Say hi to Amy and Kristian, friends. A Tinder success story and one heck of a wedding. Seven years in the making, 180 guests joined them to celebrate their love it was all organised in six months – no mean feat. Their inspo was a “New York & Art Deco vibe” and one of our go-to photographers, Katie Harmsworth, caught it all on camera, so scroll down for all the deets, plus some sound advice from the bride…
THE VENUE “We’d been to something like 30 weddings over the previous few years, so we felt like we’d seen almost every venue in Victoria already. We also didn’t want to use the same venue as any of our friends and we had a large guest list – so our choices were limited. We wanted something which was a blank canvas but also had a bit of soul. Ormond Collective was a fairly new venue and one evening I stumbled across it on Instagram. It has so much soul, was super convenient for all of our guests, was weatherproof, and we could do the reception and ceremony at the same site.”
FAVE DETAILS “The carousel was our favourite! It operated between the reception and ceremony, guests could ride it and it was also in the backdrop for the photo booth. The confetti canon – we debated on this one as it was a huge expense for only five seconds, but it was a great way to kickstart the dance floor and the gold metallic confetti looked pretty cool strewn across the dance floor for the rest of the evening. The venue supplied a green carpet for guests arrival, along with bell boys dressed in green suits – it totally suited our vibe! A three-piece band who jumped up on the bar to play during the pre-reception drinks [meant] we had a dance floor before the reception even started!”
THE DRESS “I initially thought finding a dress would be easy – there were so many I loved the look of online, but when I tried them on they didn’t quite work for my body shape. I ended up getting a custom design with Cappelazzo Couture. It was a ‘business in the front, party in the back’ design, and incredibly comfortable – which was my number 1 priority – though it took all 4 bridesmaids to zip me up. I wanted to be able to wear the dress most of the evening, though later I changed into a gold party dress by Shona Joy.”
MARRIAGE MEANS… “Marriage is about saying yes to things you’re not entirely sure about (eg. a carousel at a wedding) because you know it means so much to the other person. Marriage is about commitment, closeness, caring, and sometimes compromising.”
A WORD OF ADVICE “Consider the comfort of your guests. We wanted to make sure they were never hungry or thirsty, we had fans for them in case it was hot in the ceremony tent, ballet flats in the bathrooms for dancing etc. Have everything totally organised before the last week of the wedding – we left a few things to the last minute and were scrambling to finalise little but time-consuming things. Have a strict schedule and stick to it!”
WE’RE GLAD WE… “Listened to our photographer and did the ‘awkward’ poses which she suggested, these ended up being some of our favourite photos (in other words, trust the experts!).”
STANDOUT VENDORS “We absolutely loved working with our photographer Katie Harmsworth. It’s daunting having your photo taken let alone hundreds of them. She made us feel completely at ease, and half the time we didn’t even realise she was there – yet she always seemed to get the perfect, sneaky shot. She also sent us a sneak preview the next day, which was amazing because the day felt like a blur already, and we barely had any of our own photos at that point as we didn’t have our phones with us during the wedding. [Also] The Style Co. were phenomenal. Their creativity was so impressive and they know how to throw a party. They coordinated all of the design, styling, florals, scheduling, vendors and catering; the whole process was seamless. They brought our vision to life and the outcome completely exceeded our expectations.”
If you want to see more from photographer Katie Harmsworth, head to her Directory listing with us here. She’s a regular standout vendor so don’t miss the rave reviews from real weddings linked to her profile. But first…
CONTRIBUTING VENDORS Photographer Katie Harmsworth Cinematographer Tango Films Event Planner, Stationary, Stylist, Florist & Signage The Style Co. Ceremony & Reception Ormond Collective Catering & Cannoli Station The Big Group Hire Items Dann Event Hire Hire Items, Lighting & Sound Harry The Hirer via The Style Co. Photo Booth Social Playground Entertainment Rutherford Entertainment Celebrant Friend Carousel Whittingslow Amusements Confetti Cannon The Hyper Group THE BRIDE Bridal Gown Cappelazzo Couture Get Ready Pyjamas Peter Alexander Shoes Mimco Accessories Valere (Earrings) Hair & Makeup Tonic Agency Bridesmaid Shoes Tony Bianco THE GROOM Suit, Shirt, Suspenders, Bow Tie, Cufflinks & Shoes Hugo Boss Watch Rolex Groomsmen Suits Hugo Boss