Gemma + Nick by Haute Weddings

“We met at a restaurant in Parnell, I don’t think there was a definitive moment I knew Nick was my person, when we met we just sort of became inseparable – we moved in together after three months of knowing one another and ended up buying an apartment together after three months of living with one another, I think both of these things were out of character for both of us. It sounds very cliché but I think the saying ‘when you know, you know’ is very true.”

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love

GW: I am the marketplace manager at Onceit.co.nz and Nick works in marketing for Nestle, I am very passionate about anything fashion related and Nick is very passionate about cars and watches. We have very similar values – family, friends and our dogs are really important to both of us.

When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?

NP: The day I met her. 

Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…

GW: It was the day after Nicks Birthday in 2020, we had come down from Auckland to spend the weekend in Hawkes Bay with my parents and Nicks mum and her partner, we had been out for lunch and I had made a comment about him having his hands in the pocket of his jacket – little did I know he was holding onto a ring box. He had spoken to my dad the day before so everyone was in on it aside from mum. He took me for a drive up Te Mata peak where he got down on one knee – I of course immediately said yes. The first person I called to break the news was my sister but when she answered the phone she told me she already knew. Dad was so excited he couldn’t keep the news to himself so rather than ruining the surprise for mum he had to tell her instead. There were many celebrations that evening!

NP: After six months waiting to have a ring made and our first lockdown it was time to pop the question. I wanted to ask Gemma to marry me in the Hawkes Bay and the weekend that made the most sense was my birthday. Given this was my weekend I didn’t think she would see it coming. I was a nervous wreck chatting away to her while driving up Te Mata peak, I found the spot and got down on one knee.

Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding…

GW + NP: we both wanted something very classic and elegant which is where the black and white theme came from for the bridal party. 

GW: All the outfit styling details were my favourite part of the wedding planning – especially the shoes. 

What was one element you were happy to splurge on?

GW: Our amazing photographers – Julia & Cam from Haute Weddings, we didn’t even speak to any other photographers, I found their Instagram page and from the initial conversations we had with them both Nick and I decided they were who we wanted to go with for our big day. It was actually a really nice time on the day to be able to just be Nick and I whilst we were having our photos taken. The day goes so quickly it was nice to have some time together and Julia and Cam did such an incredible job.

Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?

GW: Our wedding day really couldn’t have gone more perfectly to plan which was a bit of a blessing, it was the lead up to it that was the most stressful. We had had everything planned out very early on, our original date was October 2021 which was postponed due to Covid so we set the new date as April 2022. Seven weeks out our original reception venue – Black Barn Vineyards had a huge fire and then the same week we found out we also needed to move the ceremony venue due to the red light setting. I think we ended up sending our guests three or four versions of the invitations – in the end we were really lucky Black Barn Vineyards was so incredible finding us the Elephant Hill venue and our Celebrant Anne helped us to find the new ceremony venue. We were so worried about Covid you forget there are a million other things going on! What really mattered the most is we were able to have all the most important people in one place to celebrate with us. 

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?

GW: My dress was not at all what I had originally thought I was looking for, I had originally been very adamant I didn’t want strapless and it was a bit by chance that I ended up trying that one on – it had just arrived in store and fitted me perfectly, I actually ended up getting stuck in it for about half an hour as the fabric got caught in the zip when I was taking it off at the first fitting so I think the dress chose me! I am quite obsessed with shoes and accessories and wanted something a little bit different, I ended up with some baby pink satin Ted Baker heels which as soon as I saw in the store window I knew would be perfect – along with pearl embroidered tulle gloves and a Kate Spade bag. I also wore my Nana’s engagement and wedding rings on the day who we sadly lost in September so I really felt as though she was with us on our special day. 

My bridesmaids all had matching low back bias cut black dresses which tied with a bow at the back with Burgundy velvet stilettos which I am sure they agreed to because they are great friends(and my baby sister!) – they all wanted to know if they could take their shoes off after the ceremony. I surprised them on the day with matching white and silver sneakers (to save their feet), headpieces, earrings and ostrich feather clutches.

NP: My outfit was a three piece Hugo Boss black suit with patent leather Hugo Boss shoes. I also had a pair of Montblanc Meisterstück Cufflinks given to me on the day by my best man, he had them engraved with mine and Gemma’s wedding date which was a joke of ours – I had bought the same cufflinks for him on his wedding day and had accidentally left the day off, we had a bit of a laugh which took the edge off the nerves.

Loved seeing this beautiful wedding? We think you’ll adore the gorgeous styled shoot Ocean Escape by Haute Weddings . We also loved the real wedding of Nick + Ana for more beautiful indoor wedding inspiration.

Ceremony location: St Columbas Church, Havelock North / Reception location: Elephant Hill / Videographer: Haute Weddings / Photographer: Haute Weddings / Celebrant: Anne Fortune / Entertainment: Kid Cole Music + DJ Ben Wright / Styling: Miss Froufrou / Hire: Miss Froufrou / Flora: Sheryll Harkness (Family Friend) / Catering + Beverages: Black Barn / Cake: Pretty Little Details Co. / Stationery: Paper Lust / Brides Attire: Pronovias from Modes / Grooms Attire: Hugo Boss / Brides Engagment Ring: Naveya and Sloane / Wedding Rings: Carats /  Brides Shoes: Ted Baker / Grooms Shoes: Hugo Boss Shoes / Brides Handbag: Kate Spade /  Grooms Velvet Bowtie: Rembrandt / Makeup: Micki at Makeup Etc / Hair: Rochelle at Whitefox Bridal / Brides Fragrance: YSL Libre Intense / Grooms Fragrance: Mont Blanc Explorer / Bridesmaids Attire: BLAK Bridesmaids / Bridesmaids Shoes: ASOS  / Groomsmen Suits + Bowties: Rembrandt