Welcome to my Real Life Brisbane Weddings page !
This is where the spotlight shines on some of the amazing weddings that I photograph
Today the spotlight is on Jodie & Alon and their beautiful country wedding !
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Jodie & Alon
Date: Saturday 2nd May
Theme if any: No theme – it was just a combination of things we liked!
Tell us how you met: We met in 2009 at work – we were working on the opera La Traviata at QPAC. I was the stage manager, & Alon was a mechanist (which basically means he has to do a lot of heavy lifting, & I get to tell everyone what to do). I had heard through a friend that he liked me, and after a few days of small talk and following a conversation where I said the worst injury I would ever get in this job was a sore finger from pressing buttons, he turned up at my desk only a few minutes before the show was about to begin with a bandaid, and proceeded to place it on my finger so that I could avoid any injury. It was very cute, & I was a little distracted for the rest of the show.
The proposal – Alon proposed on our fifth anniversary of our first date. I had suspected a proposal was imminent but had no idea how he was going to go about it. We had decided to stay in & cook dinner, & so I was on the couch, in my pyjamas, when Alon instructed our four year old Maltese, Jake to “Go to Jodie”. Alon had been teaching Jake this command for months, but I had no idea it was all leading to this moment. Instead of Jake coming to me & jumping on my lap, he sauntered over & then lay down at my feet. Alon then had to come over & try & get my attention onto Jake, by saying “I think Jake has lost his council tag”. I immediately swore at the inconvenience of it all, & when I went to check Jake’s collar, there was the engagement ring attached. I’m not sure how many brides swear like a trooper during the proposal (‘swear like a trooper’ is putting it mildly – Alon).
Details
Ceremony location: R on the Downs Rural Retreat, Swanfels (via Yangan), Queensland.
This B&B is only ten minutes from my parents’ property, & has the most amazing views. Alon, my bridesmaids, our best man & Alon’s parents were all able to stay onsite the night before in the various rooms & cabins – it was great not having to rush around on that morning. Alon & his groomsmen had a “steak & scotch” lunch on the BBQ at one of the cabins the day of the wedding – I think this may have been one of the highlights of the day for them!
Reception location: St Mark’s Hall, Warwick. Minimal decoration required.
Gown: My mother’s gown from the 1950s. She had borrowed a petticoat for her wedding, & so a local dressmaker made another petticoat for me. Other than changing the belt (I bought mine from Review) & a couple of tiny lace repairs, no alterations were needed. My mother’s sister in law’s mother made the dress for her, & so it was lovely to have my aunt there at the wedding as well. When I had it dry cleaned soon after we got engaged, the staff commented on how well the dress had been kept. I didn’t tell them that my mother had it rolled up in a plastic bag & stored in a cupboard!
Shoes: Alan Pinkus (Myer, Melbourne City)
Wedding bands and engagement rings: Engagement ring – Prouds. Wedding bands – Moorvale Jewellers, Moorooka.
Celebrant/priest: Bishop William Morris
Wedding Coordinator: During the lead-up – ourselves.
On the day: Tenneale Rogers AKA The Captain – A friend of ours whom Jodie has worked with as a Stage Manager. She’s awesome!
Decorator: A combination of us, our friends & family, & a very dear friend of ours, Bruce McKinven, who is an amazing set & costume designer. He provided much-needed artistic advice whilst setting up the hall!
Hair: Michael Green – another dear friend who is a hair stylist for all sorts of theatre productions.
Hair piece/fascinator or hat: Veil from Madame Tulle (found on Etsy). I had decided I had wanted a mantilla view & saw the Madame Tulle veils online. I ordered it & just crossed my fingers that it would match the dress – and it was perfect!
Bridal party attire: Bridesmaids – Review (dress & belt). Shoes – Miss KG (Myer, Melbourne City).
Groom & groomsmen – Roger David. – Make-up: Lydia Johnston, Peacocks and Lilies.
Flowers: Rocklea Flower Market. I bought all the flowers on the Thursday & Friday before & drove to Warwick (my car has never smelled so good!). My nieces arranged all the flowers for the reception hall, & my bridemaids & I arranged our own bouquets (including wiring & taping – my bridemaids did all the hard work & had the sore fingers to prove it!).
Stationery: Save the Date – Minted – Invitations & seating chart – Ruby May (Etsy) – Cake sign & thank you note – myself
Cake: My sister-in-law Angie made the fruit cake which we cut.
I exclaimed when I first saw it during the reception (Angie wouldn’t let me see it any earlier) – it was just the most amazing thing I had ever seen (& it was delicious).
Angie & I had been sharing Pinterest photos of cakes for months leading up to the wedding, but this cake was by far & away the best I had seen.
Alon’s mother made the chocolate cake & the coconut & chocolate cake which we served as dessert (neither lasted very long).
Music: Ceremony: The 4 Bows Quartet.
Reception: A combination of an ipod & the jukebox (provided by Hire Solutions in Warwick). The jukebox was a hit!
Transport: My brother’s Golf & my sister’s (brand new) Toyota, with my nephews as the drivers.
Honeymoon: New Zealand.
Funniest Moment
Perhaps our bridesmaid & groomsman skipping along in gumboots during the bridal photos (it can be done), or when my sister in her speech decided to quote some Spanish for us.
I had recited French during my speech (very romantic), & then she said, in summary of her speech, something along the lines of “More beer for my friends and where are the toilets” (not as romantic).
Favourite Wedding Day moment
I don’t know if I can narrow it down! Walking down the aisle to Alon, playing Connect Four with my niece at the kids’ table during the reception (I think the kids had more fun at the reception than the adults – Alon), the first dance with Alon & having no nerves whatsoever, all our guests on the dance floor singing Working Class Man & also arranging the flowers around the ceremony venue the morning of the wedding, enjoying the sun after the torrential storm the night before.
Special thanks to
Our families & friends who jumped on board the DIY train (so many craft-a-noons), & our amazing vendors. We think we chose very well. A big thanks as well to all those who turned up the next day to pack up the hall!
What did you value most about using Ben Clark Photography ?
Ben was the only photographer we met with & the first vendor we picked. I had seen his photos online previously & was thrilled when he was available for our wedding. Alon & I had made a deal early on that we wouldn’t have any vendors who weren’t lovely people (we figured the day would just go by too quickly to be dealing with people we didn’t like), & Ben fit the bill perfectly. He was like another member of our bridal party, & he kept our families in line during the photo session after the ceremony (& his photos aren’t half bad, either).
Advice for other brides-to-be
Enjoy it!
I was so worried the week before that no one would have a good time, but when you have all your favourite people in the one room, how can it be anything other than great?