Real Wedding – Brie & Cristian, Taradale VIC
Oh me, oh my, Brie and Cristian’s wedding is an absolute beauty.
Churchill in Tardale was a dream location for this perfect pair who wanted to create a day that was intimate, thoughtful and full of emotion.
It began with a dream ceremony that evoked smiles and many tears as Brie and Cristian shared their heartfelt vows in front of all their favourite people.
There are so many moments that this couple will find hard to forget and their day was everything they wanted and so much more.
It was ‘old world charm’ meets ‘rustic glamour’ and Katie Harmsworth captured every darling detail from start to finish. nal!
In Brie’s words…
The meeting.
We met back in 2009 while scooping ice creams at Cold Rock Ice Creamery where we both worked over summer. You could say it started as a sweet, summer romance. We shared some shifts, got talking, and it kinda went from there.
The ‘one’.
There was no specific moment, more of a culmination of a whole bunch of little moments. A series of happy snapshots and scenes that have steadily accumulated and formed out story. You know it’s a good book when each chapter is better than the previous.
The proposal.
We were on holidays in Porto, Portugal, after making our way across Spain over some weeks. We’d been on holidays for about three weeks by this time and had been out to dinner almost every night so we’d decided to stay home for dinner in our apartment, which had a beautiful balcony with a view over the Duoro River. While we were enjoying meats and cheeses we picked up earlier in the day from the market, Cristian slid an unusually ornate wooden box across the table, explaining that he’d found the salt for the tomatoes. With some cautious suspicion, I opened up the box and the engagement ring was there half buried in the salt-flakes. He then got down on one knee and popped the question! It was quiet, comfortable and intimate, a moment that was all about us and not about where we were or what we were doing.
Style inspiration.
We wanted to go with ‘old world charm’ meets ‘rustic glamour’. Something that felt genuine to our chosen wedding location. We wanted the day to be intimate, thoughtful and emotional!
The outfits.
I wanted a dress that was elegant, simple and timeless, which was surprisingly difficult to find. I hunted through almost every wedding dress. Cristian wanted to keep it classical and went for a tux. He chose navy with black lapels for a bit of a twist.
Favourite moments.
Exchanging our vows in front of our family and friends.
Meaning of marriage.
Continually choosing each other. And back scratches, lots of back scratches!
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: Can’t Help Falling in Love by Elvis (played live on solo cello)
Reception: You Make my Dreams by Daryl Hall and John Oates
First Dance: Passport Home (Live Choir version) by JP Cooper
Funny stories (or near disasters).
Only the stories told during the speeches! And near disasters, thankfully none!
Planning surprises.
The variety of inputs to get a complete day, and therefore the accumulating costs. You often overlook just how many little things go together to create overall day.
Words of wisdom.
Start early, don’t take things too seriously and don’t let the process stress you out. Get a detailed run sheet going early and build on it. Get input from friends and family who have had more recent weddings and listen to their feedback.
Try to simplify by cutting parts out where they are least important or visible and don’t compromise on the elements of the day that are important to you! Decorating a wedding is like decorating a house, spend on things that are front and centre, and cut a few corners where you can. Oh, and add 30% to your budget!!
Take your wedding planning to the next level with our wedding planning book ‘Bride Business’. Purchase everyone’s favourite planning pal here.
BRIE & CRISTIAN
Ceremony: Churchill, Taradale
Reception: Churchill, Taradale – Vanessa, Charis and the whole team from Churchill were just amazing. They were so easy to work with and just ‘got it’. They completely understood what we wanted, (even when we couldn’t express it properly) and executed it perfectly.
Celebrant/Officiant: Melissa Fahey, Mine Forever – Melissa was an amazing celebrant and created the perfect atmosphere for our ceremony. We loved working with her and when we met up to do our paperwork, we end up having an extended dinner and chatted away for hours! She was full of ideas and did an amazing job on the day. A number of the people at our wedding commented on how awesome she was and asked us whether she was a family friend, since she seemed to know us both so well!
Photography: The AH-MAZING Katie Harmsworth – Aside from being literally the best photographer that we could have asked for, Katie was also a downright legend. She made us both feel really comfortable on posing in front of the camera and she was amazing fun to be around the whole day! She did a super job of staying under the radar, which let her really document the day as naturally as possible.
Styling: Us and Prunella
Florist: Prunella – who created the most stunning and perfect florals to enhance the gorgeous rustic space.
Hair: Hair by JC – Jenn was such a sweetheart, she did an amazing job of our hair and was such a delight!
Make-up: Make up by Amelia Webb – Amelia was awesome, she made us all look as close as to super models as humanly possible!
The Dress: Luci di Bella – I can’t express how much I loved working with Luci, Caitlin and the team at Luci di Bella. They were absolutely phenomenal. They were so helpful and listened to all of my ideas in order to create my perfect dress. They were absolutely meticulous in every aspect of the dress and they were just so lovely, bubbly and friendly. Honestly, I couldn’t recommend them highly enough!
Veil / headwear: Luci di Bella
Shoes: Bared Footwear (bride) and Paul Smith (groom)
Bridesmaid’s shoes: Boohoo
Rings: Custom designed by us, made by John Kapa (independent jeweller and friend)
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Forever New
Groomsmen’s suits: MJ Bale
Bow ties / ties: Déclic and OTAA
Catering: Spoonful
Favors: Candles made by me! They were so easy to make and saved us so much money
Cake: Spoonful
Stationery / Signage: Designed by us, printed by Seagull Press – we were able to watch our proofs get letter-pressed and got involved with the printing process – Dan and Denise are a genuine lovely husband and wife team!
Entertainment: Rutherford Entertainment
Honeymoon: Two months of sun and exploring in Mexico and Central America
