Real wedding – Aidan & Megan, Connewarre VIC
Aidan and Megan planned their luxurious yet classic wedding at Campbell Point House from afar, though this did nothing to limit the care and attention to detail they paid in making it an event to remember.
The Perth couple’s wedding day oozed timeless, modern romance – with the luxurious French Chateau-inspired setting sweeping guests of their feet and bride Megan simply flawless in her Pallas Couture gown.
Styled by Tribe favourites, Tori Allen Events and captured by Varga Murphy, this stunning day will take your breath away.
In Megan’s words…
The meeting.
We met at a good friend’s birthday party (Ben Walker, who ended up being our MC at the wedding), at the local footy club. We had many mutual friends but had never met before, which was strange in Perth! It was a B&W themed dress up and Aidan was dressed as ‘Where’s Wally”.
The ‘one’.
I had applied to universities in Melbourne and was planning on moving after moving home from London. Then I met Aidan, which changed everything. He made me laugh every day (and continues to do so) and was too good a catch to let go of!
The proposal.
I had always dreamed of a holiday in New York City. So after a year of planning we organised a five week holiday together, starting in NY. On October 14th, Aidan arranged a packed picnic and drinks from a cool wine bar in the West Village to take to Central Park, next to the Belvedere Castle. Just as we were unpacking lunch, Aidan got down on one knee and proposed.
After New York we travelled to the Bahamas, Jamaica and Hawaii to celebrate the engagement. The holiday was amazing where we swam with sharks, dolphins, turtles and pigs (not a misprint), while also visiting volcanoes, climbing waterfalls and zip-lining through the jungle.
The planning.
The planning process was difficult being in Perth with time difference and email correspondence for most of my enquiries. The two weeks before the wedding was hectic; so many last-minute things popping up and trying to organise family members!
Once we got to Melbourne three days prior to the wedding, it was awesome. The girls stayed at Crown for two nights and there was pampering, spray tans and a good vibe all over the city as the Australian Open was on. We then drove down to Leopold the day before the wedding. The boys stayed separately in Torquay.
Style inspiration.
Timeless, classic romance meets modern, classic and chic haha! We also wanted to give our guests an experience that they wouldn’t forget without having to travel overseas. Our venue Campbell Point House provided that luxury experience. I am also a big fan of The Great Gatsby!
The dress.
I knew that I wanted something backless with a strong bold lace but I wasn’t sure about the rest. I was loving the latest designs from Zuhair Murad and wanted a similar lace, so saved lots of pictures and spent hours on Instagram.
I was told before visiting Pallas Couture that once you try on a Pallas dress on, nothing else compares. This was true for me, I knew I had to be a Pallas Bride – their laces are incredible and they know what they’re doing. If you let them go with their creative minds you’ll end up with a masterpiece. I loved every step of the design process and dress fittings.
Favourite moments.
Our wedding dance. It felt like it was finally time to let the hair down and enjoy all the hard work that brought the day together. We were so in the moment and I just remember having so much fun – it sounds cliché, but I honestly felt like we were the only people in the room. The speeches were also a highlight!
Traditions.
I tried the something old/new/borrowed/blue thing… but I skipped the blue part ha ha! There were too many other things to think about, than worrying about having something ’blue’. We did cut our cake with a ‘wedding knife’ that has been in Aidan’s family for a few generations though.
Meaning of marriage.
A partnership of love, affection, trust, respect and teamwork. Supporting each other through every aspect of life whilst keeping life fun and easy – not sweating the small stuff!
Wedding soundtrack.
The first song was ‘Latch’ (acoustic) by Sam Smith, which the flower girls and bridesmaids walked out to.
Then ‘Angels’ by The XX, which I walked down the aisle to. I kept these both a secret from Aidan so he got a surprise on the day – both are songs we love.
First dance – an oldie but a goodie, ‘At Last’ –The Beyonce version. Followed by ‘Is this Love’ by Bob Marley and The Wailers – a song that takes us back to the fun we had in Jamaica after our engagement.
Funny stories (or near disasters).
There was a near disaster…in the last two weeks we had a few people pull out/ change numbers. Given the many things I had to do I must have forgot to update the people making our place cards and there was a few names missing which was found the day before. Luckily, Tori and her team made some paper place cards to match the marble ones. By that stage I think I was over caring too much.
Words of wisdom for other couples planning a wedding?
You can’t control everything – there are always things which won’t go exactly to plan – eg. the place cards – but in hindsight, that’s not what matters.
Also – destination weddings can be hard work. Make spreadsheets to break down the tasks or get a good planner (I got mine from Kikki K). It can be overwhelming at times. In saying that, it’s the best thing we did – drag the wedding out so it’s not just one day!
Last words.
The night before the wedding I surprised my bridesmaids with a yin yoga class – Rachel from ‘Yoga Me’ came over to Campbell Point House to teach the class. Given the craziness the few days prior to the wedding, it was the perfect thing to help us relax – the calm before the storm.
On the morning of the wedding I gave my mum a handkerchief which was embroidered (by The Wedding Chicks) with a poem, the date, and a piece of the lace which was used on my dress.
MEGAN & AIDAN’S TRIBE
Location: Campbell Point House – Campbell Point house is a luxurious private estate which was modeled to replicate a rural French Chateau, located on the Bellarine Peninsula. The ceremony and reception were both held at the venue which we hired for a three-night stay with our bridal party. The ceremony was by the water overlooking Lake Connaware and we had a formal sit-down dinner in the dining room. Everyone was so friendly and helpful – hopefully we will get back there for an anniversary!
Celebrant: Jessica Edwards – We had a skype meeting with Jess and felt like we clicked with her. She was very personable, down to earth and captured our story beautifully while keeping it fun and light-hearted.
Photography and videography: Varga Murphy – The Varga boys are absolute legends, they have such an eye for detail. There weren’t many ‘posed photos’ which made everyone really comfortable on the day. The shots they captured exceeded our expectations!
Styling: Tori Allen Events – I found Tori Allen online after seeing they had previously styled a wedding at CPH. I love their creative design and their Instagram, so knew I was in good hands with them.
Florist: Zoe at Tori Allen Events – Zoe is such a ray of sunshine, I only had phone/email correspondence with her and she still managed to hit the nail on the head with every little detail. I look at the pictures of the florals and am so happy with every aspect – cannot recommend her enough.
Hair: Raymond Charles – I had a trial with Ray two days before the wedding. He was so cool and fun, made my hair so effortlessly glam I knew I wouldn’t have to worry on the day.
Make-up: Tess McFadden – Victims of Beauty – I found Tess McFadden through Instagram, she is from Geelong, so even better! She is the highlight queen and the whole bridal parties’ makeup was perfection.
The Dress: Pallas Couture
Veil: Pallas Couture
Accessories: I was extremely fortunate to be given some jewels to wear on the day from Rosendorrf. They also gave my mum some gorgeous pearl-drop earrings to wear. My earrings were round brilliant drops with diamond encrusted links and I wore two stacked tennis bracelets. It was very difficult giving these back! Can’t thank the lovely team at Rosendorrf’s enough.
I also wore my Nanna’s engagement ring on my right hand which was given to me after she passed. A very special keepsake of mine.
Bridesmaids: Lionette NY earrings from Sara Fox & Co.
Wedding morning attire: Mae’s Sunday Robes
Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Rings: Rosendorrf wedding bands; Stelios (engagement ring)
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Manning Cartell
Groom’s suit and shoes: Calibre
Groomsmen suits: Saba
Bow ties / ties: The Dapper Scoundrel. The Bow Ties were hand-made by Connor, who is the hairdresser for three of the five boys. To add a personal touch, each of the bow ties had the initial of each groomsmen and our wedding date stitched in.
Favours: Ingrained – marble coasters. I loved that our coasters tied in with the marble décor at CPH. We wanted to give our guest something they could keep to remind them of the day. I love seeing ours on our coffee table now.
Cake: Zephyr & Bloom Cakes – Our cake was beautiful and understated – lots of fruit and colour. Jemima from Zephyr & Bloom cakes is a friend who lives in Melbourne, so I didn’t think twice about contacting her as she is a pastry chef extraordinaire.
Stationery: The Little Press – Emily at the Little Press helped bring my scribbled ideas to life. The border of our invite has blind impressed lines which reflects the steps in my emerald cut engagement ring. I chose copper foil for our names so I could tie in the copper cutlery in the table setting and the back of the invite is a digital marble print which also ties in with our favours. It was quite the process, but exactly what I wanted. Our menu’s were also done by The Little Press, which were in the same cursive font with a dip-dyed ink on the bottom.
Once again, I cannot recommend these guys enough – they did such a great job.
Signage: Tori Allen
Entertainment: Geelong Entertainment
Transport: Sherwood Vintage car hire
Honeymoon: Mini-moon in Byron Bay – honeymoon to follow.
