Taking inspiration from a relaxed celebration they’d attended in rural France, Giovanna and Chris planned their outdoor wedding at a winery where good food, wine and music flowed! Their romantic ceremony adorned with rich pink and red blooms was followed by canapes, lawn games and long table dining under draped festoons.
The Planning Experience
“We enjoyed bringing our personalities into the entire day. We didn’t want to compromise on food and drinks so that was a big part of selecting the venue. We enjoyed the lunch, wine and cake tasting and least enjoyed waiting until the big day! Everything was what we wanted and we couldn’t have been happier with how it all came together.”
Ceremony Styling
“We wanted everyone to feel relaxed and we love the outdoors, so we were delighted that our venue offered a lovely area in front of the vines for an outdoor ceremony. We had large floral arrangements over the arbor, flowers in jars attached to the seats and pink, red and white rose petals scattered down the aisle. We used a wine barrel for our signing table and the atmosphere was set by our musicians playing the cello and violin.”
Favourite Moments
“The ceremony was lovely and a nice quiet moment in a day that really does go too quickly. The bridal party photos were also a fun part of the day, which is a credit to our photographer because she made the whole experience so enjoyable.”
Finding the Dress
“Initially I went shopping with my sister-in-law and mum. I didn’t enjoy that experience because I felt like there was a lot of pressure, so I went shopping by myself and found three dresses that I loved. The dress I chose was by far my favourite! I went back a second time to be sure before I bought it and a few weeks later I took my mum and bridesmaids to show them.”
DIY Projects
“I bought a mesh screen for our welcome sign and seating plan, which was to sit on an easel near the entry of the reception. The night before I travelled for the wedding, I was outside with my mask on spray painting it a metallic copper! For the favours, we decided to fill jars with British sweets, so the day before the wedding we had a production line.”
Reception Styling
“One of our happy memories was spending Bastille Day in a village in rural France. The festivities were relaxed, there was a timber dance floor with lights above it and long tables where everyone ate, drank and chatted to one another. Our wedding reception was a slightly more formal version of that.”
Best Advice
1. Don’t feel like you have to do anything just because that is the ‘norm’ for wedding planning or what is expected. I’m so happy that I picked my dress by myself and was in control of the experience – ultimately it is your day.
2. Do the little things early on like your wedding favours and any DIY. If you wait until the end, chances are you won’t enjoy it and it will be something you just have to get done.
3. If you are planning on ordering anything online, do it well in advance because I had at least three issues come up in the final month where purchases weren’t delivered or I had accidentally missed things despite triple checking before finalising the order – oops!
The Team
Location: Margaret River, Western Australia | Photography: Anni Maria Photography | Venue: Xanadu Wines | Celebrant: Elizabeth Clark | Ceremony Music: Les Trois Amies | Flowers: Sorella Flower Merchant | Stationery: Starfish Lane | Parasols & Card Box: Yallingup Event Hire | Lighting: Wildwood Lighting | Dance Floor: Londsdale Party Hire | Lawn Games: Velvet Betty | Cake: Bake the Cake | Favours: Personalised Favours | DJ: Bridal Beats | Transport: Classic Cars | Wedding Dress: Bridal by Aubrey Rose | Hair: Amanda Wright Hair | Makeup: Sitting Pretty | Suits: Oxford Shop