Ooooft, Dan and Kathy know how to have a good time! “Partners in crime” since 2016, the pair aptly described their nuptials as a “Love party,” adding that to them, marriage is all about growing and adventuring through life together. “It doesn’t matter what’s going on in life or what we do, as long as we do it together” (aww!).
Dan is a graphic designer, and Kathy is a photographer, so as you can imagine there were plenty of shmick-o aesthetic and intentional details, like the Pantone Colour of the Year-inspired pallet, hand-calved spoons, and some “wonderfully weird” pre-ceremony portraits. “Quintessentially Melbourne” locale Rupert on Rupert was where the party went down, but not before the bride and groom prepped with a sneaky Macca’s breaky, resulting in some fun-with-a-capital-F pics snapped by legendary Hey Babe Photography. This one’s gunna make you smile BIG, and it’s all below.
THE PROPOSAL “[During our] first trip to Japan and Korea together, I had planned a day of activities with Kathy, including a trip through a food market with a local guide, meeting up our best friends in Seoul, and dinner at L’atelier Comte where we had a “One Table Dinner” prepared. The chef greeted us and cooked us a French-Korean fusion degustation – very intimate and romantic. When Kathy was in the bathroom, the tour guide told me he would dim the lights and make himself scarce shortly before serving dessert. Just as I got on one knee, an instrumental cover of “Moon River”, one of our favourite songs, started playing, and we ended up featuring it on our wedding day. It was totally magical.”
THE VENUE “We were looking for a venue that wasn’t too pretentious, and we’re big indoor plant lovers. When we walked into Rupert on Rupert, it felt quintessentially Melbourne (we love this city so much!). We fell in love with the large open windows and greenery everywhere. Gorgeous and also was a bit quirky, just like us.”
FAVE DETAILS “In terms of my favourite moment? 100% the reading of our vows. We worked with our celebrant to write something that we felt was authentic and really spoke from the heart and to how we’ve both changed each other’s lives for the better over the last seven years – it was just such a beautiful moment *cries*. Details from the day I felt really popped were our flowers and the hanging arch with candles (provided by Rupert on Rupert). Also, our cake! Mali Bakes cakes are so iconic, and I love that we got pictures of us feeding our friends this beautiful cake.” (Dan) “It felt like there was so much love in that room. The people we had there made it so easy to just relax and be ourselves. I loved the fashion; it was so much fun getting so much stuff tailor-made, and both Kat’s and my outfits looked so fire! Plus, that flower arch made for some truly epic photos which we’ve adorned our home with!”
DIY “I (Dan) wanted to make our website, wedding invitations and menus – specifically, letterpress wedding invitations from The Hungry Workshop! With my background in graphic design and letterpress, I was obsessed with getting them right, and they took much longer than Kathy might have liked ;). But the finished product was amazing. We also wanted to include something meaningful that we could make each other, so we both hand-carved ‘love spoons’ from scratch and exchanged them during our ceremony!”
THE DRESS “I wish every experience could be magical from the day, but I think being a girly who doesn’t fit into traditional sizing was really hard. I went to a lot of fittings where places just didn’t have anything in my size to even try on. This is my call for wedding dress brands to be more inclusive! I wanted something short with a big bow and a mod ‘60s vibe. I ended up getting a custom dress (which is so much harder than you think! Gosh, I am not a fashion designer haha) and fell in love with the dress from Odd Muse when I saw some beautiful photos on Pinterest.”
STANDOUT VENDOR “Hey Babe Photography was just so amazing, from the getting ready shots and footage to the shots she got of us at Chotto Motto for our pre-wedding shoot, which just turned out so amazing. We asked if we could get more natural, candid shots that really captured the joy and Alysha smashed it! Also, our Celebrant, Shannon Mann was incredible, guiding us through a process of writing vows that spoke so well to our love for each other. Reciting our vows ended up being our favourite part of the day.
If you want your wedding portraits to be a no-forced-pose-zone, Hey Babe Photography is the perfect fit! Or click here to get chatting with Rupert on Rupert (aka every green thumb’s fave venue) about your dream inner-city Melbourne nups. Got a cozy indoor ceremony on the cards? Get inspired with these gorg indoor styling ideas.
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Hey Babe Photography Cinematographer John Kurt Event Planner & Stylist Kathy My-Hanh Nguyen & Daniel Clarke (Bride & Groom) Florist Style Me Flowers (Family & Friend) Stationery Daniel Clarke (Groom) Printer The Hungry Workshop Accommodation Airbnb Pre-Ceremony Shoot Location Chotto Motto Venue, Catering & Signage Rupert on Rupert Cake Maker Mali Bakes Fortune Cookie Wedding Favours Raymond Tan from Raya Photo Booth & Entertainment Heartbreak Hotel Celebrant Shannon Mann – Ceremony Collaborative Rings Scarlett Jewellery Label THE BRIDE Bridal Gown Designer Designer Bridal House Second Dress Odd Muse Shoes Amina Muaddi via David Jones Hair & Makeup Kate McKay (Family & Friend) Fragrance/Perfume Narciso Rodriguez THE GROOM Suit, Jacket, Shirt, Pants & Bow Tie Trunk Suspenders Charles Tyrwhitt Cufflinks OTAA Shoes Aquila via Myer Watch Casio via Universal Store Barber/Grooming All the Kings Men Groomsmen Suits Isadora Nim
