This beautiful inner city wedding embodies something old, new, borrowed and blue in the best of ways! Celebrating with her love Francis at a rooftop bar, Ayla wore her mother’s vintage headpiece, chose her exquisite gown from a newly released collection, borrowed the talents of a close friend for her flowers and dressed her girls in vibrant turquoise. Just wait until you read about their fun wedding postcard idea!
The Planning Experience
“To begin with it seemed a little all-too-easy, but as the day drew closer, the pressure and expectations of others became a little stressful. Apart from that, the whole experience was pretty good! Most enjoyable was the wedding dress shopping, DIY practice days and listening to advice from past brides – their stories and advice never gets old!”
Most Important
“Family. I come from a very family-oriented background, so naturally I wanted to include everyone in our big celebration. We were originally planning on a destination wedding in Thailand, but in the end this was going to mean quite a few people would miss out. As long as family and friends were there, that was all that was important. As well as recognising and remembering those who are no longer with us with a ‘Wish You Were Here’ photo memorial.”
Wedding Day Look
“My maid of honour and I went to five or six stores and I tried on about 60 dresses (super quick dress changer here!). I found what I thought was going to be my wedding dress but then saw one I loved in a sneak peek of Jack Sullivan’s next collection. When I tried it on I wasn’t sold, but when I put on the ‘Kendall’ dress I cried. I felt like a queen – that’s how I knew. All I could think about day and night was that dress and how it made me feel.
My headpiece was my something old – it was worn by mum when she got married 20 years ago at the same age.”
Entertaining Guests
“As we plan to head overseas next year, we asked our guests to write their name on their favourite location on a world globe. Francis’ mum also made a book for guests to sign filled with photos of us together from over the years. She also organised postcards with dates for guests to send back marriage or life advice or just say hello! It’s nice collecting the mail and finding a postcard from one of our guests four months later.”
Reception Styling
“The reception was held at the same venue as the ceremony, so we kept the styling romantic and simple. For the bridal table, we had a beautiful sequined tablecloth to add a little extra sparkle and my aunty and uncle decided to add pillows to our chairs saying ‘Mr Right’ and ‘Mrs Always Right’. That little surprise made our bridal party laugh out loud…because it’s true!”
Best Advice
1. Delegate, delegate and delegate! If people want to offer you a hand in preparing for the wedding and the day itself, let them. It will help reduce your stress so much more. This is advice I wish I listened to earlier.
2. Remember that at the end of the day it’s your wedding. Allow people to give you tips and advice because they will have some wise words but you cannot please everyone. Stay true to yourselves.
3. Don’t stress over the small things because to be honest, you won’t notice those details on the day. I didn’t even notice that the menu board I spent hours perfecting wasn’t used. As long as the people you love are there, that’s all that matters.
Location: Queensland | Photography: Sophie Baker Photography | Venue: Up on Constance | Officiant & Entertainment: Chang Po | Styling: DIY | Flowers: Brisbane Flower Markets | Wedding Dress: Jack Sullivan Bridal | Bridesmaids: P.S. Frocks | Hair: Hair Heaven Emporium | Makeup: Makeup by Aleasha Deanne | Groom: Politix (Jacket) & Ron Bennett (Pants) | Groomsmen: Ron Bennett