Where did you first met: We first met at a summer camp in Omarama, in December 2008. We both had an interest in one another . . . well Simon did straight away but I took a bit longer to catch on, as I thought he had a crush on my friend, who in fact was his second cousin. Just over a year after we first met, we became an official couple after playing the "just friends" cards for some time. Not long after we were an item, I moved to Dunedin and Simon to Christchurch, so we had three years of long-distance.
The proposal: The proposal happened at Signal Hill in Dunedin, where I was asked to go with some friends. Simon jumped out of some bushes behind me, giving me a big surprise, as I thought he was in Christchurch. My friends were pretty stoked because they got to witness the whole thing!
The venue: The wedding was held at the East Taieri Church in Mosgiel, a beautifully big old stone steeple church with stained-glass windows. The reception was held at Tautuku Fishing Club, Smaills Beach, Dunedin. It is a beautiful old stone building with an attached conservatory, where we held the reception.
We chose the venues because the church was able to seat all our guests comfortably; it's more private than other churches, as it is off the road and surrounded by trees; it has a newly renovated hall and kitchen, where we served afternoon tea. The fishing club we chose because it was able to take our 140 guests with plenty of room to move around; it is located out of town in a rural area, so it was quiet and private; it has plenty of parking space and we were able to decorate it as we wanted, as it's a big empty space.
Your dress: My dress was an ivory lace gown from Je T'aime Bridal Boutique in Dunedin. It was the first dress I tried on, but I wasn't 100% sure about it as it had an over-the-top sash around it which wouldn't come off easily. After going to other shops I came back to this gown and convinced the shop assistant to take the sash off for me. Once it was off I knew it was the one.
Bridesmaids' dresses: The bridesmaids' dresses were in apricot chiffon, from House of Kavina in Dunedin. They were slightly different styles, with different drapery around the bust and my maid of honour had a flower sash around hers.
The flowers: The flowers were put together by Jen Paul from "Thanks a Bunch" in Milton. The bouquets were a mix of roses, carnations, gypsophila and freesias, in white, baby pink and apricot. She also did the flower girls' flower crowns, the buttonholes and the flowers on the tables at the reception. Everything she put together was exactly how I envisioned it.
The caterers: The caterers were Just Essence Catering, who have a delicious menu to choose from. We had a buffet for dinner and two options for dessert. Everyone commented on how good the food was!
What was your highlight? The highlight of the day would be the vows Simon and I made to each other. We wrote them ourselves so they were very personal, even brought a tear to the eye of some of our guests; Dunedin put on beautiful hot sunny weather, but a week before the wedding it was looking to be the complete opposite; and especially us becoming husband and wife!
Photographer: Our photographer was Kimberley Cheyne Photography and our videographer was Jdmit Productions. They both captured the day so perfectly and were awesome to work with! One of my favourite pictures is just after we had kissed in the church and you can see the love and happiness in our faces.
