Real Wedding – Samy & Amneesh, Melbourne VIC
Samy and Amneesh’s day involved not one but two stunning celebrations. From a richly coloured, decadently divine Sri Lankan ceremony to an elegantly subtle vision of soft, warm neutrals, this was one epic, fun-filled event!
Dream designer Elissa Marie worked with Samy to create her gorgeous reception gown, a sleek off-shoulder silhouette wrapped in gossamer gauze to create a contemporary romantic effect. We love Amneesh’s choice to go with a three-piece suit in warm taupe, a shade darker than his groomsmen, creating a sleek modern look.
Overhanging floral arrangements create soft vanilla clouds, accented with pops of blush and softening to perfection the chic gold detailing throughout the reception.
For us, the overflow of emotion across all aspects of this incredible celebration is a true treat to behold, all captured by Shevan J Photography.
The meeting.
Through mutual friends during uni. He was a plus one at my 19th birthday, and I was like, “who is this random at my birthday?!”
The ‘one’.
He was always anti-girlfriend and had never had one, so when he asked me to be his girlfriend, I knew we had something special!
The proposal.
My best friend needed some advice, so we went for a walk at this historic park that has views of the city on one side and the airport on the other. As we reached the top, he was there waiting for me, and it was all tears from there!
Planning process.
I did a lot of planning and organizing at the start. The Facebook group Melbourne Brides helped a lot. Leading up to the day, Amneesh took over most of the nitty gritty things as it got so busy, which was super helpful. All your vendors confirming, paying invoices and also confirming everything all happens closer to the wedding date.
Style inspiration.
I’m not a huge fan of colour, so I had a lot of neutrals for my wedding décor. Instagram helped heaps; as soon as I saw something I liked, I saved it. We both love Melbourne so much, so we knew we had to incorporate that too.
Instagram and Facebook were the most useful, as was seeing other people’s real weddings. I loved watching wedding highlights reels and photos of actual weddings. From the Melbourne Brides Facebook group to Ivory Tribe’s Instagram, seeing real-life weddings gave me inspo on what florals I wanted in my bouquet to what earrings would suit the hairstyle I went with!
The ceremony.
Our ceremony was held in an auditorium in Fitzroy. It was in a beautiful space that was constructed in the 1920s and used as a safe space for local kids. We had a Srilankan Poruwa ceremony there, which was so special to me as it involved my roots and where my parents came from. It involved both my parents and my husband’s parents, and our celebrant made sure to explain everything in English.
The outfit.
For my Srilankan ceremony, I wore a traditional Srilankan Sari. My cousin in Srilanka went shopping for fabric for me, which I had to choose via Facetime. She sent it over, and a friend of ours sewed it up for me.
For my dress, a friend of mine told me about Elissa, so I decided to contact her. She suggested we catch up for a coffee and just have a chat. We met up in a fabric store, and I fell in love straight away. She started sketching my dream dress that day and showed me some fabrics that we could possibly use – I was sold. At this point, I hadn’t even tried on any wedding dresses. I had always imagined I’d struggle to find my perfect dress as I was very particular with what I liked and didn’t like, so I thought I’d be going to multiple wedding dress shops with my bridesmaids, but after seeing Elissa that day, I was so happy. She was so kind and creative that I made the decision to go with her!
Favourite moments.
My favourite moment of the day was sharing our wedding vows. They weren’t the typical overly romantic vows, but they were us and just meant so much. I’m glad I was able to get through mine, tears and all!
Meaning of marriage.
It’s a celebration of love and commitment, and although love is the constant in marriage, every marriage is so unique depending on the two people, and I love that about it.
Wedding soundtrack.
I walked down the aisle to a Srilankan song, a song I had decided years and years ago that I was going to walk down to; it was a dream come true to actually do it!
Our reception entry was Bonnie & Clyde by Jay-Z and Beyonce, and it was such a vibe, really got us excited to party at the reception. I’ve forever been in love with Beyonce, so I had to incorporate her into my wedding.
Our first dance was Bonfire Heart by James Blunt. This song had the most beautiful lyrics, and we could relate to it. It was a love song that was a little upbeat too and perfect for us.
Funny stories or near disasters.
We told our wedding party to come over for dinner, but instead, we used that night to help prepare bonbonnieres and seating charts (we made our own). It was funny as they were expecting a quiet dinner!
My florist also moved interstate before my wedding, so I had to find a new florist, which I was so sad about because I loved my original florist. I ended up finding the most amazing florist in the end, who was within my budget but also made the most beautiful bouquets.
Planning surprises.
Closer to the date, we underestimated how busy it would get. Time just flew so fast! We also underestimated how long seating charts would take; making sure you have a full table of 10, placement of guests and also the placement of the actual tables took us a very long time.
Words of wisdom.
I would recommend taking at least two weeks off work prior to the date; it’s honestly so needed! And, also have an early RSVP date. People still don’t tend to RSVP by that date, and it takes time to chase people up. RSVPs are SO important to confirm not only attendance but also dietary requirements, and you can’t start your table seatings without your RSVPs.
Sometimes things may not go exactly the way you want them to on the day, but always remember what the day is about, and that is that you’re getting to marry the love of your life – the little things don’t matter at the end of the day!
Loving Samy’s truly gorgeous gown by Elissa Marie Design? Find out more about the lady behind the label, her creative process and the sweet moments she shares with her clients, here on the blog.
SAMY & AMNEESH’S VENDORS
Ceremony venue: 75th Reid St. Super helpful throughout the whole process, let us come in a little earlier to set up the alter, and we were able to provide our own refreshments.
Reception venue: Aerial. Our event coordinator was so helpful leading up to the day and on the day. She made sure everything ran smoothly, and any of our questions were answered. We heard such positive feedback from our guests too about the waitstaff, the food and how beautiful the venue was.
Celebrant: Prabhati Milton. I always knew I wanted Prabhati to marry us after I saw her at a few weddings. She really got to know us as a couple, and she really personalized our ceremony. She did our Srilankan ceremony and the civil ceremony, and we had such a nice experience with her.
Photography: Shevan J Photography. As soon as we locked in a date, the first person I emailed was Shev. He’s an incredible photographer and really has an eye for things. He captured such special moments of our day. He is so calming to work with, and I can’t recommend him enough. There are so many photos from our day where we didn’t even realize he was there capturing that moment. I love how well he can capture ethnic weddings as well.
Videography: Pixel 360. Shan from Pixel 360 was so lovely to work with from the start. We loved the wedding highlights reels he had posted on his Instagram page and was sold immediately. We had some zoom meetings leading up to the day, and he was really easy to work with.
Styling: Abracadabra Events
Florist: Fleuration. Nurun from Fleuration was so lovely; when I emailed her last minute, I was stoked she was available to do my wedding bouquets. I sent her some inspo pictures of what I wanted, and she made exactly that! She created my dream wedding bouquet. The florals were just so beautiful I was obsessed, and they lasted all day!
Hair: Kx Hair Design. This lady works wonders! She is so talented with anything hair; I have no idea how she does it! She came back to re-do my hair before the reception, and I just had a moment where I was overwhelmed with emotions from the support of my bridesmaids and started crying, and she was crying with us!
Make-up: Abbey Parke Make Up. Abbey was the sweetest girl; she was able to do incredible make-up for all sorts of skin types which is what I loved about her! She took her time and made sure I was completely happy with my make-up which lasted all day!
The dress & veil: Elissa Marie Design. One of the most special experiences; from the moment we met, we clicked, and she just put in so much effort to making sure my dress was exactly what I wanted! She pays attention to all the little details, from the champagne at all the fittings to the beautiful lace she picked out for my dress!
Shoes: Dior
Rings: Dimond Line. They custom-made our wedding bands, and they were so unique to us. My engagement ring was an unusual shape, so I couldn’t just use any wedding band, and they turned out incredibly!
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Bec + Bridge. I had a range of beautiful different types of bodies, and I wanted to make sure every girl was comfortable. These dresses were flattering on everyone, and I was so happy with them!
Suits: Connor. Groom’s suit – Politix.
Cake: Mizys Sweet Boutique. Mizy is so talented, I wanted a simple faux cake, and she did exactly that!
Transport: Our transport was a huge bus! I wanted to be able to fit our entire wedding party of 12 in the one car and for it to be fun, and it was exactly that!
Décor: Abracadabra Events
Honeymoon: Northern Territory. We’ve always wanted to go to the NT, everyone there was so lovely, and the land was incredible. We had the most special time!
