Parisian Charm in South Australia
Scrolling through Life In Still Photography pictures, you'd never guess this couple put their wedding together in just 8 short weeks. With the help of friends and vendors like The Wedding & Flower Room and Say Cheese! Cakes, they were able to tie the knot before the groom's father passed away and still have the wedding of their dreams. For more images from this beautiful celebration of life catch the full gallery here.
From The Bride...Our love story starts off in Paris on Valentine’s Day. To celebrate nearly six years together Luke had organized a surprise date night for us. We left our hotel room and hopped in a taxi, destination: “The Eiffel Tower please”. As we were early for our “reservation” Luke and I took a stroll to take in the beauty of Paris by night. After taking a few happy snaps Luke got down on one knee in front of La Tour Eiffel, with my dream ring, and made the kind of fairy-tale proposal that only happens in movies. After a surprise five course dinner on a boat on the river Seine we headed back to our hotel room heads giddy from too much champagne. We called our family to let them know the good news and before heading to bed I asked Luke if he wanted a quick wedding so that his dad could be there. His dad was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer that was, despite treatment, aggressive and spreading throughout his body. Luke said “I’d like my dad to be there”. So it was decided that we would speed up the process in the hope that he would be there for our wedding day. With the help of my amazing bridesmaids and the internet I booked the photographer, venue, florist, cake, hair stylist and make-up artist from our little hotel room in Paris. Luke got his suit from Hugo Boss on the Champs Elysees and all that was left to oraganize upon our return home was the bridesmaids dresses, my dress and all things DIY.
8 short weeks after Luke proposed on Valentine’s our Wedding day had arrived. Luke’s proposal and our France holiday had influenced the inspiration for our big day. “Paris Charm” was expressed in details like the vintage books, the Chanel No. 5 bottle bought from a street market in Paris and the Bridesmaids gifts that included a mini bottle of French champagne, chocolate and a little bit of Paris in the form of a miniature Eiffel Tower. My 3 bridesmaids and I stayed in a hotel with matching robes and slippers. We started the day with a rustic muesli breakfast, French Champagne and mason jar cocktails. Getting ready at the hotel was so much fun. I had my hen's night the night before the wedding so Marie, our make-up artist, had her work cut out for her that morning! She is so talented! We all looked and felt beautiful! And our hair stylist, Toiya, was just as important as the French Champagne was on the day: She was Bright and bubbly and the detail to our hair styles was beyond perfection! Highlights would definitely have to include receiving my nan’s royal albert tea set as a wedding gift (she received these as a wedding present also and handed them down to me), giving my beautiful bridesmaids their gifts, our balloon fight and a surprise wedding present that arrived for me at the hotel room. The present ended up being a boom box which inspired my decision to dance down the aisle. As my grand-pa would not be able to make it for the wedding day I brought this bottle of gold ink to the hotel so as to have something that reminds me of him in our wedding album.
Our venue, Utopia @ Waterfall Gully, was Picturesque and was the perfect venue for our ceremony and reception. We had 80 guests at out garden ceremony and the pom-poms that decorated the ceremony area were DIY. My bridesmaids and I danced down the “aisle” to Tom Jones “She’s a lady” blaring from the boombox carried by my dad. Luke, his groomsmen and all the guests were in fits of laughter and it was a fun way to greet my future husband. Luke’s dad also made it for the ceremony but sadly passed away 2 weeks after the wedding. We feel truly blessed that he was able to come and despite not being able to stay long due to illness he really did have a wonderful time.
We had our location photos by the waterfall surrounded by the beautiful warm shades of autumn. I had so much fun with Bree, our photographer, and she was like my fourth bridesmaid on the day and adapted to every situation. For example one of my bridesmaids fell over at the waterfall and dirtied her dress before we had any photos taken; we therefore had to strategically place her in photos to hide the evidence of her fall. Just from looking at Bree’s photos it's obvious that this was her calling; that she was meant to capture beautiful moments to last forever. When I received my wedding photos they literally took my breath away and I have nothing but praise for my absurdly talented photographer!
Our stone cottage reception was relaxed with groovy dancing and photobooth fun. The room was adorned with fairy lights and chandeliers and our centrepieces for the wine barrels were DIY coffee jars covered in burlap, lace and twine filled with flowers and a mini blackboard. Our wedding cake was 4 tiers of heaven! It tasted delicious and the freshest ingredients were used! The top tier was meant to be frozen and eaten on our one year anniversary but it was so good that it only lasted until our one month anniversary! We did our own photoboard with pictures of Luke and I over the past six years and also did our own DIY photobooth.
The whole day could not have come together in such a short amount of time were it not for the help of my bridesmaids and vendors. Words will never be enough to thank everyone that helped make our fairy-tale wedding possible. So I would like to take this opportunity to say "Merci Beaucoup" to those who went above and beyond.
8 short weeks after Luke proposed on Valentine’s our Wedding day had arrived. Luke’s proposal and our France holiday had influenced the inspiration for our big day. “Paris Charm” was expressed in details like the vintage books, the Chanel No. 5 bottle bought from a street market in Paris and the Bridesmaids gifts that included a mini bottle of French champagne, chocolate and a little bit of Paris in the form of a miniature Eiffel Tower. My 3 bridesmaids and I stayed in a hotel with matching robes and slippers. We started the day with a rustic muesli breakfast, French Champagne and mason jar cocktails. Getting ready at the hotel was so much fun. I had my hen's night the night before the wedding so Marie, our make-up artist, had her work cut out for her that morning! She is so talented! We all looked and felt beautiful! And our hair stylist, Toiya, was just as important as the French Champagne was on the day: She was Bright and bubbly and the detail to our hair styles was beyond perfection! Highlights would definitely have to include receiving my nan’s royal albert tea set as a wedding gift (she received these as a wedding present also and handed them down to me), giving my beautiful bridesmaids their gifts, our balloon fight and a surprise wedding present that arrived for me at the hotel room. The present ended up being a boom box which inspired my decision to dance down the aisle. As my grand-pa would not be able to make it for the wedding day I brought this bottle of gold ink to the hotel so as to have something that reminds me of him in our wedding album.
Our venue, Utopia @ Waterfall Gully, was Picturesque and was the perfect venue for our ceremony and reception. We had 80 guests at out garden ceremony and the pom-poms that decorated the ceremony area were DIY. My bridesmaids and I danced down the “aisle” to Tom Jones “She’s a lady” blaring from the boombox carried by my dad. Luke, his groomsmen and all the guests were in fits of laughter and it was a fun way to greet my future husband. Luke’s dad also made it for the ceremony but sadly passed away 2 weeks after the wedding. We feel truly blessed that he was able to come and despite not being able to stay long due to illness he really did have a wonderful time.
We had our location photos by the waterfall surrounded by the beautiful warm shades of autumn. I had so much fun with Bree, our photographer, and she was like my fourth bridesmaid on the day and adapted to every situation. For example one of my bridesmaids fell over at the waterfall and dirtied her dress before we had any photos taken; we therefore had to strategically place her in photos to hide the evidence of her fall. Just from looking at Bree’s photos it's obvious that this was her calling; that she was meant to capture beautiful moments to last forever. When I received my wedding photos they literally took my breath away and I have nothing but praise for my absurdly talented photographer!
Our stone cottage reception was relaxed with groovy dancing and photobooth fun. The room was adorned with fairy lights and chandeliers and our centrepieces for the wine barrels were DIY coffee jars covered in burlap, lace and twine filled with flowers and a mini blackboard. Our wedding cake was 4 tiers of heaven! It tasted delicious and the freshest ingredients were used! The top tier was meant to be frozen and eaten on our one year anniversary but it was so good that it only lasted until our one month anniversary! We did our own photoboard with pictures of Luke and I over the past six years and also did our own DIY photobooth.
The whole day could not have come together in such a short amount of time were it not for the help of my bridesmaids and vendors. Words will never be enough to thank everyone that helped make our fairy-tale wedding possible. So I would like to take this opportunity to say "Merci Beaucoup" to those who went above and beyond.