Today’s real wedding deliciousness comes to us courtesy of the lovely Ally and Sam, who waited three years between the ‘yes, I will’ and the ‘I do’. “We were in New York for my parents’ 30th wedding anniversary,” Ally tells us. “Sam ended up proposing at the bottom of the Brooklyn Bridge surrounded by the most amazing greenery and fairy lights, in front of my mum, dad and brother (they were hiding in the bushes!).”
As a nurse, Ally’s been pretty dang busy with the whole global-pandemic thing, but when they did finally get a chance to get hitched, she and Sam called in the dream team, with One Spoon Two Spoon working the camera, Baker Boys Band on tunes and one of our fave celebrants, Love Leah, making the whole thing legal. Ally was obvs a total knockout in her Karen Willis Holmes gown and Amélie George earrings, and Sam and his groomsmen scrubbed up nicely in tuxes from Joe Black.
For these guys, marriage is about “being one another’s best friend”, they tell us. “It’s loving each other unconditionally and always making each other laugh.” So with that in mind, when it came to the big day, “We just wanted to encompass our love into the day surrounded by all our family and friends and I honestly feel that’s what we did.”
THE VENUE “We chose Terindah Estate because it encompassed us both as people. Sam had grown up by the beach in Anglesea and I honestly just love wine! The venue was sensational and ended up being an easy decision.”
THE DRESS “My dress was from Karen Willis Holmes. To be honest I went in thinking I wanted something very minimalistic, no patterns, very fitted and with a low back. I went to lots of shops in Armadale and just fell in love with the girl from KWH. When I initially tried my dress on I actually didn’t like it! It wasn’t until I saw it on another bride that I saw it for the beautiful dress it was (even though I had thought lace was not for me!).
THE SUIT “Sam and the groomsmen’s suit were great, Joe Black did an amazing job tailoring them to all the different sizes for the boys. On top of this, they were able to turn around all the tailoring within four weeks, which was a super effort. We went for a classic black tux so that the suits wouldn’t ever date.”
REFERENCES “When I first got engaged almost three years ago now, my mum bought me Hello May magazine. Reading about real weddings and going on the website inspired me. In today’s society we get so stuck into social media. We see the money and time some influencers are lucky enough to get gifted (or for a cheaper price), bridal gowns made and their dream receptions come true and it feels like a fake expectation we need to meet. Hello May, especially the blog, didn’t do that – it showed me that our expectations or dreams can come true, no matter how big or small the budget may be.”
MEMORABLE MOMENT “For both of us, our favourite memory was seeing each other down the aisle for the first time. I had unexpectedly felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety in the lead-up on the day. I’d been a pretty ‘go with the flow’ bride but the morning of, I think the past two years caught up with me – the delay of the wedding, the death of my grandy and Sam’s grandparents, plus working on the frontline of the pandemic… it really all got to me that day. But when I saw his face at the end of the aisle, all my anxieties went away. I want to let other people know that it’s normal to not feel okay. But once you see your person, all of those feelings go away. To me, that was the magic.”
COOL CUSTOM “We had a chair reserved in the front row that said “ in loving memory of our loved ones who are in heaven watching over us” and had two pink roses on the chair. We knew they were there with us the whole day.”
A WORD OF ADVICE… “Don’t stress about the small stuff! I was so concerned about how the tables were going to look and how the flowers would turn out but at the end of the day, one, the vendors have your back and two you will honestly not even notice it on the day! You are so swept up in love it is amazing and the best feeling.”
STANDOUT VENDORS “The dream three-team, as I call them – our celebrant Leah of Love Leah, our photographer Hailey from One Spoon Two Spoon and our videographers Annette + Dani had all worked together before and made our day so perfect. They captured us for who we are and are forever grateful to them for doing so. And of course Terindah Estate, Jo from Truffleduck and our florists, Brianna and Courtney from Lowevly Flowers & Events.”
There’s a whole bunch of great vendor recs over on our directory, and if you’re feeling inspired by Ally and Sam’s big day, we suggest you hit up camera geniuses One Spoon Two Spoon, amazing musos Baker Boys Band and sweet celebrant Love Leah, asap. Then click on over to Karen Willis Holmes, Amélie George and Joe Black to get your ‘fits sorted, stat.
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer One Spoon Two Spoon Cinematographer Annette + Dani Event Planner & Catering Truffleduck Florist Lowevly Flowers & Events Stationery & Signage Tori Kraut Designs via Etsy, Pearly Paper Design via Etsy Printer Kwik Kopy Ceremony & Reception Terindah Estate Cake Baked ‘Em Hire Items & Lighting Memphis Hire (fairy lights) Entertainment & Sound Hire Baker Boys Band Celebrant Love Leah Rings Robert. H. Parker & Sons (groom) Transport Coachhire.com.au THE BRIDE Gown Karen Willis Holmes Getting-ready loungewear All Things Nice Shoes Bared Footwear Bracelet By Charlotte Earrings Amélie George Hair & Makeup Blondie Fragrance Georgio Armani Sì Bridesmaid dresses Shona Joy Bridesmaid shoes Jo Mercer Bridesmaid gifts Francesca THE GROOM Suit & Bow Tie Joe Black Cufflinks Mens Suit Warehouse Shoes McCloud Shoes Watch Tissot via Swiss Emporium Groomsmen suits & gifts Joe Black
