Our wedding-day preparation was simple and relaxed. The girls and I got ready at my parents' family home while listening to music from our high school days. Keeping with the rustic theme, we all had messy up-dos with a small accent of sparkle. Influenced by my Napier upbringing, both my gown and the girls' dresses had an Art Deco feel to them. Beaded from top to bottom, I embraced the 'go big or go home' motto.
The boys wore charcoal suits with white bow ties. As Mike has a passion for hunting, I found some deer-head cufflinks as a gift for him on the day. The boys had matching shotgun shells as their cufflinks.
Flowers were a huge part of our wedding and my bouquet was the most beautiful I'd ever seen. It weighed close to 10kg and I enjoyed every cramp in my arm as I walked down the aisle! For the ceremony, Mike built a big macrocarpa arch for us to be wed under. It was covered in hydrangeas from my mum's garden and other random greenery such as carrots that had gone to seed.
Our ceremony was short and sweet. We exchanged vows that were a mix of the traditional promises and a few personalised lines. Afterwards we enjoyed canapés and bubbles with our guests before the bridal party left for photos.
We returned to the reception venue to spend the evening with our closest friends and family. Our seating was arranged into two long banquet tables so our guests could interact with each other. The tables were covered in a light-grey linen cloth with huge hand-tied olives running down the centre. Scattered alongside the olives were crystal taper candles. There was also a dessert table set up with three cakes and a mix of lollies for guests to enjoy throughout the night.
We laughed nonstop listening to speeches, and danced until midnight. By the time the bus arrived to take our guests home, we knew every dollar spent had been worth it. Our wedding day was truly the best day of our lives.