Real Wedding - Lucinda & Ahmad, St Kilda VIC

July 23, 2023 In Black and White, Luxe, Real Weddings, Victoria By Ivory Tribe

Real Wedding – Lucinda & Ahmad, St Kilda VIC

A streamlined, sophisticated aesthetic and ultra-glam feel culminate to perfection in Lucinda and Ahmad’s dream day. In a nod to their love of Victorian heritage architecture, The George Ballroom was the perfect host for their stunning vision.

After a sun-dappled, emotion-filled ceremony, photographer Hotel Amore led the couple through a portrait session giving old-world movie romance. Lucinda stuns in her show-stopping gown by Rachel Gilbert (and watch out for her inspired dance floor dress later on!), and Ahmad is every bit a dapper gent in his two ‘fits by Tom Ford.

As the guests enter the reception, they’re wowed by layers of softly spun, purest vanilla linen, creating a timeless tablescape triumph. Sweetly elegant florals, crisp crystal glassware and graceful candelabras bring the glam, and a Champagne tower elevates the sense of occasion. Guests immediately hit the dance floor, relishing the incredible party vibes.

Scroll on to see this stunningly styled soiree unfold.

The meeting.

A random Sunday evening at a friend’s drinks at Ferdydurke Bar in the CBD. I went to sit down on a stool and realized Ahmad’s had his hand leaning there and sat on it by accident! We then got talking, and the rest was history.

The ‘one’.

It was obvious from the moment we met; no questions about it.

The proposal.

It was COVID 2021, mid long and gloomy lockdown. I started my day as normal, working from home in my tracksuit, trying to stay positive about what was happening in the world.

Ahmad asked me to accompany him to the city to ‘pick up some skylights’. He had told me he had purchased them from marketplace and needed my help picking them up (this was not out of character). I went to the city in my tracksuit and no make-up, stressed about getting back to my afternoon of meetings.

We walked through an alleyway and then through a construction site. I had still not clicked until I realized we were standing in front of Ferdydurke and noticed Ahmad with a strange look on his face. ‘There are no skylights,’ he said and pulled out a ring. The construction workers all watched and clapped. We went home to where Ahmad had set up flowers, champagne and beautiful lunch from a restaurant in Prahran.

Planning process.

I am pretty relaxed, but also already do a lot of event-style planning for work. I kicked off my spreadsheet and started ticking things off each week.

Style inspiration.

Victorian-esque. Ahmad and I have a love for Victorian heritage homes, and it was important our reception venue was a nod to this.

Real weddings were my go-to for inspiration! You want to see how others have done it, to inspire you with new ideas. Styled and glossy shoots are inspirational, but sometimes it’s the low-fi that is more realistic.

The ceremony.

The ceremony was held at the Women’s Pioneer Memorial Garden. It’s situated in the King’s Domain, close to the Botanical gardens. I often ran past here and always remembered this space for the stunning manicured gardens.

Any day you can bring your family and friends together is always special.

The weekend before, we also had a traditional Afghan-style wedding celebration that included Afghan food, dancing and traditions, which was very special.

The outfit.

I wore two dresses, both by Rachel Gilbert. I wanted something simple and timeless that didn’t involve much fuss.

Favourite moments.

Probably when we first arrived, all the guests took to the dancefloor straight away (before the entrees were even served!). Everyone was having such a great time, and even though I hadn’t scheduled it, I told myself to relax because everyone was having a great time.

Meaning of marriage.

Commitment and partnership.

Wedding soundtrack.

Reception entry: The Way You Love Me by Ron Hall & The Muthafunkaz ft Marc Evan

First dance: Mix of two to include a traditional Afghan song as a nod to Ahmad’s culture. Howling by RY X/ Frank Wiedermann and Goftem Ke Naro by Haider Salim.

Funny stories or near disasters.

Our MC forgot to mention the housekeeping in his introduction and decided to stop the music as we walked in and say it quickly before we restarted. A funny moment as it was off track!

Words of wisdom.

Don’t take things too seriously or make it too stressful. It’s your day, and it’s important to enjoy it.

For similar ultra-glam vibes with a smaller scale audience, check out Chloe and Charlie’s stunning Spanish elopement. Inner city chic unfolds like a vintage movie, and we can’t get enough – here on the blog.

LUCINDA & AHMED’S VENDORS

To find our vendors, we mainly used recommendations from friends. I used Pinterest a lot for inspiration and created a mood board to send to all suppliers when briefing them in order to give them my vision for the day.

Ceremony location: The Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden, King’s Domain

Reception venue: The George Ballroom, St Kilda

Celebrant: Aleksandra Harsic

Photography: Sarah Tee

Florist: Rose Studios

Hair & make-up: Merton Muaremi

The dresses: Rachel Gilbert

Veil: Second hand

Shoes: Tony Bianco

Rings: Cartier

Bridesmaid’s dresses: Rachel Gilbert

Suits & bow ties / ties: Tom Ford