Tell us a little about yourselves!
Rhys and I met in the summer of finishing high school and after a whole lot of life in between, we tied the knot on our 11 year anniversary. Our fondest times together as a couple have been spent road tripping in our many vans over the years, surfing and swimming together all over the world, renovating
our first home, and simply hanging out with our dog Romeo.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
We live on the South Coast of NSW on Dharawal Country, but decided we’d get married in northern NSW on Bundjalung Country at a beautiful property called Casa Campana.
When we began wedding planning, we knew we wanted to have a small and homely feel wedding, so naturally we began searching for accommodation options that allowed for wedding events. By doing things this way, we had the opportunity to tailor everything to suit our wants and needs. Our pre-requisites were that it had to have plenty of green outdoors space, extra beds for guests to stay, and a pool was a bonus. We liked the idea of going away for our wedding and creating a holiday experience out of it not only for ourselves, but for our guests too. We were sold on Casa Campana once we realised we could have a rehearsal dinner, the get ready morning, wedding ceremony, reception, and recovery day all at the one location in different settings.
How many guests did you have?
30 people including us.
What was your budget?
$30k and we ended up being pretty close to that. We decided we’d splurge on the elements that were important to us; location, food and photography. Then we found other areas to save in such as stationery, florals, styling, hair, makeup, outfits, and the cake.
Tell us about your outfits.
Wedding dress shopping in a physical store was not something I saw for myself, I was happy to shop online with some of my favourite Australian designers who had wedding edits.
My ceremony look was a two piece set by DISSH, and my sister hand embroidered Rhys and I’s initials inside two intertwined hearts on my skirt waistline for “something blue”. A two piece set can be seen as quite a controversial wedding day decision, but for me it felt natural as I spend so much time in swimwear or activewear crops. One of my best friends lent me her veil which turned out to be my “something borrowed”, and I wore some of my favourite existing jewellery pieces as “something old”. I opted for Steve Madden flats to keep my skirt length to the ground, and to feel secure walking down the aisle on the grass.
My reception look was a simple halter neck dress from One Mile The Label in a pearl colour. I loved having an outfit change for the evening, and swapped out the flats for some Tony Bianco heels. I put my hair up in a slick bun, and accessorised with some pearl earrings and hair pins.
Rhys wore an M.J. Bale suit, Windsor Smith shoes, heirloom cufflinks from his late Grandpa, and a Tag Heuer watch.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
The most important aspect for us was that we could have a wedding that felt authentically us. Something that truly reflected our love of travel, summertime, being outdoors, delicious food, and close company. Appreciating quality time above all, we wanted to be able to properly engage with all of our guests in a comfortable and carefree environment. We removed certain wedding traditions that didn’t feel right to us, and created ones of our own - like our end of the night surprise grand exit dive into the pool.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
It was so special for us to have our guests lend a helping hand to make our wedding the way it was. It was a real team effort how everyone pulled together for the florals, set up, styling and cake making. Knowing the love that went into everything, made the details that much more significant.
Incorporating DIY elements isn’t everyone’s style of a dream wedding (and it’s important to ensure it doesn’t feel like a chore), but for us honing into people’s interests/skill sets and having all the materials ready with a clear vision and ample preparation time - made it stress free and enjoyable.
Any tips for couples getting married?
Create a list together of non-negotiables, then compromise with each other on the small things.
Have something on the day that is just for you and your partner, for us it was having our first dance in private away from all our guests.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
We took the chance on hiring a celebrant that was just starting out in the industry, we figured everyone has to start somewhere. Married by Britt did an incredible job and took care of all the legal aspects whilst keeping it light.
Then there’s our photographer Taylor Kezia, she went above and beyond in her role from start to finish. In the planning phase she gave us expert advice about our timeline, so that our day could be as relaxed as possible. She also came to the rescue during the ceremony with extra bobby pins out of her own hair to fix my veil that kept falling out. Her attention to detail was immaculate, and we are just obsessed with her stylish film and digital photography that we’ll cherish forever.
We worked with Maria’s Byron Bay to customise an exciting menu that also catered to our dietary preferences. They cooked the tastiest home-style Mediterranean food on-site, and brought an eclectic mix of serving dishes to suit our style. We had banquet style share plates to continue with our informal wedding, and afterwards they even boxed up the leftovers in the fridge. Our guests still rave about how the pasta was the best they’ve ever had, and the leftovers soon disappeared with many people going back to them for a midnight snack and during our poolside recovery day.
Photographer: Taylor Kezia Photography @taylorkezia _photography | Planning & Styling: DIY | Flora: DIY using GC Flower Market Flora | Videography: DIY Handycam | Ceremony & Reception Location: Casa Campana @casa__campana | Celebrant: Married by Britt @marriedbybritt | Hire:
The Wedding Shed @theweddingshed | Hair & Makeup: DIY | Catering & Beverages: Maria’s Byron Bay @mariasbyronbay | Cake:DIY | Stationery: DIY | Dress: DISSH @dissh | Second Look: One Mile The Label @onemile | Suit: M.J. Bale @mjbale | Veil: Untamed Petals @untamedpetals | Stella's PJ's:
Kat The Label @kat_thelabel | Engagement Ring: Simons Jewellery @simons.jewellery | Wedding Rings: Crown Diamond Jewellers @crowndiamondjewellers | Stella's Shoes: Steve Madden (First Look) @stevemadden Tony Bianco (Second Look) @tonybianco | Rhys' Shoes: Windsor Smith
@windsorsmithmen | Rhys' Watch: Tag Heuer @tagheuer | Cufflinks: Heirloom
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