Tell us a little about yourselves!
Sarah likes to go to the gym, meal prep and crochet. Nathan cycles every week and likes photography. We’re a couple of many hobbies, none in common!
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
It was the perfect combination of coastal and country, views of the water and rolling green hills. Greyleigh had everything we needed – beautiful accommodation for the bridal party and our families, a lovely reception space and ceremony all in one spot. It was also far enough from Sydney to feel like destination wedding, but not too far (1.5 hours).
How many guests did you have?
130.
Tell us about your outfits.
For the bridal outfit, I [Sarah] wanted a simple silk dress and I decided to go custom-made with Penny from ARA Experience. I also wanted to add a bit of fun to the outfit and felt that I could do so with the veil. I found Tuyet who owns Oliva Oceana on Etsy who makes these beautiful, creative veils and went with a frilly style. My shoes were very comfy, and I went with a simple heel. For the groom’s outfit, Nathan wanted to go with a classic, black tuxedo. He also custom-made his, with Theodore.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
Balancing what to invest in and what we could DIY/save e.g. we invested a bit more in my wedding dress, but found affordable heels from Country Road and a reception dance dress on sale from Bec + Bridge. We omitted videography but spent a bit more with photography, and included livestreaming of ceremony. We repurposed ceremony flowers for the reception. Things like that. It was important to trust the vendors to do what they are there for – they know what they’re doing. It will all fall into place. And it did!
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
Faith, food and flowers. Our faith is very important to us and as Christians, we wanted the ceremony to reflect that. Our pastor explained the meaning of marriage in his sermon, Kalena Music sung two hymns and our vows were so special to us declaring our promise to one another in this context. We had feedback from guests mentioning they had a better understanding of marriage and it was a lovely ceremony. Food was so important. Everyone had to be well-fed, dietary requirements met and the meals to be delicious. Garnish Catering were absolutely amazing. A proud moment that everyone was raving about the food! Finally, florals. I love flowers and Stella from Fritillerie has the best eye. Her creations are stunning and though we kept it simple with a ceremony nest to keep the views as the highlight, she elevated everything from ceremony, reception and our bridal party florals. All I did was give her a colour palette and trusted her to do the rest. Stunning.
Any tips for couples getting married?
Even if one person has it all together, partners... please be as involved as possible! If you’re thinking about enquiring to vendors, just do it – don’t ask if you should. Collate the information and then discuss with each other. That helped so much. And a good spreadsheet.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
They were all amazing! We were so blessed. Firstly, our venue Greyleigh and staff were excellent. Venue co-ordinator was included for us and that usually just means a day-of coordinator but Katie was involved with the planning, co-ordinating with vendors, styling and set up of the day, and being the main point of contact for vendors so it meant that we as a couple could enjoy everything stress-free. If there was an issue, we didn’t know about it. Alex Jack (our photographer) was the most lovely on the day, made us feel comfortable in front of the camera and captured everything with a calm, relaxing nature, not feeling forced. We intentionally decided against videography, so our wedding photos were our priority. Alex was just the best! Jo from Garnish Catering assured us that there would be plenty of delicious food and the team delivered! It was ample, free-flowing food from canapes to mains, all night. Penny from ARA Experience is so patient and made the dress-making experience so lovely. There was no pressure to do a certain thing, she caters to your body types and ultimately wants the dress to be what you as a bride, wants it to be. She includes all fittings and alterations in her pricing so it was a great option for us. Kim Pham and Hair by Nhi Dao as hair and makeup artists were booked separately but they got along so well that it made the whole getting ready period so much fun. Kim is so talented, she did exactly what I envisioned – glowy, fresh makeup, and I just let her do her thing. Nhi is so good at what she does with hair, I went with simple Hollywood waves on my short hair and it stayed put the whole night with a lot of movement still. Kalena Music is so talented. She has the most gorgeous voice and played all the music we wanted and created such a fun, relaxing vibe during cocktail hour. Dan from Ultimate DJs was also amazing, he had everyone dancing all night, a great set up with speakers and lighting, and overall mood of the reception. Even our photobooth on the night was managed by Rod from Photobooth Studio and he was attentive, great with the kids who absolutely ransacked the prints and still had plenty left over at the end of the night.
Photographer : Alex Jack Photography @alexjack.photography | Ceremony + Reception Location : Greyleigh @greyleigh.kiama | Celebrant : Pastor Ferdinand Haratua | Entertainment : Kalena Music , Ultimate DJs (Dan Searle)@kelanamusic_ @ultimatedjs.com.au | Planner : The couple (mainly Sarah!), and Katie from Greyleigh | Hire : South Coast Party Hire @southcoastpartyhire | Floral Styling : Fritillerie @fritillerie | Makeup : Kim Pham @kimkpham | Hair : Hair by Nhi Dao @hairbynhidao | Catering : Garnish Catering @garnish_catering | Beverages : Henry Clive Bar @Henryclivecaravanbar | Cake : Flour and Stone @flourandstone | Stationery : DIY – designed by Bride's sister | Photo Booth : Photobooth Studio @openphotoboothstudio | Livestream : Casey Morton @caseymortonphoto | Wedding Dress: ARA Experience @araexperience | Reception Dress : Bec + Bridge @becandbridge | Groom's Tux: Theodore @thdr | Engagement + Wedding Rings : Family Jeweller | Bride's Shoes : Country Road | Groom's Shoes : Florsheim | Veil : Oliva Oceana @olivaoceana | Bridesmaid's Dress: Shona Joy @shonajoy