Elegant Garden Wedding {Tim Pascoe}

Today's wedding is rather special to me as Hayley & Troy were clients of mine from Australia (although Hayley's a kiwi). And super lovely clients of mine at that. I haven't actually met Hayley but I hope to at some point, instead I met Troy when he'd fly over to NZ for business... and I have to say he's seriously one of the nicest grooms I've had the pleasure of working with and they were just such a delight to work for. They choose the Aviary suite in a fun chartreuse green & grey combo (you can see the post I did on their stationery here). and I got to do my first 'tree guestbook' which was fun! Their gorgeous wedding took place at Hopewood Country House in NSW and these fabulous photos are by Tim Pascoe.

Tell us about your dress?
Alex Perry (“Cindy” – ready to wear range) This dress was so amazing to wear! I originally wasn’t going for the big dress style, and wanted a sleeker 1950’s looking evening dress. If it wasn’t for my bridesmaid Fionna, begging me to try this one on, just to see what it looks like! I was in love with the dress almost instantly! I knew when I was comparing all other dresses I was trying on, to this one, that was it. I had to have it. I felt truly amazing on the day. From the day I paid/ordered the dress, Troy was persistently trying to find out what it was like – it was so nice to have a secret for once! I managed to keep it from him for almost 8 months, and on the day he said to me, “I’m so glad you kept it a secret – I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw you for the first time, and it was nothing like I was imagining – yet it was so picture perfect, and even more than I could have imagined”.

Local celebrant, a long term family friend, Sue Jackman (also MC for the night), made our day so special. Her light and cheeky personality put Troy’s nerves at ease, whilst he waited for me to walk down the grassy isle. One of our guests said it was a “healthy balance of romance, emotion and fun”. Prior to the wedding Sue asked if both Troy and I could write down 5 things we love about each other, which created a light and personal touch to the emotional part of the day. Both Troy and I wrote our own vows. The ceremony took place in the Avery garden, of Hopewood Country House & Estate. Down the isle, I had carnation pomander balls hanging from the chairs – a simple elegant touch. Plenty of tears and laughter were had by all guests, even the tough burly blokes shed a tear or two!

Mark from Moving Presentations, captured our day on video – which we’re so happy we splurged on – we’ve watched the highlights video over and over since the big day – we can’t wait to see the 15minute feature when its finished!!

Troy had my granny’s ring re-set and fixed, as a surprise for me (Cameron Marks of Percy Marks did such a wonderful job) – Troy presented it to me at the reception, during his speech in front of all of our guests. Troy also had a song pre-recorded by his favorite Australian artist, Mr Percival. The song was the gorgeous “At Last”. Mr Percival has the MOST amazing & strong husky jazz voice, it certainly pulled a few heart strings with the guests, and me included!

Our photographer Tim Pascoe was such a gem to work with. Casually fitting in with our day – nothing was ever a problem! Aside from the fact the day light was disappearing so quickly for him! He worked so well with our videographer, and other suppliers. Early on in the piece, when we first met Tim in his studio, we were so impressed with his creative eye. Turning pictures of a wedding in to true artistic pieces – his creative shots were one of the main reasons we chose him.

One piece of advice I was given for the day, and it was so valuable: “on the day, things go so quickly - make sure you both stop (at intervals throughout your day), look at everything and everyone around you - soak it up….. Breath it in….. And just remember how you feel at that moment in time.”. I have a few moments imprinted in my mind – and I’m so glad I stopped for just a few moments to treasure them.

Try to enjoy the ride – it is a roller coaster of emotion! Research as much as possible – it was a truly rewarding experience, when I saw all of my little ideas pieced together on the day. I had a folder filled with pages, and cut out from magazines and the internet, with little things I loved, and when you lay it out all together, you can start to see your ideas comes together, and it’s so exciting! I would do it again and again if I could – Troy would kill me if he knew I said that - maybe we might renew our vows in 10yrs time!