Meet Claire, our relaxed boho bride and Robbie, her impeccably styled groom! Their rustic country celebration has all the lovely details you’d expect – atmospheric venue, pretty native flowers and some clever DIY. What you won’t expect is the laugh-out-loud anecdotes from Claire, a natural storyteller – the pure joy is catching!
The Proposal
“Robbie took me to the Cinderella chalet in Springbrook. The name skyrocketed my suspicions of a proposal, but he was as cool as a damn cucumber! After a romantic walk in the rainforest (which was interrupted by leeches and a torrential downpour), Robbie told me we were heading out to see the sunset. I could hear the wedding bells chiming.
I’m in the car looking for the ‘proposal lookout’ when he pulls up at a house and tells me to ask for Amanda. I was totally bamboozled! Amanda turned out to be a masseuse and by this stage I was convinced of the imminent proposal. During the massage I was so completely overwhelmed with excitement and happiness that I cried into the little rose petal bowl.
When I returned to our chalet, it was filled with hundreds of candles. Robbie had written out a little scavenger hunt, but I was hopeless at solving the riddles so he would often call out the answers from his hiding place to speed things up. Ha! The final clue brought me to Robbie on his knee.”
The Ceremony
“I am the first daughter to be married in my family, so Dad is a rookie walker-down-the-aisler. When Dottie, our celebrant, whispered his name with a subtle hand gesture to his seat, Dad in all his glory misunderstood and re-positioned himself nice and tight amongst the lads up the front. After a couple of heckles from the crowd it all clicked and he bounded toward his seat!
There was a very real possibility I would be an emotional mess up there pouring my heart out to Robbie – this little mishap broke the tension and let us all rejoice in a laugh.”
“The ten years I have known Claire have been the greatest adventure of my life. Marrying her solidifies my spot on this whirlwind of a ride. I know that the rest of my days will be filled with laughter and spontaneous experiences.” – Robbie
Finding the Dress
“I was so lucky to find this gem of a dress. I always thought I would have a simple, lacy dress, and after going to about five shops, I felt like a dress sampling expert! I was walking in saying, “A-line, lace with sleeves.” As you can see, I ended up with an intricately beaded two piece – and no lace. Luckily the ladies at Bo and Luca threw their own suggestions into the fitting room, because this was one of them. I knew it was the one immediately.”
Wedding Vibe
“We wanted a really fun, relaxed vibe. One man band Juzzie Smith, the absolute legend, was essential in creating this – there was a sunshine dance party before dinner! Robbie and I had an impromptu first dance in the afternoon, rather than the one we planned for the evening. It was perfect!”
What Being Married Means
“Robbie and I have been together for 10 years. We have lived together from the get-go – that is how we met. I thought after being together for so long, marriage wouldn’t change anything, but I really feel it has. I feel so complete! It means that he is my future and the one I will adore forever.”
DIY Projects
“We made candle favours with a lavender, cucumber and sage fragrance blend – it was really easy. My aunty and cousins helped us create a candle making factory in the kitchen and we had a hundred candles in two hours! And my fabulously talented cousin Lizzy made all the bouquets. We bought Australian natives at the flower markets which also decorated the whole venue and a feature on the arbour.”
Favourite Detail
“My Year Two class wrote the place cards with no spelling help – it was hysterical! Guests knew their table but had to hunt for some kind of similarities to find their seat.”
The Cake
“Layered chocolate and almond cake filled with ganache, lemon and yoghurt filled with lemon curd and mascarpone, coconut filled with coconut flavoured butter cream, and carrot and coconut cake filled with lemon and cream cheese icing. All encased in a vanilla butter cream.”
Best Advice
1. For the few nights before the wedding, your mind is racing with all the little things you still need to do. Once you lay down they flood into your mind. Have a pen and paper close by so you can write the fleeting thought down and you don’t have to try and bank it into your wedding brain (which isn’t the greatest working brain) for the morning.
2. Nothing is too farfetched! We never thought we would have a chance at getting Juzzie Smith and almost canned the idea. I decided to write him a little love letter to tell him how amazing his music is and let him know where and when we were getting married. He wrote back that he had actually taken that weekend off, but would pop in for an hour set before dinner. This news was like winning the lottery!
See Claire and Robbie’s beautiful story in film!
Location: Wollongbar, New South Wales | Photography: Raconteur Photography | Film: Graeme Passmore | Venue, Planning, Styling & Catering: Down Converys Lane | Celebrant: Dot Orchard | Flowers: Elizabeth Goes | Flower Crown: Eden the Flower Shop | Stationery: Printable Press | Cake: Modern Home Entertaining | Cake Topper: String Doll Company | Entertainment: Juzzie Smith | Transport: Byron Kombi Limo | DIY Candle Favours: The Candle Supply Store | Wedding Dress: Bo and Luca | Robes: Piyama | Hair: Sally Gibson | Makeup: Tihanna Thomas | Rings: Stones Diamonds | Groom: Jack London (Suit & Tie), Charles Tyrwhitt (Shirt), Daniel Wellington (Watch) | Groomsmen: Country Road