Jessica + Ryan by Taylor Kezia Photography

“The minute I met her at our friends house I knew she was the one, she made me a bit nervous so I didn’t really talk to her much that night but when I convinced her to move in as a roommate I knew we would be together forever.”

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

Jess: My husband owns a restaurant and bar fit-out company, he actually built Gemelli the restaurant we had our reception at. I am head of marketing for my family’s real estate company called @realty. I love marketing and graphic design but I enjoy interior design and cooking. Ryan LOVES his golf, I would say that it’s his first marriage. He is one of the tops at his golf club.

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?

We first met at a friend’s house but we didn’t really get along at first.  After we kept seeing each other at friends’ parties and gatherings we started talking and really connecting. A few weeks later I moved into his house as a roommate as he had a room for rent and then we started dating shortly after that. We have pretty much lived together ever since we knew each other.

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

Jess: Shortly after I moved in as a roommate I had to get a surgery done and he was so amazing during that time. He would make dinner even though he is a terrible cook and try to do my laundry and even take me to doctor’s appointments. That’s when I knew was not just my best friend but the man I wanted to be with forever, crap dinners and all.  

Ryan: The minute I met her at our friend’s house I knew she was the one, she made me a bit nervous so I didn’t really talk to her much that night but when I convinced her to move in as a roommate I knew we would be together forever.

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

Jess: Our birthdays are 3 days apart so he picked me up from our house and got us a weekend stay in the penthouse at The star Casino to celebrate our birthdays. I had a feeling something was going on since we don’t normally splurge that much on our birthday celebrations and the casino is where we had our first date. We were getting ready for dinner and I was wearing these shoes I have never worn before and told him “my toes look funny in these shoes” and he replied with “well I have something that is going to make your hand feel funny” and there he was on one knee proposing. What a segway and a poet right! The best part was the ring was too small and I asked what ring from home he used to get my ring size and then found out he used my toe ring, no wonder it was so small and didn’t fit!

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

We really wanted to have a small intimate wedding with our closest friends and family. We had a very small wedding of 34 people in Brisbane, where I was born and where Ryan’s family is from so we thought its the perfect place to get married. Every time we go to Brisbane we walk through the Botanical Gardens and when we were walking through we saw this beautiful old fig tree and both looked at each other and knew that was the place to say our I dos. We kept it very simple since the Botanical garden is full of lush greenery so we did lots of white flowers, white chairs and a white drink trolley to keep it simple. We has a wonderful violinist at the ceremony that really just made the whole thing feel so romantic. It was exactly how we wanted it to be.

What was one element you were happy to splurge on?

Jess: The reception was really important to us since we had such a small wedding we wanted to spend money on food and drinks so we went all out with the reception. We wanted everyone to really enjoy great food and drinks like one big family having dinner together. So we splurged on the reception. (Ryan) We were also happy to invest in photography. Taylor did such a fantastic job and was so professional throughout the whole process. We had a few meetings prior to the wedding to discuss what was important to us to capture on the day and the photos Taylor captured were absolutely stunning.

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

Jess: YES! My veil kept getting caught on the floor or people’s dresses etc, so when we went to go and sign our marriage certificate my brother said he would help me stand up so the veil didn’t get caught on the chairs. We finished signing so we stood up but our beautiful photographer said to sit back down so she could get some photos. As soon as she said that my brother took the chair out from underneath me so when I went to sit back down the chair was gone. There I was rolling around on the floor in my wedding dress. It was beyond funny and everyone attending said this was a wedding they would never forget. Secretly I can’t wait until my brother gets married so I can get my revenge!

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

My grandmother gave me her garter for the day which was 65 years old and it was blue so it was my something borrowed and blue but also special to me to have a piece from her for the day. (Jess)

Ceremony location Brisbane City Botanical Gardens / Reception location Gemelli / Photographer Taylor Kezia Photography / Celebrant Yes I Will Marry You / Entertainment Lawrence Gratton / Styling Hampton Event Hire Flora New England Flower / Catering + Beverages Gemelli / Cake Gemelli / Bride’s Attire Jane Hill Bridal / Groom’s Attire Hugo Boss / Rings Stones Diamonds / Shoes Loeffler Randall / Other jewellery/accessories Jennifer Behr / Makeup Sabrina Walsh Makeup Artistry / Fragrance Gucci Flora