Unlike most couples, Sarskia and Bill (of the Real Wedding Special) turned to an unlikely source to choose the date of their wedding. £Bill’s family used a Chinese Farmer’s Almanac (Chinese Fortune Calendar) to determine the auspicious days to get married on. They believe that if we get married on a good’ date then it would provide us with good fortune for our marriage and vice versa if it were a bad date. Bill’s grandma was flickering frantically through this book on the dates we gave her and pretty much gave us the yes or no laughs Sarskia.
Once the date was settled with an 11 month long wait ahead of them, Sarskia and Bill utilised the talents of their generous friends and family to create their incredible DIY wedding. The candles, platforms, invites, menus, styling and the entire execution of the celebration were all one big do-it-yourself collaboration.
£Supporting local creatives and friends was really important to us, so we asked people we knew to fill the rest of the roles in our day. We are lucky to know some very clever people who are the best at what they offer. There was no aspect of the day that wasn’t exactly as I would have dreamed of, and it was just so much more special to be able to involve so many amazing friends, explains Sarskia, who was more than pleased with their capable crew of vendors, including Le Fleur (who handled the bridesmaid bouquets, groomsmen boutonniû?re’s, mother-in-law corsages and father-in-law boutonniû?re’s), Miss Daisy (creator of the bridal bouquet, groom’s boutonniû?re and front-of-aisle flowers), Hazel Hayes and Chrissy Cakes. Miss Daisy was the.
Destination wedding photographer (and all round nice human being) Danelle Bohane, especially, made quite the impression on the bride and groom. £We fell in love with the storytelling aspect of her work and how every one of her images looked like a work of art in itself. We had to make sacrifices in order to be able to justify the cost, but as creatives we knew that amazing photography was a non-negotiable for us. Her and Dirk were incredible on the day – we just carried on as we usually would have and they put together the most amazing collection of images for us.
While Sarskia and Bill’s special day included a traditional Chinese tea ceremony, a stunning Rue De Seine gown, and an amazing European/Asian fusion menu, the pair were humbled when they took a moment to reflect. £The day went by so fast it was a blur from getting ready to standing up at the altar, to dancing the night away after the reception. It was so special just having our own moment travelling to each location on the day because it allowed us to stop, pause and take everything in especially after the stress of it all.
To see more beautiful weddings like this one, pick up Issue 12 on sale now.
CREDITS Photos Danelle Bohane // Bridal gown and veil Rue De Seine // Robes Willa & Mae // Shoes Bella Boutique // Accessories Meadowlark and Karen Walker // Hair Little Hair Co. // Makeup Marnie Jade Makeup // Rings Naveya & Sloane and Tungsten Atlantic // Bridesmaid dresses Stolen Girlfriends Club // Bridesmaid shoes Wild Pair // Groom and groomsmen suits, tie and cufflinks Hallensteins // Shoes Country Road // Socks Barkers // Watch The Horse // Barber/grooming Fox Kennedy Barbers // Florist Le Fleur and Miss Daisy // Stationery and signage Loryn Englesman Illustration // Printer CMYK Hamilton // Ceremony The TreeChurch, NZ // Reception Cambridge Town Hall, NZ // Catering Hazel Hayes // Cake Chrissy Cakes // Decorative elements Flo and Frankie // Prop and furniture hire Blakes //
Sound hire Zeal // Entertainment Dujon Cullingford // Cinematographer ShaunPaulcreative.
