Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love, what is unique about you and your relationship…
Matthew and I are the result of a blind date. My identical twin sister set me up with this mystery man she had met through a friend. After a lot of convincing by her, I reluctantly went on a date. We absolutely hit it off and the rest they say is history.
Matt is an orthopaedic surgeon and is currently based in Wellington hospital. We have had to move around a bit for his work, which is great as we are able to experience living in different cities. I work in Marketing and love being creative. I planned and designed our wedding down in Queenstown. It was a massive job organising a destination wedding, but it made the day even more special.
Matt and I got engaged while we were on holiday in Queenstown. One morning Matt suggested we get up early and watch the sunrise from the top of German Hill in Arrowtown. We got up at 5am and climbed to the top. We sat and watched the sunrise over Arrowtown and Queenstown. There were hot air balloons rising in the distance and it was so beautiful. When I turned around, he was down on one knee, with the breath-taking view in the background. It was such a special moment.
Tell us about your special day, was there a specific theme or style? Tell us a little about the setting, the styling and some of your favourite details…
Matt and I got married at NZ High Country in Queenstown. NZ High Country sits above Lake Wakatipu. There were different sites at our venue where our ceremony and reception were held. The ceremony was held up at Tussock Point, looking out over Lake Wakatipu. Then our reception was held at Lake June, where there is a full time glass walled marque that looks out to The Remarkables.
We chose to get married in November. During this month it is beautiful in Queenstown – flowers are in blossom and there is usually still some snow on the Remarkables. We got some wild weather on our wedding day but persevered with the outdoor ceremony, which made for some dramatic photos – quite the experience.
Our wedding theme was rustic and natural – incorporating a lot of greenery (rather than flowers). We incorporated natural elements – a tree stump cake stand and signage holders, and hessian table runners, all of which we made ourselves.
Our wedding had a number of special touches. We named our tables different parts of the body which Matt operates on e.g. the head table was the ‘spine’. The cake stand and table signage holders were stumps from my best friends farm, which we cut down and dried for the wedding. We also did a self-choreographed bridal party dance, which none of the guests knew about – it was such a laugh on the night.
Tell us about your main outfits:
Matt’s suit was from RJB Design in Auckland. It was a deep blue colour and beautifully made with our initials and wedding date embroidered on the inside of his jacket. Matt paired his suit with a bowtie, brown belt and shoes. My dress was from Vinka Design – it had long beaded lace sleeves with a detachable silk train and veil. Our groomsmen wore dark blue pants, white shirts, blue bowties and beige suspenders. We thought the suspender and bowtie look tied in well with our rustic venue theme. Our bridesmaids wore nude coloured wrap dresses, which were custom-made and nude strap heels. They looked great but were freezing!
What were some of the most memorable/unique moments from the day?
The most memorable part of our day was surprising everyone with our choreographed bridal party dance. For three months leading up to our wedding we taught the bridal party a dance (which we had learnt from YouTube) and kept it hush hush, so no guests knew about it. Matt and I started our first dance, then one minute in the music suddenly changed and the bridal party joined us on the dance floor. We absolutely nailed it and all the practice paid off! The guests were blown away.
Any advice for other couples planning to spend the rest of their lives together?
Always make time for each other. It is so easy to get caught up in work or your busy life and you forget to make time for each other. With Matt’s hectic work, we always need to carve out time in our week to have ‘us time’. We try and have date night once a week so we can spend quality time together. We find this is very important and love our date nights!
Photography: Dawn Thompson | Videography: Shotover Media | Ceremony and Reception location: NZ High Country Queenstown | Celebrant: Father Stephen Berecz | Bride’s gown: Vinka Design | Groom’s gown: RJB Design | Rings: Naveya and Sloane | Shoes: Billini | Makeup: Yanisa from Charm Beauty | Hair: Elaine Sharpe from Muse Hair and Makeup | Bridesmaid’s attire: Custom made dresses from Meg’s Tailoring | Groomsmen’s attire: Frank Casey suit/ shirt/suspenders & Politix Delos bowties | Entertainment: The Hamiltones (Band) | Flora: One Fine Day | Catering and Beverages: In2Food catering | Cake: Cherry Blossom Cakes
