Real Wedding – Claire & Jeremy, Moonlight Head VIC
Real Wedding – Claire & Jeremy, Moonlight Head VIC
Real Wedding – Claire & Jeremy, Moonlight Head VIC
Real Wedding – Claire & Jeremy, Moonlight Head VIC

Real Wedding – Claire & Jeremy, Moonlight Head VIC

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Wanting a relaxed and coastal vibe for their wedding day, Claire and Jeremy created a DIY affair on the stunning Great Ocean Road.

Claire didn’t let an online wedding dress disaster get in her way and settled on a simple and beautiful gown that suited the celebration perfectly.

Alkina Lodge was the perfect architectural backdrop as they partied into the night and Eric Ronald was there to capture all the magic.

In Claire’s words…

The meeting.

We have been together for 8 years, we were introduced by friends at University

The proposal.

In the middle of a blizzard on a backcountry snowboard adventure in Japan, the chairlift stalled (almost as if planned) and Jeremy popped the question – it was a little too cold to put on the ring! Celebrations followed with Sake and Hotpot. We were engaged just over a year – the perfect amount of time to plan a DIY wedding.

Style inspiration

We wanted a non-traditional wedding venue – we wanted our wedding to be one big relaxed party! We live on the Surfcoast and spent an entire weekend travelling the Great Ocean Road in search for the perfect venue. Alkina Lodge was the last stop – we knew it was perfect as soon as we arrived. The venue was designed by our favourite Australian architect, Glenn Murcutt. Getting married is a good excuse to have a party! We are both quite relaxed and casual people, we just wanted to create a relaxed atmosphere with some of our favourite food, wine, friends and family in a beautiful setting by the coast. Essentially a beach picnic.

Planning process.

Everything just came together exactly as we’d planned – the help we had from family and friends was amazing. We were unbelievably lucky that the weather was perfect as we did not have a backup plan for bad weather. The week leading up to the day we checked the forecast hourly and for once it was correct, clear sunny weather and no wind which is a rarity for the south coast of Victoria.
We designed the invitations, we made signs, stools (not so successful), wedding favours, we purchased all of the glasses, serviettes and decorated ourselves. We also provided some of the entrees and we tested out several recipes leading up to the day.

The dress.

I was determined to find a unique dress that wasn’t your typical wedding style dress – it had to fit the relaxed vibe that we were trying to create. I looked at hundreds of dresses online and eventually found one I liked, when it arrived it was the definition of an online shopping disaster. As I had left it to the last minute it was too late to have something made and after frantically scouring the internet I came across ‘Lost in Paris’ in Sydney and I knew I’d found what I was looking for. I purchased the dress online and I was lucky that it fitted perfectly without any alterations and renewed my faith in online purchases.

Favourite moment.

Arriving at the reception to see all of our family and friends enjoying themselves in a relaxed setting. We were also lucky to be able to spend the weekend with all of our closest friends and family rather than just the wedding day, so just sitting around and actually chatting with everyone before and after the wedding was great.

Funny stories/near disasters.

With the help of close friends (also architects) we spent an entire weekend making leather stools for our guests – ten minutes into the reception we had two guests fall flat on their backs when the stools gave way.

A snake slithering out from the bouquet as our photographer Eric leant down to pick it up and the oldies tearing up the dance floor – particularly a 70-year-old guest performing the ‘worm’ oh and the aftermath when the groom’s father decided to take the fully stocked cool room for a drive – not once but twice!

Traditions.

We were lucky to have Claire’s aunty as our celebrant – it was nice to have someone marry us who knew us well.

Wedding soundtrack.

Follow the Sun (Xavier Rudd) + Peace Train (Cat Stevens) + First Day of My Life (Bright Eyes) – all performed by Nathan Anderson (Groom’s brother).

Meaning of marriage.

Ask us in 10 years – we’re still new to married life!

Words of wisdom.
Don’t stress! With proper planning and help from friends and family it will all fall in to place on the day – just make sure your wedding reflects your personality. It’s amazing what you can organise via email whilst at your desk at work.

Wedding soundtrack.

Follow the Sun (Xavier Rudd) + Peace Train (Cat Stevens) + First Day of My Life (Bright Eyes) – all performed by Nathan Anderson (Groom’s brother).

Looking to get married on the Surf Coast?

Check out our handpicked Surf Coast wedding venues that offer it all.

 

 

CLAIRE AND JEREMY’S TRIBE

Photographer: Eric Ronald

Florist: Flowers by Geelong Flower Farm – Arranged by Claire Walker (Bride), Jo Sych (friend) and Sarah Anderson (family)

Stationery: Bride + Groom and printed by Stitch Press

Ceremony venue: Moonlight Head lookout, Moonlight Head

Reception venue: Alkina Lodge, Moonlight Head

Catering: Entree + Salads by Kim Walker (brides mother)

Food trucks or carts: Taco Truck

Cake: Ice cream by Dooleys Ice Cream

Other desserts: Donuts by All Day Donuts

Wedding favours: Hand packaged chocolates by Geelong Confectionary

Lighting: festoon lights by Event Power

Entertainment: Josh Romig

Celebrant: Lindell Gibson

Bridal gown designer: Lost in Paris

Flower crown: Flowers by Geelong Flower Farm – arranged by Jo Sych (friend)

Shoes: Mollini

Hair and makeup: Ally at Noir Hair Gallery

Grooms attire: Incu

Tie / Bow tie: Mrs Bow Tie




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