Pretty much from the moment we started dating, I’ve known that I’d like to spend the rest of my life with her.
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
I’m a pharmacist, and Chels is in marketing. We both have a love for travel and doing new activities with each other. The biggest thing for us is finding new ways to spend time together!
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
We met when we were around five years old at church! It happened to be that our families brought us together, and we’ve known each other ever since. My impressions of Chels as we grew up were that she was someone who had her head screwed on right and had always been mature for her age which was more and more apparent as we grew up. Her impression of me was that I was the annoying kid in every group!
When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?
Pretty much from the moment we started dating, I’ve known that I’d like to spend the rest of my life with her. From the earliest interactions we had to the deepest conversations, she’s been the one I’ve wanted to marry.
Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…
Yes, there was! I had a conference in Fiji for a couple of days, so we extended the stay so that we could get an extra few days of relaxation in. I had booked a cabana on Malamala Island, where I’d planned to propose. I’ve always known the exact things Chels doesn’t like about a proposal so I tried to make sure to tick off the things that she would, a private setting being the most important.
What was one element you were happy to splurge on?
The one element we were happy to splurge on was food – we are both great lovers of food and have also noticed (after attending many weddings ourselves) that it is part of the more memorable aspects of the day for guests!
Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?
We were definitely stressed about the timeline of our wedding day. We had quite a few things back to back, from the tea ceremony at both our family’s houses in the morning to shooting off for a bridal party photo shoot straight after the ceremony before the reception, especially as our venues were quite far apart!
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story? The history of the ceremony dress…
Chels’ ceremony wedding dress was the perfect mix of modern and timeless, with the beautiful satin ivory and the subtle buttons added from the back to the end of her train. For me, I had always thought that I’d be wearing a coloured suit of some sort, but the moment I put on a black tuxedo, I knew that it was the right fit for me.
CEREMONY LOCATION King’s College Chapel RECEPTION LOCATION The Hunting Lodge, @the_hunting_lodge PHOTOGRAPHER Grace Watson – State of Grace, @stateofgraceweddingphotography FLORIST Naomi Saffer – Leaf & Honey, @leafandhoney OFFICIANT Pastor Zac Kim, C3 Dunedin ICE CREAM CART Mister Gelato, @mister.gelato AUDIO GUESTBOOK Modo Booth, @ModoBooth PHOTO BOOTH Pixel, @pixelphotoboothhire SIGNAGE DIYed ENGAGEMENT RING Family heirloom BRIDAL DRESS Bridal Brilliance, @bridalbrilliance BRIDE’S SHOE Badgley Mischka, @badgleymischka HAIR & MAKEUP Yuyu Jin Li, @yuyujinli_makeup SUIT Joe Black, @joeblackofficial GROOM’S ACCESSORIES Watch – Seamaster: Omega, @omega
