WANT TO HEAR THEIR STORY?
Meet our Bride & Groom: Andrew & Caitlyn
HOW and WHEN did you meet? Tell us about your first date too!
We met in 2010. Andrew moved in with a uni friend of mine (they had been friends from high school). After months of group gatherings and lots of talking we finally went on our first official date in early December. We went to see Mega Mind at the Hawthorne Cinema followed by a Christmas Light drive. We have been together ever since.
Tell us all about the proposal?
I knew I wanted to marry him from day 1 and hinted heavily for years. Finally, 8 years and 1 day after our first date we took our two dogs to Point Cartwright beach. We were sitting on the sand, both dogs sleeping at our feet and Andrew pulled out a little box, told me how much he loved me and said he had bought me something for our anniversary and asked me to marry him. I cried and said yes.
The ring is a 1920’s antique found in Devon England. I had a Pinterest page with ring designs I liked. Andrew clicked on one and happened to be able to buy it. It’s absolutely perfect.
What inspired your wedding décor? Did you have a theme in mind?
We are both pretty relaxed and enjoy nature. We wanted a rustic/country feel. We didn’t want a lot of decor, just simple things to add to the outdoor barn styling.
Why did you pick the venue and what sort of vibe did you want to bring to it?
We knew we wanted to have the ceremony and reception at one venue. We wanted a barn to be the focal point and Logwoods Homestead had everything we wanted. It was surrounded by trees, had open grassed areas and a beautiful barn. We wanted it to feel like a big party where people could play lawn games, move freely around and just enjoy the day.
How many guests did you have at your wedding?
90
Did you take on any DIY projects for the day?
We are so fortunate to have big families who were willing to put in so much time and energy into helping us DIY pretty much everything. The biggest DIY aspect of the wedding was probably the flowers. My mum and I went to the Brisbane Flower Market early on the Thursday morning and purchased all natives. I also took lots of cuttings from my parent’s yard. That afternoon, myself, my mum, Maid of honour, mother in law and sisters in law all put the floral arrangements together. It’s one of the things I’m most proud of. I did my entire bouquet myself. My aunt and cousin then put together all the table centrepieces. It felt so nice to know that the really important women in my life got to be part of such a big aspect of the wedding. (it was also really fun!)
The next biggest DIY item was our hair and makeup. My Maid of Honour and I did both ourselves. It was a massive saving and also a lot of fun deciding and playing with colours and styles in the lead up.
What was your favourite moment on your wedding day?
Caitlyn: I can’t pick just one so I’ve picked 2.
- The surprise butterfly release organised by my parents during the ceremony
2. During my vows, I got really emotional and my maid of honour leant over and whispered: “Naked Donald Trump” – Back story – While trying on wedding dresses we came up with a safe word if anyone got really emotional and needed to be pulled out of it, so we came up with Naked Donald Trump. All morning during the prep if anyone got teary we’d say it. It was so funny that Alice leant over to help me through my vows.
Andrew:
The ceremony
The speeches
The Chevy Bar
Ceremony song?
The Story – Busby Marou
First dance song?
If I aint Got you – James Bay
ell us about the food/drink at your wedding.
After the ceremony our wonderful cousins & aunts put out a grazing table (we had bought the food prior). We knew we didn’t want a formal sit down dinner so we chose That Pizza Guy. The food was incredible and the service was amazing. For the drinks we had a range of soft drinks, water and wines kept cool in a cool room and put out in a bath tub and galvanised tubs filled with ice. Our beer was sourced from Brouhaha at Maleny and served out of the amazing Chevy Bar.
Why did you choose the wedding date you did?
It was almost 12 months from the date of our engagement and on our first wedding anniversary, we will have been together for 10 years.
Was the day how you imagined? Were there any funny moments? Would you have done anything differently?
The day was even better than we could have imagined. We are so grateful to our families, they worked tirelessly to make our day perfect. I don’t think we could ever repay them. There’s nothing we would do differently, it was completely ours and the most wonderful day.
What was the biggest challenge you faced in planning your wedding?
Planning from afar. We lived in Charleville in the south west of QLD so planning a wedding on the Sunshine Coast and choosing a venue without physically being there was really difficult. Other than that the whole planning process was amazing.
Was your wedding a destination wedding?
Technically for us, it was but we both lived on the Sunshine Coast/Brisbane prior to moving to Charleville.
Where did you find your suppliers and inspiration? (Please name specific magazines, blogs, social media etc.)
– Pinterest for styling inspiration
– The Bride’s Tree and Sunshine Coast Bride’s Tribe facebook groups for real time advice and ideas. I highly recommend joining these groups.
– Jamie Wolfer Youtube – She is a wedding coordinator and has some really helpful tips, ideas, and tricks for a stress-free wedding.
Did you attend any wedding shows/expos? And if yes did you find any wedding vendors there?
We attended the Sunshine Coast Bridal Showcase. Thank goodness we did! We met the incredible Tara, tasted the pizza from That Pizza Guy and found The Chevy Bar.
Where is the honeymoon?
We didn’t have a big honeymoon. We spent a blissful week in Maroochydore relaxing and enjoying being newly married.
What was the most emotional moment of the day?
Caitlyn: My vows – I got really caught up in the moment and sobbed my way through.
Andrew: Waiting for Caitlyn to walk down the aisle and my dad’s speech.
What advice would you give to other couples leading up to their big day?
Do whatever makes you both happiest. We worked together so well to plan our day and it meant that we were both 100% happy with every decision we made. Choose a photographer and videographer that make you feel relaxed and are able to make the day even more wonderful.
The incredible team:
Photographer: Tara Lee Photography
Reception & Ceremony: Logwoods Homestead
Celebrant: @Belinda Tee Ceremonies to a Tee
Flowers: Brisbane Flower Market
Cake: Jessica’s Pantry Jessica’s Pantry
Musician: @The Crikey’s The Crikeys & Tuscany
Videographer: Sunshine Coast Videography @sunshinecoastvideo
Dress designer: Luv Bridal and Formal Maroochydore @luv bridal Madi Lane
Shoes: RM Williams
Catering: That Pizza Guy thatpizzaguyaustralia
Beer truck: The Chevy Bar
Beer: Brouhaha Brewery
Cool room: Classy Cool rooms
“Tara shot our engagement and wedding photos and she was incredible! She made us feel so relaxed and got so many beautiful photos it’s hard to choose my favourite. She’s amazingly professional and so down to earth (and made sure all of our timings run smoothly on our wedding day). Her photos are natural, candid and beautiful. I cannot recommend her more highly.” A + C
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