Real Wedding – Melissa & Josh, Coburg VIC
Melissa and Josh’s wedding day is a vibrant celebration, punctuated with the effortless romance created when two high school sweethearts make it a forever thing.
The gorgeous Post Office hotel blends chic vintage charm with modern flair, providing the perfect backdrop for a day filled with heartfelt moments and joyous revelry.
The ceremony, officiated by the witty and wonderful Nat Sproal, is an unforgettable mix of uplifting humour and heartfelt sincerity, capturing the essence that underpins Melissa and Josh. As the evening unfolds, the beats from One More Song DJ have everyone on the dance floor, giving epic party vibes and the perfect soundtrack to a beautifully memorable milestone.
Adding a touch of glamour to Melissa’s chic bridal style are exquisite earrings by Amelie George, a perfect choice for a freshly modern feel with a timeless twist.
Dive into the delightful details of Melissa and Josh’s wedding, captured with dynamic artistry and blissful balance by Nikki McCrone Photography.
The meeting.
We first met at high school in 2006. We were walking separately with friends and what prompted us to meet was Josh pulling the ‘plastic cheese’ out of his sandwich and flinging it on a bin – it made the most ridiculous sound and I could not stop laughing! From here we started chatting on MySpace and MSN messenger and became close friends. In July 2007 this turned into boyfriend and girlfriend – and the rest is history!
The ‘one’.
Having been together for such a long time we both can’t really answer this! From very early on Josh would often say that we would get married one day. Over time we have grown together, and it has just felt like a natural progression. I can’t picture my life without him and Josh can’t without me.
The proposal.
For my birthday in 2022, Josh organised dinner at Matilda in South Yarra. We had a lovely dinner and when we were walking back to the car, Josh stopped me and said ”do you want to go in here?” pointing at a very seedy looking doorway. I obviously was not keen, but he ushered me into what ended up being the foyer for the hotel above the restaurant. When he came back from the car with the overnight bags he had packed and he told me he had one last present for me and dropped a knee and read out the sweetest proposal. He was so nervous asking, even after 15 years!
Planning process.
I found it came in waves of motivation! Initially, I didn’t even know where to start, so it took a few months to get going.
I would have liked a winter wedding but Josh preferred warmer weather so we compromised with November (I am very glad we did!). I started looking at venues on Instagram and came across two options we really liked. We viewed the first which was nice but just didn’t feel like us. The other option was the Post Office Hotel so we arranged a private tour and immediately knew it was the place for us! I then went to their open day with my mum and sisters and seeing it done up for a wedding was what sealed it! Knowing we wanted the POH I couldn’t set a date until I checked with Nat Sproal (our celebrant) to see if she was available as I KNEW we had to have her. When we found a date that lined up I booked it and ticked off most of the main vendors in the next month or so, trying not to overthink any choices and go with my gut!
There is a lot of pressure choosing vendors to make sure they’re available but also the right fit. We met in person or via video with majority of our vendors to get a feel and each time felt relieved knowing we had picked well! Most of the decisions were made around a year in advance so there was a bit of a lull for a few months. The months leading up to the wedding started to get busy with all the finer details and it felt at times overwhelming finalising decisions (which is hard for an indecisive person!).
I bought together the options that I liked the most and then discussed them with Josh to get his tick of approval for the final decision. It can feel overwhelming at times to take on the majority of the planning but I also liked having the freedom to do what I wanted (which is usually what Josh would have chosen, anyway).
I took two weeks off in the lead-up to the wedding and I would definitely recommend at least the week before! Fitting all the appointments in, finalising decisions with lots of calls and emails and taking items to the venue all had to be scheduled in. The POH team and our vendors were all brilliant and made the lead-up so much easier.
Style inspiration.
When looking through Pinterest and Instagram I was always drawn to the colour! For years I had images of Bangin Hangins installations saved and knew that I wanted to channel the fun and colour of the weddings they are used at. Overall I just wanted it to be a colourful, fun celebration of our love with our favourite people!
For inspiration, I definitely turned to real weddings! Styled shoots are stunning and good for inspiration for things often a little out of the box you wouldn’t typically see at weddings but it’s great to see a real life, achievable wedding that is set up to be functional for the day. I found our vendors often were involved with weddings that had a similar vibe to what we were looking to achieve so used a lot of their images/blog posts as inspiration also.
The ceremony.
We wanted something engaging, personal and short! As soon as I came across Nat’s Instagram and watched some of her videos I knew we had to book her. Her reviews are glowing and they are not a word of a lie! She tied together our story across the 16 years together so flawlessly, it felt like she was an old friend telling our story – with many people commenting about how amazing she was and assuming she was a work colleague who knew us well! It was meaningful but also lighthearted. We stood together, opting for my bridesmaids to sit in the front row instead, had our mums bring the rings up after they were ‘warmed’ by our guests and chose to do a witness raffle from a selection of our loved ones – highly recommend! It was the perfect length and really set up the bubble of love we floated in for the rest of the day!
The outfits.
Mel: dress shopping was an experience! I went with my mum, sisters and cousin to a few stores and found the process a bit much so I then went alone to keep looking which suited me much better. I was able to take my time and really look at the options and then try things on without other opinions – when I had narrowed it down I went back with my mum to finalise the decision. When I went to Geelong Bridal House, the team were sensational! I had always envisioned sleeves on my gown and had found the perfect ones but the dress just wasn’t right. I tried on a Cizzy Bridal beaded gown and I knew it was the one! Anna at Bridal House was able to custom make the dress to blend the sleeves I loved from one dress with the dress I had chosen. They were also made to be removable!
The other piece of my outfit was always going to be a colourful jacket! ASOS came through with the most dreamy sequin jacket – it’s safe to say I am obsessed with it and the photos with the jacket are some of my favourites.
Josh: in typical Josh fashion, he left getting his suit organised until two weeks before the wedding. He had a vision in his mind and thankfully the amazing Peter at Soho Workshop at Chadstone helped bring that to life (in the tight timeframe!). Josh was able to get his entire outfit from the one place including the alterations! The perfect emerald green velour jacket, velvet bowtie and patent leather shoes. The extras were personalised socks with illustrations of our two cats on them and I surprised Josh with custom made cufflinks of our cats faces, Henry and George.
Favourite moments.
Can I say all of it!? If I had to narrow it down I would say visiting my Nan (who has recently passed away) at home on the way to the wedding. The photos and video with her we will cherish even more now. We were both so happy to spend this time together and it really grounded me heading off to the ceremony.
The second would have to be the snippets of the day Josh and I spent together. We got ready together at home with our cats, had a private signing, a sneaky cheeseburger break and spent golden hour on the POH rooftop which was so much fun and nice to slip away – Nathan and Nikki headed back first and gave us some time to wander back together – it was so special having those moments just us.
Meaning of marriage.
Marriage for us is the next chapter – it’s sharing our love and commitment and continuing to live out the promises we make to each other each day. It’s always working to be the best version of ourselves. We feel it isn’t joining each others family per se, it’s creating our own. It’s also pretty special to be able to call each other husband/wife!
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: First Date by Taylor Acorn
Reception entry: Chameleon by PNAU
First dance: I Could Die For You by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Father/daughter dance: Dancing in the Moonlight by Toploader
Funny stories or near disasters.
I had been a little slack sending my engagement ring back to Mandi & Co to get cleaned and to make my wedding band and with some unexpected delays with the platinum, Mandi hustled and managed to get the rings to me 28 hours before the wedding! Very close but we got there!
On the day thankfully everything ran pretty smoothly other than me failing to notice a tag on my jacket until later in the evening (after photos!) and Josh spilling mustard on his white shirt during cocktail hour! Thankfully my dad came to the rescue with a spare shirt he wore for the rest of the night.
Planning surprises.
The timeline on the day! I didn’t realise how stressful that would be. Trying to make time for everything but also trying to not put too much in! Make sure you have an A-Team of vendors around you as they really helped me with this.
Words of wisdom.
Do it your way! However you picture your day, make it happen. Traditions that aren’t of any interest to you? Don’t do them! It’s such a special day and you want to look back on it and feel content you did things in the best way for you and your partner. Set a realistic budget and prioritise the most important vendors and invest your money there – celebrant, videographer and photographer! The people you work with help build your day and it’s so important to work with amazing vendors who love what they do!
Everyone says it but the day honestly goes so fast so try soak it all in and take some time together whenever you can. Oh, and eat the food! We ended up having a really warm day so had to move our photos after the ceremony back a little bit on Nikki’s advice which ended up being the best idea as we were able to stay for cocktail hour and just hang out with everyone and got to eat and drink – so if you can be present even for part of the cocktail hour it was such an unexpected bonus.
One thing I realised after the day was that there were a lot of people we didn’t get a photo with from our photographer so I definitely recommend making a list of people you want to get photos with so that you can tick them off.
Want to get your wedding plans well in order so you can roll into your wedding feeling relaxed and radiant? We’ve got you. Check out our suite of planning resources, including our physical planner and downloadable resources, and say hello to the organised you.
MELISSA & JOSH’S VENDORS
After getting inspiration through Instagram Pinterest, Ivory Tribe and a few other websites to get the general vibe we wanted for the day I then started to look specifically at suppliers. First, I found Nat and then used her list of recommendations to choose a lot of our vendors who also worked closely with the Post Office Hotel.
Ceremony venue: The Post Office Hotel, Coburg. The POH team are phenomenal! We were lucky enough to work with Aja, she is an absolute legend! The inclusions with the wedding package are amazing and having an on the day coordinator who sets everything up takes a lot of stress away. The venue itself needs minimal decoration, so you really don’t need much to make it even more stunning. Our guests raved about the food – delicious! If you’re looking for a venue, definitely check out the POH!
Celebrant: Nat Sproal. We love Nat! She made the lead up a breeze and delivered the perfect ceremony for us. We are so grateful she married us! She was also our killer MC for the night!
Photography: Nikki McCrone Photography. Her work speaks for itself. Nikki captures things so, so beautifully. She is hilarious, warm and friendly but she also runs a tight ship! She will keep you on time and will go above and beyond for you! It honestly feels like you’re hanging out with a good friend – having a laugh. She put us both at ease the whole time. She will be photographing all our special moments forever now!
Videography: Nathan Waters Film. We are so glad we had Nathan as part of our team! He is incredibly talented and captured the vibe of our day perfectly and we are so obsessed with all of our videos he created!
Styling: The Post Office Hotel
Florist: Babylon Flowers. The Babylon ladies are a dream to work with. They created the most STUNNING florals for us. I still cannot get over our ceremony space and venue florals!
Hair & make-up: Kate McCleary. If you want someone warm and kind who does amazing make up AND hair – Kate should be your only option!
The dress: Cizzy Bridal from Geelong Bridal House.
Veil / headwear: Geelong Bridal House.
Shoes: Pink Inc
Earrings: Amelie George
Bride’s ring: Mandi & Co. It is an absolute pleasure working with Mandi. She created my engagement ring and wedding band and they are perfection. We are in Melbourne and she is in Perth but it was still the most seamless process working together.
Groom’s ring: Gucci
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Geelong Bridal House – Tanya Olsen
Suit & bow tie: Soho Workshop Chadstone
Cake / Cake topper: Cake from Flour and Sugar. The cake Bec made for us was the most amazing cake I have ever had in my life! So many of our guests raved about the cake and had multiple slices! She bought my vision to life perfectly. Cake Topper custom designed with One Kind Studio. Kate was so amazing to work with! I struggled to pin point exactly how I wanted the cake topper to look and based off my rough sketch and description she made it perfectly.
Stationery / Signage: Invitations – Colour Muse Design. Signage – The Post Office Hotel.
Entertainment: One More Song DJs. We worked with Aleks and she was the best! Our guests loved the photobooth!
Décor: Table candles – Hueseeka. Ceremony floor candles – Melb Candle Hire. I decided a few weeks before the wedding that the ceremony needed something else. Chloe was a dream to work with and her candles totally completed our ceremony space perfectly. If you’re looking for candles get in touch with Chloe!
Ceiling installation: Bangin Hangins. Legends! No other words needed!
Getting ready PJs: Piyama.
Cat cut outs: Lifesize Cutouts.
Custom cufflinks of our cats: Pawfect Love
Dance lessons: Dance with Taryn
Guest book illustration: Monica Gonzalez Art.
