DIY Wedding: Kristy and Jesse’s Dream Wedding Day

Kristy and Jesse shared their beautiful DIY Wedding with their family and friends, creating a day they would all remember forever.

Kristy and Jesse couldn’t wait to be married. After being in a long distance relationship, their wedding day signified the time when they could stay together. After the long search for the perfect ring, the couple set out to plan the perfect DIY wedding. Wanting to create and a memorable and fun day for their family and friends, Kristy and Jesse worked relentlessly on every aspect of the day. We got to speak to the newlywed couple about the day and all the work they put into it. From the hunt for the perfect dress, to marrying in a church very close to Kristy’s heart, they managed to create a day they will remember forever.

Tell us a little about the proposal and the lead up to the wedding?

The decision to get married was really a mutual one for us. We knew we couldn’t fathom a life without one another and getting married was the next step. As we had been living 10,000 miles apart with Kristy in Sydney, Australia and Jesse in Louisiana, USA, we had made the decision that next time Jesse was in Sydney (at Christmas 2011), we would go looking for an engagement ring. Jesse wanted Kristy to choose whatever ring she fell in love with. We spent an entire month searching for rings, looking at jewelry store after jewelry store with no luck. It was December, stocks were completed and we couldn’t find a thing to suit Kristy’s tiny fingers.

Everyone joked that we were “unofficially” engaged and we decided to wait until I came over to Louisiana to start the search for “the ring” once again. After a week of searching with no luck, we stumbled upon the perfect ring just five days before Kristy was due to leave Louisiana for Sydney. The jeweler promised she would do her absolute best to get the ring in and resized in time for Kristy to head back home and she managed to pull through with her promise - but Kristy continued to wait.

Just one day before Kristy was due to fly out, Jesse told Kristy he wanted to take her “somewhere pretty to take photos”. Kristy is a photographer and loves nothing better than to photograph nature and Jesse knew this was the perfect time to propose. He packed a backpack with “water and snacks”, tucking the ring inside.

As Kristy busily snapped away at the gorgeous pine trees and forest scenary, Jesse got down on one knee, waiting for Kristy to put the camera down and turn around. We were finally officially engaged and our next chapter begun!

Full story can be found here, at Kristy’s Blog.

What was the inspiration behind your wedding theme or vibe?

We wanted our wedding to be a relaxed and fun event for everyone involved. Not wanting a boring sit down dinner, we decided to turn the traditional wedding idea on its head and do everything ourselves.

We decided to rent out an empty studio space and hired a wedding stylist to transform the literal blank canvas into a vintage oasis. Mixing modern pieces with gorgeous vintage furniture and rustic elements, we created the ultimate “Southern In-Law” style. Mixing old and new, traditional and unique.

We did almost everything ourselves - from redoing furniture pieces that would feature in our reception to designing the invitations, RSVP cards and “wedding logo”. This even appeared on our cake to providing our caterers with recipes to suit Kristy’s allergies and creating our own lolly buffet.

You can find a full recap of the wedding here, and Kristy’s Blog.

Favourite detail or moment of the day (besides becoming husband and wife of course! or Wife and Wife, or Husband and Husband!)

It would have to be the ceremony. Our wedding day was one we had dreamed of for five years. After spending five years, 10,000 miles apart, dreaming of the day we would finally be together, that day had finally come and it finally felt real. When you spend so many years dreaming about a day it feels incredibly surreal when it actually becomes a reality.

A traditional church wedding was incredibly important to us as Christians. We were married in the exact same church, standing on the exact same steps, that Kristy’s Mum and Dad were married in almost 30 years earlier.

Did you undertake any DIY projects, if so what?

Just about every part of our wedding was a DIY project!

Invitation - designed by Kristy and sent to Invitation Tea Towels for Printing

RSVP Cards and Wedding Mad-Libs - designed and printed by Kristy

We re-did vintage furniture pieces that we had found at Vinnies and on Gumtree which featured in our wedding.

Wedding Canvas - Kristy designed and created our wedding canvas which featured in our reception.

Wedding “logo” - Kristy designed a wedding logo (a heart made up of dozens of smaller hearts) to represent all of our friends and family who came together to make our dream a reality. This logo appeared on our invitations, RSVP cards, printables and even our cake. (see the cake here).

Gluten Free Candy Bar - we hired the majority of our candy buffet pieces and then sourced all of the lollies and pieced it all together ourselves

Wedding Menu - as Kristy is a coeliac with many allergies, it was incredibly important to Jesse that Kristy feel “normal” on their wedding day and be able to enjoy all of the food without worry. For this reason we created our entire wedding menu and ensured all food at the wedding was gluten free. Kristy developed all of the recipes for our wedding which were then handed over to our caterers who created our incredible buffet spread.

Any family or religious traditions incorporated into your day?

We were married in the church Kristy’s parents were married in - and in the same church Kristy and her sister Katrina were christened in. As Christians, it was incredibly important that we had a traditional church wedding with traditional vows.

Talk to us about your dress, where is it from? How long did it take to find?

I had randomly stumbled upon my dress on Pinterest when we were “unofficially engaged” and fell in love. I was desperate to see it in real life, however, after spending many hours searching, I found that it was nowhere to be found in Australia. As Mum and I were planning on heading to Louisiana to see Jesse and his family, we contacted a dozen bridal boutiques in Louisiana. We stumbled across one three hours away that had my dream dress.

I booked an appointment for whilst we were in Louisiana, hoping Jesse wouldn’t mind driving us all the way to Lafayette because I needed to try on this dress.

Luckily, he agreed to drive the three hours to take me. We arrived at the store and I fell in love. It was the gorgeous mix of vintage, rustic, country, shabby chic that I love and there were hundreds of gorgeous dresses laid about.

So my Mum, Jesse and I walked into A-Net’s Bridal where they quickly put Jesse out on the porch so I could try on my dress (which Jesse was seriously peeved about as he didn’t know the Groom wasn’t supposed to see the Bride’s dress before the big day!). We headed to the back dressing room which had a gorgeous old lounge, a hugeeeeeeeee ornate mirror and a gold Persian rug on the floor. The room itself made the process so much more special - it was grand and grown up and oh so exciting. I knew this was the same room that hundreds of other brides to be had found their dresses and the feeling was quite overwhelming.

I held the dress in my hands and fell even more in love. The fabric was lush - it looked even better in person and had so much detail. As I stepped my feet into the dress, my heart started pounding.

I didn’t look until my mum had zipped me into the dress and when I looked up into that big ornate mirror, it felt like someone was pushing right against my chest. My chest was tight, I had a lump in my throat and I knew I was right.

“Wow Kristy… you were right,” my Mum said. But whilst I had somewhat of a moment, it wasn’t the moment. There was one thing that wasn’t right - just a simple addition that would make it perfect. I decided I needed a back on the dress and the team at A-Net’s Bridal Boutique assured me there was a modest version that would be absolutely perfect.

When the time came to order my dress, I took a huge risk and ordered the dress online. I ordered my dress from House of Brides and whilst it was quite a bit stressful waiting so long and not knowing if I’d made the right choice - my dress arrived on time, 6 months later. My dress took quite a bit longer than it usually takes as it had to be made in my size (they don’t stock the smaller sizes as standard stock so it had to be hand made) and it arrived in a teeny tiny little box.

I have to admit, I had a panic attack when it arrived. The box was shoe box sized and the outside of the package read Polyester Bridesmaid Dress. My dress certainly wasn’t polyester and I couldn’t imagine how it could fit such a tiny box so I thought there was a mistake. I opened the box with my heart racing and then I saw the lace. I pulled the dress out of the box and sure enough, it was my dress - and it was perfect.

I can’t recommend House of Brides enough - I also bought the crystal sash on my dress from House of Brides and it arrived really quickly. I saved a fortune buying my dress online and if I had have gone with the store in Sydney who could have shipped it in for me I would have paid $2000 more. Even with shipping, I paid less than $1000 for my dress - and just slightly more than that once the sash was added.

More of the story can be found here and here.

Any funny stories in the lead up to or on the day?

There were quite a few - from receiving my “Polyester Bridesmaid Dress” that was the size of a shoebox and freaking out thinking that I’d ordered the Barbie size to spending time getting to know the incredible (and hilarious!) Henry Roth himself as he personally altered my sister’s bridesmaid dress to ensure it was perfect.

Advice for other couples planning a wedding?

People always say that your wedding day is “the best day of your life”, however, we truly believe it’s just a glimpse of what’s to come. Your wedding day is the start of your story together. Sure, there might be hiccups and mishaps on the big day, but just remember that you have the rest of your lives to spend together making memories!

It’s an incredible day, full of joy, laughter, tears and plenty of planning - but it is just one day! Relax and enjoy every second because it goes by in an instant.

VENDOR CREDITS

Photos: Lucie Zeka Wedding Photography (see full details - here)

Bridal gown: Allure Modest Gown, House of Brides (see full details here)

Shoes: Diana Ferrari

Flowers: Brides in Bloom

Bouquets: reception flowers purchased and arranged by bride from Sydney Flower Markets

Rings: Zales USA

Bridesmaids dresses: Henry Roth (Henry Roth 88888 Gown in Flamingo)

Grooms & Groomsmen suit: Spurling Formalwear (Beige Self Stripe Two Button Single Breasted Lounge Suit).

Ceremony - St Paul’s Anglican Church, Burwood

Reception - Private Photo Studio in Sydney (we don’t want to share the details as we had a terrible experience with the owners)

Catering: Flavour’s Catering

Cake: Sweetcheeks Cookies and Cakes

Reception stylist, any decorations or details: Nicolle at RaRa Kitty

Stationery designer - Kristy (who designs wedding stationery and accessories for clients at Kiss Freelance)

Hair and Make up: Nieves Calvo, Get Threaded Met Centre

Transport: Broadway Wedding Car Hire

Cinematographer: Adrian Tan and Amath Magnan

Photo Booth: PhotoSocial

Gluten Free Candy: Big Lolly

Candy Buffet Hire: Unique Vintage Weddings

Ideas to Get You Thinking About a Beautiful Country Wedding

Victorian couple Kylie and Matt wanted a big celebration that wasn’t going to be too formal. We were lucky enough to get to talk to Kylie about everything leading up to the wedding, including the romantic European proposal and how their wedding day was everything they both had hoped for. From finding the dress to the final details, Kylie and Matt were kind enough to share some of their beautiful photos and stories from the day.

1. Tell us a little about the proposal and the lead up to the wedding.

The proposal happened on the first night of our 2011 Europe trip. We arrived in Paris that afternoon and explored the beautiful city. That evening we headed out for dinner and to the Eiffel tower to see it with all the lights. We climbed the stairs to see the views and then came down to admire the light show from the park beneath. It was then that Matt decided to get down on one knee and propose. Cue tears and lots of OMG’s and a big fat YES!!! It was a very romantic magical night and one we will never forget. We also kept the big engagement reveal a surprise to all our family and friends until we got home a month later. It was so nice to be in our own little bubble and be happily engaged for a while.

2. What was the inspiration behind your wedding theme and vibe?

From the start we knew we wanted our wedding to be one big celebration and nothing too formal. We went searching for venues and looking up styles and came across Zonzo’s in the Yarra Valley. It fit our brief perfectly and it was from there that our theme grew and grew. We wanted a fun filled, laid-back style that was rustic and could incorporate all of our DIY ideas. Everyone at Zonzo’s could see our vision and were more than happy to help us incorporate our ideas. We were able to really make it our day.

3. Favourite detail or moment of the day (besides becoming husband and wife of course! or Wife and Wife, or Husband and Husband!)

For us there was a lot about the day that was amazing it’s hard to pick just one moment. If I had to, it would be when we were standing under the arbor and the cold wind was blowing through the barn doors, my hair kept sweeping across my face and Matt gently tucked my fringe behind my ear for me while I was standing there shaking and shivering away. Cue lots of “oohhs” and “aahs” from everyone. It really felt like it was just the two of us alone up there. Remembering that exact moment makes me all warm and fuzzy.

4. Did you undertake any DIY projects, if so what?

Yes! We did lots of DIY for the wedding. It meant hiring a truck and Matt driving it to the venue the day before the wedding to unload all of our masterpieces. We made the arbor we were married under and the double doorway entry that I walked under to reach Matt. We also made a lemonade stand for our guests to enjoy lemonade and iced tea. We hand painted lots of wooden signs that were incorporated into the styling. The lemonade stand and the arbor were purchased from us by the venue and can both now be seen and hired out for weddings at Zonzo’s.

We also had a cookie bar instead of a lolly bar or dessert bar. This meant lots and lots of baking of yummy treats in the lead up to the wedding. We had lots of help from family and friends. I don’t think we’ll ever stop hearing about how delicious the white chocolate and raspberry cookies were!

We also designed the invitations ourselves. The invites were printed on wood by Melbourne Laser Cutter and completely exceeded our expectations. The team was more than happy to work with our custom template and helped develop our design to get the best results. We then designed and printed the envelopes and RSVP cards ourselves incorporating recycled papers and twine to match the texture and colours of the invitation.

Finally, we sourced lots of styling items for the day that we knew the venue didn’t have. I ordered mason jars for the lemonade stand, amber bottles and wooden crates so we could move our flowers from the ceremony to the reception. This is why we had to hire a truck to transport it all ourselves! By doing lots of things ourselves it meant that both of us had huge input into the day.

5. What does marriage mean to you?

To us marriage is a one time thing. We had enough time to think about it all and decide where it was we both wanted to be in the future and it was with each other. Marriage to us was the next big leap in our relationship. We had been together for nine years before our wedding and everyone said marriage won’t change a thing it’s just a piece of paper, but you know what? It does change. The changes weren’t huge but things change and it’s nice. It didn’t change the way we feel about each other but I think knowing you are together forever and you always have that one person by your side leaves you feeling content with this overwhelming feeling of happiness. Everytime I think about the wedding day it makes me well up and just feel incredibly happy that I got to do it all with my best friend. I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. It truly was a day we will never forget.

6. Talk to us about your dress, where is it from? how long did it take to find?

My dress is a beautiful Jane Hill Bridal dress called ‘Lottie’ and it truly is a piece of art! It’s so amazing. The dress was a really important part of the day for me and I wasn’t willing to sacrifice anything for it. Leading up to the wedding I had looked at lots of dresses and even went on a girls weekend away to Sydney to see the bridal stores there. But I didn’t find ‘the one’ (not even in Vera Wang which I was convinced I would!!). So I came back to Melbourne and started doing research in dresses and styles. I knew what I didn’t want and it was then I started looking at the custom made dresses rather than existing ones. Once I visited Jane Hill I knew I had to have one of her dresses. She was amazing and made me feel at ease and could see my vision for my wedding. She understood the style and theme for the day and how I needed a dress to fit that feel theme. She knew how to make me feel like the most amazing bride ever! So I left that day knowing my dress would be made at Jane Hill but not what dress it would be. A few months later I visited the store but Jane wasn’t there. I met with Sophie who made me try on ‘Lottie’. I wasn’t convinced but once it was on I had that ‘this is the one’ moment and it was meant to be. I love my dress and want to find a million other times to wear it again but sadly I haven’t just yet. It’s hanging up where I can look at it whenever I feel like it. It truly is an amazing dress.

7. Any funny stories in the lead up to or on the day?

A friend split his pants on the dancefloor while in a break dancing competition with my little brother. Just picture this; a 40 year old busting some moves and trying to do a backflip versus a 18 year old who could do back flips.

It surprised everyone that the two of us jumped on the bus home with them at the end of the night. And me tossing my bouquet to the girls as we arrived at our hotel.

Finally, Matt ran into my girlfriends on the morning of the wedding in the main town. He was in a bit of a panic trying to find a wedding card for me. My girlfriends thought Matt had totally forgotten some special wedding tradition.

8. Advice for other couples planning a wedding?

Stick to your guns and do what it is that you want to do. The day is about you two as a couple and making sure it highlights the important things to you. Incorporate family and friends and make it fun for everyone but I think at the end of the day you need to be able to look back and be happy about everything you did for your special day. There isn’t a thing we did that we would change and I like that we were happy with the outcome. From the venue to the flowers to the dress to the style; it all just came together. There were some things we wanted to do and didn’t get a chance to but at the end of the day that didn’t matter. We made sure we got what we wanted out of the day and like I said we’d do it again in a heartbeat!

VENDOR CREDITS

Photos: Robert Hock

Bridal gown: Jane Hill Bridal

Veil or hair piece: Jane Hill

Shoes: Wittner

Flowers: Blooming Brides

Rings: Hardy Brothers Jewellers and Lord Coconut

Jewellery/Accessories: Earrings - Samantha Wills Bracelet - Isabel Marant

Bridesmaids dresses: Myer and Cue

Grooms and Groomsmen suits: Dom Bagnato from Myer

Grooms Shoes: Urge Footwear

Bow ties / ties: Dom Bagnato from Myer

Flower girl and Page Boys: Bardot Junior

Ceremony and Reception: Zonzo’s Yarra Valley

Cake: The Cake Company

Cake topper: Flowers from Blooming Brides

Stationery designer: DIY design by bride and groom and printed by Melbourne Laser Cutter (MLC)

Hair and Make up: Hair by Hannah 0402 008 802 and Make-Up by Belinda 0419 518 459

Music: Baker Boys Band

Celebrant: Guy Gurney

Photo Booth: Photobooth.

Tag: DIY Wedding