Real Wedding – Lauren & Mitchell, Taradale VIC 

Lauren and Mitchell’s stunning soiree impactfully encompassed many shades of style – from a dramatic chapel ceremony to an effortlessly elegant garden party reception, culminating in an epic dance party.

Delightful details carried the boho-chic Tuscan vibes throughout the day, with artfully whimsical florals in sweet pastel hues and delicate brass decor accents. Lauren brought the soft, modern romance in her Popovski gown, while Mitch cut a sharp figure in his classic black tux. And, of course, every divine detail and sweet emotion was captured to perfection by photographer Tess Follett.

Adding to the effortless vibes of the couple was their planning philosophy – choose an A+ venue, a team of superstar suppliers and a general sense of the theme of the day, and then trust, trust, trust. And it paid off – this is one celebration high on impact and low on stress.

As the sun went down on the loved-up newlyweds, the party headed inside, in the hands of master music makers Hey Jack, who made sure this one was party worthy of a couple who first met at iconic Melbourne night spot, Revolver! Scroll on to see each stunning stage of this dream day unfold.

The meeting.

Mitch and I met eight years ago in the early hours of the morning on a dancefloor at an iconic Melbourne nightclub – Revolver. We bonded over 90’s rappers. We were both celebrating our birthdays that weekend!

The ‘one’.

For Mitch, it was love at first sight. For Lauren, she fell in love when she discovered Mitch’s kind and loving personality.

The proposal.

Mitch took me on a waterfall walk in the Yarra Valley during lockdown. I remember thinking, why is Mitch taking this backpack on the walk (which was only 500m or so)? He pulled me to the side next to a stream within the trees and pointed for me to look at something. I did, then turned back to Mitch, and he was down on one knee with the most amazing ring he had been sneakily designing after work over the past few months.

And so, it turns out that the backpack was concealing champagne!!

Planning process.

We initially started looking at venues, and from the moment I saw Churchill as a Real Wedding venue on Ivory Tribe, I knew it was THE venue; nothing really compared to it. It was dreamy; it gave us Tuscany and boho-chic vibes. It was also important to us that the ceremony and reception were at the same location.

Once we booked the venue, everything really was quite easy, simple, and really fun. I found Tess Follet, who is an incredibly talented photographer, on Instagram; Churchill is run/owned by florists who did the most spectacular flowers, a friend was our celebrant, and Maddie from The Variegated did our extraordinary stationary and made it so easy. We trusted our supplier’s talent, so we just sent through some inspo pics, and they did the rest!

Style inspiration. 

The venue, Churchill, is spectacular in itself, so this set the tone for our wedding.

Real weddings gave us inspiration and the best ideas.

The ceremony.

The ceremony took place inside the decommissioned church that was built in the 1800s. The drama of the building was spectacular and made my entrance so perfect. Our ceremony was very emotional! We were the first marriage from both sides of the family. I also lost my mum a few years ago, so we wanted to incorporate a tribute to her. We had my sisters light a candle in her favourite fragrance; it really made it feel special and like she was there watching down on us.

The look. 

For Mitch and the groomsmen, we went with a classic black tux style. We thought this was timeless and made the boys look very handsome.

I found it really tricky to find the perfect wedding dress, but eventually, I discovered a Melbourne designer (through hours of Instagram scrolling) – Popopvski. I fell in love with this amazing flowing organza bodice and skirt with and organza overlay. I had it made into a dress and popped a slit in the skirt for a bit of drama.

Favourite moments.

Our favourite moment was immediately after the father / daughter dance when Elvis Presley’s Burning Love played. Every single guest at our wedding was on the dancefloor. It just felt so incredibly amazing to have all our friends and family surrounding and celebrating with us, and everyone so happy!

Meaning of marriage.

Marriage to us is the union of two best friends. Two people that make each other better and that promise to do that for eternity.

Wedding soundtrack.

Aisle: Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez

Singing: Dreams by The Cranberries

Recessional: Everywhere by Fleetwood Mac

Reception entry: One More Time by Daft Punk

First Dance: Simply The Best by Tina Arena (Stephanie Rainey acoustic version)

Funny stories or near disasters.

What made our wedding very memorable to both Mitch and me and our guests was the maid of honour speech made by my sister Emma. Her dad jokes, ability to involve all the wedding guests and cheeky banter with the best man (you might be able to fill in the blanks here) were non-stop laughs for everyone!

Planning surprises.

How easy and stress-free it was. I think we found the most amazing suppliers that we had complete trust in and just let them do their thing. We didn’t have any set-in-stone requirements for styling, so it just organically took shape based around our venue. We couldn’t have been happier with how everything turned out.

Words of wisdom.

For us, things that made the day amazing and that I would consider non-negotiables are: a talented photographer, live music, amazing and plentiful food, plus flowing drinks. And, of course, the venue is incredibly important as this is going to set the vibe for all other aspects of the wedding.

Invest and trust in your suppliers; they will make the lead-up and your wedding day so carefree which means you and your partner are free to enjoy the moment!

If we had our time again, the only thing we would change would be to do a first look photo session, purely to have more time with our guests.

We love that Lauren and Mitch found inspiration through our gorgeous Real Weddings. If you’re looking for celebrations with a similar vibe to theirs, check out some similar real life inspo, here on the blog.

LAUREN & MITCH’S VENDORS

Ceremony & reception venue: Churchhill, Taradale Vic. Found via Ivory Tribe!

Celebrant: Julie Cannan. The most caring and supportive celebrant, Julie, had the most beautiful words for us and really made our ceremony feel like Mitch and I were in a love bubble (as Julie puts it).

Photography: Tess Follet Photography. Found through Instagram. Incredibly talented and genuinely amazing person. Cannot recommend her enough. She made everything so easy, and the photos were spectacular.

Styling & florist: Prunella

Hair: Hair by Ellie from Ellie Rose Hair Studio. Ellie specializes in both colour and styling, and I have been using her services for a while, so we started the colour process around eight months prior to the wedding. She styled the girls and me with soft waves. My hair was perfect for the entire day!

Make-up: Arielle Wray

The dress: Popovski

Shoes: Jacquemus

Rings: Natalie Grant Jewellery

Bridesmaid’s dresses: Bec + Bridge

Suits: Formal Red

Catering: Spoonful – Everyone commented on how amazing the food was. We did a sharing style catering which suited our relaxed vibe.

Stationery / Signage: Maddie from The Variegated. Cannot recommend Maddie enough; her design ability is beyond amazing, and she made the process of invites and signage seamless and not to mention beautiful!

Entertainment: Hey Jack. We had a live duo and DJ.

Transport: EH Limo Stretch Hire

Décor: Prunella / Churchhill

Honeymoon: Port Douglas