Real Wedding – Richard & Katie, Richmond VIC
After meeting at a party dressed as Superman and Supergirl, it was surely fated that Katie and Richard would end up a team. And such a strong team (pardon the pun) that when they decided to tie the knot, they truly did it their way.
Intimate, impeccably styled and perfectly personal, this dream day is one big on impact and low on stress. Choosing to host their celebrations across two days meant that while no one missed out, Richard and Katie felt relaxed at every stage of their sweet soiree.
Katie chose a chic contemporary gown by Prea James from Bluebell Bridal, complete with soft gossamer belted jacket and effortlessly elegant sleeve. Richard also stepped up his fit with an elegant statement jacket in rich emerald velvet, perfect against the lush greenery of their ceremony venue, Glasshaus Outside.
There to kick the celebrations up a notch was celebrant extraordinaire, our very own Precious Celebrations. With her signature blend of super warm, cheekily light-hearted and beautifully blissed-out delivery, she set the tone for the party to come.
And party they did – not only that night, over a decadent dinner, but with more of their nearest and dearest the following evening.
We love the opportunity for the newlyweds to connect with everyone there, all captured with stunning aesthetic impact by Motta Weddings.
The meeting.
We met at a house cooling party (Richard’s) in 2016. Richard was dressed as Superman, and I was dressed as Supergirl… the rest was history.
The ‘one’.
I think deep down, we always knew; however, there was a clear point where things felt natural and easy after a swift re-kindling of a friendship became something so much more in 2019.
The proposal.
Richard planned a romantic weekend away at the Lakehouse in Daylesford. Whilst the plans were likely* scuppered by some eager staff bringing a special bottle of champagne out a day early, the clouds cleared on night two for long enough for staff to set up a table with flowers and the bottle of champagne outside by the lake. Richard got on one knee and asked me to marry him, to which I swiftly said yes.
*I’ve since confirmed I knew something was up!
Planning process.
For the better part of the year, Richard and I couldn’t decide what we wanted to do for our wedding as we both found it difficult to imagine a big wedding.
However, in November 2022, we settled on a concept for our wedding that felt right for us.
We knew we would like to keep the formal side of the wedding to a relatively intimate group and follow with a party in the following days where we could let our hair down with the ceremony jitters out of the way!
With this plan in mind, we chose two of our favourite venues in Melbourne to host our events – the first being Cutler and Co for the intimate dinner party on the day of our wedding, and then Siglo Rooftop for the party, which was held two days after the ceremony.
After locking in the venues and big-ticket vendors such as celebrant, photographer, florist and DJ four months out, we were left to just fill in the remaining details like outfits, make-up and décor before the wedding, which was lots of fun.
In hindsight, we definitely found the smaller decisions to be the ones we tended to dwell on!
Style inspiration.
Warm and cosy was the inspiration and sentiment for the style of our wedding.
We wanted to make sure it wasn’t stiff at all and was fun and memorable for all our guests, not just us.
A Dinner Party: We both love any dinner parties with our family and friends, especially when paired with good food and wine, so this felt like the easy part to plan, especially with Cutler and Co being both our favourite restaurant! We picked the private room out the back, which was perfect for the group of 25.
The Ceremony: A day off from work was needed to get around some of our favourite gardens and parks. We took inspiration from our many walks or picnics around the city gardens whilst we lived in Fitzroy (a newfound hobby necessary for maintaining sanity during lockdowns).
We finished our day at Glasshaus Outside and were immediately taken by it; it was the perfect warm and cosy space we were both planning around.
It made things so easy to plan thereafter with nothing required to do to the space; we could just take inspo from the colours surrounding the day, which our florist Alex Wood did so well. Greens, pinks and deep reds featured prominently.
The Party: The party was a blast to plan! The inspiration was simple – buy some awesome outfits, get a DJ, and then mix with fun people, good food and drink, and a killer venue that everyone loves.
The ceremony.
We had 25 guests at our wedding ceremony (plus our little nephews and niece), made up of our closest friends and immediate family. For us, it was extremely special knowing we had a strong connection with every person in the room.
The look.
I was lucky to find my dress on my first try!
I had been following a few designers on Instagram and loved everything I’d seen from Prea James. I chose to wear a silk organza jacket over the dress – I loved the elegance of this look, and it’s not something you see every day.
Richard was always keen to wear a tuxedo for his wedding, so after I purchased a ‘dressy’ dress, he was quick to decide on a vision for his outfit that would suit him. He was, however, customarily tardy on executing and required several visits to the patient staff at P Johnson to weed through what felt like over a dozen green velvets to arrive at the perfect one he felt was classy and stood out.
Favourite moments.
Exchanging our vows. We had kept them as a surprise from each other, and they were more beautiful than either of us could have imagined. It’s fair to say there wasn’t a dry eye in the room at that point in time.
Meaning of marriage.
We were both very respectful of the union and what it meant.
You are afforded very many choices in life, but for us, it means choosing one another above all others and placing that person’s needs ahead of our own.
It means that we trust one another and that in spending the remainder of our lives together, we know our lives will always be full.
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: Into My Arms by Nick Cave;
Recessional: Home by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Planning surprises.
It takes a lot of effort for an event to appear effortless. Even though we went with a smaller-scale wedding, there was a lot to consider. Fortunately, we had some great help from our families!
Words of wisdom.
Trust your instincts and do what feels authentic to you as a couple. You don’t have to follow the traditional format of a wedding or what you think you should do if that doesn’t feel right.
It’s becoming more common now to do as Katie and Richard did and get the official wedding business done with a smaller audience, before a party later on with all your loved ones. But what things should you consider before making this choice? We’ve got the low-down, here on the blog.
RICHARD & KATIE’S VENDORS
Ceremony venue: Glasshaus Outside. We are so happy that we chose Glasshaus Outside as our ceremony venue. It provided the perfect backdrop for our photos, and the plants created a sense of intimacy.
Reception venue: Cutler and Co. It was an easy decision for us, and the staff really validated our choice. They were so professional throughout the lead-up to the event and went above and beyond on the night.
Celebrant/Officiant: Precious Fawcett. Precious was recommended to us by one of the staff at Glasshaus when we went to check out the venue. We were so happy to have chosen her; she was so professional in the lead-up and was excellent in providing helpful advice for everything required on the day. She did wonders at helping calm our nerves and was the perfect blend of sentimental with her own bit of flair. She’s always carrying a warm smile with her, and it’s clear that she loves weddings and what she does!
Photography: Alex Motta. I’m so glad we were able to book Alex for our wedding! He was incredibly professional, provided great direction and made sure we got all the right shots – at the same time, making us feel completely at ease! He also had the complete wedding album over to us in the space of a week, which we thought was unbelievable!
Styling & florist: Alex Wood at Wild Wood and Co. Alex exceeded all expectations I could have imagined for the flowers and styling. I was able to just let her know my colour palette and some inspiration photos, and she took it from there. She takes such pride in her work and really goes above and beyond for her clients!
Hair & make-up: Brides by Vanessa Jane. Vanessa was such a lifesaver! Unfortunately, my original hair and makeup artist had come down with Covid and was unable to be there on the day; however, she managed to lock in Vanessa in her place. Vanessa made sure to arrive extra early to go through the details, and I couldn’t have been happier with her!
The dress: Prea James at Bluebell Bridal.
Shoes: Her – Gucci. Him – Celine.
Rings: Her – ANTON Jewellery. Him – Cartier.
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Scanlan Theodore
Bow ties / ties: P Johnson and Tom Ford.
Catering & bar: Cutler and Co
Favours: We chose to hand-write a personalised letter for each of our guests, describing what they mean to us.
Invitations / place cards: Villa Studio Weddings. Signage was compliments of a family friend.
Honeymoon: Italy
