Real Weddings

Article by

Sophie

Posted on

20/01/2022

Posted in

Real Weddings

After Charlie popped the question to Caitlin in Cappadocia, Turkey, 2019, the couple came up against a little something called COVID while trying to plan their big day… but staying relaxed was their approach and, heck, did it all work out in the end! “We were very chilled about the whole process,” shares Caitlin. “It almost felt if we planned it too much then we would jinx it. The borders shut and opened and shut and opened so many times, I actually only got to Noosa in the days leading up to the wedding, which meant that I didn’t get to meet any of the vendors in person until everything was well and truly locked in!”

Eek! Sounds scary, but with a crack team like the one these guys pulled together, they were in very safe hands every step of the way. In fact, if ever there was a wedding dream team, this has to be it: Janneke Storm behind the camera, L’eto Bridal on the gown and M.J. Bale rounding out the trifecta with the casual-cool linen suit. When Caitlin and Charlie chose this epic vendor threesome for their big day, they pretty much guaranteed their success. “We were just so lucky,” spills Caitlin. “Everyone was incredible.”

THE VENUE “Initially, our hearts were set on Thailand. However for obvious reasons that wasn’t an option. Noosa is a special place for us, we both grew up in Brisbane and spent countless holidays and weekends on the Sunshine Coast (and my parents now live in Coolum). We now have a life in Sydney so it was really special to get all of our Sydney crew up to see a bit of where we came from, this magical place that is close to our hearts. Our reception venue, Rickys, was a no-brainer. The food is to die for (we had so many comments on the food) and the location and venue are so quintessentially Noosa. Having drinks on the MV Catalina Noosa between the ceremony and the reception was a huge highlight. Cruising down the river in the late afternoon, cocktail in hand listening to Joseph Brown’s (from The Music Box Collective) soothing voice was a dream!”

FAVE DETAILS “The flowers put together by Terri-Anne from Mondo Floral Designs were such a gorgeous detail. Terri-Anne worked through so many options with me ( I was one of those difficult clients that had a vision that I didn’t necessarily know how to articulate, especially because I couldn’t do any site visits), but she read my mind and the end product was perfect and so unique. Terri-Anne is a wizard!”

DIY “We made the guest favours. We filled up little 50ml glass bottles with spirits – either Amaro Montenegro (Charlie’s parents’ favourite after-dinner treat) or Scandinavian snaps (not to be confused with Schnapps). We made the Snaps from our Swedish friend’s secret family recipe, which involved infusing vodka with a number of herbs and spices. That was a nod to my grandma, who is from Finland.”

THE DRESS “In about July 2020, Charlie and I took a staycation to work from home at an Airbnb in Sydney’s Palm Beach. Anya at L’eto Bridal had a Sunday afternoon appointment available at her boutique in Newport so Charlie and I dropped in on our way back to Sydney. As soon as I tried on the combination I knew it was the one. Charlie loved it too (he helped me choose it, but he closed his eyes when I tried on the veil). It was the first and last wedding dress shop that I set foot in.

THE SUIT “Charlie went for the easy option of M.J. Bale. The sand-coloured linen suit was the obvious choice to suit the laidback beach vibe. It also made things easy with groomsmen living in three different cities (Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne) as they could get fitted easily even when the borders were shut.”

RESOURCES “I had had actually had my eye on our photographer, Janneke Storm, since I stumbled across a rad editorial she shot of the Vegas wedding of Ainsley Hutchence from Sticks & Stones Agency in 2013. At the time marriage wasn’t even on the horizon, but I’m so lucky to have now had the chance to work with her all these years later (#blessed). Hello May directed me to Lovebird Weddings and first pointed me to my dream wedding dress designer L’eto Bridal.

CUTE CUSTOM “The cake made by Zoe Clark Cakes was her rendition of a mid-summer cake, or Finnish strawberry wedding cake, which was a nod to my Finnish side of the family.”

LITTLE LOL “Our celebrant Jo, of Big Love Ceremonies, was incredible. Charlie and I, being our usual disorganised selves, got all our info to her at the very last minute, however she pulled it together for a beautiful ceremony. There was a moment during the ceremony when she took a moment to relay a message from an important person who couldn’t be there – it wasn’t until she referred to this person as being ‘furry’ we realised that she was talking about our furry Burmese cat/son Chilly! Everyone laughed and it was a really nice way to involve him in the ceremony.”

STANDOUT VENDORS “Janneke Storm was a dream, she made us feel SO comfortable. Charlie and I are the most awkward posers but Janneke did her thang and made us feel at ease throughout the whole day. Not to mention everyone commented on how cool she is! Holly from Lovebird Weddings was our life support, and both Joseph (the singer) and the DJ The Music Box Collective from were amazing.”

This dreamy day made its Hello May debut in issue 32 (in fact, say hello to your co ver stars!). The uber-popular ish has sold out but there are heaps more amazing days to inspire you in our store, from the 2021 Real Wedding Special to our latest edition, issue 35. And if you want to score yourself some pics as cover-worthy as Caitlin and Charlie’s, hit up Janneke Storm – she’s a downright genius with that camera. You and your boo still looking for your on-the-day looks? Take a page out of Caitlin and Charlie’s books and chat to L’eto Bridal and M.J. Bale.