I knew he was the one when he took me out dancing – there’s no arguing with those hips of his, he’s got the moves and I couldn’t keep away after that!
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
SB- I’m a pediatric oncology nurse and Tom’s a mortgage broker, I love spending money, Tom loves saving money, I love eating, Tom loves cooking, a strange mix but it works! We love adventuring around the world together, being around our friends and families, getting outdoors and we’re equally obsessed with our little red dog Ruby.
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
SB – Good old tinder! Tom tried to teach me the rules of cricket on the first date and I pretended to listen. Plot twist, I was not listening. I’d like to say it was love at first swipe, but we didn’t see each other much between those initial casual dates. Tom will claim I ghosted him but that’s up for debate, we reconnected for some late night hangs about 9 months after meeting and when I gave him the ultimatum to either take me on a proper date or go away, he chose the right option and the rest is history! I loved his sense of fun and that he was always up for a good time, and when I found out he was a family man, loved dogs and cooking, I was sold!!
When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?
SB- I knew he was the one when he took me out dancing – there’s no arguing with those hips of his, he’s got the moves and I couldn’t keep away after that! I love how easy life is with him, he can make me laugh like no one else can, his sense of adventure is contagious, and I love how he can help me see things from different perspectives.
Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…
SB- We live near a beautiful mountain and we took our dog for a hike and he popped on one knee, it was a perfect day and my face hurt from smiling. We had our families over for dinner and surprised them after dinner with the news! One of those core memories you get all warm and fuzzy over!
Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding…
SB- We wanted it to reflect us as a couple so that we could look back on it in years to come and still love what we chose. We drew upon the warm elements in our venue such as the exposed brick and warm tones from the timbers and chose colours for our styling to reflect that too. We also wanted to include special elements for our guests throughout the day to express how special they are to us – like our photo place cards of our guests and us that we hand-picked for each of them.
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?
SB – I’ve always loved tulle, I love how feminine and romantic it is and when I tried it on I fell in love with how it moved around my body when I did. Kyha always does an amazing job in modernising old fabrics and I think they made this dress timeless. My dress had a mushroom / nude lining under the tulle which added an interesting dimension! Tom fully committed to a Bond inspired look in a Peter Jackson tux. He wanted it to be fitted but comfortable enough to dance the night away in and it definitely served its purpose!
I wanted a bit more dancing range for the reception so I switched to a dress by an Australian designer Rachel Gilbert – the beaded gown had a super high split, perfect for our disco fever first dance. I lasted the entire night in my Harlo heels, they endured a lot of dancing throughout the night too but they made it through!
Ceremony + Reception location: Half Acre, @halfacre_melbourne / Photographer: Amanda Alessi, @amandaalessiphotography / Videographer: Apertura Studios, @apertura_wedding_films / Celebrant: @yourcelebrant.alycebailey / Entertainment: Hey Jack, @heyjack_co / Napkin / tablecloth hire: Table Art Event Hire, @tablearteventhire / Flora: Sugar Bee Flowers, @sugarbeeflowers / Catering + Beverages: Food & Desire, @foodanddesire / Stationery: Signed by G, @signed_byg / Registry: Wishing well – supplied by Half Acre / Sarah’s Ceremony Dress + Veil: Kyha Studios, @kyhastudios / Sarah’s Reception Dress: Rachel Gilbert, @rachelgilbertau / Tom + Groomsmen’s Attire: Peter Jackson, @peterjacksonau / Ring/s: Novita Diamonds, @novita.diamonds / Shoes: Harlo, @harloau / Makeup: Eleanna at Tonic Agency, @tonic.makeup.hair / Hair: @rae.hairstylist / Fragrance: Maison Francis Kurkdjian – Gentle Fluidity, @maisonfranciskurkdjian / Bridesmaid Attire: Bec and Bridge, @becandbridge