Maggie + Char by Rose & Co. - Together Journal

In the beginning, it was just hanging out as housemates/friends, watching movies, and going on hikes, then it became the night conversations about what we wanted to do with our lives and where we wanted to go travelling.

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

Both: We are both from New Zealand, Char moved there when he was in primary school from Sri Lanka. We have been together for 5 incredible years. When we aren’t working (Char in Human Resources and Maggie, an Executive Assistant), we are always on the lookout for a great foodie spot in and around Melbourne. We love outdoor adventure and travel. Our families, those closest to us and each other are the most important things in our life. Since we have been together, we have binge-watched the Harry Potter series at least once a year.

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

Char: Coincidentally, we both studied hospitality at two different schools in New Zealand. Our paths first crossed on Hayman Island in Australia, she was finishing an internship, and I was just starting mine. Fast forward 1.5 years later to another resort that I was working on comes along Maggie. It wasn’t exactly love at first sight; honestly, I thought she always had a bit too much to say, haha. But destiny had other plans, and Maggie ended up moving into our apartment. Turns out, Maggie just loved to talk and I actually grew to love it, along with her kind heart. We bonded over post-work chats and movies, and a staff party sealed the deal for us.

Maggie: I remember when I first saw Char working on Hayman Island. Newbies always started every two weeks, and in a resort of 400 staff, I really couldn’t keep up with everyone new that was starting, and I was leaving anyway, so I saw him one day at work, and that was really it. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, and a year and a half later, I ended up working at another resort only to find that Char was working there. It wasn’t until after a year of living and working together that I grew quite fond of him. His smile can make butter melt, and his biceps were just an added bonus.

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

Maggie: For me, it wasn’t one pivotal moment. In the beginning, it was just hanging out as housemates/friends, watching movies, and going on hikes, then it became the night conversations about what we wanted to do with our lives and where we wanted to go travelling. Char was the organiser of all the staff parties, so maybe I should be grateful for that because ever since then we have been joined at the hip and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Char: Truth be told, I wasn’t her biggest fan initially. But over a year later, as I got to know Maggs some more, I realised we had more in common and valued the same things than I originally thought. After only 3 months, I invited her to meet me in Bali at the end of a trip I was on to spend a week with her there, something I would not have done so early on if I wasn’t sure that I wanted a future with her.

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

Maggie: Char tells this story better than me.

Char: Months before proposing, we had booked a trip to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. For some reason, Maggie had got into her head about proposals, and one night, she had been watching videos and was out of nowhere like, “Were you going to propose to me on Kangaroo Island?” I played it off so well and scoffed and was like no, why would you think that? Maggie was upset, thinking, when is this guy going to do it? But I was committed to the surprise and stuck to my guns. After driving for 4 hours and then flying for 3 hours, we finally made it to Kangaroo Island and decided to stretch our legs and go for a walk at one of the beaches. My master plan worked because she had no idea the beach was empty, and I proposed on the rocks over the ocean.

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

We wanted the day to be relaxed, fun and stress-free, and it was exactly that. It really was the best day of our lives. There is nothing more special than celebrating love with the people you love. My (Maggie) Great Aunty has a beautiful property in Bobs Cove, Queenstown. When we were tossing up with locations we kept coming back to Punatapu Lodge.

We really weren’t too stuck on a vibe; there was a very general idea that kept changing, but if we didn’t stick to it, it wasn’t the end of the world. I designed all the signage and printing myself. Setting up the wedding was a whole family ordeal, everyone pitched in, it was the best! My sister and I went to a flower farm to pick the flowers in the rain the day before the wedding, we just picked what we liked, there was no set colours or types of flowers it was just whatever we felt like at the time, which I loved. My sister then put all the vases together and the bouquets.

We just love it when family comes together, and that’s what the whole day was like for us: celebrating with our nearest and dearest.

What was one element you were happy to splurge on?

Both: Food, photographer and videographer were non-negotiables for us. Great food brings people together and is one of the things that we bonded over early in our relationship, so that was a no-brainer.

Hannah, our photographer, and Api, our Videographer, were amazing and worth every $$$. There are so many parts of the day that fly by, or you are so overwhelmed by emotions that you can’t remember what was said or what was going on in the moment, so having the pictures and video to look back on is so special and we can relive those feelings every time we look back over them. It gives me the warm fuzzies.

Char: In the months before the wedding, I couldn’t help but question every penny Maggie was spending on it. I admit I probably made the whole planning process less than pleasant for her. But when the big day finally arrived, I had zero regrets. The wedding was fantastic, and we both loved every moment. Now, I even joke that we should’ve splurged even more! Everyone had a blast, and it turned out to be one of the highlights of my life.

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

The day could not have gone more perfectly. To have both our families, most of whom had never met before, all in one place was amazing. Some of the speeches dropped a few bombshells which we didn’t know about each other, which left us in hysterics.

This was not on the cards originally but the night was just so much fun, So after the reception had finished there was a lot of us that actually went out to one of Maggie’s favourite night clubs in Queenstown that she loved to go to when she was living there. Then we ended the night with the two of us sitting in a dining room of the 5-star hotel that we were staying in eating chicken nuggets, with no luggage because we were meant to have brought it with us (if we hadn’t gone out). That’s what love is, haha.

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

Maggie: My wedding dress was that very first dress I saved on Instagram shortly after we got engaged. I didn’t think it would end up being the one that I would buy. My friends flew over from NZ to meet me in Sydney, and Kyha Studios was the first dress fitting I booked for us, and the dress I loved was the first one I tried on. Everything else I tried after that just didn’t compare, so I got the dress. It was an absolute dream.

I was tossing up whether to wear a second dress or not, and one day, I was scrolling on Insta and normally, I don’t click on the random ads that show up; however, there was this one dress that I did click on, I had never heard of Alamour the Label and half expected the dress to be one of those ones that looks great in the picture and turns up and it’s the total opposite, but it was exactly what I had hoped for.