S A L L Y + J U S T I N
Sally and Justin split their wedding across two countries. The result was spectacular and truly unique. They had a first look photoshoot in the mountains of New Zealand followed by an intimate wedding in Surfers Paradise, Queensland.
F R O M T H E B R I D E A N D G R O O M
We first met…
We met during high school. Sally went to an all girls school and Justin went to all boys school, and one day we met on the train while Justin was travelling to visit his friend. There was chemistry already at first sight. Rest is history.
We knew it was love…
There wasn’t one moment to identify it was love. We were together as high school sweet hearts and throughout high school, university, and now in the workforce, we grew and matured together from teen to adults. We think this unique long commitment is what love means to us is.
The proposal…
Out of randomness, we thought after 13 years, it’s time we tie the knot. That was in March, and we thought we should marry in the month of our dating anniversary, which is the 10th of August. But 10th is a Wednesday, so we thought the 20th on Saturday would be the perfect date. Because timing was so tight, we actually got the engagement ring two months after we decided to get married. Nevertheless, we pulled off an amazing (our dream) wedding.
Wedding photography…
Our photographer was Alex Huang from Puremotion. Justin is actually a photographer himself and had known Alex personally for about one year. Justin’s a fan of Alex’s work, and therefore introduced Alex to Sally. From there, we all just clicked and became great friends.
Photos, well, they speak for themselves, it’s simply captivating. Alex not only knows how to capture emotions, but create a wow-factor of the moment or person. Most importantly, making the bride (me) look stunning!
T H E W E D D I N G
Our dream wedding…
We want an intimate wedding. We explored the option of going with large guest list, but it’s not what we like. We want every single guest to be our closest and most important people in our lives. Hence we opted for an intimate, yet luxurious guest of 23 wedding. The theme was luxurious, elegant yet clean. The colours were mainly white, with accents of gold.
Pre-wedding celebrations…
We went to New Zealand two weeks prior our ceremony. Rather looking at it as pre-wedding, we treated it as part of the whole wedding process to fulfil our wish for an elope wedding with just me and Justin. It turned out to be an amazing collection of photos that we “show off” to our family and guests.
Ceremony location…
At Soul Surfers Paradise, supposedly their Secret Garden, but the weather had rain prediction, so we were moved to the main lobby. It ended up perfect, because it wasn’t cold and it was beautiful over looking the beach with the grand stairway for me to walk down.
Reception venue…
The penthouse of Soul Suffers Paradise overlooking the entire sea line, it was a stunning location.
The bridal party…
We had no bridesmaids nor groomsmen. It was all about us!
The groom wore…
Black suit with black bow tie, the classic look. Our dress code for our guests was also formal.
The dress…
I spent a good month every night on Google images checking out dresses for inspiration. I figured my dress style was strapless with a sweetheart neckline, mermaid style, white and clean lines without too much bling and texture. After going into many dress boutiques, because my size was quite small, no one could promise to make and deliver a dress for me within my wedding date. So I went on gumtree.com.au and literally typed size 6 wedding dress. After several try on attempts, I found this brand new dress that fitted me perfectly. After professional alterations, it was the one! (It was a bargain too!)
Wedding flowers…
Roses all the way. It’s romantic and elegant. It was my one and only flower choice for the day. I went with white roses, with a tint of apricot roses so it doesn’t completely disappear in background.
Memorable moments…
Whole day was very memorable. It was truly our dream wedding. The venue was absolutely stunning and most important everyone who attended the wedding was very special to us. Because it was an intimate event, we had the opportunity and time to thank each individual guest during our speech. That was very important to us.
Wedding soundtrack…
Skip to the good part – He is We
Beautiful – Carly Rae Jepsen
Marry Me – Train
Fall for you – Leela James (Official ceremony walk song! *emotional*)
I Do – Colbie Caillat
I’m Yours – Jason Mraz
Reception décor…
The theme was white with a touch of gold accessories. My brief to the stylists was luxurious and elegant yet clean and simple. Table was set with a beautiful bunch of fresh roses in white and apricot colour gold candleholders. The centrepieces were three large crystal candelabras to give off the grand luxurious feel.
On the menu…
It was a sit-down meal.
Menu:
- Lemon ice tea and myrtle
- Salt cured birch smoked trout
- Wagyu sirloin 6+ with marrow bone
- Valrhona chocolate, match tea, salted caramel
- Chef’s selection of petit fours
M A R R I E D L I F E
The honeymoon…
We’re heading to Bali!
Future plans…
Planning to add a new member to our family next year.
In 40 years you hope to…
Keep learning and curious about each other. Keep arguing yet know the importance of each other. In 40 years, we’d have been together for 53 years, and yet it still feels like yesterday…
W E D D I N G W I S D O M
The engagement..
Keeping it real. Take time to appreciate the emotions that goes on (stress, excitement, nerves, frustration) at this stage short or long stage in life before moving into the next stage of being a married couple.
Planning…
At the end of the day, it always work out. Planning way ahead of time can be stressful during this entire time. Research is important. It’s ok to dream big, but be realistic about setting a budget. Spend the money on tangible items such as wedding ring, photos, but not on wedding dress or suits that get put away in the wardrobe. Check out bargains on ebay, gumtree, with a bit of alternations, it may look just as good as an expensive designer dress. But don’t settle for anything (ie. venue, cake, deco) that’s not exactly what you want. At the end of the day, it’s your day.
On the day…
Do exactly what you want and not what others want or expect. Be selfish. You only marry once!
Don’t be nervous if anything stuffs up on the wedding, because no one is going to know except for yourself. Enjoy and embrace every sweet moment.
Wedding Photography: Puremotion / Reception and Ceremony: Soul Surfers Paradise / Stylists: Elegant Events QLD / Florist: Flowers on Sorrento / Cake: All Occasions Speciality Cake