Real wedding – Kirstin and Scott, Thornton VIC
Despite the weather playing some havoc on their wedding day, creating some last-minute changes, when Kirstin hit the aisle and spotted her groom Scott, any hint of nerves or worry were wiped away.
Set on a private property in beautiful Thornton, Kirstin and Scott admit that planning a wedding in country Victoria while juggling their busy careers, did have its stresses. However when it came to the day and the feeling that surrounded them, full of love, joy and celebration – they would absolutely not change a thing.
Their gorgeous ceremony was held under the gum trees beside the river, while a converted sheep shearing shed became a dreamy reception venue, and Daniel James was there to capture it all.
IN KIRSTIN’S WORDS…
The meeting.
We both work on the Rip Curl Pro surf competition at Bells Beach, in Victoria over Easter. Scott is part of the water patrol team where he drives the jet skis and I am the Senior Photographer for the event. In 2012 Scott was driving the media ski for the first time and so we ended up spending a few long days on the ski together and hit it off immediately.
The one.
From the moment I met Scott, I knew he was different to every other guy I’d met. He was warm, genuine and funny. I felt like he was my best friend. We had an instant connection and were able to talk for hours. It was during the week we spent together surfing, trail running and just cruising the coast after the Bells event when I think we both knew we’d found ‘the one’.
The proposal.
Scott came over to France where I was shooting the Quiksilver Pro France. We’d had a few consecutive days of competition and when we finally had a day off, we decided to go and visit one of my favourite little towns, St Jean De Luz. Scott had planned to propose on this trip but as he had never been to France, he had no idea how or when he was going to do it. We had a lovely morning exploring the narrow streets of St Jean de Luz and after a delicious seafood lunch and a few glasses of wine, Scott suggested we go down to the beach for a swim. We lay in the sun for a while, just soaking in the beautiful scenery and the next thing I knew, Scott was holding a ring and proposing. We celebrated with champagne at a little bar down in town and then made our way back to a party in Hossegor where we celebrated with all my work colleagues.
The planning process.
It was very difficult planning a wedding when you travel the world 11 months of the year, so it was a very stop-start process for me. I had to do as much as I could when I was home and then put the brakes on when I went overseas. As we selected a private property in the country, we had to do everything ourselves which logistically was extremely challenging. Luckily, the farmer whose property we held it on, had a heart of gold and couldn’t do enough for us and we were able to pull off the most amazing day!
Style Inspiration.
Both Scott and I love the outdoors but because we live in Victoria, we felt that the weather on the coast was too unpredictable to have a beach wedding. The next logical option was a country wedding and luckily my best friend’s dad owns a beautiful farm outside Lake Eildon so it was a no-brainer. We kept the style in line with the country theme so it was very rustic and natural which we loved. Being from South Africa but living in Australia now, it was quite exciting to have a real ‘Aussie’ bush wedding. We held our ceremony under the gum trees next to the river and cleaned out an old sheep shearing shed and turned into a dreamy reception venue, with A LOT of hard work.
The dress.
My dress was a beautiful creation made of 100% French lace by Grace Loves Lace. I wanted something simple and summery with a low back. I found the perfect one online and ordered it straightway. I didn’t try a single dress on before I bought this one, mostly because I didn’t have time. Luckily it worked out and I couldn’t have dreamed of a more perfect dress.
Favourite moment.
I think it was walking down the aisle. We had a last minute ceremony venue change and I’d left it up to Scott, our florist and the groomsmen to set it up the morning of the wedding. Seeing how beautiful it looked and then seeing Scott’s enormous grin as I walked down the aisle was a moment I will cherish forever.
Meaning of marriage.
It means becoming a team and moving in the same direction. Putting each other and our relationship first before anything else.
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: Magic by Coldplay
Entry: Celebrate by Empire of the Sun
First Dance: Love is Beginning by Imaginary Future
Funny stories/near disasters.
Well it turned out to be the hottest day of the year at 43C, so we had some major last minute changes and a lot of emergency planning including having the CFA (Country Fire Authority) on standby as well as water trucks ready to go. We also had to move our ceremony venue from up on the hill, to down at the river and were still setting up the morning of the wedding which was very stressful. Luckily it all worked out. There were no fires in the area and we even had a cool change come through at about 8.30pm.
Planning surprises.
We underestimated the sheer enormity of the task when it comes to planning your own wedding. We thought we had done a lot of pre-planning but so much of it we had to do or finish off the day before and even the morning of our wedding. I had no idea how intense planning your own wedding can be and it didn’t help that we’d selected a non-traditional wedding venue that was far away from everything!
Words of wisdom.
Planning your own wedding, to the extent that we did (holding it on a private property in the middle of the country) is A LOT of work and can be emotionally and physically exhausting. You want to enjoy your day and not be completely drained by the time it arrives so make sure you have enough help if you do decide to do it yourself.
Anything else.
Just a massive thank you to all the people who helped us create our dream wedding day – both our families, bridal party and in particular Mick Taylor, who owned the farm we had it on, who did so much for us! We couldn’t have done it without all of you guys.
KIRSTIN AND SCOTT’S TRIBE
Ceremony and reception venue: Private property, Thornton, Victoria
Officiant: Andy Pitt
Photography: Daniel James – Dan captured every moment of our day beautifully. His ability to use natural light and incorporate dramatic landscapes into his frames, has meant that we have a collection of imagery that not only documents all the special moments of our day but truly showcases the stunning scenery of our venue.
Videography: Sail Me To The Moon
Styling: I did all my own styling inspired by wedding blogs and Pinterest.
Florist: Flowers By Nici Thompson – Nici is absolutely brilliant. She really listened to what I wanted my flowers to look like and the finished product was better than I dreamed it would be. She is a genius and an absolute joy to be around. I can’t recommend her highly enough.
Hair and Make Up: Jodie Porter – Jodie is phenomenal. I was so lucky I was able to book her at the last minute because I’d left it very late. She is supremely talented and made us all look so beautiful and natural. My hair and makeup was perfect.
The Dress: ‘Lottie’ dress – Grace Loves the Lace
Jewellery: Pearl drop earrings from BHLDN
Shoes: Jewel crusted gold sandals from Seed
Rings: Michael Hill (bride) and Titanium ring from Etsy (groom)
Bridesmaid’s dresses: They all chose their own
Men’s suit: Custom tailored suits made in Bali
Groom’s Shoes: Windsor Smith
Bow ties / ties: Roger David
Catering: We created a picnic-style feasting table with cheeses, relishes, tapanade, olives, breads and fresh fruit all bought fresh from Queen Victoria Market for the pre-drinks.
For the reception we had a lamb spit roast and gourmet salads all prepared by a friend Pam Peterson, all of which turned out to be absolutely delicious.
Favors: We grew herbs and succulents in an array of containers collected at op shops, for the table decorations which our guests took home with them.
Cake / Cake topper: Miniature ‘Mr and Mrs’ bunting
Stationery / Signage: I made all our own invitations and Scott and his groomsmen made all our signage including handmade blackboards and wooden sign posts from reclaimed wooden fencing.
Entertainment: One of my best friends Kelly Brooks is a country singer, she performed two songs during the ceremony. We had a country band for the early part of the evening and then a DJ for the late night session.
Furniture: Pepper Sprout Hire – We fell in love with their beautiful wooden trestles tables, they fitted perfectly with our rustic country theme. Sarah and Brad Ottens the owners were a dream and helped us set up all the furniture perfectly.
Transport: We hired a 24-seater bus and a local driver from the area to transport our guests to and from the venues.
Honeymoon: We spent our honeymoon surfing in Lombok, Indonesia.
