We wanted our wedding to feel timeless and romantic, sprinkled with fun moments throughout.
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
Nathan is an electrician, and I’m a marketer in real estate. We have been together for over five years now and just love the little life we have created together. We love traveling and exploring new places but we’re also happiest at home spending time with our friends and family. We love creating things together so are currently searching for a renovation project to pour our hearts into.
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
We met as young teenagers and seemed to always run into each other over the years, we definitely liked each other but ran in different circles. We connected out of the blue a few years later and have been pretty much inseparable ever since. I loved how relaxed and confident Nathan was and instantly saw an exciting future with him. Nathan thought I was fun and just made him happy, he knew he wanted to spend a lot more time with me!
Tell us about the vision you had for the mood and style of your wedding. (theme, key styling elements, florals, colour palettes etc.).
We wanted our wedding to feel timeless and romantic, sprinkled with fun moments throughout. We chose a neutral colour scheme to stand out against the natural green scenery, with subtle touches of pink for an elegant pop of colour. We wanted the ceremony and cocktail hour to feel like a relaxed summer afternoon, followed by an intimate candle lit dinner overlooking the vineyard. We felt that less was more so wanted the florals and venue to speak for themselves, instead focusing on creating small, personalised details. I had a clear vision of linen signage, warm lighting and a white Hampton marquee. Everything was tied together with our dream floral selection of white roses, green hydrangeas, amaranthus, dahlias and pale pink roses.
What styling and visual elements worked best for you? (could be things, the florals, particular hire products or your marquee, etc., something the stylist created or simply just the scenic beauty of your location or the existing design of your venue).
The scenery of Matakana paired with our Hamptons style marquee really stood out to me on the day. It was the perfect backdrop for all of our design choices to blend into and really set the mood we were trying to create. Our florals seamlessly connected all the different spaces and parts of the day, from the ceremony meadow of green hydrangeas under the trees to the white roses in the bouquets, on the tables and on the cake – I loved the sense of connection they provided. The Italian style villa at the venue felt like an ode to our engagement in Italy, one of our favourite places in the world.
What did you enjoy most about the planning process, and do you have any tips for couples starting their wedding planning journey?
I loved dreaming up and designing all the visual elements of the wedding. We chose to DIY a lot of things, so we enjoyed getting to be creative together. My advice would be to always plan and decide as much as you can together, that way the day is a representation of you as a couple and your story. I found if things got stressful it always helped to strip everything else back and remember the true meaning of the day, it’s such a special time and truly goes so fast.
Tell us about your vendors. Were there any standout suppliers you would like to make special mention of?
Our vendors were all so wonderful to work with! My best friend Alora was instrumental in the planning process, turning all of my ideas into beautiful custom artwork. Brijana and Andy captured the day perfectly. Alex our celebrant did the most amazing job at making the ceremony special, relaxed and authentic to us. The party would not have been what it was without Sam djing or on the saxophone – our guests are still raving about him. I am so grateful to have worked with my two stunning sisters-in-law, with Michelle doing our florals and Rhiana doing our cake. They’re both so talented at what they do and executed our vision perfectly. While not a vendor, I am very lucky that my mum spent the year planting and growing all of the beautiful dahlias we had at cocktail hour and in my bouquet.
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, and is there a story?
I unexpectedly found my dress while on an overseas holiday in Cape Town, the city I was born in. Over a couple of months, I was able to work with them remotely to customise the dress until it was perfect. Not an easy task but they were incredible to work with. I love that my dress represented such a key part of my story.
Tell us about your wedding and engagement rings.
Nathan chose my engagement ring by himself a couple of months before we left to travel around Europe, and somehow kept it hidden from me for over three months over there. He knew the style of ring I wanted and that I loved the Diamond Shop as a brand. It was a no brainer for us to create our wedding rings with them too, I went for a simple gold diamond band to compliment my engagement ring and Nathan chose a white gold band. We love the mixed metal look of our rings when they’re together.
What were one or two elements that were most important to you both that you were happy to spend a little more on? (food, photography, florals, the venue, your outfits?).
As big foodies we knew that the food was going to be an important part of the day, not just for our guests but also for ourselves. We loved working with Source Kitchen to create a menu unique to us with a wide range of flavours and locally sourced ingredients. We also knew that photography and videography were how we would look back on the day for the rest of our lives. We are so glad we chose to invest in both of these as watching our video and looking through our photos has already brought us so much joy and taken us right back to how we felt on the day.
Was there a favourite moment (or two) that you will treasure always?
The entire day just felt so fun and happy, we could not stop smiling. We both tried to be extremely present all day and just absorb the feeling of being surrounded by everyone we love. I think being on the dance floor really highlighted this feeling. Watching everyone around us but also just each other, we had this moment where we knew it was all worth it and we wish we could relive it all again.
BRIDE Emma, @em.orr LOCATION Matakana Estate, @matakanaestate PHOTOGRAPHER Brijana Cato Photography, @brijanacatoweddings VIDEOGRAPHER Grey Area Productions, @greyareaproduction FLORIST Orchid Moon Florals, @orchidmoonflorals CELEBRANT Alex Cooper-Cuthbert, @alexcoopercuthbertcelebrant DJ ENTERTAINMENT Sam Jones, @goldmansax_ HIRE Click for Hire, @clickforhire ; Folio Hire, @foliohire; The Pretty Prop Shop, @theprettypropshop MARQUE HIRE Lucy’s, @lucyseventhire CATERING Source Kitchen, @sourcekitchennz CAKE Rhi’s Cakery, @rhis_cakery SIGNAGE Linen Signage by The Signery, @thesignerynz WEDDING & ENGAGEMENT RING The Diamond Shop, @thediamondshop BRIDE’S MAIN OUTFIT & VEIL Aleena Leena, @alenaleenabridal; The Wedding Boutique; @weddingboutiquesa BRIDE’S SHOES Spurr Shoes, @spurrshoes NECKLACE Linjer, @linjerco MAKEUP Kimberly Hill Makeup Artist, @kimberly_hill_makeup_artist ; Beauty by Cara Blair, @beautybycarablair HAIR Hare and Hunter, @hareandhunter BRIDE’S FRAGRANCE Chanel, @chanelofficial GROOM & GROOMSMEN MAIN OUTFIT Rembrandt, @rembrandt1946 GROOM’S FRAGRANCE Sauvage by Dior, @diorbeauty BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES Runaway the Label, @runaway_bridal CUSTOM ARTWORK Alora May, @a_may_art ON THE DAY COORDINATION Anna Moroz, @wedding_girl_nz_celebrant GETTING READY ACCOMMODATION The Village Haven, @thevillagehaven.matakana
