Tell us a little about yourselves!
After hours of chatting on the dating app Hinge, we met for our first date after work at a bar in London where West End singers served drinks and jumped up on tables to break out in song. It was the best first date of both of our lives. We later found out that we had both texted someone that evening telling them that we were in love with the person we were on a date with right now.
Dave is from the UK and has lived in London for 10 years. I’m from New Zealand and we met 6 weeks in to my 2 year working visa, and now 3.5 years later we are renovating a Victorian Terrace in East London together.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
This was the third wedding we had planned due to the pandemic, and to be honest we just wanted to get it out of the way. It ended up being the best day of our lives. It’s amazing what can happen when you just stop caring and you have 3 weeks to plan! It looked nothing like the wedding we originally planned - but it was just perfect.
Plan C was meant to be simple. Turns out we can’t do simple! We held our ceremony at a church in Clevedon, New Zealand. My family had donated the land to the church in the mid 1800s, it is rooted in family history so it was really special.
The Garden Party at The Farmhouse Deli was down the road from the church and it had a beautiful garden for us to fill with friends, family, and food! The food there is delicious, local, seasonal and sustainable which is really important to us.
The Hotel Britomart is absolutely gorgeous. We booked a suite for a few nights and all got ready there on the morning of the wedding then made our way back for the dinner.
We were the first wedding they had hosted and they went all out to make the evening perfect for us.
We fell in love over restaurant tables and our mutual love of exploring new places, food and wine so the meal was really important. We wanted it to feel like we were out at a top restaurant with our friends and family. The Lounge at Hotel Britomart has a beautiful, cosy feel and again, their restaurant Kingi champions sustainability in their cooking. It was perfect for us and one of the most delicious meals served family style!
How many guests did you have?
We had 50 guests to the ceremony and the garden party then an intimate group of 20 to our dinner at The Hotel Britomart.
We downsized our wedding quite a lot which meant we could afford little touches of luxury, like champagne and oysters at our garden party reception.
Dave’s friends and family unfortunately couldn’t travel over from the UK due to travel restrictions. We grieved their absence at the celebration throughout the whole planning process - though a great excuse to throw another party now we’re back in the UK!
Tell us about your outfits.
Dave wanted a classic look so had his tuxedo tailor made for him at Crane Brothers in Auckland. Dave got measured up for the tux in 2019, in anticipation of our 2020 wedding. It was more than 2 years until he actually got to wear it on our wedding day, and he just managed to squeeze into it after a lockdown diet! The dress I landed on was the 3rd dress I had bought, with changing plans my vision of what I wanted to wear changed too. I fell in love with the timeless look of the Enzoani, Marla dress I wore. I had it fitted to me at Kenny and Harlow Bridal in Auckland and they did an amazing job. My beautiful veil also came from Kenny and Harlow Bridal. The pearl necklace and pearl earrings I wore were made by me. I also made the bridesmaid’s jewellery on the morning of the wedding! For my second look I wanted something super fun and modern. What’s more fun than a mini dress and ostrich feathers! My mum added the feathers on the dress and blazer. It was the perfect dress to dance the night away in.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
It was really important to us that our wedding reflected our love for our family and our love for great food and wine. We also made sure we had the absolute best photographers! Cam and Julia (Haute Weddings) know what they’re doing, they’re the best at capturing the most special and fun moments. You spend a lot of time with your wedding photographers and they are just so fun! (They’re also my brother and sister in law, but I’m not the least bit biased - they really are the best). Even though Dave’s family couldn’t be there in person, we had them live-streamed in and made sure they felt part of the day as much as we could.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
What made the day really special was walking down the aisle at All Souls Anglican Church in Clevedon. My Grandad was recently buried right outside the church so we lay flowers down for him after the ceremony.
Any tips for couples getting married, particularly during the pandemic?
For us, it was really important to remember to do what we wanted to do, not what we thought people expected us to do. It’s a hard boundary to push across but it’s worth it. Getting married during the pandemic actually allowed us to be able to break down some of these expectations, because we couldn’t have a ‘normal’ wedding. It’s the perfect time to break traditions!
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
Have I mentioned our wedding photographers? Haute Weddings’ style is ethereal yet playful and we are going to treasure our photos forever. The Farmhouse Deli and The Hotel Britomart were both fantastic to us and we can highly recommend both! Their commitment to sustainability made them an easy choice for us as it is something we value. Toast with Tiki made our day super fun! Tuki was a tuktuk mobile bar at our Garden Party. Our guests served themselves from the champagne bar at the back and the beer taps on the side. It helped make our day super fun. They are fantastic to work with too.
Photographer : Haute Weddings @haute.weddings | Videographer : Wild Souls @wildsoulsnz | Livestream : Wedding Cast @weddingcastnz | Ceremony Location : Anglican Parish of Clevedon, All Souls Church | Reception Location 1: The Farmhouse Deli @thefarmhousenz | Reception Location 2 : The Hotel Britomart @thehotelbritomart | Celebrant : Reverend Sarah Park | Hire : Mobile Bar Toast with Tiki, Rent for Events + The Pretty Prop Shop @toastwithtuki @rentforeventsnz @theprettypropshop | Flora : Print and Petal @thisfloralmessXprintandpetal | HMUA : The Peach Club @thepeach_club | Catering + Beverages : The Farmhouse Deli @thefarmhousenz, Hallertau beer @hallertau_nz, Man O War wine @manowarwine + The Hotel Britomart @thehotelbritomart | Cake : The Caker @thecakernz | Alyssa's First Dress : Enzoani @enzoani | Veil : Kenny and Harlow @kennyandharlowbridal | Alyssa's Second Dress : Zara @zara with Blazer from Asos Bridal @asos | Groom’s Tuxedo + Shoes : Crane Brothers @cranebrothers | Rings : Naveya + Slone @naveyaandsloanejewellery | Alyssa's Shoes : Dior @dior + Sol Sana @solsanashoes | Other Jewellery : Dave’s late grandmother’s diamond and amethyst bracelet and all other jewellery handmade by Alyssa | Wedding Party Attire : Dissh @dissh and Marle @marle with jewellery made by Alyssa