Real Weddings

Article by

Laura Wilson

Posted on

02/10/2018

Posted in

Real Weddings

“Mike and I already have a mortgage and a baby,” explains Amy. “Getting married was really not something we ever felt was necessary for us (in our minds we already were married). But a few life things had occurred that made us both realise how nice it would be to be able to celebrate our relationship around friends and family, so decided the timing was right and went for it.” And boy are we glad they did! What a dress (and let’s not ignore that suit!), along with such a cool venue (thanks Porteno) and all shot by the talented Samantha Heather Photography– a recipe for a damn good wedding we say! Scroll down for all the details…

THE VENUE “We found out that Porteno had turned their original location on Cleveland Street into an event space via Wedding Shed and knew straight away that was the place for us. We arrange a meeting with Catherine to see it and pretty much booked it straight away. It was the only venue we saw. We knew it was a great space where we could get married in and also have the reception, we also love good food and wine (big tick), and the space was so beautiful we knew it wouldn’t need much to decorate it. We loved the gorgeous tiles, marble tables and beautiful atrium where everyone dined. We also knew Gardel’s bar would be perfect for the party after the reception (it really was).

THE VIBE “We didn’t have a theme – we just wanted to fill the day with things we love. We are both very visual people so love for things to be beautiful but interesting. Every time we chose something for the wedding, we asked ourselves if we loved it, rather than if it matched everything else. The venue, being an Argentinian restaurant, had a really strong South American/ 1950’s aesthetic, and we chose Emily from EMH Space to decorate the venue with flowers how she wanted, because we trusted her completely to create something beautiful.”

THE DRESS “I was not convinced about a white dress, but once I’d started planning, I started changing my mind. I booked in to 4 bridal stores, but it just didn’t feel like me and was making me feel stressed. The more I saw, the more they started to look the same. They were also incredibly expensive. It felt a bit weird spending that much money on a white dress. My sister Hannah sent me a photo of a dress she had seen online. I didn’t really feel it, but went and checked it out online anyway. The store (Eclectic Ladyland) stocked a whole range on very fun and amazing non wedding dress clothes. Then I saw a beautiful dress by Sretsis that was on sale and there was one left in my size. I cancelled all my dress appointments – this was the only dress I ever tried on. I did buy a different slip with a built in strapless bra online from Her Room to wear underneath it which was whiter and looked a bit more bridey than what had come with it. I had the arms slightly altered by Angela Osagie who was able to work with the fine detailed fabric.”

A WORD OF ADVICE “Be aware of the pressure of what a wedding ‘should’ be, and make decisions based on what you want and what you like as a couple. It’s your day, after all. Secondly, trust your vendors. Let them do what they do best without micromanaging them so they can do their best work (something I have learned from being a project manager). Lastly – enjoy it, it is really fun if you remember the first two pieces of advice I just wrote.”

WE’RE GLAD WE… “Kept things simple- less moving parts meant we could just enjoy the day. We are also really glad we did photos first, so our two year old was happy to participate and we could then enjoy the evening with our friends and family without being whisked away for photos. I wish I spent more time eating the food and drinking the wine. We were both so busy talking to people we realised we hadn’t tried everything on the very good wine list- we just purchased some of the wine we didn’t have on the night so we can taste it. It was really delicious.”

STANDOUT VENDORS “Yes. Samantha Heather Photography- she was so lovely and professional making us feel really comfortable in front of the camera, and we barely knew she was there when she was roaming around taking photos. The photos from the wedding were amazing, she’s incredibly talented. Emily Hannaford from EMH Space– I have never and may never see flowers like the flowers she designed for our wedding. They blew my mind. The Porteno team (especially Catherine Walsh) who were so easy to work with, and really relaxed about our planning while having everything covered and under control. Andrianne Vassallo, our celebrant who was so friendly and organised, and able to preside over the sort of ceremony we were after.”