Real Wedding – Tara & Rhys, Yarra Valley VIC
For Tara and Rhys, high school sweethearts since their early teens, their wedding day was a culmination of the love they had shared over so many years.
Tara took it upon herself to style their dream day, romance with a hint of bohemian beauty, and she will never forget the moment she first saw Rhys and the joy she felt as she walked towards their new life together. Partying up a storm at the stunning Zonzo Estate, one of the Yarra Valley’s best wedding venues, the talented Shot from the Heart were there to capture it all.
IN TARA’S WORDS…
The meeting.
We are high school sweet hearts , Rhys was the locker above me and he would leave notes inside to get my attention. We have been together since I was 14 and Rhys was 15 .
The ‘one’.
We always just knew we would get married one day and spend out lives together. I don’t recall an exact time, it was just like we knew from even that very young age.
The proposal.
We were in Thailand and I was very pregnant. We went on a drive to a place we had heard about called Paradise Beach. In the car I heard a song come on and I said to Rhys, ‘every time I hear this song, it’s a good day’. Little did I know how good it would really be. When we arrived it was so beautiful – a little cove with big boulders at each end of the beach , the sand was so white and the water was so blue, especially with the sun shining. We had the whole beach to ourselves. I told Rhys to come and take some photos down at the water so I waddled down and he followed. I was taking photos of the water when he asked me to turn around. Rhys was down on one knee, saying the most beautiful words and he asked me to marry him. I cried and of course said yes and was over the moon – we couldn’t wipe the smile off our faces all day.
Planning process.
I started looking for the venue about a year and a half prior to the day and we found it straight away. From there, I was on Pinterest all the time and looking up local vendors. I had a planner that I wrote everything down in with all my quotes. The last few months were the busiest time and a bit stressful, I was just hoping everything would come together as I had done all styling myself and really just wanted it all to work out.
Style inspiration.
I love bohemian and tribal prints but I also wanted it to be soft and romantic. I used a lot of flowers and greenery to bring the romantic side in but also touches of tribal and bohemian. I also love gold so I had a gold cake topper, favours, bouquet ribbons and jewellery.
The dress.
My dress was made by Georgia Young Couture – she is amazing! I knew what I wanted and had tried so many dresses on and could not find anything. I found Georgia on Instagram and as soon as I saw her stunning dresses I knew I wanted her to make my dress. I had a meeting with her and she understood exactly what I was after. It was such an exciting moment. I had 5 fittings and I loved that I had full involvement as it was being made to my body. She thought about every detail and made sure everything was perfect. I’m so glad I chose her to make my dress. When I picked it up I was so I love with it – it was classic with sleeves but the lace was a beautiful ivory bohemian print. I had another colour for the bodice underneath so that the lace stood out more and I loved the buttons and the soft panels that dropped from the hip – and my train was amazing.
Favourite moment.
I have so many favourite moments from our wedding day, I have never felt such an overwhelming and indescribable love from Rhys, as well as our family and friends. The moment I first saw my two boys my heart absolutely melted. Then walking down the aisle I will never forget looking into Rhys’ eyes, knowing that we both had never been more sure about anything in our lives.
My Dad sang for Rhys and I at our reception. I have never heard him sing like that. He had taken 12 weeks of singing lessons – it was so emotional and special – something I will never forget. He sang, ‘I loved her first’.
Meaning of marriage.
Marriage means being able to annoy that one special person for the rest of your life! Ha ha! We love annoying each other in silly ways, it is kind of our thing. I love that we get to share a journey together. Marriage is very important to Rhys and I, we feel it is a binding promise to honour our vows – no matter how hard things get, we will work through it, enjoy each other, and always lift each other up to reach our dreams and goals together.
Wedding soundtrack.
My flower girls and bridesmaids walked down the aisle to I love you always forever by Donna Lewis and then my Dad and I walked down to The Wedding Song by Angus and Julia Stone. We entered the reception to Are You With Me by Lost Frequencies and our first dance song was Bella by Angus and Julia Stone.
Funny stories/near disasters.
We lost our CD for the DJ for the reception. I was soooo worried that we would have new music we hadn’t selected. The DJ ended up having to download all the songs on his phone at last moment. I laughed so much when two of our friends decided to have a dance off, we loved it . I also told my bridesmaids before the wedding that on my wedding day I would not be getting down and dirty on the dance floor, I was going to be classy. Well within thirty minutes of being on the dance floor, I got low and danced the night away. Considering my dress, I don’t know how or why, and I can’t believe my bridesmaids let me do it.
Words of wisdom.
It can be a stressful time leading up to the wedding, so try to make sure the week before your big day, that you allocate one full day to have some down time with you your fiancé or family, and just get away for a bit. Watch a movie, take a day trip, whatever helps relax you. Take the time to enjoy your last time as fiancé’s! Enjoy the lead up and day, don’t fight, and even if you do, make up and say sorry – it’s just a crazy time for both of you and full of emotions.
TARA AND RHYS’ TRIBE
Ceremony and reception: Zonzo Estate, Yarra Glen. They were so professional and very friendly. The food is amazing and there was so much of it that everyone was very full by the end of the night.
Celebrant: Melbourne Celebrant Danielle – Danielle was fantastic. I was so fussy with finding a celebrant and I only found her in the last few months. We had so many people after our ceremony come up to us and say that she was the best celebrant they had ever seen. We loved her – and she was also our dance instructor for our first dance!
Photography: Shot From The Heart – they are the most beautiful down to earth genuine mother and daughter and take the most amazing photos. I get silly in front of the camera and they made me feel so at ease. I could not recommend them more highly, they are just pure talent!
Videography: Luna Red Productions – Carlo is great and he captures moments you would not even think of. A really fun and friendly guy also. I first found him when I saw a video he had done and I immediately had goosebumps and cried . I had to have him for our wedding and I think I booked him nearly two years in advance! His videos blow me away, we love Carlo.
Styling: The bride .
Florist: The Floral Emporium – wow, Bec and her team are incredible. I cried when I saw how she had brought my vision to life when I arrived at our wedding venue. The flowers were beautiful and everything flowed and looked so perfect. The flowers made the feel of our wedding day perfect
Hair and Make Up: Beauty within Makeovers – Candice did such a great job of doing my makeup and the makeup of one of my bridesmaids. Being a makeup artist myself, I was extremely fussy on who did my makeup, she was amazing and I was so happy! Nicole Aquilina Makeup Artist did the rest of the makeup of my bridesmaids, she is fantastic and knew exactly what I wanted for the girls, I knew she would do an amazing job. Hair was by Danielle Hensler , she was amazing and I love her doing my hair, I wouldn’t have anyone else.
The Dress: Georgia Young Couture – Georgia is an extremely talented dress designer. She made my dream dress come true and I loved everything about going to Georgia to have my dress made.
Veil / head wear: My veil was by Georgia Young Couture and my head piece was from Teeki Designs by Amy Oram, she handmade my headpiece and put touches of gold and rose gold throughout the beading, I loved it.
Jewellery/Accessories: Samantha Wills for my beautiful earrings.
Shoes: Forever New
Rings: Brides rings by Ralf Fisch – they created my dream rings and I love them so much. Groom ring by Brent Dakis.
Bridesmaids dresses: Sheike and Swish
Groom and groomsmen suits and shoes: Peter Jackson
Catering: Zonzo Estate
Favors: Chocolate Works – very professional , tasted great and the artwork and quality was beautiful.
Cake and cake topper: Cake was from Special Treats by Carolyn and cake topper by Tree of Love
Stationery/Signage: Beautiful handmade signs from SupaScript and stationery by Studio Bohe.
Ring bearer sign: Arlo and Co
Entertainment: Our fantastic singer and musician was Travis Addison and our DJ really got everyone up and dancing.
Honeymoon: Philippines
