Real Wedding – Jacinta & Peter, Melbourne VIC

Timeless, elegant and simple were the buzzwords at the heart of Jacinta and Peter’s wedding day curation. With, of course, just that touch of grand sophistication imparted in the groom’s three-piece custom suit and Jacinta’s statement overskirt and epic 5m veil.

These two lockdown lovers approached their wedding planning as an aligned team, with both having input into all decisions, from styling to hospitality. The result on the day was that they absolutely glowed with relaxed bliss, while their dream day vision was perfection from start to finish.

Assembling a team of super talented vendors was key, with Cene Studio taking their styling reins, and creating visual magic, from the florals to darling decor details, and elegantly adorned signage and stationery. There to capture every superbly gorgeous element was photographic legend and all around excellent human, Paul Osta Photography.

Scroll on for Jacinta’s uniquely excellent wedding planning hack, and witness all the stunning moments.

The meeting.

Unofficially – we went to the same high school, and Peter was in my older brother’s year level. In other words, I was forbidden property.

Officially, let me set the scene: we were at the Portsea Polo after party, and given we have mutual friends, we were hanging out in the same circles. Peter’s close friend bought me a drink, and I guess Peter took that as his opportunity to pounce. He took the drink off his friend and handed it to me with a flirty smile. We drank together and flirted and left it at that! The next day I slid into his DMs (smooth) to thank him for the drink – which he fully claimed he bought me. I found out a year later that it was actually his friend who had bought me the drink!

The ‘one’.

After the Polo after party, Melbourne went into covid lockdown, so meeting up with anyone new was hard. We spoke every day, across three different platforms, for almost nine straight months and honestly, I think I had fallen hard before our first face-to-face date.

The proposal.

So, I planned a mini staycation at Crown Melbourne for a few nights and was completely blindsided! The day he proposed we spent almost eight hours exploring the city just the two of us, walking, talking and eating. When we got back to the room, I was getting ready to go out. I turned around and there he was – dropping a knee!

Planning process.

Instagram and Pinterest became my bibles – scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. I felt like real weddings were where I could really base my vision off, morphing bits and pieces of showcased weddings to form our own dream.

Style inspiration.

Timeless, elegant, simple. I just didn’t want anything overdone, or anything that’s “on trend” just for now.

The ceremony.

We were married at St Patrick’s Cathedral, and if you have ever been there, you know it’s special. It gives you a special feeling that I haven’t really ever gotten from a building before. The best part was that we had the bride’s mum and the groom’s sister-in-law witness us. They’re two of the most important women in our lives, and we wanted to find a way to honour them – it was perfect.

The outfits.

The brief was classical, timeless, elegant, and grand. For the boys, a bow tie was necessary paired with a custom black tailored suit, and a three piece for the groom so perfectly tailored, their look was chic.

For the bride, there was something about pearls that caught my attention from the start. I knew I wanted something fitted, it’s just my style. I didn’t want to play around with sleeves, but I wanted the statement for the Cathedral. Nothing says statement like an impeccable overskirt and 5m veil – of course!

For the bridesmaids, I wanted dresses that had a draping feel, were modest yet sexy, and worked for four very different body types. When I located the Australian brand, One Fell Swoop had a range called “Mother of Pearl”, I knew this would be perfect. And it really was.

Favourite moment.

In the Groom’s words “watching you walk to me down the aisle”.

Meaning of marriage.

To me (bride), marriage means I can always steal his chips or switch meals if his is better than mine. To him (groom), marriage means he gets extra leftovers! In all seriousness, to us, it’s having someone who is always on your team, whether its supporting and backing you all the way, or cheering admirably from the sidelines.

Wedding soundtrack.

Aisle: super classical, Princess Diana vibes – Canon in D.

Reception entry was epic: I’m feelin’ it by Sunset Bros., followed by a mini-set of all our favourite party songs. Everyone was up on the dancefloor within the first five minutes of our wedding!

First dance was cute and current: Lover – First Dance Remix by Taylor Swift.

Funny stories (or near disasters).

The actual day was literally PERFECT, I could not fault a single moment.

The day before though… we tried to schedule in some time just for us two, alone, in the afternoon before we said our “goodbye’s” and “see you at the alter”. It was the most relaxing day – it was quiet, it was perfect. Just as Peter pulled into the driveway to spend our afternoon together I received a call. The second I heard my phone ring I knew I had forgotten something. No biggie – just my mum, mother-in-law and sister’s flower wrist corsage, that were at the florist to be picked up before they closed for the week – at 2pm Friday. They called me at 1:50pm and their warehouse was 25 minutes away. My goodbye to Peter was me yelling “OH MY GOD OH MY GOD I GOTTA GO BYE I LOVE YOU” and you best believe I ran every light the whole way there. Goods were secured of course!

Planning surprises.

I truly believe I was cool, calm and collected, the whole time. I had my list, my deadlines, my inspo, and it just worked!

Words of wisdom.

DO IT TOGETHER! I hear all these stories of the bride organising everything. For me, it was so important for Peter to have a voice and an opinion. I wanted him to feel the same sense of pride and appreciation for the magical day we planned, it was a piece of each of us and that’s what made it perfect.

Here is my biggest hack! In the year before we were planning the wedding, Peter and I were invited to 15 weddings. For those keeping count, that means, 15 hens parties, 15 bucks parties, 15 bridal showers. That’s 60 events in a year. THINK ABOUT THE OUTFITS! We got to see 15 VERY different couples bring their visions to life. We had church ceremonies, gardens, galleries, wineries. There were summer soiree’s, autumn, winter, spring, all of it. We trialed 15 different venues, menu’s, DJs, and cakes. 15 different bridal gowns to admire, 15 different stylists. And at the end of it all, 15 newly married couples fueling us with their recommendations and referrals. It was like the wedding planning lottery, and we hit the jackpot! A big thank you to our beautiful friends.

Love Jacinta and Peter’s aligned approach to wedding planning? Take their lead and get super organised with our very own Wedding Plans, our chic little planning book. Don’t miss a deadline, forget a detail or lose track of your budget – we’ve got you!

JACINTA & PETER’S VENDORS

 Ceremony venue: St. Patrick’s Cathedral, East Melbourne

Reception venue : The Grand Ballroom, Meadowbank Estate, Campbellfield

Officiant: Fr Joel Peart

Photography: Paul Osta Photography

Videography: Pro Eye Video

Styling, florals, signage/stationery & decor: Cene Studio

Hair: Monel Hair Room

Make-up: Stephanie Piazza Makeup

The dress & veil: Marquise Bridal

Shoes: Aquazurra

Bridesmaid’s dresses: One Fell Swoop

Suits & bow ties/ ties: Dyonsu.

Favours: Magnetized

Cake / Cake topper: Dolce Melbourne

Entertainment: DJ CK – Ei8ht Entertainment

Transport: Cassars Limousine Service & Always Classic Cars

Minimoon: Noosa – Sofitel Noosa Pacific Resort

Honeymoon: Europe incoming in August! Bali to kick it off, followed by Italy, Spain, Croatia and Greece.