Aletha & Torin’s Stress Free Intimate Wedding

The Brides Look

Simple white dress. I wanted to still look like a bride but feel comfortable in my dress all night. I wore white sneakers because heels and grass don’t work well together and Heels hurt. I loved having the comfort factor, I wasn’t focusing on my sore feet or the weight of my gown. I was able to fully enjoy the day and night.

The Groom’s Look

My husband wore a grey vest as we felt black was too harsh with our colour scheme and a jacket would be too hot.

Wedding Party Fashion

We wanted a very Australian colour scheme. The greens of local foliage, paired with bouquets of Australian natives. The girls each wore an individual dress that contained those colours.
The Boys wore the same grey vest as my husband. We found a similar vest for my son because he wanted a suit like His dad.

The Theme or Wedding Decor

Australian native flowers and foliage. The ceremony was in a park, we tied tulle and natives to the trees. The girls and I held native bouquets and the boys had kangaroo paw buttonholes.
We kept our theme fairly simple.
The reception was in our yard, also awash with native flowers. My talented mother-in-law sourced the flowers from a friend’s garden and made up the bouquets and button holes. She organised the cake also which had natives on it.

The Ceremony

My father couldn’t be here because of Covid. So my eldest daughter walked me down the aisle and gave me away. It was very special.
We also did a sand ceremony with each of the children. We all poured different coloured sands into a jar to represent us as a family unit. It was lovely to involve the kids in the ceremony.

The Importance Of A Good Celebrant

From the very first moment with Tanya as our celebrant, we felt relaxed and excited. Weddings can be very stressful but she took that stress away and we were able to fully focus on our special day.
Tanya looked after Torin before the ceremony, made sure everything ran smoothly leading up to my arrival and throughout the wedding.
The ceremony was beautifully done. She has the perfect balance of professionalism and nurturing. She had tissues on hand for when I cried.

Your Favourite Moment

I can’t pick a favourite moment, there were so many special moments. Some that stand out are, my firstborn walking me down the aisle, my 4-year-old son asking me to spin around so he could see my dress twirl, and the moment we were presented to everyone as Husband and wife.

Your Wedding Day Advice

We kept it simple. A small intimate wedding with a backyard reception.

Try to minimise the things you need to do, outsource jobs to family and friends who are willing, and try to relax.

Unexpected Hiccups

My youngest daughter started walking down the aisle to the wrong song. We called her back and even though she was a little embarrassed, she picked herself up and walked down the aisle when the right song came on.
I cried all the way down the aisle and through the vows. Tanya helped me get through it, handing me tissues and allowing me the time I needed.

Your Wedding Team

We did everything ourselves apart from the photos.

Our photographer was Lorde Photography

And celebrant was Tanya McDonald Building Forevers