On a nondescript Thursday evening, in the living room of their Adelaide apartment, Jemma and Felix decided to make their first date dreams a reality and were officially engaged (with a Grew & Co ring, no less). “We shared a bottle of champagne and then went to a Paul Kelly gig. It was blissful”, Jemma shares. After a fifteen-month engagement, the duo tied the knot in what they describe as the country hoedown of their dreams. With Liv Lundelius on makeup and Beck Rocchi Photography snapping away, the day was a complete and utter cruise fest. Scroll down for inspo galore…
THE VENUE “Mount Vernon is Felix’s family home. It was agreed at a very early stage that if we ever got married, it would be at Mount Vernon. By ‘very early stage’, I think it was our first date. The property is of great significance to Felix and his family. Both Felix and his brother, Edward, spent much of their childhood growing up at Mount Vernon and Barrie and Helen (Felix’s parents) still live there with their three Hungarian Vizlas: Floyd, Lily and Ella. Helen and Barrie’s regular dinner parties and cellar sessions hosted at Mount Vernon are infamous. In the months before the wedding, my parents came out and stayed out at Mount Vernon with us and Barrie and Helen. We were very excited to share Mount Vernon with everyone who had not yet had the pleasure.”
FAVOURITE DETAILS “The warm hues of the florals, the golden Midlands fields, the burnt orange homestead. A great deal of the live and dried foliage was foraged from Mount Vernon and surrounds including bracken, thistles, eucalyptus and hawthorn berries. The colours and textures were reminiscent of our long walks in the back-blocks of Mount Vernon.”
DIY “Our wedding was a DIY paradise. To name but a few: we made our arbour from found objects in Barrie’s shed, drinks were served on ice in old horse troughs and an old dinghy and we constructed a makeshift gentleman’s pissoir overlooking the Southern Midlands.”
LITTLE LOL “We thought that we would keep the guest list numbers down by having the wedding in Tasmania. We have lived and worked in Adelaide for years and the majority of our guests are based on the mainland. As it turns out, everyone was looking for an excuse to visit Tasmania.”
FAVOURITE MOMENT “Our ceremony was other-worldly. There was mist rolling down Southern Midlands valley with Quoin Bluff poking through in the distance. We had Felix’s brother Edward commence our ceremony with a Welcome to Country and an introduction which explained some history of the Mount Vernon property and the significance of Mount Vernon to Felix’s family. We then had a dear friend of ours, Elsa, introduce us. We had our families in the front rows. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
A TOUCH OF TRADITION “Upon arrival guests were served ‘Sly Cats’. A ‘Sly Cat’ is Felix’s specialty drink which combines Barrie’s Mount Vernon aged muscat mixed with sparkling water. Anyone who has visited our apartment in Adelaide after midnight would have had a ‘Sly Cat’ forced upon them by Felix. Best enjoyed whilst wearing faux fur.”
WE’RE GLAD WE “We were so very glad that we wrote our own ceremony. We both felt strongly about penning our own vows and we revelled in exchanging them in front of all of our nearest and dearest.”
This floral-filled fantasy was originally published in Issue 26 of Hello May mag. You can nab yourself a copy (and a free gift!) here. If you are after contact details and more real weddings, click through for Beck Rocchi Photography, Grew & Co and Liv Lundelius. But first, there is a whole heap of foraged florals to peep below…
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Beck Rocchi Photography Florist Botanica Bird Stationery Alena Berger (save the dates), Wide Eyes Paper Co (invitations) Venue Private Property Catering Hubert + Dan, The Wood Fiery Red Head Desserts Lady Hester, Pav-lovas, Raw Indulgence, Blackmans Bay Oyster Butlers Bar Events with Audrey Hire Items Ash + Brad Bespoke Marquee Salters Entertainment String Space, Ani and Harry, Lagoon Hill Zydeco, Maxitronix Celebrant Sentiments de l’amour Rings Grew & Co (bride), Utopian Creations (groom) BRIDE Dress J’Aton Couture Shoes Salvatore Ferragamo Dancing Shoes Mara & Mine Earrings Louise Olsen x Alex and Trahanas Makeup Liv Lundelius Makeup GROOM Jacket Insitchu Shirt & Pants M.J. Bale Bow Tie Tie Bar Shoes Loake
