Real Wedding – Sofia & Ben, Tarwin Lower VIC
Real Wedding – Sofia & Ben, Tarwin Lower VIC
Real Wedding – Sofia & Ben, Tarwin Lower VIC
Real Wedding – Sofia & Ben, Tarwin Lower VIC

Real Wedding – Sofia & Ben, Tarwin Lower VIC

 

On a friend’s private farm, Sofia and Ben were determined to create the finest festival wedding vibe for their day.

Think festoon lights, native flowers, fabulous foliage and perfectly pitched giant tipis that created the perfect backdrop for the celebrations ahead.  With a focus on great food, atmosphere and a killer dancefloor, this pair created a party that their guests will be talking about for many years to come.  There to capture all the action as it unfolded was Kyra Boyer.

In Sofia’s words…

 

The meeting.

We met when we were just teenagers. Ben worked with my sister and I took an instant liking to him. I worked at the local news-agency and Ben and my sister worked at the surf shop down the road. It wasn’t long before I started visiting the surf shop a lot more during my lunch breaks and Ben was dropping into the news-agency more often – to get his all-important orange mizone and scratchies. After a couple of months of flirting, we went on our first date, and we haven’t looked back!

 

The ’one’.

It was pretty much instant. The connection that we had straight away was pretty magical, even though we were both so young at the time, I think we knew it was something special. Our relationship has always been filled with so much fun and laughter. That is something we both value so much and I think that’s why it was so solid from the start.

 

The proposal.

We went for a holiday in Sydney for a week over summer. I was actually recovering from pretty major back surgery and we decided to go on a big walk from Spit to Manly. This was a really emotional walk for me regardless, as it was the first long walk I had done without a back brace. We got to the most incredible look out, and Ben totally took me by surprise and proposed! We had been together for 10 years, but I had no idea that was coming.

 

Planning process.

I think we always knew we wanted to be married near Inverloch. It is such a beautiful and cruisy beach town with farmland nearby. I was born there, and my parents still live there so we visit that beach a lot during the summer months. We took a very leisurely approach to planning the wedding. We just wanted to ensure that the major things were done really well – great food, music and location. A killer dance floor was one of the main priorities. All the finer details worked out, and we wanted to make sure it wasn’t a stressful process.

 

Style inspiration.

I love the festival style weddings that I saw on blogs etc. Lots of festoon lights, native flowers, heaps of greenery/foilage and lots of open farm land. The giant tipis that we saw online were a must to fit in with the whole style of the day and night.

 

The dress.

I had done a little Instagram stalking before going to any shops. The options from Made with Love Bridal were all amazing, I could have worn any of them. I made an appointment at a couple of places in Melbourne, leaving Bluebell Bridal until the end. As soon as I tried on my dress I loved it. It was so comfy, and fit in with the relaxed beach and farm feel of the day.

 

Favourite moment.

So many good moments to choose from! While we wanted it to be a big party/festival, which it was, I think I loved the ceremony the best. We came down the aisle together, and had our longtime friend and housemate officiate it for us. It was awesome to have such a close friend as our celebrant, because we knew everything he was saying was totally genuine. We wrote our own vows which neither of us had heard until the day and there were a lot of tears!

There was much dancing and partying that followed, it got festival-style crazy pretty quickly!

 

Meaning of marriage.

We see it as a commitment to each other with mutual respect. It is a commitment of unconditional love and support.

 

Wedding soundtrack.

Aisle: Intro by The X X

First Dance: Sky Full of Stars by Coldplay

 

Funny stories (or near disasters).

When setting up the farm, we thought we’d set up the reception area far enough away from the lake. We were wrong! It may have been the champagne doing the walking, but one of our guests may have ended up falling in at the very end of the night on the way to the bus. The mud around the edges was slippery, and the helping hand that tried to assist also ended up having an unplanned midnight swim.

 

Planning surprises.

I hadn’t realised how early you need to book everything in. Our wedding was in February, which I guess is ‘wedding season’, and we needed to lock stuff in months in advance. We were lucky to get the vendors we wanted (and the dress), as our relaxed approach to planning everything almost came back to bite us.

 

Words of wisdom.

Enjoy the process, it doesn’t have to be stressful. You will never please everyone, so don’t try to! Just plan it the way you want as a couple and have fun with it. It’s meant to be a day where you share your love with your friends and family – don’t forget what’s important and try not to get caught up in stressing over the finer details. When you look back at your day, they won’t mean a thing. Have fun!

 

 

Jacqui and Ben threw a wedding festival to remember, be sure to check it out.

 

SOFIA AND BEN’S TRIBE

Location: We had it on a friend’s parents private farm – exactly what we wanted. There was an area on either side of the lake to separate out our ceremony and reception. The owners were amazing, and are now offering to hire out the paddocks. Contact Kate at Cherry Tree Organics.

Celebrant/Officiant: A long time close friend, Dylan (actually our house mate at the time)

Photography: The incredible Kyra Boyer. As soon as we saw Kyra’s work, we knew she shot in the perfect style that we were after. We wanted candid shots, not anything posed or unnatural. We loved that a lot of her work showcased the feel of the day, and has so much fun and happiness that filters through

Florist: Ben’s sister, Nicole, did an incredible job!

Hair: Ashley Jende & team from Cropped Hair & Beauty – these guys can nail any hair style by having a 2 second glance at a photo.

Make Up: Help from another friend, Cassie

The Dress: Frankie by Made with Love Bridal via Bluebell Bridal

Rings: Trewarne Fine Jewellery, Hearts on Fire collection

Bridesmaid’s dresses: Seed Heritage

Groom’s suit: Ted Baker

Groom’s Shoes: Vans

Catering: Food trucks – Mr. Burger & Paella Pan – This was the perfect combo – lots of delicious canapes from paella pan, along with some killer paella and risotto options served in cute little cardboard boats. And the Mr Burger truck was a massive hit with the guests

Bar: Captain Vanzibar – this is actually our business! So I can’t speak highly enough about the team at Captain Vanzibar. Allowing you to purchase your own alcohol at shop prices, and they serve

Dessert: We skipped the cake for doughnuts instead by Doughnut Time

Entertainment: DJ was another friend, Sam

Transport: The crew at Gippsland Bus Services did a great job at transporting everyone from Inverloch main town to and from the location nearer to Tarwin Lower

Décor: Giant tipis by Tipikata

Hire: Harry the Hirer

Honeymoon: Sri Lanka!




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