“Marriage for us is really all about having an adventure buddy for life. And almost everything we do together feels like an adventure, even when we’re driving around Sydney scouting out the best place to get a coffee on a Sunday afternoon”, says these two sweet lovers who have been together for eight years. Their biggest adventure yet? This exceptionally haute couture day. Capturing it all was the talented Damien Milan. Scroll down for some autumnal gold…
THE VENUE “Originally Blake and I wanted to get married in Europe. Unfortunately, this wasn’t going to be easy for friends and family, so we decided to celebrate in Australia. We picked Redleaf because it looked a lot like the venue we had planned on booking in Italy. Blake and I had actually driven onto its grounds years and years ago when it used to be a lavender farm. It was the first and only venue we looked at, and we knew we’d be booking it before we even formally viewed it.”
THE VIBE “Blake and I definitely had a clear vision from the very beginning. We never wanted to have a really traditional wedding – for starters, we knew that I wouldn’t be wearing a white dress. What we really wanted to do was share all the things that we love with all of our favourite people. So we tried to create a beautiful, relaxing garden party with plenty of good music, lovely wine and delicious food. Were we inspired by scenes in The Talented Mr. Ripley, A Year in Provence and Under the Tuscan Sun? Definitely.”
FAVOURITE DETAILS “There are so many, but we loved our invites which were designed by Lucy Tann from Mullo Studio up in Mullumbimby. She hand-drew illustrations and used lots of gorgeous details like embossed type and gold foil. She’s incredibly talented.”
FAVOURITE MOMENT “There are too many to count, but singing Wonderwall by Oasis with everyone as our last song and being surrounded and squished by everyone as they sang was a pretty special moment. Literally everyone was singing at the top of their lungs and it’s something we’ll never forget.”
A TOUCH OF TRADITION “My mum initially wanted to walk down the aisle with my dad, but she was worried she would fall. That morning, we decided she would wait with Blake at the end of the aisle. I’d never planned on having bridesmaids, but two of my close friends happened to be wearing very similar dresses, so we grabbed some loose roses from our stylist, and they walked down the aisle ahead of me to give the roses to my mum. It was a great way for her to still be included in giving me away.”
LITTLE LOL “We also had Channel 10 at our wedding for a couple of hours. It was the day of the Federal Election and they were covering what people all over Australia were doing on the day. I was a bit apprehensive at first, but they were super discreet and were greatly entertaing for our guests.”
STANDOUT VENDORS “Our photographers Damien and Anastasia were really amazing – I could gush for hours. They are true artists, and every time I spotted them they had huge smiles on their faces and were always displaying gratitude – you can tell that they really love what they do.”
Fancy taking a look at more Damien Milan goodness? Click here for a whole heap of real weddings as well as contact deets. We particularly loved Kathryn & Simon’s Berry wedding which you can find here. But first, scroll down for the coloured gown of the century…
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Damien Milan Cinematographer Yesterday Videography Stylist & Florist Style Anarchy Invites Mullo Studio Place Cards & Signage Him and I Designs Printer Fast Printing Venue Redleaf Catering Fennel & Co Hire Items Party Hire Co Entertainment Silent Shout Celebrant Hitched in the Hunter Rings Anna Sheffield Transport Mystwood Retreats Portable Bathrooms Luxury Portable Toilets Wine Mount Pleasant Wines BRIDE Dress Dolce & Gabbana Shoes Stuart Weitzman Earrings Forever Vintage Hair & Makeup Georgia Belle Artistry GROOM Suit, Bowtie & Cufflinks Joe Button Shoes Undandy Watch Tommy Hilfiger Barber Mister Chop Shop Grooming Georgia Belle Artistry