Real Wedding – Dani & Annette, Fitzroy VIC
Wedding industry favourites, Annette and Dani, legally sealed the deal in a chic Collingwood celebration with all their favourite family and friends.
The most important element of the day for this darling duo was the ceremony. They made their way down the aisle to enormous cheers before they celebrated their love with plenty of laughter, perfectly personalised vows and the crowd absolutely erupted when they were finally legally wed!
A feast awaited guests as they were seated on long tables, enjoying a banquet style meal with plenty of wine and conversation flowing.
Guests then hit the dance floor, and boy oh boy, many daring dance moves were on full display. Capturing all the action was Tribe talent Sarah Godenzi and we think you will agree her images are magic!
The meeting.
We met online 12 years ago and clicked instantly. Dani had only been in Australia for about a year and wasn’t sure of her future plans. After a few months, we realized how special the relationship was, and Dani decided to stay in Australia permanently.
The ‘one.’
After about two months together we realized we were in love. Annette was instantly ‘addicted’ to Dani and wanted to spend every spare moment together, but Dani was insistent on taking it slower. Two months after we met, Dani went to Thailand for a ten-day holiday, and had to return using a different passport in order to re-enter the country. There was a chance she wouldn’t be able to enter the country, and that time away really proved how much we meant to each other.
The proposal.
Annette proposed to Dani about 8 years ago. She used tea-light candles to spell out the words “MARRY ME?” on the beach at sunset. We were planning to wait until the law was changed to get married, but we decided we couldn’t wait that long, so we had a wedding at Daylesford Convent in 2013, not legal but with all the usual celebrations.
The planning.
Once the law was changed, we decided to have another wedding, but we wanted to keep it low key. We filmed a wedding at Craft & Co and really loved the vibe and the setting, so we decided to book it in. Being in the wedding industry we knew immediately who we wanted as our vendors, so that was pretty easy.
Style inspiration.
We wanted it to be non-traditional, except we wanted the ceremony to be the most important part. Other than that, we didn’t want any formalities, just great food and lots of dancing. The timing of the wedding (winter) meant we could incorporate a moody vibe with a cool neon sign and everything indoors with the one venue.
The outfits.
Dani found hers easily. Annette actually found it online from Misha, and Dani bought it and it fit perfectly. Annette had great difficulty deciding what to wear and didn’t find something until two weeks before the wedding. She saw it at Sheike and it fit perfectly.
Favorite moments.
The wedding vows, and the dancefloor.
The meaning of marriage.
The legal part was so important for us! Being able to say ‘wife’, and not get funny looks, is incredible.
Name your wedding soundtrack:
Fall at your Feet by Crowded House
Message to My Girl by Split Enz
As I Lay Me Down by Sophie B Hawkins
Only to Be With You by Roachford
Inner Smile by Texas
Any funny stories (or near disasters).
Just Annette not having anything to wear until two weeks prior.
Planning surprises.
That Dani was no help. Lol.
Words of wisdom.
There’s nothing you ‘have’ to do. Except the legal requirements. The rest is up to you. Hire vendors you trust and let them do their job.
We have a fabulous Tribe of talent, just waiting to be part of your big day. Be sure to check out our highly recommended wedding directory of supreme suppliers.
DANI & ANNETTE’S TRIBE
Ceremony venue / location: Craft & Co, Collingwood.
Reception venue / location: Craft & Co, Collingwood. All I can say is SO MUCH BEAUTIFUL FOOD. And they were so laid-back and awesome on the night.
Celebrant/Officiant: Jo Betz. As soon as we decided to have another wedding, we knew we wanted Jo to officiate. Jo has been a great friend of ours for a few years, and we’ve seen her in action. She’s so warm and genuine, and funny and witty. There’s no-one like her.
Photography: Sarah Godenzi. Being in the wedding industry, we actually had a few friends volunteer to take the photos, but we wanted someone from outside our friendship circle, who wouldn’t be hired as a favor. We shot a wedding alongside Sarah about a year before our wedding, and we knew immediately she’d be perfect. She’s super talented, but also very humble and down-to-earth, with a great sense of humour. She’s since become a great friend of ours, and had some killer dance moves of her own on the dance floor.
Styling/Florist: Vagary Creative. We saw Melissa’s work at another wedding about four months before ours and were really impressed. She was so amazing in the lead-up, and we were absolutely blown away with the results. The venue looked spectacular, we had so many compliments.
Hair: K Image Hair. Krystal has been a great friend and industry colleague for years, and we know she is the absolute best in the business. So professional, so genuine, and just an absolute legend.
Make Up: Sophie Knox. Our great friend Sophie, who is incredibly funny, and also ridiculously talented, did our makeup for the day. Sophie, Krystal, along with a couple of our friends hung out with us while getting ready, and it made the day so extra special.
The Dress(es): Dani’s from Misha and Annette’s from Sheike
Shoes: Mimco.
Entertainment: Acoustic Singer: Zabrina Araya. Zabrina was the maid-of-honour in her sister’s wedding that we filmed, and she also did a surprise performance. Her voice is so incredible, we were just blown away.
DJ: Eddie Rinaldo. We’ve known Eddie for years and we recommend him to everyone because he is the absolute best. Our dancefloor was insane, thanks to him. He was also really amazing in the lead-up, he provided audio for the celebrant, for the singer, and arranged for our festoon lighting. Eddie will make your wedding reception exceptional.
Neon Sign: Little Pineapple.
Ice Cream Cart: Bianco Latte. They set up their ice-cream cart after dessert next to the dance floor and it was a hit.
