Brooke + Chris by Hollow & Co. - Together Journal

We wanted everything to be captured in a timeless and romantic setting to reflect the whole mood of our day. We also have a 2-year-old, so it was important for us to do that with a photographer and videographer so that we can look back on it with her one day.

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
(Brooke) Reflecting on ‘us’ it’s quite funny, Chris and I couldn’t be more opposite yet the same in so many ways.

I’m a proud country girl, that left for the big smoke chasing her career and a dream. Chris is a ‘coastie’ that grew up by the ocean and dreamt of playing sports and travelling.

I’m now a business manager in the corporate space – a head strong confident woman, who loves order and always has a plan. Chris is a PE Teacher and a rugby coach with a ‘go with the flow’ approach. Chalk and cheese, if you will?

Amongst our differences we are people that love and appreciate the simple pleasures in life; watching the sunrise, morning coffee, the smell of the country, listening to the rain in bed, spending time with friends. The list goes on, and it’s one of the core reasons we work so well.

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
(Brooke) Chris and I met almost 10 years ago at a bar in Auckland CBD. Thankfully we met before any of the dating apps surfaced. He tried to reign me in from across the room, I rolled my eyes and left the bar. I got to the curb side and thought, ‘yeah, maybe I did like the look of him’ so I walked back into the bar and asked for his number.
They say first impressions last, well in this case they did and didn’t. We were talking for two whole days before Chris had the courage to ask what my name was again, because he missed it the night we met.

Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding…
My vision was French country meets old Hollywood glamour. I’d always dreamed of an alfresco dinner under the stars but wasn’t sure if we would achieve that with the winter weather being so unpredictable. We created a warm yet moody atmosphere by lighting the outdoor fireplace beside the table, and lit our outdoor area with festoon lighting.

Our wedding was an intimate setting so we wanted to make sure it felt that way for our guests. We seated everyone on one big table and enjoyed a shared family style three course meal. For us, this was a way of connecting with everyone on a personal level.

Our table was dressed with vintage crystal glassware, character French Country plates and gold cutlery. Each guest had a personalised handmade dinner menu bound with chiffon and crystal taper candles, linen napkins and chiffon runners decorated the rest of the table.

One of the key things for us was keeping the evening intimate and inclusive, our table flower arrangements were all done by the girls in the house Friday evening before the wedding, as a fun activity to do together. This really brought everything together perfectly.

What was one element you were happy to splurge on?
Our weekend was all about being with our closest people, making memories and enjoying every moment. I wouldn’t call them splurges but instead say that there were three things we weren’t compromising on.

Number 1 – The venue. We wanted a venue that could host all of our guests so that we could enjoy the weekend together with our closest people and create a homely environment. Hillbrook Estate did just that, it’s absolutely magical.

Number 2 – Food. We love our food, we are big eaters and I’d say one of the most talked-about things post weddings is the food. It was important to us to make sure everyone loved the menu. The team at No Biggie literally had everyone melting at the mouth and our guests are still talking about it today.

Number 3 – Memories. We wanted everything to be captured in a timeless and romantic setting to reflect the whole mood of our day. We also have a 2-year-old, so it was important for us to do that with a photographer and videographer so that we can look back on it with her one day. In such an intimate setting, we needed a specific person to be able to achieve that. Tom from Hollow and Co was that person, he fit right in with us and would argue that we’d known him for years. We love Tom!

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?
We knew that we always wanted the boys to be in black suits but I wanted Chris to be a point of difference. He’s a simple man, doesn’t want or need a lot but I wanted him to feel special in his own right. After all, it was our wedding – not my wedding.
I chose a black velvet blazer for him which looked really great and added to the cosiness of our winter wedding.
For my outfit, I picked Lulu Jackson to custom make my dress. I stumbled upon Lulu through friends that she had made their dresses for. I can’t describe her other than she is one of a kind!
I had two requirements, I knew I wanted a long sleeve for winter, and I knew I wanted a luxurious silk – the rest was left to her imagination. Her vision and process to get to our final piece was phenomenal and I’d recommend her in a heartbeat to anyone. I finished off my evening look with a white ostrich feather jacket and also brought one each in sage colour for my bridesmaids.