Real Wedding – Ruby & Daniel, Barunah Plains VIC
Classic but contemporary styling, timeless traditions and perfectly personal details combine to make Ruby and Daniel’s dream day stunningly special.
Starting their planning journey by securing the gorgeous Barunah Plains as their venue meant that Ruby and Daniel could settle into curation of the darling details – and for a self-described sentimental bride, these were a beautiful blend of heartfelt and chic. From hydrangeas from the family garden to jewellery from significant women in her life to the crystal vases adorning the table, each element has significance and style. And we can’t get enough of Ruby’s gorgeous gloves, worn by Daniel’s mother on her own wedding day.
The celebrations began with a perfectly picturesque, light-hearted and emotion-filled ceremony by Alex Baxter. This is the perfect example of inclement weather creating a magic moment, as the warm rustic tones of the woodshed juxtapose to perfection the sleek white decor and striking blue palette of the florals. Bridesmaids in mismatched cornflower blues and Ruby’s chic blue heels brought the overall effect into perfect focus.
The electrifying energy between the newlyweds is what really draws you into this captivating celebration, all emphasised with artistic grace by the photographer Tess Follett. Scroll on to see it all unfold (and don’t miss Ruby’s inspired dress change-up!).
The meeting.
We met through Instagram, a friend of mine had put up a photo of us at our nursing graduation. Daniel saw the photo and messaged my friend and his sister. I soon had a message slide into my DM’s. We went on a date a couple of weeks later to Dr Morse and Rita’s Pizza in Abbotsford. It was a great first date and has not only been successful to us but to many other friends of ours.
The ‘one’.
We don’t think there was one specific moment; it was more of a gradual slow burn. Now we couldn’t imagine our lives without each other.
The proposal.
I’m a planner and always have something organised. Daniel had made plans with friends of ours to meet up for lunch the morning of they called and cancelled. Daniel smugly got onto the computer and said I’ll organise something else, pack a bag and off we went.
After some wrong turns and distractions to throw me off the scent, we pulled into Mitchelton in Nagambie. We checked in and decided to go for a stroll around the gallery and wine tasting. The ‘stroll’ turned into Daniel almost running around the art gallery; I think he was excited. We got to the viewing deck up the top, and about five seconds after getting out of the lift, he was on one knee. He is adamant I squawked the place down; I was so excited! We then went for a wine tasting and had dinner booked later. Finding out all the details of how Daniel had planned the day was so special.
Planning process.
We started by thinking of three things that were most important to us. We wanted to be able to have all our guests, or the majority, stay onsite, we wanted live music, and we also didn’t want the reception to have a strict end time.
From there, we started searching for the venue. The venue, I think, was possibly the trickiest part. It was the first big decision we made and also the most costly.
Once we had that locked in, I felt like the rest fell into place. I loved listening to wedding podcasts and reading Real Weddings on Ivory Tribe; it made me understand the process a lot more. I didn’t hire a wedding planner, so all the tips and tricks on a DIY wedding were so helpful to me. I found myself constantly thinking about the wedding and planning it. It was really helpful to schedule time with Daniel to plan, discuss and research things we needed. We also made it fun, often going to our local wine bar to do this.
Style inspiration.
I really took inspiration from other weddings and Instagram. I had a love-hate relationship with Instagram at the time, seeing what others were doing. It was great for inspiration, but I think I sometimes got a bit caught up in it all. The saved section on Instagram was the best. I would save anything and everything I liked and would always look there first when making decisions on styling, florals, hire furniture, table settings and linens.
I wanted the styling to be classic but also a bit fun with colour. I took inspiration from the homestead; I wanted to be up around the house for the ceremony and cocktail hour because the house was such a statement; unfortunately, the weather had other plans.
My bridesmaid Clare described me as sentimental on the day; I think this was also a big part of my inspiration. I really thought about everything that was included in the day. I wore something of all the important women in my life. I had rings on from my nana Val, I had Daniel’s mother Jen’s gloves she wore on her wedding day and a diamond ring from her 25th wedding anniversary. I also wore my sister’s veil and my mum’s diamond earrings.
I went to many op shops near and far to find crystal vases that were used on the tables; it was nice to reuse things and lovely to think about where they had been previously.
My mum’s family home had the most beautiful blue hydrangeas, so the week of the wedding, we dropped them to the florist in Ballarat, and she was able to use them on the day. It was so special to have those flowers form part of the day.
The real weddings on Ivory Tribe were such a highlight for me; I really loved scrolling through and reading people’s advice and their stories. I especially loved it for music ideas, as this was tricky for us.
The ceremony.
We loved our ceremony; we made the decision at 12pm that day to move it inside the wool shed due to the classic Melbourne weather we were dealt on the day. It felt really intimate, and the blue in the shed really went well with our styling on the day. It wouldn’t have been as amazing without our incredible celebrant Alex. The story she told about us and our relationship was truly touching, not only to us but to many in the room. It was so lovely to look around at our guests and see them shed a couple of tears as well. I loved looking back out at all our favourite people and seeing them there.
The look.
Daniel and his groomsmen went to Oscar Hunt in Melbourne for their suits. It was such a wonderful experience. I attended the first appointment, where we spoke about materials, buttons, styles and all things suits. The appointment went into great detail and was really interesting, and I enjoyed being part of that process with Daniel. One of Daniel’s groomsmen lived in Queensland, and it was so handy for him to attend their Queensland store for fittings throughout the process.
Finding a wedding dress was pretty overwhelming at first. I went to a couple of stores in Melbourne, which was a really fun experience, but I didn’t love anything. I ended up finding a designer I liked; it was stocked at Twelve South Bridal in Yarragon – a small country town about 2.5 hours from Melbourne. We went there, and the owner Grace was incredible; I showed her a picture on my phone of a dress I liked from another international designer, and she ran upstairs and came down with the dress I ended up choosing. The design was classic, and the material was really heavy and thick, nothing like I had seen before. It was nice to go on a couple of road trips with my mum and bridal party to Yarragon; we really made the most of exploring the area.
I bought my second dress two weeks out from the wedding. I had the option to remove the big skirt on my first dress and have a sleek silhouette dress underneath. It was really nice, however; it just didn’t feel like me. Matches had a sale online, and before I knew it, the dress had arrived on my door; I was so happy with it, and it was the best fun to dance in it. I highly recommend doing this if you’re tossing up the idea.
Favourite moments.
It’s very hard to choose one; we loved it all. When we were on the dance floor, the band got everyone to crouch down around us and jump up when the song got to the chorus. It was so nice to be surrounded by all our favourite people jumping and singing and dancing around. We got a great video of it, and it’s something we will remember forever.
Meaning of marriage.
A commitment to shared values, love and companionship forever.
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: Quietly Yours, Birdy
Signing song: Sweet Thing, Van Morrison
Recessional: Texas, Inner Smile
Reception entry (bridal party): Music sounds better with you, Stardust
Reception entry (bride and groom): Cinema, Veldt remix
First dance: Beyond, Leon Bridges & Love Shack, B52’s
Funny stories or near disasters.
Just the classic weather story. We thought February would be a safe call; however, we were met with 16 degrees, rain and wind. What was even more confusing was that it was raining one minute, sunshine the next.
I won’t lie; I was pretty devastated that week with the weather forecast. I allowed myself to have one day where I let all my emotions out and just felt all the things I needed to feel. It was so sad to know that all I had envisioned for the wedding festivities was not going to happen. The next couple of days, we changed our seating chart to accommodate our cocktail hour inside the marquee; we planned for the possibility of the ceremony in the wool shed and bought all the umbrellas we could. I just couldn’t believe our luck. Deb from Truffleduck and our on-the-day coordinator Amy were absolute godsends when it came to changing all the plans; I would have been lost without them.
Planning surprises.
How much is involved in planning a wedding. We really did love the process, though.
We were also just surprised at how happy everyone was to be there. We knew it would be a great day with all our favourites, but looking back at everyone at our ceremony or making our speech at the reception, we were just so grateful to be surrounded by all these amazing people.
Also, how much everyone loved a tambourine on the dancefloor. They were such a hit.
Words of wisdom.
Take it slow and enjoy the planning process. It can feel overwhelming at times but make it fun; visit your favourite cafes or wine bars and take it step by step.
Are you loving Ruby and Daniel’s inspired azure palette? Blue accents are having their moment this year, and we are all for it. To see an alternate yet equally striking take on the theme, check out Sophie and Brad’s cobalt-hued celebration, here on the blog.
RUBY & DANIEL’S VENDORS
Ceremony & reception venue: Barunah Plains. Ali from Barunah Plains was wonderful. We visited a couple of times during the planning process; we were so lucky to have the venue for three nights. I couldn’t help but think about all the people that had stayed there since the 1860s when it was first built; how special.
Celebrant: Alexandra Baxter, For the Love Celebrancy. Alex felt like a close friend when we caught up with her. We immediately clicked, and she felt like the perfect fit for us. The speech at the ceremony was so beautiful, and I’ve had many guests ask for her contact; I think that speaks wonders. We didn’t plan this, but she also had matching shoes with me and my bridesmaids; it was the sweetest touch.
Photography: Tess Follett. Tess was an absolute powerhouse. She led the way the whole day, and we are so grateful for all her expertise and experience. We could not be happier with the photos, something we will have forever.
Videography: Moon and Back. One of the first vendors we locked in. They were incredible to deal with in the lead-up to the big day, and they really blended so well with Tess.
Florist: Gardenia Magnifica. Ellie was fabulous when helping choose flowers and helping my vision come to life. Ellie went above and beyond with communication, especially when we made lots of changes in the week leading up to the wedding.
Hair: Ashlea Simmons and Jaz Little. I had nine people get ready with me during the morning of the wedding, so we had a big production line of two hairdressers and two make-up artists. I loved being in a room with my favourite ladies for the morning; it went quite slowly, and we really just relaxed and felt so pampered. Ashlea Simmonds and Jaz Little both came from Geelong, they were so comfortable to be around, and everyone looked great.
Make-up: Tonic Agency. Steph B and Jessica O from Tonic came to do all our make-up. They were wonderful with everyone, and they went above and beyond to make sure everyone felt comfortable and loved their make-up.
The dress & accessories: Twelve South Bridal & Cecile Bahnsen. Twelve South Bridal were wonderful; their shop was so gorgeous and comfortable. Grace was so lovely and really took her time with me and my bridal party.
Bridesmaid dresses: x 2 Rachel Gilbert and x 2 Bec and Bridge. The girls at Rachel Gilbert in Emporium were so wonderful, we went many times to try on different dresses, and they were so excited and accommodating. I thought having mismatched dresses was going to be really hard, but we just started with one and then gradually built on from there. I’m so glad we did this, the girls looked absolutely stunning, and they felt comfortable in something they had chosen themselves.
Shoes: Loeffler Randall. My bridesmaids and I all had Loeffler Randall shoes. I had blue, and the girls had matching gold. It was really nice to be cohesive, as we didn’t have anything else that matched. There is a reason you see these shoes a lot; they are so comfortable.
Rings: Engagement Cushla Whiting, wedding bands McAlister Jewellers. Shaun at McAlister Jewellers was wonderful; we loved having our bands made by him. I was given a beautiful pair of diamond earrings from Daniel the morning of the wedding, which he had also made.
Suits: Oscar Hunt. Daniel, his bridal party and my dad all got tailor-made suits from Oscar Hunt. They were so lovely, and everyone really enjoyed the experience of having something tailor-made.
Catering: Truffleduck. Deb from Truffleduck was incredible. Not only is she a ray of sunshine, but she is a master at events. She made us feel so comfortable, carefree and relaxed in the lead-up and on the day. Everything from the staff, the service and especially the food was incredible.
Stationary: Blease Creative. I loved creating our stationery and signs with Ally. She was exceptional with sorting out all my ideas and putting them onto paper. The small drawing of Barunah Plains and the fonts were all hand drawn; she is incredibly talented.
On the day coordinator: Amy Elliot, DO. Collective. Amy is my cousin and kindly offered her services on the day to help coordinate, style and everything else under the sun. She was absolutely incredible, and I felt so cared for in her hands. There were so many changes in the week leading up to the wedding, and she took them all in her stride.
Entertainment: Like This Entertainment. One of the first vendors we booked. We loved the live band and the energy they bought. We had seen Like this play at a wedding previously and knew then we needed to have them. Not only were they incredible at getting everyone on the dance floor they were so helpful in setting up other music to play after they were scheduled to finish so we could party on.
Linens: Table Art. The girls at Table Art were so wonderful, there are so many options, and they were so helpful in helping me make a final decision.
Hire: Elderberry Events, Memphis Hire, Place Settings, The Small Things Co
Nails: Soak. We had a pamper day at Soak prior to the big day. The girls at Soak were incredible. We all had our nails done together, and it was really special to spend some time with my bridesmaids. One had flown in from New York to be there, so we really made a day out of it going for lunch as well.
All the small things in the lead-up were so fun; I’m so glad we were able to create space to make such special memories.
Glamping: Twilight Glamping
Skin: Clinica Lase. Lorna at Clinica Lase was incredible. I had been struggling with breakouts, and I had regular appointments with her in the lead-up to the wedding. She was also really helpful in helping me with my skincare regime; I cannot recommend Clinica Lase enough.
Printing: Print City Melbourne
