It was around 12.30pm, my Bridesmaids and myself were sipping champagne and laughing until our stomach’s hurt during my wedding day beauty treatments. One of my girls shared her favourite quote with me – “If everything goes wrong on your wedding day, absolutely everything, but at the end of the day you go to bed married, your wedding was a raging success” This quote really resonated with me as I am generally an anxious person who wants (or shall I say requires) everything to be perfect. However, for a garden ceremony, our wedding day didn’t present the best weather and it rained most of the day.
It’s times like these where a Wedding Planner is crucial! As a bride, I most certainly didn’t have time to check the Bureau of Meteorology every 5 minutes to make sure we chose the best time to cartwheel down the aisle. Bek from Mask Events had that covered. That’s not to mention the presentation of an umbrella to protect my perfectly styled hair within seconds of it raining, right in the middle of our ceremony.
I love these two photos so much as I’m clearly stoked with my umbrella, however my sister appears slightly unimpressed. Sorry Ali! You’ll also notice my big smile – well, what else can you do it that situation but run for cover and laugh about it?
The Rehearsal Dinner
Anyway, let’s go back a bit, the day before in fact. As you know, we picked quite a few of the styling pieces from my home and Mask Events transported them safely to the venue. We held the rehearsal dinner the night before for our closest family and friends. Mask Events had the job of styling the dinner, packing it down and re-setting for our wedding the following day. A tough gig, especially with me as their fussy, control freak, perfectionist client. Simple and elegant was the brief and what they delivered was perfect.
The Day Had Arrived
A day primarily spent with the important women in your life. Hours of laughs, inappropriate comments and banter during most conversations. Surrounding myself with a highly professional team of suppliers meant I could relax and enjoy my day without thinking about anything else other than the loved ones around me. All I can say – it was perfect!
The First Look
I’ve never been a traditionalist, so not only did Matt and I stay together the night before our wedding, we also organised a ‘first look’ before our ceremony. Under the direction of Mask Events, who organised the photographer and videographers, we met at the most beautiful location to see each other for the first time. This was the very first shot taken… Nawwww
Holding Two Ceremonies
I walked down the aisle to marry the man of my dreams only to be rained out. Yet, you must look on the bright side – I had two wedding ceremonies for the price of one, so luck was clearly on my side that day! We went from outside… to inside… to pronounced husband and wife… then shortly after covered in confetti. Done! It’s now time to celebrate! But before we do, let’s talk styling. And let’s face it, it’s allllllll about the styling.
It’s all about the styling…
Me (whilst waving my arms around like a mad woman): “It will be fabulous darling! It will be Hamptons style where everything shall be blue, white, green and grey, with not a single other colour in sight! It will be bold, and luxurious, and elegant and beautiful, with small touches of French inspiration to complement the venue”.
To be fair, I should be grateful that mother nature really turned it on for me considering the sky complemented my requested colour palette.
Again, a classic, beautiful and elegant brief was given to Mask Events to allow the naturally stunning venue to speak for itself. They organised Parisian white Bistro chairs, large Strelitzia Nicolai in coastal planter boxes and a custom-made Hamptons style garden arbour dressed with structured greenery and lots of white flowers. My white cane lounge setting with personalised wedding cushions and peace lilies sat so beautifully in the rain. Mask Events made sure there were gorgeous elements styled in every nook, including antique timber side tables styled with blue and white chinoiserie, palm fronds and flowers. A visual delight everywhere you looked.
The Hamptons style brief continued into the reception with two large suspended floral arrangements clustered with white rattan pendants. French navy table cloths, white linen runners and napkins and in true Danni style, blue and white chinoiserie and coastal elements everywhere! Glassware and cutlery were to be clean and crisp, so as not to take away from the things that mattered like styling, custom watercolour menus, those fabulous chairs and bonbonnieres.
I had absolutely nothing to do with the setup or styling of my wedding and I really feel that’s why it’s so important to work with amazing suppliers and especially an epic planner. It simply makes your day stress free.
Danni’s Top 5 tips:
1. Gather an army of local, professional suppliers who know what they’re doing to help you plan your perfect wedding.
2. Follow timeframes given to you by your wedding planner so you’re not running around like a headless chook leading up to your special day.
3. Don’t sweat the small stuff, at the end of the day it’ll only affect you.
4. Take 5 minutes every hour to spend with your new spouse, because you’ll be soooo busy. At the click of your fingers, the day is gone and you’ll wonder where it went so take that special time.
5. Relax and enjoy! You’ve worked bloody hard to get here, enjoy your day as it should be – as a guest!
Our day was nothing short of perfection. The speeches were super high quality and hilarious all at the same time. The food and service were exceptional, and Matt and I felt truly blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful friends and family. And because we love them all so much, we surprised every single guest with a fully choreographed first dance to Cold Chisel, All for You. Mask Event’s idea of course, and we nailed it!
