About a year later, on a beautiful summer’s day in London, Warwick proposed at Primrose Hill after we had spent the day visiting some of our favourite spots.
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
We both work in tech. Warwick works in sales, and I work in marketing. We love travelling, food, hiking, music and good times with friends. We met nearly ten years ago and love the life that we’ve built together, along with our loveable mutt, Luna. We’ve been living in Auckland for the past four years and have made the most of exploring our own country again after living overseas.
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
Like all great love stories, ours began in an unexpected place – a dive bar in London, at a Kiwis in London event. I had recently moved to the city, while Warwick had been there for a few years already. It was a serendipitous meeting; neither of us had planned on going that night but decided to go on a whim due to a change of plans. From the moment we met, we felt at ease, as if we’d known each other for a long time. Something just seemed to click. In typical Kiwi fashion, we quickly discovered we had some mutual friends and many shared interests, like trying to see as much of Europe as we could. To me, Warwick was a London veteran, and I was so impressed with the way he knew his way around the city.
When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?
When we met, I was already planning a four month trip around Europe with a friend and would be leaving in a few months. We both knew we were onto something special, so instead of going four months without seeing each other, Warwick flew to Croatia about halfway into my trip to spend a week sailing the islands with a group of my closest friends – some of whom he’d never met before. He slotted into the group seamlessly despite all of our personal jokes and high school references. We both knew we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together during this trip.
Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…
I knew something was in the works when I got a message from my dad congratulating us on “taking the next step”. He’d managed to keep it a secret for all of five minutes after Warwick had talked to my parents about his intention to propose to me! About a year later, on a beautiful summer’s day in London, Warwick proposed at Primrose Hill after we had spent the day visiting some of our favourite spots. It was a perfect day, and so special to be able to celebrate in a city we consider our second home.
What was one element you were happy to splurge on?
We love the atmosphere that live bands bring to weddings. After seeing Fifth Avenue play at a bar in Auckland, we knew we had to have them. They were awesome and we’re so happy they were able to travel up from Auckland for our day. Together with one of our friends, who is an amazingly talented singer, a few band members played us girls down the aisle. It was extra special and was so cool seeing and hearing our vision come to life on the day. The pinnacle was our final song of the evening, finishing with Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name Of”, although it did leave everyone wondering where the after-party was.
Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?
We had our guests grab a glass of champagne while we were signing our marriage license. During this time, we realised the confetti was still at the marquee, and we’d already started to call people back to their seats. We got two of our friends to run back to the marquee to grab it, and they were under strict instruction to “go as fast as you can”. Luckily at Baylys the walk isn’t far from the ceremony point to the marquee but given it was one of the hottest days of the year, I’m sure they could have done without the impromptu race against the clock!
The only other funny thing was practicing our first dance in our bedroom the morning of the wedding in our pyjamas (and me in my heels!) Throughout the planning process, it was one of those things that was always on the list, but we never got around to it. We ended up coming up with a couple of moves in the space of about a five minute practice and it actually went according to plan when it was time for the first dance.
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story? The history of the ceremony dress…
I tried on so many wedding dresses and went to a heap of stores. After a few weeks, I got an email saying that Felicity’s was having a sample sale, and the dress I kept thinking about was part of the sale. It felt like it was meant to be and I went to try it on again and fell properly in love. It happened to be the very first dress I ever tried on! I love the skirt – it’s flowy without being too big or over the top. I did buy a second dress but didn’t end up changing as it was so comfortable to dance in and I was having too much fun. I also forgot the dress and left it at our bridal accommodation so luckily I didn’t need it.
LOCATION Baylys Farm, @baylysfarmnz PHOTOGRAPHER Brijana Cato, @brijanacatoweddings FLORIST Little Leaf Florals, @little.leaf.florals CELEBRANT Gary The Marry, @garythemarry CATERING Adam Young Catering SIGNAGE & STATIONERY RJMC Illustrations, @rebecca_draws__ ENGAGEMENT RINGS Naveya & Sloane, @naveyaandsloanejewellery WEDDINGS RINGS Timmermans Jewellers, @timmermansjewellers BRIDAL DRESS Made With Love from Felicity’s Bridal, @felicitysbridalnz BRIDE’S SHOE Nicole Rebstock, @nicole.rebstock ACCESSORIES Amélie George, @ameliegeorgebridal MAKEUP Philippa Kriz, @makeup_by_philippakriz HAIR Sarah J Hair & Make Up, @_sarahjhairandmakeup SUIT MJ Bale, @mjbale BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES Billy J, @billy_j_boutique GROOMSMEN SUIT Barkers, @barkersclothing
