Real Wedding – Aodhán & Bridey, Curlewis VIC

When Aodhán and Bridey began planning their wedding celebration, they wanted something modern that would reflect their fun-loving spirit and they achieved this and so much more.

There was hardly a dry eye when Bridey made her way down the aisle towards the love of her life, though tears quickly made way for laughter as their sweet story was shared.

Armed with a team of suppliers that they trusted, this loved up duo allowed their vendors to do what they do best and create the perfect day for them. What resulted was a sensational party with great food, a drink or two and an awesome dance-floor to cap the night off.

Tribe talent, Smith + Archer was behind the lens and captured this day to absolute perfection.

In their words…

The meeting.

Cheesiest story ever – we met on the school bus when we were 14!  We were friends in high school but it wasn’t until we reconnected after travel and uni that we went on our first date. That was seven years ago now and we never looked back.

The one.

BRIDEY – Aodhàn is the kindest and most patient person I have ever met. I remember when we had been together for about a year my Grandmother came to visit, and she had just purchased her first ever computer. Aodhàn sat with her for hours teaching her how to use it, and I remember thinking then that he was a keeper.

AODHÀN – There wasn’t one moment that I realised Bridey was the one, just an accumulation of all the little moments we shared – cuddling on the couch watching crappy movies, wandering through little back streets and small shops, exploring dingy bars with a wine in hand, or making dinners together with music blaring in the background. I couldn’t picture doing any of those things with anyone else.

The proposal.

On our 4-year anniversary, Aodhàn booked a table at one of our favourite restaurants in Geelong (Tulip). I thought we were just having a normal anniversary dinner, but as talk turned to our future Aodhàn pulled out a ring and asked me to marry him! It was very simple and very us (and followed by a very big bottle of champagne!).

Planning process.

We were really relaxed about the planning process – we very much trusted our vendors and suppliers to use their expertise to create the perfect day. We wanted to make sure our wedding reflected the type of celebration that we would like to attend – laid back, great food, lots of booze and an awesome dancefloor. We forwent many of the usual wedding traditions for a more modern celebration that reflected our fun-loving spirit.

The dress.

I ended up with a dress that was the exact opposite of what I expected! I only looked at a few dresses before I went to Pearls and Roses on Latrobe Terrace in Geelong. Karen has been making the most incredible dresses for over 30 years, and when I explained (very incoherently) the type of dress I was looking for, she drew me up a quick sketch and I fell instantly in love. It was such an exciting experience to visit Karen every month or so while she crafted from scratch my perfect dress.

Favourite moment.

There we so many amazing moments that it is so hard to pick just one! Obviously the ceremony was really special – short and sweet with our own vows. The best thing we did though, just before speeches, we snuck away from the party, grabbed a pizza and shared it together outside. I would definitely recommend to any other couple at some point in the evening to just take five minutes away from the party together to breathe and take it all in.

Meaning of marriage.

We don’t think marriage will change much about us, but you don’t get many opportunities in life to celebrate with all the people you love in same place, and that was what our wedding was.

Wedding soundtrack.

Aisle – Love you ‘til the end by The Pogues

Recessional – You’ve got the love by Florence and the Machine

First dance – Angels by The XX

Funny stories (or near disasters).

Sooo many things went wrong! There were issues with the bridesmaid dresses, so we had to pick new ones from scratch the week before the wedding! It worked out well though because I loved the dresses we ended up with and they look amazing in the photos.

But the closest thing to disaster – literally three days before the wedding my dad had to be taken to the emergency room with appendicitis. We were only concerned about Dad being ok, but he was so worried about being well for the wedding! Luckily Dad’s nurse in emergency was a guest at our wedding so it was so reassuring to have her looking after him. He had his surgery and was so determined to be back up and running for the wedding that he recovered in record time and walked me down the aisle!

Words of wisdom.

We didn’t realise until after the wedding how important good, kind and trustworthy vendors are! You really put your big day totally in their hands, and we were so lucky to have some of the best in the biz support us through the thousands of choices we had to make.

We would definitely recommend to other couples that you take 5 minutes at some point in the evening to sit down together, have a breather and take it all in – it will be the most special part of your night. The other bit of wisdom – seriously don’t sweat the small stuff! We had days where we stressed about signage and if the flowers would match the (recently changed) bridesmaid dresses – but on the day you won’t even think about any of it! So, don’t waste too much time stressing. And if you have awesome suppliers to guide you, everything will be just fine.

Al & Imogen’s day was a DIY dream and is an absolute must see, check out their real wedding here.

AODHÀN AND BRIDEY’S TRIBE

Ceremony and reception location: Baie Wines. These guys seriously made our day! Nothing was too much trouble, and the wines went down VERY well with our guests (you seriously have to try the Shiraz – life changing).

Celebrant/Officiant:  Jo Betz. Just the loveliest human ever, and our pre-wedding coffees with her felt more like catching up with an old friend than ceremony planning.

Photography: Smith and Archer. Ali is such a talented and hard working photographer – we are so lucky to have her capture our day. You don’t realise how much time you spend with a photographer at your wedding, so make sure you get a good one like Ali that blasts Lizzo for you during bridal party photos!

Styling: Bride and Maid of Honour.

Florist: As Daisy Does 

Hair and makeup: Hilary Holmes

The Dress(es): Bride – Custom Pearls and Roses Bridal

Veil / headwear: Custom Pearls and Roses Bridal

Shoes: Edward Meller

Rings: Charles Rose and Brett’s Jewelers Geelong

Bridesmaid’s dresses: Fate + Becker

Groomsmen’s suits: Eddy Elias

Bow ties / ties: Peggy and Finn

Catering: Happy Camper Pizza and Platter Co by Jade. Both were phenomenal and we are so glad we went with a more relaxed foodtruck vibe!

Bar: Baie Wines

Favors: Bride and Groom

Cake / Cake topper: Nil

Stationery / Signage: Maybe at Dawn

Entertainment: Cal Young. He seriously made our night! He danced with the kids earlier in the evening and then got the party pumping until late into the night – the dancefloor was always packed thanks to Cal

Transport: Star Limo Services (wedding party) and McHarry’s Buslines (guests)

Décor: Bride and Groom

Hire: Elderberry Event Hire and Occasions Event Hire

Honeymoon: Three months traveling around Europe. So much wine and cheese!