“We met at a bar in Perth. James was on a friend’s stag do and I had just moved to Australia from the US and was out with some girlfriends. It was a pretty cheesy case of love at first sight for us both.” We’re here for it guys. And for the nuptials that we’re sure will blow you all away. One of our friends, Shane Shepherd Photography, was there to capture the good times, so scroll down for his rolling account as well as our chat with the beaut bride and groom…
THE VENUE “With half of our guests being from the USA and half being from Australia we knew that we wanted to have a destination wedding. As soon as we arrived at Earthhouse, it just took our breath away and ticked every box. The venue honestly does not have a bad angle – the fig tree, a rustic indoor space, and an incredible view. We decided to keep our venue a secret from all of our guests so that they could share the same first look experience that we had.”
THE VIBE “We wanted to keep the theme true to Byron Bay using bohemian accents and highlighting natural materials like timber, linens, and cane to blend in with the natural surroundings. We used pops of colours throughout our floral arrangements to make a statement in our ceremony and reception setting and told all of our guests to wear colour or loud printed shirts.”
FAVOURITE DETAILS “Aside from our venue being breathtaking, our flowers really stole the show. Estelle with The French Petal made my floral dreams come to life. I am pretty obsessed with coral peonies so when I walked into Earthhouse, our hanging installations nearly brought me to tears. The arbour installation made our ceremony set-up look incredible against our very favourite feature – the fig tree – whilst the understated table styling played focus to our stunning hanging floral arrangements. Our cake was also incredible and our ink gin cocktails and post-dinner espresso martinis went down a treat and helped to keep our dance floor pumping.”
THE DRESS “I came across my dress on Instagram not long after we got engaged, but couldn’t find a retailer in Australia. Two months before the wedding, Berta was having a trunk show [in Aus], so I flew to Melbourne and went straight to the bridal store for a fitting. I knew that I had found my dream dress, but I couldn’t order the dress in time, so my mum called every retailer in the USA until she found a store that was willing to sell us their floor sample and flew it to Perth two weeks later. 40 dollars later [alterations] it fit me perfectly.”
WE’RE GLAD WE… “Ended up taking dance lessons to choreograph our first dance. Much to our surprise, the lessons ended up being really fun and gave us a chance to take a break from the stresses of wedding planning to do something fun together.”
WE WISH WE… “My one regret from wedding planning was not hiring a videographer, so we could not be more grateful for James’ brother, Matt, for creating a beautiful impromptu wedding video for us.”
STANDOUT VENDORS “Shane Shepherd Photography was an absolute legend. He made us both feel so comfortable and made sure that everyone had fun. You spend about 70% of your day with your photographer so make sure you choose a person that you would like to spend time with and who can make you laugh. Shane basically blended in as if he was a guest and the result of his photos are incredible. Also, I highly recommend Roxy at Nofomoco Events. Roxy was a dream to work with, she found the most incredible list of vendors, the most delicious catering company, and her creative vision for styling and detail is amazing.”
If you want to see more from the talented lensman that is Shane Shepherd Photography, head to his Directory listing with us here. You’ll find so many more couples very happy with their wedding captures linked at the bottom and inspo on tap from their weddings, too. But first…
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Shane Shepherd Photography Cinematographer Matthew Bull (Family) Event Planner Nofomoco (Roxy Meik) Stylist & Signage Maria Birch via Frank & Joy Florist & Stationery The French Petal Ceremony & Reception Earthhouse Catering 100 Mile Table Cake Eat Sweet Handmade Cakes Other Desserts The Cellar (Espresso Martinis) Hire Items The Steady Hand via Etsy (Customised Jenga) Lighting & Sound Hire Byron Audio Entertainment North Coast Entertainment Celebrant Kyle Springer (Friend) & Tammy Freeman (Witnessing Celebrant) Rings Linneys Transport Byron Bay Double Deckers (Guests) Lismore Taxis (Bridal Parties) THE BRIDE Bridal Gown Berta Bridal Boutique Poised Bridal Veil Best Weddings WA Robes Peter Alexander (Bridesmaids) & Homebodii (Bride) Shoes Loeffler Randall Accessories Enesea (Earrings) Hair Fox Lane Styling Makeup Luciana Rose Bridesmaid Dresses Shona Joy Bridesmaid Suit & Boots ASOS Bridesmaid Gifts FinerRings (Earrings & Necklaces) THE GROOM Custom Suit & Shirt InStitchu Bow Tie Otaa Shoes Gingers Gentlemen Groomsmen Suits InStitchu Groomsmen Gifts Otaa (Suits & Bow Ties)