Real Wedding – Georgia & Matt, Mount Macedon VIC
Georgia and Matt’s effortlessly elegant soiree unfolded just the way you’d hope for a dream day ten years in the making. Relaxed, romance-filled vibes coalesce with darling details to create a celebration both stunning in style and filled with upbeat emotion.
From Matt’s perfect reaction to his bride appearing at the end of the aisle to the dazzling smiles captured in every fabulous frame by Smith and Archer, this is a day etched into the memory of everyone in attendance. Georgia looks like an elegant vision of contemporary chic and timeless glam, while Matt leads his groomsmen in a sharp black tux.
Soft linen cascades across the tablescape to create a classicly organic effect, elevated with the addition of sleek black and soft glass candleholders and artfully ambling peach floral arrangements by Country Style Events and The Refined Bloom Co.
We love a furry VIP moment, and Ollie the dog stole the show in perfect style, both in person (dog?!) and across the details of the day. Scroll on to experience every uplifting moment.
The meeting.
Matt and I met when we were 18 (2012) through our friends Mitch (groomsman) and Grace, who are twins. Our two groups of friends started hanging out together once we finished school. We started off as friends, and it wasn’t for nearly six or so months after we met that we both started to realise that we were interested in each other.
The ‘one’.
I don’t think I have an exact moment when I knew Matt was the one. In saying that, when we were sitting and having a drink at a brewery in Amsterdam, Matt all of a sudden came out with, “You know you’re my best friend in the whole world, don’t you?”. It kind of took me by surprise because Matt doesn’t talk about his feelings too much without prompting, but I think after that, I knew for sure I’d marry him someday. After all of his nice words, he proceeded to trick me into thinking he was about to propose and pretended to get down on one knee. We had barely discussed marriage at this stage, so my reaction would have been priceless!
The proposal.
The proposal was a long time coming – It took nine and a half long years with lots of nagging from me, our friends and our family before Matt finally proposed! But in true Matt fashion, he did it in his own time and in his own way, and it was perfect.
We were away for a weekend in the Grampians, and like usual, Matt was happy for me to take the reins on the planning, so I didn’t suspect a thing. We had had a lovely day hiking to a scenic lookout and then a beautiful lunch together, and I remember thinking when we were sitting having a wine together before our lunch arrived how content and happy we both were in that moment.
We headed back to our Airbnb that afternoon and went to watch the sunset over the Grampians. Matt was being a little strange about wanting to find the right spot to take a photo and I was getting annoyed because I just wanted him to sit down with me so we could open our bottle of wine and have a drink and relax! He managed to find the perfect spot to set up his phone with the sunset in the ideal position and dropped the knee as he was sneakily videoing the whole thing! You’d think after ten years, he would have his proposal speech down pat, but it is safe to say the moment got the better of him, and he was lost for words but eventually got ‘Will you marry me?’ out.
Planning process.
We always knew that we wanted to get married somewhere that was special to us. We both grew up in the Macedon Ranges and couldn’t imagine getting married anywhere else, really! Mount Macedon Winery had always been a front-runner, and as soon as we started looking into venues further once engaged, we knew it was everything we wanted.
A family friend so generously offered for us to have our ceremony in her garden (which is completely mind-blowing), only a couple of minutes away from the winery. It was a bit of a risk to take as Mount Macedon weather can be very unpredictable in October (it snowed two days before our wedding!), but this ended up being such a highlight for us and our guests, and we will be forever grateful!
We tried to focus on ticking one big job off at a time and tried to divide jobs up using our individual strengths (Matt is an Excel whizz, so he was in charge of the budget and any spreadsheet we needed!).
Style inspiration.
We worked with Theresa from Country Style Events to help us with the styling and execution of our day. She totally picked up our inspiration of relaxed elegance from the first phone call we had, and we were blown away when we saw everything in person on the day!
The ceremony.
Our ceremony was held in a family friend’s garden on Mount Macedon, and it made for the most beautiful setting for us to exchange our vows. We were so lucky to have the most stunning weather on the day (Mount Macedon can be very hit-and-miss that time of the year), and we couldn’t believe how lucky we were to have all the people we love in such a beautiful place on such a beautiful day.
Our celebrant, Lisa, brought such a warm, friendly and relaxed vibe and really set the tone for the rest of our day.
Our niece Ella was our flower girl, which was so special for us. She was only about two-and-a-half at the time, so we didn’t have any high expectations for her, but she spent a lot of time practising at home and ABSOLUTELY nailed it on the day!
The look.
I found it a lot harder than I expected to find my dress. I never had that ‘omg, this is my dress’ moment with all the tears that you see in the movies, but I knew when my mum and one of my bridesmaids welled up seeing me in my dress that it was the one for me. I shopped around at quite a few different bridal boutiques, then on a whim, after a bit of a disheartening experience at another boutique, walked into Jannifer Wu on Sydney Road. Jannifer instantly put me at ease. She had such an eye for what dresses would flatter my body shape and made me feel so confident.
I knew I wanted an embroidered veil and found Madame Tulle via Instagram. The process of ordering through them was a breeze, and I was so happy with the result.
Matt always knew that he wanted to wear a classic black tux, and we are so glad we went with that! It was so timeless, and the boys all looked very sharp.
Favourite moments.
There were so many to choose from, but a big highlight for me was walking down the aisle with my Dad, seeing Matt (with a huge smile through all the tears), and our dog Ollie waiting for me at the end.
We also both agree that our sunset portraits with our fabulous photographer, Ali, were definitely one of our highlights of the day. We had both assumed that we would be a bit awkward and uncomfortable in front of the camera, but instead, we had so much fun taking some time for just the two of us (Ali is such a pro, and we were in such a happy bubble we pretty much forgot she was there!) and watched the sun set on the best day of our lives.
Meaning of marriage.
A commitment to loving each other unconditionally and being by each other’s side for the rest of your days.
Wedding soundtrack.
All of our ceremony songs were sung acoustically by the wonderful Music By Elise, who has the most amazing voice, and this made the ceremony so special for us!
Aisle (bridesmaids & flower girl): You’ve Got the Love by Florence & the Machine
Aisle (bride): Two Strong Hearts by John Farnham/Anslie Wills
Recessional: Sitting on Top of the World by Delta Goodrem
Reception entry: Take Me to the Clouds Above by LMC vs U2
First dance: I’m With You by Vance Joy
Funny stories or near disasters.
We were so lucky not to be dealt with many curve balls during the planning process. The only near miss we had was that the lovely sun that was shining during the ceremony actually heated up the pen we were to sign our marriage certificate with, meaning that when we went to sign during the ceremony, the black ink leaked everywhere, nearly onto my dress!
Planning surprises.
The hours of admin with all things wedding-related were a lot more than I expected! I found this a bit overwhelming at times, particularly if I was having a busy week otherwise, but it is all worth it!
Words of wisdom.
I would recommend sitting down with your partner at the beginning of your planning and discussing what things are important to you as a couple and individually on the day, which things you may be happy to splurge on and which you want to save on. This makes decisions down the track so much easier and helps keep your day on track to how you both had dreamed of it being.
Having some time set aside for you both to take some time out alone (or with your photographer like we did) on the day is a huge must! It’s such a whirlwind of a day, so taking time to soak it all in together is really special.
Lastly, it’s totally easier said than done but don’t sweat the small stuff. At the end of the day, all that matters is that you are marrying your favourite person and that alone will make it a fabulous day.
Getting close to your dream day, and starting to feel those butterflies in the stomach really amp up? Don’t worry, we’ve got you – check out our ten on-the-day wedding tips to ensure you’ll sail down that aisle feeling like the stress-free, radiant being you are.
GEORGIA & MATT’S VENDORS
I found reading the Real Weddings on Ivory Tribe super helpful for tips and vendor recommendations. We also used a lot of recommendations from the vendors we booked early in the planning process. This made for such a seamless team on the day, as they had already worked together many times before, and it definitely helped me relax knowing they were all such pros!
Ceremony location: Private Property in Mount Macedon
Reception venue: Mount Macedon Winery
Celebrant: Lisa Brown
Photography: Smith & Archer. Ali from Smith & Archer was the first vendor we booked once we locked in our date with our venue. She is super popular in our area, and now we know why! Ali is a total professional, knows weddings inside out and brings the perfect combination of excited and relaxed vibes on the day. She guided us through the whole day, prompting us of what needed to happen when, and I can safely say our day would not have run as smoothly if she hadn’t been there! We were totally blown away when we saw our pictures and will cherish them forever.
Styling & decor: Country Style Events
Florist: The Refined Bloom Co
Hair: Emily Tavlian Hairstyling
Make-up: Jess Strazds
The dress: Jannifer Wu Couture
Veil: Madame Tulle
Shoes: Asos
Rings: Engagement – Parker Diamonds, Georgia’s wedding band – Micheli Jewellery, Matt’s wedding band – Uniform Black.
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Shona Joy
Suits & bow ties / ties: Men’s Suit Warehouse
Catering: Mount Macedon Winery
Bar: The Little Bar Cart (ceremony)
Cake / Cake topper: Baked by Lacey
Stationery / Signage: Adelphi Mou. Marita from Adelphi Mou designed all our stationery and signage. She has the most incredible creative ability, was so patient with my indecisiveness and the end result completely exceeded my expectations!
Entertainment: Music by Elise. Elise from Music by Elise played acoustically for our ceremony, cocktail hour and dinner and then went on to DJ for the rest of the night for us. She learnt several songs for our ceremony, and nothing was ever too much to ask. She had everyone on the dancefloor, read the room impeccably and looked as though she was having as much fun as everyone else on the dancefloor while doing so!
Honeymoon: Bali
