Wedding | Sarah & James

Tell us a little about yourselves!

We’re James and Sarah, a Sydney-based couple who met on a dating app. Our first date was at a local coffee shop, and that same spot ended up being where we got engaged. 

Sarah grew up in the heart of Sydney, while James is from Wingham, a small country town on the Mid North Coast. 

We love living in Sydney for its food, culture, and endless things to do. Our favourite way to spend our time is by sharing a good meal, exploring new restaurants and relaxing on the couch with our shih tzu, Bugsy. 

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

We are both a little bit introverted, so we wanted a really simple and stress-free day. I only had one weekend free from work that month, so we wanted somewhere close and easy to travel to. We looked at lots of hotels around Sydney CBD, and settled on The Langham Hotel and decided we’d do our civil ceremony in the suite (and good thing too because it was a rainy weekend!). The rooms at the hotel were so lovely and we really enjoyed our staycation/elopement weekend there. The staff were incredibly accommodating and really went out of their way to make sure our weekend was memorable.

How many guests did you have?

Just us! Our witnesses were our fantastic photographer Zoe Morley and one of the staff from the Langham, Oliver – and we can’t thank them enough for being our witnesses on the day!

What was your budget? 

Seems silly, but we didn’t really have a budget. Given we were having a simple little ceremony and no guests, we didn’t expect we would spend too much. 

Tell us about your outfits.

My dress was made by Sue Liaw, an amazing seamstress who made my sister’s bridesmaid dresses and a few formal dresses for me in the past. She has a small boutique in Kogarah, NSW. I designed my dress myself and Sue Liaw Couture made it a reality. I was inspired by the structure and draping of classic Vivienne Westwood gowns, but also wanted it to be soft and romantic. 

We ordered James’ suit from an online made-to-order custom suit store called Oliver Wicks. For his suit, I wanted a warm brown tweed suit as we were getting married in winter. I love autumnal neutral colours and his suit turned out absolutely perfect!

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?

We really wanted to keep it simple and stress-free. We wanted the day to just be about us and enjoying the small moments together without the stress of looking after our guests/family. We both would rather spend the day with each other and have a private ceremony where we can be ourselves and share what we love about each other privately and we could not be happier with how the day turned out.

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

It was important to make our day stress free but simultaneously ensure it was very special and we both feel like it turned out perfectly for us!

Any tips for couples getting married?

Plan a wedding that you want, don’t listen to anyone else, you and your partner know what suits you. Don’t try to please others, just make sure you are going to be happy and satisfied on the day!

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

We’d love to give a shout out to our amazing photographer, Zoe Morley – she made us feel very comfortable and got some wonderful photos of us.

Beverley from Celebrations by Bev, was our lovely celebrant and walked us through all the paperwork before the day and took care of all the official/legal things. 

Sue Liaw, my seamstress – I felt like I gave her an impossible task as I only gave her a few short months (3 months..) to make my dress. She took my inspiration photos and ordered my fabric and crafted my dream dress within weeks. She really is a miracle worker! 

The Langham Hotel team – they were so accommodating and hospitable. They really made our elopement weekend such a joy. We definitely plan on doing an annual anniversary staycation there for the memories!

Photographer: Zoe Morley Photography @zoemorleyphotography | Ceremony Location: The Langham Sydney @langhamsydney | Celebrant: Beverley Wright @celebrationsbybev | Cake: Tell Cake Boutique

 @tellcakeboutique | Dress: Sue Liaw Couture @sueliawcouture | Suit: Oliver Wicks @oliverwicks | Engagement & Wedding Rings: Linda and Co Designer Jewellers  @lindaandcojewellers | Shoes:  Aquaruzza @aquazurra