 and Ruth 1:16-17.”

Lisa loved, “The support of all our friends and family, particularly the bridal party and those who flew in from interstate and overseas especially to celebrate our wedding day with us.”

Of their photographer, Lisa notes, “Our photographer Simone Addison also did an amazing job of keeping us calm and making two less than photogenic people look half decent!”

Lisa remarks, “Neither of our mums could be at the wedding so we made sure they were included in other ways. I wore a necklace which my mum had passed to me from my grandma, and also a silver bangle from Ross’ mum which was also originally from his grandma. It was really special to feel them both close to us even if they couldn’t be there in person.”

Guests enjoyed a cocktail style long lunch, a table set honouring the couple’s family. “We hand made all our wedding invitations, put together the lolly and fruit buffet, made our treasure chest from an old wooden box off Gumtree, all the glass vases were borrowed from friends, another generous friend did all the flowers and bouquets as a wedding gift. We were so touched with everyone’s willingness to help with the preparations before and throughout the day.”

Lisa describes the day as, “Relaxed and personal, we wanted it to feel like a long Sunday lunch with all our friends and family.”

Lisa particularly loved, “The sincere and heartfelt words from everyone who gave a speech, particularly the best man who is a lawyer and sentenced us to “life in marriage” complete with a judge’s mallet just to make it official.”

Adam James kept the smooth tunes going right through the reception, Lisa remembering, “We didn’t do a lot of things a conventional wedding might have included, such as a first dance (I have two left feet). I could highly recommend all our vendors! Our musician Adam James really set the mood for the entire day and he is so talented, ask him any song and he can play it! Choosing the songs for key moments of the wedding was definitely a fun part of the planning.”