It’s time to hop on your bike, as we take you on a leisurely journey back to issue six, where we first met Jolie + Jerem – a pair whose wedding, captured by legendary photographer Shane Shepherd, really was one-of-a-kind.
Jolie and Jerem are proof there really is such a thing as love at first sight’, or at the very least, love at first bike ride. As Jolie tells us £a friend of ours used to organise a bike ride every year. I met Jerem on the first ever Tour de White Pantera’, and at the end of the night, with no romantic intentions laid, Jerem told me in a very matter of fact way that one day he would marry me. I of course laughed it off. But I guess it’s him who gets the last laugh on this one!
Four years later they partook in another bike ride with about 50 mates. Jolie says £At the end of the ride he invited me to the exact spot on Burleigh Point where he had mentioned his marital intentions four years prior and proceeded to spoil me with a ridiculously romantic proposal. So in following suit, it was only right for them to marry on a bike too. £We just had to trust that our friends knew us and would jump on board with (another) one of our crazy plans? In the end, we were really surprised. Out of 120 guests, over 100 people got on bikes, even parents and grandparents rocked out on two wheels.
As Jolie and Jerem were living overseas in the lead up to their wedding, the quirks didn’t end there. £One thing we did, which we knew was ridiculous from start to finish, but totally worth it, was our wine. We spent two blurry days with friends in Paris trying every wine on our shortlist. We ended up with quite a few boxes of delicious red from the Bourgueil region which blew anything we’d tasted at home out of the water. says Jolie, who realised the only problem then was how to get it home.
Strategically leaving Jerem to sort logistics (who carefully packed the wine in their checked luggage to find only three had smashed at the other end), Jolie met with Parisian designer Julie Dieudonne to create her dream dress, made primarily from fabric she’d sourced at an op shop in Australia. £I was really attached to this beautiful cotton flocked chiffon, I carried it on all of our travels in case’ I could ever use it. Yes, it was ridiculous trying to hide that from my future husband in my backpack! With the dress complete and Jolie’s makeup artist Elina Valttila of EV Hair and Makeup, it was finally time to return to Australia with only three weeks to go until their wedding day.
Jolie and Jerem were so excited to be spending time with family and friends they decided that a one-day wedding just wasn’t going to work. £It didn’t feel right to have such a short event for our wedding. The old arrive at 3pm, get out of here by midnight’ thing didn’t really work for us. Instead we took over two venues and started on Friday night and finished on Sunday night.
£Being quintessential stingy creative types, our whole wedding was very DIY explains Jolie. £We had so many little things that didn’t work out exactly as planned but we really didn’t care. The most important thing was the vows we shared. Everything else was a bonus.
CREDITS Photos Shane Shepherd // Bridal gown Julie Dieudonnû? // Flowers Brisbane Flower Markets // Floral arrangements and custom beer labels No Agency // Hair Crown and Glory and EV Hair and Makeup // Grooms suit Uniqlo (pants), Next (vest) and Kenji via Myer (shirt) // Bow ties By Sunny via Etsy // Celebrant Inner Circle Ceremonies // Ceremony Attunga Park, QLD // Reception Gunnebah Retreat, QLD // Catering and cake Progressive Catering // Beer Pickled Pig Brewery // Bike hire Get On Your Bike // Music Karl S. Williams and A French Butler Called Smith // Invitations Wix.