Rochelle + Chad by Tristan Mckenzie - Together Journal

We’ve been through many monumental life experiences together, and love undeniably pulls us together.

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

Rochelle is a freelance fashion stylist working on editorials and fashion shows. Chad is a teacher specialising in working with students with diverse needs. We love to eat delicious things, go hard in CrossFit, beach swims and sauna, love our 3 fur animals, laugh til we lose our voices and slow dance in the kitchen.

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

We met at a NYE house party in 2011. Both crashed it, not knowing whose party it was. A fight broke out just after 12 am, and Chad tried his moves to keep my friends and me safe. I had eyes set on him as soon as I arrived. It was love at first sight. But we made it through 13 years of highs and lows, and I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.

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

The major deciding moment was when we both took a year apart in 2014. Chad will travel to Europe, and Rochelle will follow her dance career in Sydney. Although it wasn’t a clean split, we couldn’t stay apart. Rochelle came home for Christmas, an intended 2-week stay. Caught up with Chad and the rest was history, she never went back to Sydney and the love story resumed harder than before. We’ve been through many monumental life experiences together, and love undeniably pulls us together. We are continuously growing together, and narrating our lives is magical.

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

There was a couple, haha! The first was in Japan in 2020 (just before the world shut down). We spent the day at the Annual Sapporo Snow Festival. I thought I was going to die from frostbite, and then Chad popped down on his knee when we got back to our room. It was a day filled with so many wild memories. The second came when my ring was finished (we designed it together after the proposal, as he knows me too well). Chad planned a day trip to climb the biggest mountain in WA. An early morning, a MASSIVE 2.5 hr hike up, an incredible view, a beautiful letter and a second proposal to the commitment of our lives together.

What was one element you were happy to splurge on?

FOOD! We are both die-hard foodies, and our wedding day should be no different. We wanted the food to be memorable and its own journey. Mi Scusi was mind blowing and the guests couldn’t stop raving about the food. ‘best wedding food ever’ was thrown around more times than we could count.

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

My bridesmaids and I stayed in a hotel. When the time came to leave, they had to smuggle me out to get into the limo. A few guests were also staying at the hotel, waiting for Ubers at the front. The girls screamed ‘close you eyes and turn around’ and they covered and ran me across the road into the limo. It was a true sex and city moment, haha, and the guests could confirm they didn’t see a sneak peek.

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

Our outfits were coincidentally the same brand by a local designer in Perth. I had already arranged my dress through Nilofar (designer and owner of Khirzad) when Chad found his dream suit through her as well. I had to make sure he had no idea my dress was from there, so I played all the tricks in the book to send him off the scent when we were both in-store trying the suit–a great success; it worked! We both wanted outfits that we would undoubtedly wear over and over again, and these couldn’t have been more perfect. My outfit was a blazer with a removable wrap skirt worn on top, 2 looks in one, and we went from drama to play.