When Nathan proposed to Rachael, it was a total shock, she tells us. “We got engaged on our 5th anniversary. I had spent all my time organising fun events for us while Nathan had other plans! He proposed during a break between our lunch and dinner cocktails in our room at QT Melbourne. I was trying to have a nap when he sprung it on me!”
Ofc, she said yes, and as it turned out, lockdowns forcing a change of date were a blessing in disguise for this pair. “It actually allowed us to book awesome vendors (Miss Trixie and Caravan Sounds) that were unavailable on our initial date,” they say. And speaking of awesome vendors, these folks really did lock down some of the best. Be Here Be Now Photos & Films took the incredible photos, Gather Round Events Co. prettied the place up (we’re talking festoon lighting, bench seeing and that phenom teepee), Georgia Young Couture took care of the heavenly dress, and Gibson Clothing got Nathan looking dapper as heck. What a team!
THE THEME “Fun and 100% true to who we both are. A bit like a festival of us – festivus! We didn’t believe that many of the typical traditions needed to happen as they just weren’t ‘us’ and didn’t have any importance to us. We wanted colour, dancing, beer and, of course, being with a bunch of our favourite people.”
FAVE DETAILS “The giant cut-outs of our heads to let guests know they were at the correct venue! Our beer selection – one of the main reasons we wanted to have our day at a private property was so we could have the beers we liked without the obligation from a venue. We both love boutique beers and enjoy visiting breweries, so it was another way we implemented our interests and made our day our own. And when we go out for beers, we like to pair it with a good pizza, and Happy Camper Pizza were just amazing to deal with. Also, we couldn’t possibly have gotten married without our ‘baby’ (dog!) Arlowe there as well as my (Rachael’s) family dog, Ted. Very important ‘people’ in our lives.”
THE DRESS “I always knew I wanted a Georgia Young Couture dress. I’ve watched her work over the years and knew she was the right amount of unique, modern, yet bridal that I was after. The gown I picked wasn’t something I would have expected for myself – it had lace! But I loved it and still do. I love the bow on the back (very me) and paired up with a short veil and Barbie pink shoes.”
THE SUIT “The hardest part of finding my suit was searching for a white shirt with black buttons as there are none around! After hunting around at many shops, we finally found one at Gibson Clothing.”
WE’RE GLAD WE… “We chose to do our vows privately less than a week before the date. We saw on our photographer Christian’s Instagram that he had shot a couple doing it and were both more comfortable with the idea. It allowed us to have ‘more natural’ vows, as we felt like we were initially writing them for an audience. Reading them to just each other made it more special and was a nice moment during the hectic day, where we were able to escape together and be alone.”
STANDOUT VENDORS “Christian and Shani of Be Here Be Now Photos & Films really are the wedding ‘spirit guides’. We were relatively naïve to planning a wedding and doing it from scratch meant we had lots of questions and completely no understanding of some aspects of the day. They were able to answer our questions, offer advice and really are just the best people. Josh and his crew from Gather Round Events Co. created the centrepiece of our outdoor wedding and were a pleasure to deal with.”
Now, about those phenom vendors… it couldn’t be easier to get in touch with a couple of our faves over on our directory. You’ll find Be Here Be Now Photo & Films and Gibson Clothing over there, ready and waiting to make your big day the flippin’ best!
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Be Here Be Now Photos & Films Florist Gisborne Cottage Flowers Stationery Greenvelope Ceremony & Reception Family property Catering Happy Camper Pizza Cake Miss Trixie Hire Items Always Eventive (sofa sets, barrels, rugs, easels), Well Played Lawn Games, Gather Round Events Co. (benches), Teepee Peninsula Tipi Co. via Gather Round Lighting Hire Gather Round (festoon lighting) Sound Hire Caravan Sounds Signage CJ Party Hire Entertainment Sarah via Hey Jack (ceremony), Caravan Sounds (reception) Celebrant You’ve Got The Love Rings William Édoudard THE BRIDE Gown & Veil Georgia Young Couture Shoes Nine West Accessories Elk Hair Jazmin Hair & Makeup Design Makeup Jonathon Thorpe Fragrance Dior Miss Dior Bridesmaid dresses DISSH THE GROOM CREDITS Jacket Jack London Shirt & Pants Gibson Shoes Arturo Watch The Horse
