Real Wedding – Tayla & Declan, Wahgunyah VIC
Tayla and Declan’s vision was simple; jaw dropping, sophisticated and timeless.
Their carefully curated yet emotion-filled wedding day at All Saints Estate achieved just that.
From the breathtaking driveway ceremony incorporating a 100m bridal entrance to the sounds of strings, to the black-tie dress code every guest adhered to, and the handcrafted podium the pair stood on to declare their love – every element of the day combined to deliver a truly elevated and exquisite occasion.
The more grand details were complemented by other elegant yet understated style choices, such as the candles and single-stem white roses that lined the reception table and the black velvet bows hand-tied on every place card.
The bride had not one but two showstopping dresses, both of which she designed herself.
Every detail of Tayla and Declan’s celebration was meticulously considered and executed with precision.
Between the sublime Ashleigh Haase’s photography and the mixture of heartfelt and hilarious audio messages left via the Off The Hook guestbook, Tayla and Declan will be reminiscing about their impeccable ‘I dos’ for decades to come.
The meeting.
We first connected on the dating app, Tinder, back in 2015. We chatted for four days straight before moving the conversation over to Snapchat, where we continued to talk every day for three months before meeting in person. Once we finally met in person for the first time, we were inseparable.
The ‘one’.
There was no one moment, but it was very early on, within the first few months. Everything just flowed. We were always laughing, being silly and always by each other’s sides. We fell hard and fast for each other. The first time we said ‘I love you’ to each other was right before a game of laser tag… we then proceeded to run around shooting Lasers at each other.
The proposal.
Declan had arranged a “last minute” day trip and was keeping it a surprise from me (I didn’t think twice as he often does this). We arrived at one of our favourite wineries – Montalto – where Dec had booked us in for a wine tasting. After our tasting, we took a walk through the sculpture garden, and he led me to a beautiful private picnic. As we walked towards the table, I thought to myself, ‘This would be the perfect spot to propose’. Lo and behold, as I stepped up into our picnic area, I turned around to find Dec down on his knee, asking me to marry him. I was in complete shock (crying) I had to take a quick sit down. We then enjoyed the beautiful picnic as fiancés. Dec had arranged for our family and friends to be at his mum’s house that night, where we were able to celebrate with all our loved ones.
Planning process.
We always knew we wanted to get married at All Saints Estate, so it was the first and only place we looked at. Once we booked and locked in our date everything just fell into place. We had the best wedding planner who honestly put everything together – Mel from Mellyrain Creative. Mel was the backbone of our wedding. She helped bring all our vendors together as well as our mood boards and visions to life. Having Mel create a very detailed run sheet and liaise and coordinate all vendors really made our lead-up so seamless and allowed us to be stress-free and focused on each other and our love.
The one stressful thing we did was decide to make all the signage and stationery ourselves, which we may have left to the last minute, but spending our weekends together building and making things is one of our favourite things to do together and meant we got to add a personal touch to our wedding.
Style inspiration.
Well, originally, we wanted a castle in Tuscany, so All Saints Estate was the next best thing to make the dream happen. We knew we wanted the style to be timeless and elevated, so naturally, our dress code was black tie, and we asked all our guests to dress in all-black attire. They all looked amazing! The colour scheme elevated our theme by keeping everything white and black. We even added (by hand) velvet bows to each menu/ name card to bring it all together. Looking at real weddings was my favourite inspiration. My social media feeds had a full bride algorithm take over, as I’m sure most brides do. I loved seeing the little intimate details couples did to make it more personal and elevated. I also loved getting the old vintage bridal magazines and creating a mood board of every part of the wedding (ceremony, cocktail hour, reception, dress).
The ceremony.
Our ceremony was one of our favourite parts of the wedding. It was set down the striking driveway at All Saints Estate. The trees were in full bloom and lined the driveway on each side which created perfect natural shade for all guests. Photos don’t even do justice to how perfect the set-up was. I got to make a dramatic entrance down the grand driveway. I met Declan standing at the end, on a stage we had built ourselves, surrounded by stunning flowers and our beautiful loved ones. As I was walking myself down, surrounded by everyone, it felt like it was just Dec and I in the moment, and I wish we could have stayed in the moment for ever.
The outfits.
For myself, as a fashion designer, my dress was going to be a big part of expressing myself. I knew I wanted to design it myself, and of course, I needed to have two dresses (at least!). I loved looking at vintage runways for inspiration. I went to three bridal shops so I could have the moment with my bridal party and mum while also getting a feel for what silhouette I liked the most. There were dresses I liked, but nothing felt 100% me. So I started to sketch some designs and shop for fabrics, I met with my dress maker multiple times as she brought my sketches to life and made the dresses to fit me perfectly.
Dec knew he wanted his James Bond moment in a custom tuxedo. So when we found YSG Tailors they did an incredible job at making it fit perfectly but also making it a special process. All our groomsmen also got all their suits made there too.
Favourite moments.
Our ceremony for both of us. The first moment when we got to be together after waiting all day felt so special – like it was just us two standing up there. When we read our vows to each other we were both sobbing.
I loved when we snuck off to take our sunset photos. Although the photographer and videographer were there, it felt like it was just us, and we got a moment to walk around and look back at the stunning set-up while enjoying each other’s company.
Meaning of marriage.
For us it’s getting to be with your best friend every day, to love and grow together and bring out the best in each other.
Wedding soundtrack.
Groom/groomsmen’s entrance: Viva la Vida – Coldplay (played on violin)
Bridesmaid’s entrance: Perfect – Ed Shearn (played on violin)
Bride’s entrance: Ocean Eyes – Billie Eilish (played on violin)
Signing: Home – Edward Sharp & The Magnetic Zeros (played on violin)
Ceremony exit: Love Story – Taylor Swift (played on violin)
Bridal party reception entrance: Saving Up – Dom Dolla
Bride and groom reception entrance: Crazy in Love – Beyonce
First dance: All Of Me – John Legend
Funny stories or near disasters.
I checked the weather every day for around three months before. After checking one day, I noticed it was forecasting 60mm of rain, and I had the biggest meltdown, but Dec calmed me down. After all the stress I put myself through, it ended up being the perfect day no matter what the weather did…32 and no crazy winds.
Planning surprises.
Planning a wedding is fun, but more time-consuming than you think.
Words of wisdom.
If you can, get a wedding planner so you can enjoy the process and the day. Also, you can’t control the weather. But most of all, make sure the day is about the two of you and reflect who you are as a couple. If you can, adding some personal touches makes it even more special.
For more monochromatic magic, check out Alexandra & Michae’s real wedding.
TAYLA & DECLAN’S SUPPLIERS
We really leaned on our wedding planner Mel – creative director of Mellyrain Creative – and her expertise in the industry for a lot of our vendors, which was a massive help as our wedding wasn’t local to us so we didn’t know where to start. I really did a deep dive into any vendor’s socials before booking them to see their previous work and make sure it aligned with our vision. Also looking at Ivory Tribe and looking at real wedding stories and who helped make their special day possible.
Ceremony & reception venue inclusive of catering & bar: All Saints Estate – It was our fairytale venue
Celebrant: Celebrant Kate – She put so much detail and had many people say she was the best celebrant they have seen at a wedding.
Photography: Ashleigh Haase- The best photographer who made us feel so natural and captured our day in the most stunning way.
Videography: Ena Wedding Films – The final edit is something out of a romcom it’s perfect.
Styling: Mellyrain Creative – Could not recommend anyone more! Mel made our day what it was, she bought our concepts into a perfect dream.
Florist: Twig & Hynes
Hair: Kylie Jane Artistry
Make-up: The Creative Directory (Olivia Florance)
The dresses & veil: Designed by the bride, made by dressmaker Michelle.
Shoes: Prada
Rings: Designed by the couple at Garen Jewellery.
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Aje
Suits & ties: YSG Tailoring
Favours: We made custom shot bottles with everyone’s name on it on a shot wall (also made by us) as our setting chart.
Cake: We had a champagne tower instead of a cake!
Stationery / Signage: Designed and made by the couple.
Entertainment: Logan Events – violinist, DJ and Drummer.
Transport: Albury Wodonga Limousines
Décor: Bentley & Bobbie Events
Hire: Ledger and Co
Other: Off the Hook Audio Guestbook
Honeymoon: Minimoon to Japan for two weeks, then extended two-month honeymoon to Africa and Europe later.
