We are best friends, have very similar interests, and love each other’s company.
Dating and marrying your best friend is really a great joy!
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
Briah works for an NGO, and Tom works for a bank; we live in Melbourne, Australia. Tom generally spends his spare time reading, exercising and catching up with his mates. Whilst I love watching TV shows, exercising and coffee. We both love travelling, snowboarding and beach days; we are excited to do more of this together.
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
We met with I was still in High School and he was in University. We were friends for almost 3 years before we started dating. We started dating a month before COVID, which forced us to quickly learn if we could get sick of each other (like many couples). We regularly went on coffee walks and binged TV shows and movies. It was a fun, slow start to dating and helped us quick realise how much we love spending time with each other.
Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…
Yes, Tom and I started dating in early lockdown in Melbourne, so in-between lockdowns, after 6 months of dating, we went on our first date up to Sassafras at the Alfred Nicholas Memorial Gardens, we then later went there for our 1 year anniversary.
When Tom proposed in 2022, we were doing long-distance (myself in VIC and Tom in QLD). When Tom flew down one weekend, he had planned a whole day trip and we got very lucky to have a rare, gorgeous, July day. The sun was shining and we went to Sassafras at the Alfred Nicholas Memorial Gardens again. The funny thing is, we decided to go for a walk around the gardens prior to sitting down for a picnic and we witnessed another couple propose! It was so funny because it was a very extravagant and gorgeous proposal. They even had a photographer, videographer and a very fancy picnic! After seeing all this I made a comment to Tom that it would be hilarious if he wanted to propose after seeing that hard-to-beat proposal (poor guy).
Afterwards, when he did propose, and it was perfect – we had set up a picnic and the sun was shining on us and it was just us in the whole garden. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. Tom then outdid himself as we drove to the Peninsula Hot Springs and into the city to a rooftop bar to celebrate.\
Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding…
My vision was very much a timeless garden wedding. I drew inspiration from European weddings, whilst looking at the gorgeous Australian and New Zealand country weddings of late. I chose to hire very minimalist furniture and stick to a neutral colour pallet.
I discussed the style with my florist (Piper and Posie) who was so helpful in helping me articulate what I was after. For some reason, I was convinced I couldn’t pull off bright colours and should stick to a natural colour palette, but deep down I wanted to have fun with it. I wanted colour because this was a big celebration and the colour helped capture the fun which our wedding was all about.
So we decided to use bright vibrant colours to enhance the aesthetic of the garden wedding palette.
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?
Bluebell Bridal was the second bridal store I went to. I got so lucky to find my dream dress so quickly. I have seen other brides get more stressed as they tried on more dresses, so I made it a rule to only go to 3 shops and really try to choose from them (… but of course, if I hated them all I would keep looking!).
Style-wise, I knew I wanted minimalist and slick. I was aiming for the ‘Caroline Bessette’ style, as seen primarily in the 90s. As much as it seems weird to say this, I honestly think your wedding dress needs to match your personality. As soon as I tried mine on, I knew it was the one. I didn’t let myself overthink and came back the next week to purchase my dream dress.
I had always admired Prea James and her collections, so originally I only tried on the Tyler set for fun, but as soon as I had it on, I fell in love with the incredible fabric and cut. When they pulled out the Amara Wrap, I was sold, it complimented the gown so beautifully and really brought the elegance I was wanting to find in a dress.
I loved having a three-piece dress, I loved how unique it was and that it really was a two-in-one gown, both classy and sexy.
VENUE Family Farm, Redlands, NSW / PHOTOGRAPHER & VIDEOGRAPHER La Este Film, @courtney_laestefilm / CELEBRANT Bill Brown / ENTERTAINMENT Little Wolf Entertainment, @littlewolfentertainment / HIRE Ledger Hire, @ledgerco_eventhire / MARQUEE Bourke Hire, @bourkehire / FLORA Piper and Posie, @piperandposie / CATERING Ebden and Olive, @ebdenandolive / BEVERAGES DIY / CAKE Baby Cakes, @babycakes_customcakes / STYLING, PLANNING & WEDDING STATIONARY DIY / WEDDING INVITES Before You Create, @beforeyoucreate / WEDDING GOWN Prea James Bridal, @preajames_bridal from Blue Bell Bridal, @bluebellbridal / ORGANZA TOP Amara Wrap from Hera Couture, @heracouture / TUXEDO MJ Bale, mjbale / ENGAGEMENT RING Cullen Jewellery, @cullenjewellery / GROOM’S SHOES RM Williams, @rmwilliams / BRIDE’S SHOES Wittner Shoes, @wittnershoes / EARRINGS Amelie George Bridal, @ameliegeorgebridal / MAKEUP The Silkend Dragonfly, @thesilkendragonfly / HAIR Jack and the Fox, @jack_and_the_fox / GROOMSMEN ATTIRE: Ferrari Formal, @ferrari_formalwear_and_bridal / YELLOW BRIDESMAID DRESS Mossman, @mossman / PINK BRIDESMAID DRESS The Bar, @the______bar / PURPLE BRIDESMAID DRESS Scanlan Theodore, @scanlantheodore / BLUE BRIDESMAID DRESS Coco and Lola
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