HAYLEY & BRENDAN'S BRISBANE WEDDING

In planning their mini Brisbane wedding, Hayley and Brendan’s golden rule was this: if anything got too stressful, they’d call on their team of wedding pros for support, or the offending idea would simply get scrapped. Advice to get married (and live) by, don’t you think?

It may have been small in size, but this celebration had heart in spades, with the ceremony led by the fab Danielle of Your Story Celebrant. A petite guest list of 20 gathered at The Calile Hotel for the ceremony, before sitting down to a relaxed “dinner party with no strict agenda”.

Don’t ask us to pick a favourite between Hayley’s two modern, minimalist bridal looks; it’s impossible. Meanwhile, the groom, looking equally chic, told us that M.J. Bale made getting dressed feel almost too easy.

Brendan Back was behind the camera, or should we say cameras, capturing the day digitally AND on film (because he’s just that good!) Scroll on; Hayley and Brendan’s masterclass in micro-marrying is below.

THE VENUE “Our wedding venue choice came about [due to] a last-minute attempt to move the wedding to Queensland. The Calile felt like the perfect venue for the wedding we wanted, and we couldn’t be happier with how it all worked out. Its modern, minimalist aesthetic was perfect for us. We felt as though we could lean into the hotel’s style and keep everything else stripped back. The Calile Suite also offered the perfect space for our group. The private rooftop terrace was intimate, yet open and airy as it overlooked the city, and being a winter wedding, we all got to retreat to the suite for champagne and canapés before dinner.”

FAVE DETAILS “The florals and dinner styling were by far our favourite details. We had originally planned to do florals ourselves, but as the day got closer, we quickly realised it wasn’t as straightforward as we would have liked. By coincidence, I stumbled across an Instagram post where Fronta Floral has styled the private dining at Biànca, where our reception was. [It was two] weeks before the wedding, and we knew we needed to ditch our DIY plan and reach out . It was a Sunday morning and Davina responded to me within minutes. We let Davina take full creative license, which meant the styling was a complete surprise for everyone, including us!.”

THE DRESS “I had my eye on two Lola Varma gowns from the very early days of getting engaged. It was really just a matter of sourcing a bridal boutique to try them on, and luckily enough, Sphere Bridal Gallery had both. I took my mum with me to try on dresses and it was a beautiful experience.”

THE SUIT “I had no idea where to start looking or what style would suit me. M.J. Bale appealed to me as it was an Australian brand with clean, classic suits and tuxedos. I quickly ruled out the idea of a full tuxedo [and] moved on to a classic black suit. I felt comfortable, and it fit me off the track with no tailoring. It almost felt too easy, but I decided not to overthink it – it worked, and I went with it.”

REFERENCES “We found a lot of vendors through online directories and magazines, mostly through Hello May! I loved reading through real wedding stories, picking out the elements and details that stood out to us.”

STANDOUT VENDORS “Brendan Back, our amazing photographer, blew us away and brought so much extra energy to the day. His photographic style suited us perfectly and when we requested to have a roll shot on black and white film, he was more than happy to do this for us. The film photos will always be my favourite photographs from the day.”

Hayley and Brendan’s Brisbane wedding first appeared in the Wedding Planning Guide, shop it here. Dive into more ‘I do’s shot by Brendan Back here on the Hello May Directory. Click here to have Danielle of Your Story Celebrant officiate your vows. And click here to explore more of the effortlessly elegant Calile Hotel. Suit up with M.J. Bale here or scroll this way for more bridal accessories we’re loving right now. But first…