Complete with birdcage centerpieces, this pastels wedding was the epitome of romance. The couple really played up their Lovebirds theme with cute birdcage decorations. A courtyard garden made for the perfect reception! Mario Colli Photography didn’t miss anything- it looks spectacular. The bride look beautiful and elegant in her gorgeous gown with a statement train- uber-swoon moment! Hues of mint, white, gold meddled well within the decor. We especially love the cake, sweet as their love and staying true to the theme with two lovebirds topping it- looks yummy & pretty! The FULL GALLERY is just as sweet!
Did you work with a certain theme? Color palette? Design motif? Please describe in detail why you chose this aesthetic, and how you carried it throughout your wedding.
The Bride: “I would say elegant, classic and shabby chic. We also had a love bird theme and our colors were mint, gold and white. We set the theme with our love bird invitations which were mint with gold foiling. We then had white birdcage candle holders as our centerpieces that were surrounded by handmade wreaths with roses and greenery. We also had small bird cages hanging above us in our courtyard garden ceremony, love bird cake toppers, love bird place cards to compliment our invitations and a large bird cage for any cards. We painted a canvas mint and made a giant love heart with over 100 heart stickers for our guests to write their names or initials as our signing registry which we now have hanging in our house. We also wrote our table arrangements on some old white wooden windows that we polished up, another DIY that we loved. In the reception room we had hanging glass baubles behind the bridal table which were simple but beautiful against the glass behind us.”
Give us a little background on you. How did you meet and start dating? How did you get engaged?
The Bride: Tell us about the rings. Brodie and I met 7 and a half years ago and believe it or not on Facebook – thank you Mark Zuckerburg (as Brodie said in his wedding speech). We only went on two dates before he asked me to be his girlfriend and as cliche as it may sound I trusted him completely and knew it was meant to be. We have had a very similar upbringings and our families and friends get along so well which is so wonderful. Not only is he the love of my life but my best mate, soul mate and partner in crime. We got engaged in December 2014. We had bought our first house together earlier that year so I knew the proposal would come one day but the day that it did was a total surprise. My amazing boss had surprised me with a weekend away for Brodie and I for my Christmas present (lucky I know). We arrived at the beautiful Sheraton in Noosa and had the best day swimming, having lunch and mojitos in the pool bar. Brodie then asked if I wanted to walk to the beach to chill and watch the sunset. We were sitting on the rocks, watching the surfers, drink in hand when Brodie presented me my stunning ring and asked me to marry him. He had said a few more words but to be honest I forget most of it because I was in shock — yay our moment was finally here! The proposal was perfect, completely us and special to me because the water is my happy place so it was beautiful that it happened there. My ring was my dream ring, I had always said to Brodie that I would love a halo so he had taken a picture to a jeweler and asked him to make it just like the picture. I still catch myself looking at my ring all the time, very lucky.
Tell us about your flowers and your bouquet. How did you choose them? Was there any sentimental significance in your choice? What types of flowers did you choose for the bridesmaid bouquets and the groomsmen boutonnieres?
The Bride: My beautiful bridesmaids wore mint dresses so I wanted a pastel bouquet with whites, creams, pinks and lilacs. I also wanted dusty feathers and gumnuts as they have a grey/mint tinge which I thought would go well plus I liked the idea of a textured bouquet. I trusted my super talented Florist, Lia from The Vintage Flower Box so gave her limited instructions and she met the brief perfectly – they were simple stunning. My bouquet was a larger version of the bridesmaids with a few little additions for texture. The groomsmen wore little lilac roses with greenery and Brodie were a light pink rose with a gumnut, dusty feather and greenery.
Please describe your ceremony. Where was it and why did you choose the location? How did you decorate the space and the aisle? Did you include any traditions? What were your processional and recessional songs?
The Bride: Our ceremony was in the Courtyard Garden at Hillstone which was one of the reasons we fell in love with the venue. The garden is quite intimate and full of greenery with a red carpet as the aisle. We were married by Avalon McKellar who is one of Brodie's best mates mum's which made it so special. We had a flower ceremony with six different colored flowers that all had a different meaning. We had six of our close friends and family bring them up and put them in a vase, it was a great way of including those extra special to us who weren't in the bridal party. I walked down the aisle to an acoustic version of Bruno Mars ‘Just the way you are' and the recessional song was the Darkness ‘I believe in a thing called love'. The garden didn't really need a lot of decorating so we just had birdcages hanging over us.
How did you decide on your look? Please describe your dress/attire (style, shape, color, fabric, etc.), veil, tie, shoes and accessories. And tell us about your wedding party: What did your bridesmaids and groomsmen wear?
The Bride: I always wanted to have a classic and elegant look as a bride. In April 2015 I actually won a competition which I entered through Modern Wedding Magazine to win a stunning Essense of Australia gown. I still can't believe that I was lucky enough to win my dream dress! I always knew I wanted an embellished back and the cap sleeved dressed I chose had a breath taking back and train, I honestly felt like a princess. I will be forever grateful that I was the lucky winner. My hair was in a side bun and my shoes were quite plain with ivory lace. I had simple drop earrings and Brodie bought me a stunning pearl bracelet which his best man gave to me on the morning of the wedding. The bridesmaids wore mint cap sleeved lace dress with nude heels. The groomsmen wore navy chinos with ivory shirts, mint bow ties and navy suspenders. Brodie wore a grey jacket instead of the suspenders to be different and the boys all wore tan shoes— they looked so sharp.
Please describe your reception. Where was it and why did you choose this location? Tell us about the centerpieces, tablescapes, place settings and any other decorations. Did you have any special menu items or signature cocktails? What was your first dance song? How about any additional entertainment, like a photo booth or a cigar bar?
The Bride: As soon as we were engaged Brodie and I had said we wanted a fun wedding with a relaxed environment. We chose the beautiful Hillstone at St Lucia. It was the third venue we looked at and we both loved it and felt it was ‘the one' so we booked it on the spot. We knew we would have a lot of family traveling from around the country so we loved that our guests didn't have to leave. We had our ceremony in their unique and stunning Courtyard Garden, then the guests had drinks and zcanapes on the terrace with acoustic music by Nick Trovas in the background. The dinner and speeches were then in the gorgeous Rosewood Room overlooking the greens and once the formalities were over we went downstairs to the Library Bar and Terrace where the party really kicked off with a variety of music you could dance to, again by Nick Trovas. There were so many people on the dance floor singing along to old and new classics which was exactly the atmosphere we were hoping for. We also had a photo-booth on the terrace which provided a lot of laughs throughout the night and entertainment for Brodie and I as we looked through them all the next day. Our first dance was Ed Sheeran ‘Thinking out Loud'. We were going to cut to Michael Jackson ‘The way you make me feel' after a minute but this didn't end up happening and our loved ones were brought on stage before the MJ song so we did get to bust out our awesome moves. It was lots of fun though because everyone was on stage for ‘The way you make me feel' and it was so great to see everyone having such fun.
Which elements best reflect you as a couple? Is there any advice you’d like to share with future couples?
I think the whole wedding was us. We wanted everyone to have fun and relax – which is what we are about and that's exactly what happened. We got the formalities over quite quickly so there was plenty of time for dancing, talking and taking photos away from their tables. It might not be for everyone but it was totally us and our guests have all said they had a blast. Advice to futures brides and grooms would be to have fun and live in the moment. Don't forget to share in special moments with your new husband or wife during the day and evening so that you can take it all in.
VENDORS
Photographer: Mario Colli Photography // Cake Designer: Cake your Occassion // Dress Designer: Essence of Australia // Reception Venue: Hillstone St Lucia // DJ: Nick trovas // Floral Designer: The vintage flower box // Shoes:Zu Shoes // Submitted via Two Bright Lights
Written by Laurice Yanar, Creative Direction by Alejandra Baca-Rodriguez
