Annabelle: I am a graphic designer and owner of Paperweight, specialising in wedding stationery. After 11 years of dating, it was so exciting to finally get to design our very own stationery. Stephen’s work has seen us live in numerous cities, states and countries, therefore home has always been wherever we are together.
Stephen is currently working fly in, fly out from Christchurch to Papua New Guinea. While challenging at times, this means we treasure our time together. Stephen loves the outdoors and has been known to test my limits of hiking, camping and exploring new and exciting places.
Our wedding was elegant but relaxed. I’m a perfectionist so I spent time considering every detail — from how the napkins were tied, to the salt and pepper dispensers and flower stands (which I had custom made). I even enlisted my brother to design and hand-make all 15 tables to ensure they were the right size for the venue. The Great Hall has always been a favourite landmark for both of us. The venue looked stunning and provided the perfect canvas for me to showcase my creative styling.
St Barnabas is a special place for me. Not only is it a beautiful church and grounds but 38 years ago my mum and dad married there. The lighting of candles by both mothers, having the ringing of the church bells and an organist play added other special layers to the ceremony. I initially didn’t have much luck in finding ‘the dress’, however upon meeting Johanna I knew I had found someone who understood my style — she was lovely to work with and so accommodating to all my tweaks and requests.
We love Bali so to have all the suits and bridesmaids’ dresses designed and made there helped tie in a little of our favourite place. I’m a traditionalist and love to mix classic aspects with more contemporary styles. This shone through in what I chose for the something new, old, blue and borrowed. The new was my dress and shoes (pale blue); something borrowed was a rose gold bracelet of my mum’s which belonged to her aunty; something blue, old and borrowed was a gold brooch with a sapphire of my grandmother’s which was pinned through my veil.
The rain meant the photography plan had to be completely revised on the day. The wedding party ended up at The Welder, a new inner-city wellness precinct. It proved to be the most beautiful backdrop — I couldn’t be happier with how the photos turned out. My brother Tom was the master of ceremonies; he worked completely off the cuff and had our guests in stitches all night. As he knew the majority of them no one was safe from his humorous tales from the past. Having my grandmother up on the dance floor at 92 was a highlight for Stephen and I. Needless to say our entertainers Gumbo No. 5 nailed the brief of having everyone up on the dance floor from the very first song!
Ceremony location: St Barnabas Church / Reception location: The Great Hall at @artscentrechch / Photographer: @charlottesowmanphotography / Stationery: @paperweight_design / Signage & Copper Stand: @paperweight_design / Entertainment: @gumbo.no.5 / Event Coordination, tables, tableware and flower stands: @blank__spaceevents / Chairs: @trulyyours_events / Flora: @sweetpeaweddings / Catering: @thebespokechef / Cake: Made by bride and family, iced by Kylie Brocket – @kylieskakes / Photography Venue: @thewelderchch / Brides gown: @johannajohnsonofficial / Grooms attire: Custom Design, tie made in same silk as brides dress / Rings: @therollingmill / Shoes: @louboutinworld / Other jewellery: @mezi_australia / Other jewellery: Bracelet by @swarovski and Rose gold bracelet from my Great Aunty (something borrowed) / Makeup: @amyconnollyhairartist / Hair: Haley Scandrett – @haley_at_dinh / Fragrance: @dior ‘Cologne Royale’ / Bridesmaids: Designed by the bride & custom made
