Real Wedding – Elisabeth & Isaac, Melbourne VIC
When your wedding portraits act as an unofficial tour of your favourite city spots, the results are bound to be romantic.
Elisabeth and Isaac oozed the relaxed energy of a couple who opted to do their day, their way.
The pair prioritised a stress-free affair for themselves and their guests, planning an intimate ceremony, followed by dinner with family, and an all-in party the following day.
The bride’s ethereal bell sleeve dress contrasted with orange platform heels and the urban Melbourne backdrop made for sublime visual storytelling.
Photographer Jack Dixon-Gunn, from the team at Maegan Brown Moments, found the perfect light in every frame, capturing the magic and mood of the occasion perfectly.
The meeting.
We met at uni, we were friends for about a year before we started dating.
The ‘one’.
We went through some really tough times together in our first year and we stayed rock solid for each other.
The proposal.
During lockdown in our tiny St. Kilda apartment. Isaac made a fancy dinner and dropped a knee.
Planning process.
We initially wanted to get married back in New Zealand with our families but didn’t want to put pressure on our family to feel they needed to organise anything. We decided we wanted the whole affair to be as stress-free for ourselves and all our guests and to not have anyone have to lift a finger. We both chose three things that were non-negotiables and that we wanted to have as part of our celebration. We wanted good food, great flowers and to have it been as easy as possible for our guests, especially for those with children.
Style inspiration.
Simple yet elegant with Melbourne’s iconic architecture and beautiful gardens as a backdrop. We loved the candid stylised photography of Megan Brown especially. The way her team captured the chaos of a fast-paced day really appealed to us.
The ceremony.
The ceremony was simple and emotional. The old treasury building was perfectly intimate.
The outfits.
We were going to a look that was timeless, modern and refined. Beth’s dress was the first one she tried on, and nothing she saw afterwards seemed to compare, so it was an easy choice in the end. Isaac had a traditional tweed three-piece with his pocket watch.
Favourite moments.
Isaacs favourite moment of the day was seeing Beth in her dress for the first time and when she walked down the aisle. She was stunning. Beth’s favourite were the quiet moments after the ceremony that her and Isaac were able to have, between photos and locations when we were able to look at each other and say “We Just Did That!”.
Meaning of marriage.
Marriage is a promise to put each other before anything else, even ourselves.
Wedding soundtrack.
Butterflies by Tom Odell and Aurora.
Words of wisdom.
This is advice that a few of our friends have taken on board: split the wedding into two days. Ceremony and dinner with family on day one, big reception and party with friends and family on day two. Keep the ceremony intimate and the reception loose.
If you love less traditional, inner-city celebrations, browse Chanel and Mark’s real wedding.
ELISABETH & ISAAC’S SUPPLIERS:
We really wanted to make our wedding a showcase of all the things we loved about Melbourne. Our vendors, locations and suppliers were all ones we had used in the past and were obsessed with.
Ceremony venue: The Older Treasury Building – we had the classic ceremony in the Margaret Craig Room.
Reception venue: Longrain – We had cocktails in the bar before moving up to the loft for a banquet dinner.
Photography: The amazing and talented Jack Dixon-Gunn through Maegan Brown Moments
Florist: Lilee Gregory from Astro Daphne
The dress: Shona Joy
The shoes: They were, in fact, a last-minute replacement pair purchased from ASOS about a few weeks before the wedding, as my puppy found the original pair I was going to wear and chewed them up!
Rings: Engagement ring and wedding bands by Chris Hackett From Wellington, New Zealand. Chris is Elisabeth’s Uncle and an incredibly talented and passionate jeweller.
Cake: Black Star Pastry
Stationery: Save the dates designed by Heather-Rain O’Neill and printed by Little Print
Honeymoon: From Kathmandu in Nepal to Goa in India.
Other: Silverlinings Events provided a beautiful area for our guests to sit, rest and have refreshments in Fitzroy Park while we did family photos. Then we hosted a second and much larger reception the following day at The Pier in Port Melbourne with all of our friends and family.
